Single Coil Neck for 80's?

[redhabu]

So I have the Ibanez RG565 guitars (hum/Single) configuration. Two have Dimarzios with rail pickups. This new one I was thinking of going Duncan like a Custom 5 or Alt 8 and a single coil in the neck for something different as rail pups do not sound like glassy single coils. What would be a good option for the neck, I play 90% instrumental rock with lots of sweeping on the neck pickup. Least amount of volume drop off from the bridge. Thanks

 

[Mincer]

So you want the neck to be a rail pickup- a single coil-sized humbucker- and the most important thing is the volume balance with the bridge? I'd say a neck Hot Rails. If you compromise in the rail design, you can look at the neck Little 78. The Little 78 is a better tone balance with the Custom 5 or Alt 8, and not as dark as the Hot Rails.

 

[beaubrummels]

I'm reading they don't want rails in the neck. Off the top of my head, I think the quarter pound neck might be the hottest single that isn't rails, but I have not used that one myself. But the thing is, the hotter you go, the less "glassy" single coil sound you are going to get.

 

[redhabu]

Yea, no rail as I don't think they pull off a single coil sound at all. A standard single coil or stacked single coil would be more what i'm looking at

 

[Mincer]

Oh! Got it!

Thing is, you can't really have both a traditional Strat single coil sound *and* a pickup that volume-matches a hotter humbucker in the bridge. If volume balance is more important, then an SSL-6, Quarter Pound, or Vintage Hot Stack will do that. But they don't sound particularly stratty. As you move closer to the Strat sound, you lose the power and volume balance, so anything will be a compromise.

 

[CK71]

For a classic single coil sound an ssl 2 would be good. I have one in the neck of a strat and it has more volume than I originally expected. Depending on the style of instrumental music, you may also check the yjm pickups.

 

[Ashurbanipal]

For a stack, the Parallel Axis might be another good option. Sounds very single coily and seems to balance fine with the PATb 3 in the clip. Some people don't like the looks so they don't bite; I personally think they're rad.

 

[jeremy]

500k pots? id put an ssl6 in there higher output than vintage and thicker, but the 500k pot opens it up a bit and it works well with buckers