? re: Duncans for a Jackson PC1

[darthphineas]

interested in hearing some input from you cats on some good pickups to replace the DMZs that come stock in the Jackson PC1.

for starters, allow me to run down the specs on the PC1 for those that might not be familiar: mahogany back, maple top Dinky strat body. maple neck, maple board. 25-1/5 scale, 24 frets. original FR trem w/ FU brass big block and titanium saddle block inserts. it has the DMZ Super 3 in the bridge, the DMZ HS2 in the middle and the sustainer pup in the neck.

there is nothing particularly wrong with the DMZ. I'm just a Duncan guy since '85 and like being consistent that way. the DMZs do actually work fine and I might end up keeping them where they are. but who doesn't like to tinker with tone? lol!

typically speaking, I prefer the JB in the bridge position. other Duncans I've tried in the bridge are Pearly Gates, Duncan Distortion, Full Shred, Screamin' Demon, Invader, Custom 5, and an Original Parallel Axis. outside of the JB, I have 1 guitar with a Full Shred and 1 with a Parallel Axis that I've kept... both of those are mahogany bodies. most of the time I will split the coils with a push/pull and it's what I plan to do with this one too.

for the middle position, I typically go with a Hot Rail in a single-coil slot. in hum slots, I'll go with a JB. I've also tried a JB Jr in the middle slot of my Strat, but it didn't really work out for me in that application. I've slowly been working bridge position pickups into the middle positions - I like how that works for me on the Kramer NightSwan and the Kramer Sambora... but does not have to be the case here. again, I would split the coils. the middle is where I get some of my favorite clean tones... or combined with a split neck hum or in this case a split bridge hum.


I'm really thinking about sticking with a JB or a Full Shred in the bridge. so I'm curious about everyone's thoughts on that as well as possibilities I'm overlooking. I do prefer the high output pups.


the real roadblock I'm having is what to put in the middle. I like the tightness and output of the Hot Rail when on a dirty setting, but I also want something that will be open and sing as well as be able to have a nice clean tone when split. one option that came up with the Little '59.


most of my guitars are alder or poplar with a few all maple or a few all mahogany, so I'm not sure what to expect and would like to not be chasing through a bunch of pickups if I can help from it. haha!



so... what do ya think???


thanks!!

 

[Blackie13]

Re: ? re: Duncans for a Jackson PC1

You haven't tried the Custom yet...
Maybe it's time...

 

[devastone]

Re: ? re: Duncans for a Jackson PC1

I agree with Blackie, Custom in the bridge and I would use a Cool Rails in the middle, I assume you are leaving the Sustainer in the neck position(?).

Although, if you want a DiMarzio that has a similar tone to the Super 3 that's in there, I would try a PATB-2.

 

[darthphineas]

Re: ? re: Duncans for a Jackson PC1

I've heard the Duncan Custom described as having a 'buttery' low end, which kinda confused me - I think of the low end in terms of tight or loose. could someone offer a more enhanced description, and possibly compare it to the JB for reference?

thanks!

 

[Blackie13]

Re: ? re: Duncans for a Jackson PC1

I've heard the Duncan Custom described as having a 'buttery' low end, which kinda confused me - I think of the low end in terms of tight or loose. could someone offer a more enhanced description, and possibly compare it to the JB for reference?

thanks!

I don't know what you mean by buttery but since I used the custum there is no other pickup for me...
The pickup is "clear"...I just can't make it sound muddy(like the JB that to me it's alwaysa bit muddy-for leads-).The bass is very strong and muscular whereas the JB is a bit loose(leads again)...
Many people like the leads of the JB because of the mids...I personaly find the custom to remain clear and articulate even at higher gain settings and this is something that JB cannot do(with my equipment and guitars)...

 

[darthphineas]

Re: ? re: Duncans for a Jackson PC1

I don't know what you mean by buttery but since I used the custum there is no other pickup for me...
The pickup is "clear"...I just can't make it sound muddy(like the JB that to me it's alwaysa bit muddy-for leads-).The bass is very strong and muscular whereas the JB is a bit loose(leads again)...
Many people like the leads of the JB because of the mids...I personaly find the custom to remain clear and articulate even at higher gain settings and this is something that JB cannot do(with my equipment and guitars)...

I also don't know what that person meant when they described the Custom's low end as buttery.

Have you ever split the coils on a Custom for use on a clean amp setting? if so, how well does it clean up when split?


also, the middle position is what has me more baffled than the bridge position. would sticking with the DMZs be a more viable option... leaving the Super 3 in there and going with a Fast Track 2 in the middle? I'd like something that will hang better with the Super 3 on dirty tones, yet be able to clean up very nicely when split for use on clean tones. has anyone used both the Hot Rails and the Little 59 and can offer a hands-on comparison?

 

[IzzyDrinkinzs]

Re: ? re: Duncans for a Jackson PC1

I would try the Alt 8 there is something about the alnico 8 magnet that is magic, I played one in a charvel san dimas (which is comparable to the PC1) and I really liked the way it sounded. Thats what I would recommend, however the custom 8 could be the way to go. It just depends on what music you play, the particular guitar and amp setup and what sounds good to you. Having said that the custom series opens you up to a lot of tweakability using mag swaping to hone in on the sound in you head. Hope this helps, rock on!

 

[Despair]

Re: ? re: Duncans for a Jackson PC1

Custom 8 or Alternative 8 are pretty good choices for modern hot pickups. Custom 8 has an odd blend of modern & vintage tone, search the forum for some samples, particularly surface54's stuff.

Original Custom might be a touch bright with the maple top and thinner body. I have no idea what they mean by buttery on the TB-5 Custom. TB-11 Custom Custom often gets described as buttery, but the ceramic? Don't get that one. Strikes me much more as punchy. Straddles modern/vintage tones in a very different way than the Custom 8.

If you want a gonzo metal pickup that's still expressive, you might also look at the PATB-2 Parallel Axis Distortion. To my ears, covers most of what I like about the Invader (grinding beefy riffs & rhythms), Distortion (biting thrash rhythms) and JB (singing solos with screaming harmonics) all in one pickup. It's thicker and hotter than the JB, but surprisingly articulate.

Does the middle pickup need to be rails, or just a hum-canceller? Stack Plus line is pretty killer, I'd probably do something like the STK-S7 Vintage Hot Stack Plus or STK-S6 Custom Stack Plus. The Hot Rails would balance pretty well with the PATB-2, too.

For rail pickups, DiMarzio does have a larger assortment.

 

[darthphineas]

Re: ? re: Duncans for a Jackson PC1

I think I may have decided on the Full Shred for the bridge.. if I make the jump to all-Duncan pups. that really depends on the choice for the middle pup.


@Despair: for the middle, I pretty much thinking of a rail for this reason: I'd like something in the middle that's going to be like a humbucker for when I have a dirty tone and something that's going to be like a single coil when I have a clean tone. for that, I've been using a push/pull to split that coils in other guitars and am expecting to do the same here.

in my other guitars, I go with a Hot Rail. my other guitars are alder or poplar or mahogany. this is mahogany with a maple top and a baseball maple neck with maple board. not like any of my others. still, I would have both coils for dirty and then could split to have the one for clean.

I agree that DMZ has a wider selection of rail pickups, but I'm not really a DMZ user and am not familiar with them. I've been considering the Chopper or the Fast Track 2 or the Pro Track. The FT2 jumps out, as they advertise it as being comparable to the Super 3 pup that's already in the bridge, so it's just a matter of how it cleans up.

I've tried JB Jrs in my Strat back in the day and just didn't care for them, which is odd as the full size JB is my fave pup. I've heard a lot about the Little '59 but then read a recent thread in this forum that complains about them.