Popular Pickup That You Hate / Hated Pickup That You Love

[dave74]

I honestly haven't hated a single pickup that is within the realm of my general preference, that being big mags and ceramic or a5. Metal models of all various concoctions.
Actually I basically love them all for their own specific applications/guitars. JB, ToneZone, Invader, X2N, Dime, Nazgul, Warpig, 81,85 ect..

 

[BluesIsBlood12]

I hate the JB and just about all stock Gibson HBs (57s are at least useable).

 

[ErikH]

As far as non-Duncans go, I love the '57 Classics.
Not a fan of EMG's at all.

 

[Spaghetti Bolo]

JB in the wrong guitar/ JB in the right guitar.

 

[pskorz]

PRS ”s” series neck pickups. My general feeling is that nobody loves these.
I have a Zach Myers with stock 245 s pickups and a 24 se with 85/15 s pickups. I LOVE the neck pos in each guitar. The bridge positions I’m kind of lukewarm on.

 

[Demanic]

I dont really like the Duncan Distortion. To me it comes across as blind aggression without irony or refinement.

I really like the 500T in a Les Paul. It is just the right amount of punch and cut without being fizzy or grainy. You can play at lower gain and sound like you mean it.

That's exactly what I like most about the Distortion.

Sent from my SM-A115A using Tapatalk

 

[Clint 55]

I dont really like the Duncan Distortion. To me it comes across as blind aggression without irony or refinement.

It's pretty with alnico.

 

[Clint 55]

I would recommend A2, A3, UOA5, A5, or A6.

 

[Securb]

57s are hated? I always thought they're well respected.

I hate them but I love the 498T

 

[Rex_Rocker]

I hate the Jazz and '59 in the neck. Plinky, underpowered, and kinda generic. At least that has been my experience combining them with anything JB-output-level or hotter.

Don't really like the Custom either. Way too much bloated boomy low-end.

I really like Gibson pickups in general. The 498T and the 500T are killer.

 

[Mincer]

While I don't like the Jazz, I found it was a perfect pickup in a very mid-heavy poplar guitar I own. The high end and lack of mids and bass is just what the guitar needed. In the bridge, I use a Custom 5, which also wouldn't be a pickup I would normally use, but it works here.

 

[formula73]

Gibson 498T has sounded fantastic every time I’ve played one, regardless of the guitar or individual pickup.

 

[Obsessive Compulsive]

Popular Pickup(s) That I Hate: any EMG and DiMarzio products; from the Duncans I tried, the Pegasus and the Distortion don't get much love around here either;

Then you are missing out. DM has its own character no SD can substitute for.

 

[zizyphus]

Gibson 498T has sounded fantastic every time I’ve played one, regardless of the guitar or individual pickup.

Agreed!

Then you are missing out. DM has its own character no SD can substitute for.

Agreed again!

DiMarzio has some very innovative designs. Duncan has nailed classic guitar tones with many straightforward designs, but made with high-quality parts and attention to detail.
Dimarzio seems to be more experimental. We guitarists are generally Luddites, so these tweaks don't necessary give us the "mojo" we want, but they do create new voices and tones that we might not otherwise get

(sorry, painting with a broad brush here, but that's just my opinion)

 

[zizyphus]

I would recommend A2, A3, UOA5, A5, or A6.

A6 is my favorite bridge position magnet!

I wish it were more common in production pickups. The SD Bonamassa Amos pickups are the only production pickups I know of that used A6, and they were a limited run

 

[Juanhanglo]

I can't really say there is anything that i hate.

Ones that i like that others bash are:
dimazio/ibz bridge - its similar to a super 3, but about as strong as a norton or breed. That is a very good thing IMO

full shred - they are bright, but get them closer to the strings and they fatten up. Also, adding some bass at the amp males all the difference. I love these in my mahogany rg

Lace sensors - yep, they arent like regular single coils. you love em or hate em.

Dimarzios in general and breeds in particular. I love that certain midrange thing they all have going on compared to other winders. That signature sound. It works for me.

The breeds are a fixer pickup and should be treated as such. They are menat to warm up a super strat, and they do that. putting them in a les paul is not wise. Since i installed these in my rg921, it has become a top 2 player.

 

[Jeffblue]

Tele: Antiquities, Vintage, Stacked, Jerry Donahue Strat: Antiquities, Vintage P90s: Antiquities, Vintage, PhatCats Humbuckers: PRails, JB, 59, Pearly Gates, Custom 5, Antiquities, Dimebucker (used with pickups that are Alnico magnets to shake it up a bit)

 

[allbutromeo]

Hate: EMGs (except the retroactives) and Dimarzio (except the Super D and stacked singles). I get that a lot of people like them, and a lot of musicians I like use them, but they just don't work for me.

Hated that I like: stock Screamin Demon, 57 Classic+

Others have brought up the 498T, I like it, just not when combined with a 490R. I can never get my Amp EQed in a way that both pickups sound good. Same problem with the Wide Range "reissues"

 

[misterwhizzy]

People love the Super Distortion, and I just can't bond with it. I can't exactly place my finger on it, but it just didn't work for me, and on paper, it should be perfect.

 

[Clint 55]

A6 is my favorite bridge position magnet!

I wish it were more common in production pickups. The SD Bonamassa Amos pickups are the only production pickups I know of that used A6, and they were a limited run

It's a really stellar magnet. The fact that it isn't used in production or even by most mag swappers is silly. It performs equally as well as the ubiquitous A5 but adds some soft low mids and has the top very slightly rounded. I was able to get A6 in my Fralin minis as a stock option.