Someone confirm the Custom 8 is what I want.

[misterwhizzy]

I like the stock Custom in my Les Paul quite a bit for basic hard rock and early metal tones, but I find the high end just a bit grating. I want to soften the highs just a bit while keeping everything else just about the same. I wouldn't hate a touch more midrange punch at the same time, but if pickup tweaks won't do that, I can use pedals that will. Is a swap for Alnico 8 all I should need?

 

[Clint 55]

Re: Someone confirm the Custom 8 is what I want.

Yes, that's what it does.

 

[jeremy]

Re: Someone confirm the Custom 8 is what I want.

yep, its definitely worth a shot

 

[Aceman]

Re: Someone confirm the Custom 8 is what I want.

Dooooo eeeeeeet


You will not be disappointed.

 

[Mincer]

Re: Someone confirm the Custom 8 is what I want.

As cheap as the magnet is, I think it is worth trying. I don't have a ton of experience with A8 mags, but it should do what you want.

 

[Bowtomecha]

Re: Someone confirm the Custom 8 is what I want.

This sounds like the right move.

 

[eclecticsynergy]

Re: Someone confirm the Custom 8 is what I want.

A8 should suit you just fine. If that's still too bright, you might consider an A6.
The forgotten cousin of the alnico family- it's like a slightly warmer, slightly softer A8.

 

[GuitarDoc]

Re: Someone confirm the Custom 8 is what I want.

Like they've said, A8 is definitely what you want, it is exactly what will happen changing from ceramic to A8.

To answer your title, Custom 8 is what EVERYONE wants who has a stock Custom.

 

[Despair]

Re: Someone confirm the Custom 8 is what I want.

Well, not quite everybody, apparently. Some people insist the Custom 8's upper mids are entirely different from the original Custom. What I hear is it removing a bit of presence and upper treble. Apparently, it made them notice the mids, and they got very angry about it.

Given a balanced to bright guitar, the Custom 8 seems like the better of the two, to my ears.

A8 is definitely the cheapest solution for wanting a Custom with a little less treble/presence. If it removes too much, you can try using shorter, perhaps hex, screw polepieces. I tend to like them under the bass strings in any case on most pickups.

After that, you might look at an Alternative 8, it is a hotter and louder pickup, but with more high end.

 

[TrashPanda]

Re: Someone confirm the Custom 8 is what I want.

Well, not quite everybody, apparently. Some people insist the Custom 8's upper mids are entirely different from the original Custom. What I hear is it removing a bit of presence and upper treble. Apparently, it made them notice the mids, and they got very angry about it.

This is how I kind of hear it too. I sat down with my "Custom 8" SG last night, just to give it the ol' college try one more time. It just sounds like all the top end got sucked out of it. Im not good at describing how I hear these things, but everything had this "extra" bit of soft boominess. Like I remember immediately thinking that the tone knobs must have been rolled down. They weren't. Even the passable tones with the OD tone knob turned up and the mids dialed back a bit, it still wasn't a sound I would use enthusiastically. This is just my experience, through my 1 guitar, with it's particular setup. Apparently plenty of people have had great success and magnets are cheap.

 

[Bowtomecha]

Re: Someone confirm the Custom 8 is what I want.

I swapped out an A5 for an a8 last year and it felt slower in response and too rounded. I like some snap in my bridge humbucker. I’m wondering if I swap the a8 back in and shorten the pole screws to 1/2 inch, that it’ll get me what I want. The low end and mids are fine for the most part with Alnico 8 for me.

 

[Demanic]

Re: Someone confirm the Custom 8 is what I want.

Why don't you just put a ceramic in there and try it as a regular Custom?

Sent from my Alcatel_5044C using Tapatalk

 

[rammer69]

Re: Someone confirm the Custom 8 is what I want.

I have zero experience with a custom A8, but have 5 or more (cant remember), Duncan distortion's w A8, that works for me, took off some of the top end brittleness..

 

[eclecticsynergy]

Re: Someone confirm the Custom 8 is what I want.

Why don't you just put a ceramic in there and try it as a regular Custom?

Sent from my Alcatel_5044C using Tapatalk

It's stock now. OP wants to soften the highs a bit.

 

[Demanic]

Re: Someone confirm the Custom 8 is what I want.

Oops, I guess that I missed that.