Pickups for ESP LTD KH

B

BigOrra

New member
Hi guys! I'm new to the forum but have been a lurker for a few weeks.

I've been wanting to replace the stock 81's in the KH WZ (alder body, bolt on maple neck, Floyd) for some passives. I play a lot of early Metallica (ride the lightning especially), slayer, testament, lots of 80s thrash metal in general. I also need some versatility for blues, classic rock, and can be rolled down for good cleans. Those are the areas the 81 doesn't do quite well (in my opinion). The amp is a Marshall DSL40C sometimes boosted with a tubescreamer for metal territory. I generally like balanced tone with lotsa mids that can cut through a mix, and tight, thick, and aggressive low end. I was thinking of the Black Winters, the Alternative 8, and the Patb-2 Distortion. Or you guys could steer me back to some classics like the custom or the distortion. What are your guys' thoughts? Ask me questions if you need more info.
 
Last edited:
Re: Pickups for ESP LTD KH

I have no experience with the Black Winters but the guys who use them on here love them.
They say they are very balanced.
To be honest, I'd also look at the Blackouts. I loved mine, they sounded way more organic than the EMGs did in my other guitar and they are loud as hell!

I'm kinda over the active thing now but in my metal band days I preferred my Blackouts to my 81 85 set.
 
Re: Pickups for ESP LTD KH

Will definitely check out the blackouts, but actives just aren't my thing anymore. Any other suggestions guys?
 
Re: Pickups for ESP LTD KH

I would recommend the tried-and-true Duncan JB. It pulls off 80's metal and hard rock all day long and loves guitars made out of brighter-sounding woods.

Blackouts are a way more over the top compared to EMGs, so I'm not sure that's what I'd recommend in this situation.
 
Re: Pickups for ESP LTD KH

I was really considering a JB early on but was worried about people saying it had a flubby low end.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
Re: Pickups for ESP LTD KH

I really don't think you could to wrong with anything mentioned so far. That said, I would go with the PATB, just to be different.
 
Re: Pickups for ESP LTD KH

BigOrra said:
I was really considering a JB early on but was worried about people saying it had a flubby low end.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
Compared to EMG 81's, yes. However that does not really say much because there's nothing really in the passive world that has the low-end voicing of the 81 completely nailed. I have not experienced flubbiness with my JB, but it does have a little bit of chunk in the low-mids that other pickups don't. Easily controllable in my experience, and that's part of the reason why it loves brighter tonewoods, I think. It is an Alnico pickup after all. Compared to a Duncan Distortion (the closest to the Black Winter I've tried), it it is a little bit less immediate in the attack, but that kinda contributes to its old-school attitude.

On a side note, the Distortion is also great. Brighter, a bit harsher, and a tad less old-school, but still pretty 80's-90's, and overall nice. I can recommend that as well.
 
Last edited:
Re: Pickups for ESP LTD KH

Rex_Rocker said:
I would recommend the tried-and-true Duncan JB. It pulls off 80's metal and hard rock all day long and loves guitars made out of brighter-sounding woods.

Blackouts are a way more over the top compared to EMGs, so I'm not sure that's what I'd recommend in this situation.
Click to expand...

BigOrra said:
I was really considering a JB early on but was worried about people saying it had a flubby low end.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Click to expand...

JB plus replace the E, A & D flat head pole pieces with shortened hex screws ;)
 
Re: Pickups for ESP LTD KH

Black Winters are a good choice, as are something like the Pegasus/Sentient set. For a more old school vibe, you can also check out the Jazz/Custom combo too.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top