timhatimay
New member
Hi Everyone,
I have a long overdue review of the pickups I put into my guitar. Since, everyone here was nice enough to advise me on my selection, I've been meaning to do a thorough review. The pickups are the P-Rails in the neck and the Full Shred (FS) in the bridge.
The P-Rail:
I started with the PR in the traditional/intended orientation. I loved all of the sounds, but the difference in tone between each of the modes was very subtle. The rail was not a great single coil sound on its own either. I ended up switching it so the rail is closest to the neck. It made a drastic change in the rail sound. I feel the P90 may have lost a bit of its bite, but it may just be in my head. I think the parallel sound was improved in this orientation as well. I did lose some "quack" when combining the singles as well (will talk about below).
Now i find the rail to have a great single coil sound. Not quite as chimey and bright as a strat of course, but its unmistakably single. The notes are well defined and it is quite bright. Its pretty good for imitating Fender style tones, and I really enjoy the rail coil by itself. Parallel mode sounds closer to the rail, but combines some of the characteristics and tones of the series HB and P90. Its has a great midrange sound, and it very warm and full. It really does remind me of a vintage PU. I've probably spent more time on this mode than any other. Its pretty defined, and has some major bite. It does get a little boomy, and can be somewhat muddy. However, I think this adds to the vintage flavor. This mode is very nice clean as well, and depending on my right hand can be smooth and clean or a little raw and distorted. It seems to share this aspect of the P90 in that it can really respond to the picking and be smooth or a powerhouse. The P90 mode is great. I've never really played any P90's before, and they are really cool. Its got the good characteristics of a single, stays articulate, but is seriously rude. Its darker with a lot of mids, but the highs still sing and lows stay defined. I have to spend some more time with the P90, but I think this will become my favorite Mode. The series mode was surprising as well. I didn't expect to really like it, but its a great compliment to my FS bridge. Its nice and creamy with a nice low end. It seems a bit scooped with the mids not as present, and with focus mostly on the bass. I find it really fun for smooth leads and also some crunchy rhythms. The output is pretty high though, so its not great for most cleans (my amp has very little headroom keep in mind).
Full Shred:
This is what seemed to be the most highly recommended in my previous thread, and is the pickup I was leaning towards as well. I have to say that the forum members must know what they are talking about, because it is just what I was looking for. In series mode its has a great eq and character. The mids are the dominant part which I like for this type of pup. It still maintains some singing and searing highs (but not screeching and uncomfortable). The bass is slightly less intense, but has excellent definition. The pickup is very articulate, and will show flaws in playing, but I really like its tone. So far seems great for classic metal, heavier rock, new style metal, and most aggressive style music. It seems to be my ideal bridge pickup. Also, the other modes are quite useable as well. The bridge single by itself is very bright and even twangy. Its been useful as a mock tele so far; sounds like a really bright single. The neck single is similar in sound, but more tame. It works well for a bridge style single, without being as harsh. The parallel mode is nice too. I picture this like the SD Jazz pup (even though I've never played it). Its very bright with great articulation, but is lower output and cleans up nicely. The differences between configurations is more subtle on the FS, but each has some places where it excels.
I have a long overdue review of the pickups I put into my guitar. Since, everyone here was nice enough to advise me on my selection, I've been meaning to do a thorough review. The pickups are the P-Rails in the neck and the Full Shred (FS) in the bridge.
The P-Rail:
I started with the PR in the traditional/intended orientation. I loved all of the sounds, but the difference in tone between each of the modes was very subtle. The rail was not a great single coil sound on its own either. I ended up switching it so the rail is closest to the neck. It made a drastic change in the rail sound. I feel the P90 may have lost a bit of its bite, but it may just be in my head. I think the parallel sound was improved in this orientation as well. I did lose some "quack" when combining the singles as well (will talk about below).
Now i find the rail to have a great single coil sound. Not quite as chimey and bright as a strat of course, but its unmistakably single. The notes are well defined and it is quite bright. Its pretty good for imitating Fender style tones, and I really enjoy the rail coil by itself. Parallel mode sounds closer to the rail, but combines some of the characteristics and tones of the series HB and P90. Its has a great midrange sound, and it very warm and full. It really does remind me of a vintage PU. I've probably spent more time on this mode than any other. Its pretty defined, and has some major bite. It does get a little boomy, and can be somewhat muddy. However, I think this adds to the vintage flavor. This mode is very nice clean as well, and depending on my right hand can be smooth and clean or a little raw and distorted. It seems to share this aspect of the P90 in that it can really respond to the picking and be smooth or a powerhouse. The P90 mode is great. I've never really played any P90's before, and they are really cool. Its got the good characteristics of a single, stays articulate, but is seriously rude. Its darker with a lot of mids, but the highs still sing and lows stay defined. I have to spend some more time with the P90, but I think this will become my favorite Mode. The series mode was surprising as well. I didn't expect to really like it, but its a great compliment to my FS bridge. Its nice and creamy with a nice low end. It seems a bit scooped with the mids not as present, and with focus mostly on the bass. I find it really fun for smooth leads and also some crunchy rhythms. The output is pretty high though, so its not great for most cleans (my amp has very little headroom keep in mind).
Full Shred:
This is what seemed to be the most highly recommended in my previous thread, and is the pickup I was leaning towards as well. I have to say that the forum members must know what they are talking about, because it is just what I was looking for. In series mode its has a great eq and character. The mids are the dominant part which I like for this type of pup. It still maintains some singing and searing highs (but not screeching and uncomfortable). The bass is slightly less intense, but has excellent definition. The pickup is very articulate, and will show flaws in playing, but I really like its tone. So far seems great for classic metal, heavier rock, new style metal, and most aggressive style music. It seems to be my ideal bridge pickup. Also, the other modes are quite useable as well. The bridge single by itself is very bright and even twangy. Its been useful as a mock tele so far; sounds like a really bright single. The neck single is similar in sound, but more tame. It works well for a bridge style single, without being as harsh. The parallel mode is nice too. I picture this like the SD Jazz pup (even though I've never played it). Its very bright with great articulation, but is lower output and cleans up nicely. The differences between configurations is more subtle on the FS, but each has some places where it excels.
