The_Wanderer
New member
Hi guys, I'm new here and have a question...
I bought a 2018 PRS SE Standard 24 for a really good price. It plays wonderfully for an Indonesian import. Body and neck are both Mahogany, rosewood fretboard, vintage style tremolo.
However the 85/15S pickups leave something to be desired. Cleans are okay, leads are better than expected. Neck pickup has some good sustain and is smooth on leads, but the bridge rhythm distortion however is really weak. I generally play modern metal for the most part, kind of similar to Killswitch Engage - not extremely heavy but there are some chugs with some clean parts thrown in.
My main rhythm guitar is a Schecter C1, also all mahogany, and I run an EMG 81/85 set on this. I don't like doing leads on this guitar because I use heavier gauge strings for rhythm. With the 25.5 inch scale, that is rough for bends. I have the PRS set up for 9s/10s and it plays really fast, so I want it to be my lead machine for recording. I don't want to do an active conversion. I have yet to hear an EMG HZ passive that sounds good to me. They all sound like the standard soulless EMG pickups but without any of what makes EMGs sound good on record. I'd like to put a set of US SDs in them simply due to the fact that they're affordable and I know the quality. I have a guitar with a JB/Jazz set and I don't want another. They aren't my absolute favorite but they have their uses. I've watched pretty much every pickup shootout video I could find on youtube. I've come to the decision that my favorite standalone bridge pickup is the SH-5 Custom. But I'm a bit lost on what to choose for the neck. I know the 59 will blend well with the Custom, but I don't know how it will sound when combined with EMGs in a mix. Anyone have any experience with this, or have any recommendations? I want something that I don't have to completely mess up my EQs/amp settings for (minus adjusting gain/volume) to get to sound good in a song.
Sorry for the long post, but I've been dwelling on this question for a while. I've been wondering if it's even answerable. :laugh2: Neck pickup shootouts are kind of rare in comparison to bridges. Anyone who has any insight or recommendations will be very much appreciated.
I bought a 2018 PRS SE Standard 24 for a really good price. It plays wonderfully for an Indonesian import. Body and neck are both Mahogany, rosewood fretboard, vintage style tremolo.
However the 85/15S pickups leave something to be desired. Cleans are okay, leads are better than expected. Neck pickup has some good sustain and is smooth on leads, but the bridge rhythm distortion however is really weak. I generally play modern metal for the most part, kind of similar to Killswitch Engage - not extremely heavy but there are some chugs with some clean parts thrown in.
My main rhythm guitar is a Schecter C1, also all mahogany, and I run an EMG 81/85 set on this. I don't like doing leads on this guitar because I use heavier gauge strings for rhythm. With the 25.5 inch scale, that is rough for bends. I have the PRS set up for 9s/10s and it plays really fast, so I want it to be my lead machine for recording. I don't want to do an active conversion. I have yet to hear an EMG HZ passive that sounds good to me. They all sound like the standard soulless EMG pickups but without any of what makes EMGs sound good on record. I'd like to put a set of US SDs in them simply due to the fact that they're affordable and I know the quality. I have a guitar with a JB/Jazz set and I don't want another. They aren't my absolute favorite but they have their uses. I've watched pretty much every pickup shootout video I could find on youtube. I've come to the decision that my favorite standalone bridge pickup is the SH-5 Custom. But I'm a bit lost on what to choose for the neck. I know the 59 will blend well with the Custom, but I don't know how it will sound when combined with EMGs in a mix. Anyone have any experience with this, or have any recommendations? I want something that I don't have to completely mess up my EQs/amp settings for (minus adjusting gain/volume) to get to sound good in a song.
Sorry for the long post, but I've been dwelling on this question for a while. I've been wondering if it's even answerable. :laugh2: Neck pickup shootouts are kind of rare in comparison to bridges. Anyone who has any insight or recommendations will be very much appreciated.
