oblique63
New member
So, I've been on a bit of a 'tone quest' lately, since I decided to start getting serious about recording my first solo album, and I've been hunting for a tone that's somewhat of a hybrid between Dave Mustaine thrashiness and sweedish death metal heaviness on the bridge pickup, and something of a bright, creamy, yet crystal clear tone on the neck for cleans and leads... this has led me through a wild (and expensive) goose chase testing out different pickups, so I figured I'd share my ongoing 'tests' here...
All my recordings are through an Axe-Fx II, using either the 'Clean USA' preset for cleans, or a custom Diezel VH4 type preset with Ownhammer impulses for the dirty stuff. Also, I record DI tracks for all my takes, so let me know if there's interest so that I can put them up somewhere for you guys to reamp them through your own gear, because exporting these samples as mp3s, then uploading them to soundcloud definitely made them noticeably lossy...
All the passives were recorded in a mahogony LTD V (using a duncan liberator), I also have a basswood Ibanez handling all the EMG-compatible stuff, and a mahogany Ibanez Iceman dedicated to the Dave Mustaine Livewire set.
Anyways, have a preemptive apology for my sloppy playing, and on to the demos!
UPDATE: Switched my Axe Fx settings to get a better tone, and reamped all the original bridge demos. You can check out the original demos here: http://soundcloud.com/oblique63/sets/bridge-pickup-shootout-old
Also added the Bill Lawrence L90, EMG 85, Duncan AHB-1 Blackouts, and several magnet swapping experiments to the bridge comparison.
UPDATE 2: Reamped the lead in the neck samples, and added a ton more pickups/variations:
BRIDGE
- Duncan JB + A8 / Ceramic / Unoriented Ceramic variations
- Gibson 500T + hex pole-piece variation
- Dimarzio Evolution
- Dimarzio Super 3
- Dimarzio Dominion with A8+flathead screw pole-pieces on bottom variation / A9+screw pole-pieces variation / A5 with screw pole pieces / Unoriented Ceramic+ screw pole-pieces variation
NECK
- Dimarzio Gravity Storm with A2 / A3 / A4+flathead screw pole-pieces on top variation / A5 / A6 / Big Ceramic / Unoriented Ceramic
However, due to the lengthy size of this post, I'm only going to include the 'highlights' here; for the full list of samples, check out the sets on soundcloud
Bridge: https://soundcloud.com/oblique63/sets/bridge-pickup-shootout
Neck: https://soundcloud.com/oblique63/sets/neck-pickup-shootout
UPDATE 1/17/13:
- Added a number of clips of the Gravity Storm Neck in the bridge position, with several different magnets.
- Added clips of the Duncan [Designed/Performer] Detonator (HB-108B), with its stock Big Ceramic magnet, and Alnico 8/9 magnets as well.
- All of these clips are in the bridge pickup shootout set on my soundcloud that I linked to above.
***Notice: I saw that sometimes when I load this page, some of the samples show up as 'not available'; I believe this is probably due to the fact that there are so many tracks embedded on here, but rest assured, the tracks are indeed all up. Just follow the links below where the player would be and you should be able to listen to the samples directly on soundcloud. ***
BRIDGE PICKUPS
----------------
Duncan Distortion
I figure this is as good a baseline pickup as any around here, so yeah
Duncan Distortion (with Alnico 5)
Smoother and more balanced sounding than with the default ceramic magnet.
Duncan Distortion (with Alnico 6)
Still full sounding like the A5, but much brighter... brighter than the original ceramic version. Not bad, but may get tiring to listen to...
Duncan Distortion (with Alnico 8)
All the Duncan pickups I've heard with A8 magnets always sound a bit too 'modern' for me (i.e. scooped and compressed), and this one is no different... though, I certainly liked it more than the samples I've heard of the Alternative 8 and Custom 8. It is really full sounding, but seems to kinda defeat the purpose of the DD, which is its cutting upper mid-range spike.
Duncan Distortion (with Alnico 9)
Now this is what I'm talking about. All the goodness of the A8, but without the 'scooping'. I think I like it better than the stock version, so its probably my 2nd favorite variation next to the...
Duncan Distortion (with Unoriented Ceramic)
My favorite DD variation. Big Bold and Beefy like the A9/A8, but without all the compression, and still bright, mid-rangey and clear like the original ceramic.
Duncan JB
Ah, the infamous love it or hate it pickup. Personally, I'm very much in the 'love it' camp; what others might describe as 'honky', is just the perfect amount of mids for my taste, blended with just the right amount of graininess. I seriously prefer the stock version of this pup over any of the other variations I tried with it, and I think I even like it more than the Distortion... However, unlike the Distortion, it's bottom end is a bit loose (fun fact: it's bottom end seems to come almost entirely from it's flathead screw pole pieces. Tried it out with some hex pieces, and it just turned it into the thinnest sounding crap ever)
Duncan JB (with Ceramic)
Just to dispel the myth that this combo is the same as a Duncan Distortion... really doesn't sound like it at all to me, it just lacks the bottom-end balls for that. It's not bad sounding by any means, but it does soften the mids a bit more than I would've liked.
Duncan JB (with Alnico 8)
I did this one because it seemed to be a rather popular variation of the JB. Going into it, I thought this might help with the bottom-end problem the JB has, but was uncertain about what would happen to my precious mids... What came out instead was... unexpected, to put it nicely. Really didn't like this combination at all. Just muddy sounding all around, way too heavy on the lower mids, and surprisingly hollow sounding. I seriously thought it was a wiring issue at first, but I triple checked and everything was fine (not to mention that it'd be hard to screw up wiring a pup into a liberator in the first place), and I even left it on my guitar for a good number of days to make sure I wasn't just hearing things or something, but nope... I guess this pickup really does live up to its 'love-it-or-hate-it' reputation after all...
Duncan Custom/59 Hybrid
Really liked the way this sounded for metal in other demos I heard, so I had to try it in person. It's really nice. The midrange voicing sounds a bit similar to the DD to me, which is cool, but it's a bit lacking in the top end and upper mids to give it a nice bark. Might have to check out a Custom/JB or Custom/DD hybrid at some point...
Duncan Custom/59 Hybrid (with Big Ceramic)
Swapped the magnet for the Distortion's large ceramic one. Ended up sounding like a fatter Duncan Distortion almost... pretty nice.
Duncan Custom/59 Hybrid (with Alnico 9)
Interesting... a bit too bright and compressed now.
Duncan Custom/59 Hybrid (with Unoriented Ceramic)
Sounds more like the original A5 version than the Big Ceramic version. It's reasonably bright like the ceramic version, but still has this full, fat bottom end like the A5 version. Still like the Big Ceramic version the best.
Dimarzio Diminion
The new Dimarzio signature pup for Mark Morton (Lamb of God). Sounds surprisingly similar to the EMG 81 to me, though with even more articulation and note-separation... which is pretty insane. As with the 81, I like the voicing, but sounds a bit thin...
Dimarzio Diminion (with flathead screw pole-pieces on bottom row
Man this pickup is thin; even with this mod it's bottom-end is still not quite on par even with the JB, but it's a little more bearable at least. And its signature articulation and clarity are all still there, which is awesome.
Dimarzio Diminion (with Alnico 5 and flathead screw pole-pieces on bottom row
Now we're talking; no thin-ness here. This, along with the A8/A9 variations are all very close to the ideal tone I've been looking for this whole time. Up until I tried this variation I was close to feeling a bit disappointed with my purchase, but now with this I can totally get that sort of really crunchy yet articulate tone with a tight bottom end. This one's a keeper.
Dimarzio Diminion (with Alnico 8 and flathead screw pole-pieces on bottom row
Probably my absolute favorite pickup out of this whole comparison. Much more ballsy bottom-end than the A5, though the mid frequencies are unfortunately a bit lower as well. And while it's still a tad bit on the fuzzy side, the wind on the Dominion is so absurdly articulate that it still stands out as being super clear. Just listen to how the individual note parts sound in comparison to the other pickups; it's like this pickup can tell when you're doing single note stuff and tones it down accordingly to give you amazing clarity, then intelligently goes all out balls to the wall crunchy when doing chords. Just awesome. I also liked the A9 version about equally, though I found that the highs on that one were a bit harsh for recording, but that seems to make it better for cutting through in a live band situation.
Dimarzio Breed
Love the bottom-end articulation on this one. It's basically what the Dominion was modeled after I believe (with the Dominion supposedly having a similar wind, just with a ceramic magnet instead of the A5 mag in this one)
Dimarzio Breed (with Ceramic)
Curiosity got the best of me, and I had to see whether the Breed with a ceramic was in fact anything at all like the Dominion... It was not... This one is totally it's own thing. It still has some of the original A5 Breed's flavor in there, but it's just too fuzzy/muddy for it's own good. I like the midrange/treble on it, but yeah, the articulation totally pales in comparison to the Dominion.
Dimarzio Breed (with Alnico 8)
Wow, this was a surprise. I expected it to sound pretty dark, heavy, scooped and compressed, like the Duncan A8 pickups I've heard, but nope! This one, while definitely heavy, seems to have quite a dynamic midrange bark on it still, while having a controlled bottom end. Very pleasant surprise.
Dimarzio Breed (with Alnico 9)
Now this is a unique one! Definitely one of my favorites on here. The bottom end is still tight and controlled, but the mids and highs have even more emphasis on them, giving it this really unique, aggressive roar of a sound. The note separation is still not quite what I'd like it to be of course, but it's really awesome nonetheless; totally got carried away playing with this bad boy for a good long while before actually getting to record the demo.
Dimarzio Breed (with Unoriented Ceramic)
Seeing as how I really liked this magnet on the DD, I was really curious to see what it could do on the Breed... And it definitely did not disappoint: still very much fat and bright like it was on the DD. Though, given the Breed's particular voicing, I still think I prefer the A9 variation of this one.
Dimarzio Evolution
Not a bad pup at all, but not quite what I was expecting either. The bottom end is much looser than I had anticipated, and the mid frequencies aren't as high as I would've liked. Sounds pretty decent for leads (not surprising from a steve vai pup), but trying fast rhythms on it leaves something to be desired.
Dimarzio Super 3
I'm not a huge fan of the original Super Distortion ('blasphemy!', I know), but this one is supposed to be a less dark version of it, with significantly more mids. And it does deliver just that. I'd say it's somewhere between an Evo and a JB in terms of frequency response, but with the articulation (or lack thereof) of the Breed/500T. Pretty decent, though still a tad bit too dark for my tastes.
Gibson 500T[/B}
Love its awesome 'crunch' sound. Even though I prefer more articulate pickups, it's fuzzy/grainy-ness is totally what makes it so great. Really begs to be played through a Marshall though. Perfect for heavier rock sounds.
Bill Lawrence L90 (8H)
The totally underrated little brother (and ancestor) to the popular L500 series.
Really nice fat, bright sound, though a bit too much so for my tastes. Definitely obvious it's a relative of the L500/Dimebucker, cause of it's strong brightness, but it's a bit more well rounded, and not as hot, so it's good if you just want a sprinkling of that sound. Still too fuzzy for me though.
Bare Knuckle Nailbomb (ceramic)
This is my first BKP, and I gotta say, it is impressive... really nice dynamics and articulation, but man, it's waay fatter than I expected it to be with the ceramic, it's almost like playing an A8 or something... Really good pickup, but not sure if it was entirely what I was looking for...
EMG 81
A good baseline for active people... I actually really like the voicing it has, just wish it had a bit more bottom-end chunk to it.
EMG 85
My first pickup upgrade way back when I was still naive about what tone I wanted... Contrary to popular belief, this is not 'an 81 with more bottom end'. The voicing is noticeably much more towards the darker side, and lacks that upper midrange bite that the 81 has; still does have some of the 81's highs though. The bass on this one is pretty fat, and reasonably controlled, but for reasons already stated, not quite my cup of tea. Still very good for a lot of styles of metal though.
Duncan AHB-1 Blackouts
I believe this is much more of a competitor to the EMG 85 than the 81. It's voiced to be around the same neighborhood as the 85 (bottom-heavy and dark), but with a lot more punch and bite in the mid-range, which made it a lot more appealing to me. Still doesn't have the clarity or brightness of the 81 though.
Dave Mustaine Livewires
My favorite active bridge pup. Wish it had a more presence (like the 81) and a bit less compression, but otherwise pretty awesome.
and now, on to the...
NECK PICKUPS
--------------
EMG 60
The best active neck pickup I've heard, and it's pretty popular too, so should work as a decent baseline...
Bare Knuckle Cold Sweat
The infamous 'Cold Sweat Neck'... it's pretty good. Not sure if it's my favorite out of all of these here, since it's a bit dark at times, but it is a vast improvement over most other neck pickups.
Bill Lawrence L90 (4H - i.e. medium output)
This thing is really great for leads, not sure why so few have caught on to it yet. The only thing that bugs me is its sensitivity to pick attack, because it produces this sort of 'tinny quack' when you strike the strings, and I can see that possibly getting annoying... but otherwise it's fantastic. Except it also feels a bit under-powered at times, so...
Bill Lawrence L90 (8H - i.e. high output)
Originally bought it for the bridge, but I don't know, I'm still on the fence on it for that position. Even though it's the hottest wind available for this pickup, the output is still not that high (and certainly not compared to the L500's I'm sure), but it's enough to make for another interesting neck position choice. The cleans are a bit dark (which is expected), but man, the leads I think are close to perfect. Should probably check out the 6H output version though...
Dimarzio Gravity Storm
The new Steve Vai pup... and it's awesome. Really sounds remarkably like a singlecoil... haven't really decided whether that thin-ness is really something I like, but it sure meets all my other criteria for a good neck pickup.
Dimarzio Gravity Storm (with Alnico 6)
Really nice sound. Fuller sounding than the standard ceramic, and although it's a tad bit warmer, it's still pretty bright. Quite similar to the A2 variation, but with a tad bit more mids.
Dimarzio Gravity Storm (with Alnico 4 and screw pole-pieces on top row)
The A4 is the brightest of the alnicos I tried on this pup, and while it was really nice on its own, I wanted to see if I could get some of that nice crunch/fuzz I get when doing multi-note stuff on the L90s, so I put in some flathead pole-pieces on the top row to dampen its articulation a bit. While it still doesn't have the same character as the L90s in that department, it's still quite awesome. This, and the regular A4 variant are probably the best all-round neck pickups I've heard; equally great cleans and leads. It's not quite as bright as the original ceramic (though, none of the other magnets were either), but it certainly diminishes that sort of sterile feel the original version has, and it yields some pretty sweet results.
-----------------------
Don't forget, I have plenty more samples on my soundcloud because this post is getting too crowded.
Check them out here: https://soundcloud.com/oblique63
All my recordings are through an Axe-Fx II, using either the 'Clean USA' preset for cleans, or a custom Diezel VH4 type preset with Ownhammer impulses for the dirty stuff. Also, I record DI tracks for all my takes, so let me know if there's interest so that I can put them up somewhere for you guys to reamp them through your own gear, because exporting these samples as mp3s, then uploading them to soundcloud definitely made them noticeably lossy...
All the passives were recorded in a mahogony LTD V (using a duncan liberator), I also have a basswood Ibanez handling all the EMG-compatible stuff, and a mahogany Ibanez Iceman dedicated to the Dave Mustaine Livewire set.
Anyways, have a preemptive apology for my sloppy playing, and on to the demos!
UPDATE: Switched my Axe Fx settings to get a better tone, and reamped all the original bridge demos. You can check out the original demos here: http://soundcloud.com/oblique63/sets/bridge-pickup-shootout-old
Also added the Bill Lawrence L90, EMG 85, Duncan AHB-1 Blackouts, and several magnet swapping experiments to the bridge comparison.
UPDATE 2: Reamped the lead in the neck samples, and added a ton more pickups/variations:
BRIDGE
- Duncan JB + A8 / Ceramic / Unoriented Ceramic variations
- Gibson 500T + hex pole-piece variation
- Dimarzio Evolution
- Dimarzio Super 3
- Dimarzio Dominion with A8+flathead screw pole-pieces on bottom variation / A9+screw pole-pieces variation / A5 with screw pole pieces / Unoriented Ceramic+ screw pole-pieces variation
NECK
- Dimarzio Gravity Storm with A2 / A3 / A4+flathead screw pole-pieces on top variation / A5 / A6 / Big Ceramic / Unoriented Ceramic
However, due to the lengthy size of this post, I'm only going to include the 'highlights' here; for the full list of samples, check out the sets on soundcloud
Bridge: https://soundcloud.com/oblique63/sets/bridge-pickup-shootout
Neck: https://soundcloud.com/oblique63/sets/neck-pickup-shootout
UPDATE 1/17/13:
- Added a number of clips of the Gravity Storm Neck in the bridge position, with several different magnets.
- Added clips of the Duncan [Designed/Performer] Detonator (HB-108B), with its stock Big Ceramic magnet, and Alnico 8/9 magnets as well.
- All of these clips are in the bridge pickup shootout set on my soundcloud that I linked to above.
***Notice: I saw that sometimes when I load this page, some of the samples show up as 'not available'; I believe this is probably due to the fact that there are so many tracks embedded on here, but rest assured, the tracks are indeed all up. Just follow the links below where the player would be and you should be able to listen to the samples directly on soundcloud. ***
BRIDGE PICKUPS
----------------
Duncan Distortion
I figure this is as good a baseline pickup as any around here, so yeah
Duncan Distortion (with Alnico 5)
Smoother and more balanced sounding than with the default ceramic magnet.
Duncan Distortion (with Alnico 6)
Still full sounding like the A5, but much brighter... brighter than the original ceramic version. Not bad, but may get tiring to listen to...
Duncan Distortion (with Alnico 8)
All the Duncan pickups I've heard with A8 magnets always sound a bit too 'modern' for me (i.e. scooped and compressed), and this one is no different... though, I certainly liked it more than the samples I've heard of the Alternative 8 and Custom 8. It is really full sounding, but seems to kinda defeat the purpose of the DD, which is its cutting upper mid-range spike.
Duncan Distortion (with Alnico 9)
Now this is what I'm talking about. All the goodness of the A8, but without the 'scooping'. I think I like it better than the stock version, so its probably my 2nd favorite variation next to the...
Duncan Distortion (with Unoriented Ceramic)
My favorite DD variation. Big Bold and Beefy like the A9/A8, but without all the compression, and still bright, mid-rangey and clear like the original ceramic.
Duncan JB
Ah, the infamous love it or hate it pickup. Personally, I'm very much in the 'love it' camp; what others might describe as 'honky', is just the perfect amount of mids for my taste, blended with just the right amount of graininess. I seriously prefer the stock version of this pup over any of the other variations I tried with it, and I think I even like it more than the Distortion... However, unlike the Distortion, it's bottom end is a bit loose (fun fact: it's bottom end seems to come almost entirely from it's flathead screw pole pieces. Tried it out with some hex pieces, and it just turned it into the thinnest sounding crap ever)
Duncan JB (with Ceramic)
Just to dispel the myth that this combo is the same as a Duncan Distortion... really doesn't sound like it at all to me, it just lacks the bottom-end balls for that. It's not bad sounding by any means, but it does soften the mids a bit more than I would've liked.
Duncan JB (with Alnico 8)
I did this one because it seemed to be a rather popular variation of the JB. Going into it, I thought this might help with the bottom-end problem the JB has, but was uncertain about what would happen to my precious mids... What came out instead was... unexpected, to put it nicely. Really didn't like this combination at all. Just muddy sounding all around, way too heavy on the lower mids, and surprisingly hollow sounding. I seriously thought it was a wiring issue at first, but I triple checked and everything was fine (not to mention that it'd be hard to screw up wiring a pup into a liberator in the first place), and I even left it on my guitar for a good number of days to make sure I wasn't just hearing things or something, but nope... I guess this pickup really does live up to its 'love-it-or-hate-it' reputation after all...
Duncan Custom/59 Hybrid
Really liked the way this sounded for metal in other demos I heard, so I had to try it in person. It's really nice. The midrange voicing sounds a bit similar to the DD to me, which is cool, but it's a bit lacking in the top end and upper mids to give it a nice bark. Might have to check out a Custom/JB or Custom/DD hybrid at some point...
Duncan Custom/59 Hybrid (with Big Ceramic)
Swapped the magnet for the Distortion's large ceramic one. Ended up sounding like a fatter Duncan Distortion almost... pretty nice.
Duncan Custom/59 Hybrid (with Alnico 9)
Interesting... a bit too bright and compressed now.
Duncan Custom/59 Hybrid (with Unoriented Ceramic)
Sounds more like the original A5 version than the Big Ceramic version. It's reasonably bright like the ceramic version, but still has this full, fat bottom end like the A5 version. Still like the Big Ceramic version the best.
Dimarzio Diminion
The new Dimarzio signature pup for Mark Morton (Lamb of God). Sounds surprisingly similar to the EMG 81 to me, though with even more articulation and note-separation... which is pretty insane. As with the 81, I like the voicing, but sounds a bit thin...
Dimarzio Diminion (with flathead screw pole-pieces on bottom row
Man this pickup is thin; even with this mod it's bottom-end is still not quite on par even with the JB, but it's a little more bearable at least. And its signature articulation and clarity are all still there, which is awesome.
Dimarzio Diminion (with Alnico 5 and flathead screw pole-pieces on bottom row
Now we're talking; no thin-ness here. This, along with the A8/A9 variations are all very close to the ideal tone I've been looking for this whole time. Up until I tried this variation I was close to feeling a bit disappointed with my purchase, but now with this I can totally get that sort of really crunchy yet articulate tone with a tight bottom end. This one's a keeper.
Dimarzio Diminion (with Alnico 8 and flathead screw pole-pieces on bottom row
Probably my absolute favorite pickup out of this whole comparison. Much more ballsy bottom-end than the A5, though the mid frequencies are unfortunately a bit lower as well. And while it's still a tad bit on the fuzzy side, the wind on the Dominion is so absurdly articulate that it still stands out as being super clear. Just listen to how the individual note parts sound in comparison to the other pickups; it's like this pickup can tell when you're doing single note stuff and tones it down accordingly to give you amazing clarity, then intelligently goes all out balls to the wall crunchy when doing chords. Just awesome. I also liked the A9 version about equally, though I found that the highs on that one were a bit harsh for recording, but that seems to make it better for cutting through in a live band situation.
Dimarzio Breed
Love the bottom-end articulation on this one. It's basically what the Dominion was modeled after I believe (with the Dominion supposedly having a similar wind, just with a ceramic magnet instead of the A5 mag in this one)
Dimarzio Breed (with Ceramic)
Curiosity got the best of me, and I had to see whether the Breed with a ceramic was in fact anything at all like the Dominion... It was not... This one is totally it's own thing. It still has some of the original A5 Breed's flavor in there, but it's just too fuzzy/muddy for it's own good. I like the midrange/treble on it, but yeah, the articulation totally pales in comparison to the Dominion.
Dimarzio Breed (with Alnico 8)
Wow, this was a surprise. I expected it to sound pretty dark, heavy, scooped and compressed, like the Duncan A8 pickups I've heard, but nope! This one, while definitely heavy, seems to have quite a dynamic midrange bark on it still, while having a controlled bottom end. Very pleasant surprise.
Dimarzio Breed (with Alnico 9)
Now this is a unique one! Definitely one of my favorites on here. The bottom end is still tight and controlled, but the mids and highs have even more emphasis on them, giving it this really unique, aggressive roar of a sound. The note separation is still not quite what I'd like it to be of course, but it's really awesome nonetheless; totally got carried away playing with this bad boy for a good long while before actually getting to record the demo.
Dimarzio Breed (with Unoriented Ceramic)
Seeing as how I really liked this magnet on the DD, I was really curious to see what it could do on the Breed... And it definitely did not disappoint: still very much fat and bright like it was on the DD. Though, given the Breed's particular voicing, I still think I prefer the A9 variation of this one.
Dimarzio Evolution
Not a bad pup at all, but not quite what I was expecting either. The bottom end is much looser than I had anticipated, and the mid frequencies aren't as high as I would've liked. Sounds pretty decent for leads (not surprising from a steve vai pup), but trying fast rhythms on it leaves something to be desired.
Dimarzio Super 3
I'm not a huge fan of the original Super Distortion ('blasphemy!', I know), but this one is supposed to be a less dark version of it, with significantly more mids. And it does deliver just that. I'd say it's somewhere between an Evo and a JB in terms of frequency response, but with the articulation (or lack thereof) of the Breed/500T. Pretty decent, though still a tad bit too dark for my tastes.
Gibson 500T[/B}
Love its awesome 'crunch' sound. Even though I prefer more articulate pickups, it's fuzzy/grainy-ness is totally what makes it so great. Really begs to be played through a Marshall though. Perfect for heavier rock sounds.
Bill Lawrence L90 (8H)
The totally underrated little brother (and ancestor) to the popular L500 series.
Really nice fat, bright sound, though a bit too much so for my tastes. Definitely obvious it's a relative of the L500/Dimebucker, cause of it's strong brightness, but it's a bit more well rounded, and not as hot, so it's good if you just want a sprinkling of that sound. Still too fuzzy for me though.
Bare Knuckle Nailbomb (ceramic)
This is my first BKP, and I gotta say, it is impressive... really nice dynamics and articulation, but man, it's waay fatter than I expected it to be with the ceramic, it's almost like playing an A8 or something... Really good pickup, but not sure if it was entirely what I was looking for...
EMG 81
A good baseline for active people... I actually really like the voicing it has, just wish it had a bit more bottom-end chunk to it.
EMG 85
My first pickup upgrade way back when I was still naive about what tone I wanted... Contrary to popular belief, this is not 'an 81 with more bottom end'. The voicing is noticeably much more towards the darker side, and lacks that upper midrange bite that the 81 has; still does have some of the 81's highs though. The bass on this one is pretty fat, and reasonably controlled, but for reasons already stated, not quite my cup of tea. Still very good for a lot of styles of metal though.
Duncan AHB-1 Blackouts
I believe this is much more of a competitor to the EMG 85 than the 81. It's voiced to be around the same neighborhood as the 85 (bottom-heavy and dark), but with a lot more punch and bite in the mid-range, which made it a lot more appealing to me. Still doesn't have the clarity or brightness of the 81 though.
Dave Mustaine Livewires
My favorite active bridge pup. Wish it had a more presence (like the 81) and a bit less compression, but otherwise pretty awesome.
and now, on to the...
NECK PICKUPS
--------------
EMG 60
The best active neck pickup I've heard, and it's pretty popular too, so should work as a decent baseline...
Bare Knuckle Cold Sweat
The infamous 'Cold Sweat Neck'... it's pretty good. Not sure if it's my favorite out of all of these here, since it's a bit dark at times, but it is a vast improvement over most other neck pickups.
Bill Lawrence L90 (4H - i.e. medium output)
This thing is really great for leads, not sure why so few have caught on to it yet. The only thing that bugs me is its sensitivity to pick attack, because it produces this sort of 'tinny quack' when you strike the strings, and I can see that possibly getting annoying... but otherwise it's fantastic. Except it also feels a bit under-powered at times, so...
Bill Lawrence L90 (8H - i.e. high output)
Originally bought it for the bridge, but I don't know, I'm still on the fence on it for that position. Even though it's the hottest wind available for this pickup, the output is still not that high (and certainly not compared to the L500's I'm sure), but it's enough to make for another interesting neck position choice. The cleans are a bit dark (which is expected), but man, the leads I think are close to perfect. Should probably check out the 6H output version though...
Dimarzio Gravity Storm
The new Steve Vai pup... and it's awesome. Really sounds remarkably like a singlecoil... haven't really decided whether that thin-ness is really something I like, but it sure meets all my other criteria for a good neck pickup.
Dimarzio Gravity Storm (with Alnico 6)
Really nice sound. Fuller sounding than the standard ceramic, and although it's a tad bit warmer, it's still pretty bright. Quite similar to the A2 variation, but with a tad bit more mids.
Dimarzio Gravity Storm (with Alnico 4 and screw pole-pieces on top row)
The A4 is the brightest of the alnicos I tried on this pup, and while it was really nice on its own, I wanted to see if I could get some of that nice crunch/fuzz I get when doing multi-note stuff on the L90s, so I put in some flathead pole-pieces on the top row to dampen its articulation a bit. While it still doesn't have the same character as the L90s in that department, it's still quite awesome. This, and the regular A4 variant are probably the best all-round neck pickups I've heard; equally great cleans and leads. It's not quite as bright as the original ceramic (though, none of the other magnets were either), but it certainly diminishes that sort of sterile feel the original version has, and it yields some pretty sweet results.
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Don't forget, I have plenty more samples on my soundcloud because this post is getting too crowded.
Check them out here: https://soundcloud.com/oblique63
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