Pickup Combinations that DON'T work

[Vincent]

Here's something different:

Most people have raved on and on and started multiple threads about their favourite p/u combos.

I want to hear about the 'hits and misses', in other words, pickup combinations that have been tried but just don't sound acceptable.

State your guitar type, i.e. strat, LP, superstrat etc.
State the guitar's wood
State whether fixed bridge, floyd rose, or traditional style trem etc etc.
And of course pickups in other positions.

I'll start.

Early this year, I thought I would replace the pickups on my Ibanez S-series (mahogany) for a Dimarzio Breed and Dimarzio Evolution (b) I wanted the sweet fat tones of the Breed with the blazing rawness of the Evo in the bridge.

The breed was spot-on but the Evo was disappointing. The Floyd-trem made it sound thin and harsh. Strangely enough, it didn't sound mid-range full, but rather just very harsh. Currently debating changing to a custom-custom (b).

OK, your turn, guys.

 

[RACER X]

Re: Pickup Combinations that DON'T work

Well i only play single hum guitars so i never run into that problem. But i have to change guitars alot.

 

[\m/(00)\m/]

Re: Pickup Combinations that DON'T work

i installed an INvader in my friends Ibanez destroyer(explorer copy) and it was very muddy. just a very big overwhelming bass and mids.

but now i have a Custom in my san dimas charvel, a super distortion in my les paul and a 59 in my charvel model 1 and couldn't be happier. though im gonna change the neck pickup on the les paul to something else(stock right now)

 

[Rainmaker]

Re: Pickup Combinations that DON'T work

Invader shouldn't be in anything else but a thinner guitar, ie. strat...

Neck pickup shouldn't be less than half of the DC resistance of the bridge pickup...

A high-end heavy pickup in a strat-like guitar with maple fretboard... would be too bright.

Some pickups seem to fit in everything, the Custom series... etc.

I'm not sure about the validity of my statements but I think it hits about right.

 

[RACER X]

Re: Pickup Combinations that DON'T work

Maple is bright and so are Strats, so the pup of choice would be a CUSTOM. JMO

 

[Artie]

Re: Pickup Combinations that DON'T work

Well, I gotta admit, that now that I've played with it awhile, my dual-humbucker Patriot, isn't working out that great with having two Stag Mags in there. The Stag's really need something to augment them, and I'll be swapping some things around sometime here in the next week or so.

I think I'm going to put one SM with a 59, and the other with a C5. We'll see how that works out.

BTW - Its a laminate body hardtail, but I don't think that has all that much to do with the problem. I don't think two SM's are really meant to go together this way. On the other hand, it was a good experiment to see how each coil sounded split in each of the four positions: N/S bridge, and N/S neck.

 

[Vincent]

Re: Pickup Combinations that DON'T work

I'm not sure about this, but I was told to avoid laminated-wood guitars, i.e. mexican made strats 'cos they sounded thin. Basically any pickup combination would not substantially improve the sound of these laminated-wood guitars.

Is this true, or is it just a myth?

 

[rspst14]

Re: Pickup Combinations that DON'T work

I didn't like the C5 in my Wolfgang. It has a maple on basswood body, maple neck, and a Floyd Rose. The C5 was too bassy, too scooped in the mids, and piercingly shrill in the treble.

Ryan

 

[MattPete]

Re: Pickup Combinations that DON'T work

I didn't like the C5 in my Warmoth VIP. It's maple on mahogany, and I found the C5 to be too boomy, yet too thing. Maybe it would work better on a thinner mahogany guitar without a maple cap, like a mahogany strat...

On the other hand, I did try it in my mahogany strat, and I thought it sounded too thin. Maybe it would work if it had a hardtail and not a Floyd Rose. In that same guitar, I thought the CC sounded like an AM radio -- I guess it was the lack of lows in the guitar coupled with the lack of lows in the CC. Having said that, the CC sounds great in the maple/mahogany VIP -- the same guitar in which the C5 sounded too boomy and thin.

 

[Imp]

Re: Pickup Combinations that DON'T work

I'm not sure about this, but I was told to avoid laminated-wood guitars, i.e. mexican made strats 'cos they sounded thin. Basically any pickup combination would not substantially improve the sound of these laminated-wood guitars.

Is this true, or is it just a myth?

after fitting lil 59(B) and hot rails(N) in a sunburst mexi strat, to my ears the guitar has just come alive!

besides, isnt it only the sunburst mexis that have a maple cap? les pauls have the same kinda thing?

 

[Metalman_666]

Re: Pickup Combinations that DON'T work

hmmm I would have to say the stock pup combo in my alder MIM strat... I know they're meant to go together... but something about them doesn't sit right with me... the bridge is wayyy hotter than the neck pup.... it's like fitting a LiveWire Heavy Metal with a really low output pup! Obviously I'm exaggerating, but really, not by that much lol.

 

[RACER X]

Re: Pickup Combinations that DON'T work

Vincent, any luck yet ?

 

[mongrollo]

Re: Pickup Combinations that DON'T work

The 59/JB combo didn't work for me. I have tried in a mahogany/eosewood and in a mahogany/ebony. Too many diferences in the tone... Apart that I don't particulary like the JB.

 

[fenderiarhs]

Re: Pickup Combinations that DON'T work

I've tried both the C5 and the dimarzio tone zone in my floyd rose maple necked equipped strat......i didn't like the C5 because of its lack of mids....sounded kinda empty....i ended up converting it to a CC which is a better pickup(at least for strats)......the tone zone was quite artificial sounding sounded very unnatural...and i sold it after a week........so i went back to an old good and trusted pickup.....JB

 

[beandip]

Re: Pickup Combinations that DON'T work

alot of people think that laminate bodies equal poor tone, and I'm sure that there's a bassis for that somewhere, but I have yet to find it. I've found that laminate bodies allow more of the pickup and neck to take over than everything working together. Oh, BTW, Fender Mexi strats arnt laminate bodies.