Inflames626
New member
Another thought is I could build a Strat with a JB Jr. in the neck but I think the tone might be different due to the coil geometry being different from the humbucker.
Pickup to compliment JB in neck
- Thread starter Inflames626
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Bill Dennis
New member
With a JB in the neck, I don't know what would balance with that as a bridge pickup.
Rex_Rocker
Well-known member
You'd be surprised. I used to have a Black Winter in the bridge with a JB in the neck, and the BW overpowered the JB. By quite a bit, actually.
Dave Locher
New member
I think you are right. It's not what the OP is looking for, though
I don't think there's an answer to balancing a JB in the neck without being able to use a hot pickup or break up a matched set. You either need to be open to using a hotter pickup in the bridge or trying to find some alternative lower output pickup in the neck that has JB like qualities and maybe boosting it for leads.
alex1fly
New member
I've had a JB in the neck and a PAF Pro in the bridge of my SG for a couple months now. The JB is surprisingly juicy for cleans - you just have to not dime the guitar volume. And the mid hump helps the sound cut. The PAF Pro in the bridge is a really fun match - very musical, responsive, articulate, not too hot. Good balance volume-wise between the two. I just figured what the heck, and have been really enjoying it.
eclecticsynergy
New member
You might consider the Perpetual Burn. Balanced, articulate, singing, not ridiculously hot, cleans up nicey.
Was originally going to suggest the Distortion Neck which makes a very good bridge pickup.
In this case I think it'd probably be too bright to suit you though.
Was originally going to suggest the Distortion Neck which makes a very good bridge pickup.
In this case I think it'd probably be too bright to suit you though.
Aceman
I am your doctor of love!
By compliment...I always thing "Give me what the other pickup does NOT have.
So to Compliment the JB, I'm looking for scoop and tight bass.
I would suggest the Custom. You'll find it too hot probably (Although a JB in the neck is still pretty hot....). Two alternatives:
- The 59/Custom hybrid. More spicy than the plain 59 and in the right zone, or...
- The Custom 5. Similar to the 498 you like but "better" (don't ask how). Also scooped miss, tight bass, and bright highs.
So to Compliment the JB, I'm looking for scoop and tight bass.
I would suggest the Custom. You'll find it too hot probably (Although a JB in the neck is still pretty hot....). Two alternatives:
- The 59/Custom hybrid. More spicy than the plain 59 and in the right zone, or...
- The Custom 5. Similar to the 498 you like but "better" (don't ask how). Also scooped miss, tight bass, and bright highs.
Aceman
I am your doctor of love!
I can see (hear) this. I'd imagine PAF Pro neck and JB would be pretty good also. Have had both - just never together.
Inflames626
New member
I'm surprised to see this thread has kept going. Thanks for your responses, everyone.
As usual, you've posted some really good observations, Aceman .
I completely agree with your balancing philosophy. I just don't want to get two pickups that sound so different it seems they shouldn't be in the same guitar.
I remember seeing someone joke on the threads that the PAF Pro is so bland that it's a paperweight--I kind of feel the same about the 59 neck I tried. Because of that experience I was concerned that the 59 Custom might be a bit too watered down for my taste. I should probably try it.
I do like the Custom 5, but the mids on it are so scooped that it almost seems like they are done in order to deliberately color the sound by creating a thumpy pickup. I'm not sure I'd consider it similar to the 498t as I find the 498t has a lot more mids.
I haven't tried a Custom, but I'm guessing that if it is like a Custom 5 with more mids it will sound like the 498t to me.
Regarding what eclecticsynergy posted, I may try a Distortion neck in the bridge (I read the old SD blog article on how the Distortion neck was originally the Seymourizer bridge pickup back in the late 70s, I think).
I've been watching some comparison videos between the Dimebucker and the Distortion. The Distortion seems to have more mids and is "woolier" sounding, but removing the mids in the Dimebucker may create ear fatigue by drawing even more attention to those ice picky, penetrating, compressed highs. This is why I tend to use the Distortion only to do solos and leave Alnico Vs for rhythm work. EMGs 81s are ceramic but I didn't realize until I started playing the Distortion how rolled off the lows and highs generally are on EMGs.
I did try a Dimebucker maybe 20 years ago but I need to try it again. I was a lot younger then and generally disliked anything that didn't run off a 9 volt battery and say EMG.
One of the problems with mids in guitar pickups is what qualifies as mids seems to be very broad. I like mids, but high mids, around 2k. For me, highs start around 5k, or where the high guitar notes start clashing with the cymbals.
A lot of times when pickups advertise mids they seem to be in the low mids--say between 200 hz and 2 khz. For me, that's generally where the bass should live, and too much of this frequency in guitars makes a boxy, unpleasant sound to my ears.
So that I don't seem like a wimp, it's not so much that I find pickups "too hot"--I grew up on death metal played through X2Ns--it's that I find less hot pickups easier to control tonally and that in our modern world of recording plugins with unlimited gain hot pickups are less necessary now.
That said, there is a requisite amount of "hotness" required. For example, while I found the Classic 57+ passable in the bridge when recording metal, it was not as optimal as a slightly hotter wound Alnico V pickup.
Artie
Peaveyologist
This is what I might suggest also. The "other" JB, so to speak. Good output to play with your neck JB, bust still well balanced, as eclectic said. It has become one of my favorite Duncan pups.
Inflames626
New member
I have been looking at the JB PB for a long time now. Because it doesn't have a companion neck pickup I was hoping to try it in an HSS build with some vintage sounding single coils like the SD vintage flat Strats.
Edit: Off topic, but it's my thread. The JB PB made me think of Carvin and how Kiesel has replaced all their legacy pickups with new models. I was hoping to try the old Carvin pickups out some day. It will be tough to find everything used I am sure. I haven't liked the company as much since it split.
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eclecticsynergy
New member
I've felt for some time - ever since I tried one - that the PB was almost like a JB that'd been optimized to my own personal tastes.
People always jump on me for that and comment that the two sound nothing alike.
I don't see them as entirely dissimilar. I guess it's more about the feel though, rather than mirroring the JB's distinctive voicing.
The PB has a lot of what I love about the JB without some aspects I don't like, especially in terms of cleanup and controllability.
Even though my experience with it is still fairly limited, I think it's likely to be less picky about individual guitars than the JB.
Artie
Peaveyologist
I agree. And I too, have only tried it in two guitars. Loved it in both.
eclecticsynergy
New member
You can still find the old Carvin 22-pole humbuckers on eBay once in a while. There's a nice black C22B on Reverb right now.
I have a C22B - it's a good responsive A5 bridge pickup. Solid lows, fairly even mids, highs are crisp though not quite airy.
Mine reads a bit over 14K.
https://reverb.com/item/48279869-car...umbucker-black
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I’ve become a huge proponent of the Pegasus with a ceramic magnet for the heavier stuff
I was a little disappointed with the stock Pegasus, but the ceramic mag really did it for me. It sounds great all around now (not just for down-tuned brutality, though I have it in a Jackson V that is basically my “chugga chugga” guitar)
I was a little disappointed with the stock Pegasus, but the ceramic mag really did it for me. It sounds great all around now (not just for down-tuned brutality, though I have it in a Jackson V that is basically my “chugga chugga” guitar)
