Suggestions to Brighten Pegasus 7

[NoOnesFang13]

I have a 7 String guitar with a Mahogany body w/Spalted Maple top, Wenge neck/Ebony Fretboard. I bought a Pegasus/Sentient set right when they were released and threw them in. I really dig the sound of the Sentient but the Pegasus always seemed a bit dark and undefined. I know it was designed to be articulate though I have never really had that experience with it. I have a few ideas but I want to see if there are any suggestions that I haven't thought of.

I have tried both Ernie Ball Skinny Top Heavy Bottom in standard and cobalt. The cobalt ones seemed to be a bit more defined but the low B always seems to be a bit loose to me so I might try some thicker strings. Not sure if EB does custom gages.

Lower the pickup and raise the poles

Mag Swap. I have a few A4 laying around that I can try and throw In there, maybe its the EQ curve of the A5 that's not catching my ear right.

I would prefer not to have to switch to 1meg pots as the pickups share a volume and I don't want to mess with the tone of the neck pickup.

Let me know if you have any other suggestions I didn't think of.

 

[Demanic]

Re: Suggestions to Brighten Pegasus 7

If you do any magnet swapping, try a regular thickness ceramic.

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[NoOnesFang13]

Re: Suggestions to Brighten Pegasus 7

If you do any magnet swapping, try a regular thickness ceramic.

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That might be option, I don't have any regular thickness ceramics that I know of, the stock pickups seems to have a double thickness ceramic. what would be the difference in the sound between a double thick and a regular?

 

[Chistopher]

Re: Suggestions to Brighten Pegasus 7

The Pegasus 7 has an Alnico 5 magnet. A ceramic magnet will give you more high end, a bit fuller mids, and punchier bass. The high end is however stiffer and less organic.

 

[Demanic]

Re: Suggestions to Brighten Pegasus 7

^^
This.

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[NoOnesFang13]

Re: Suggestions to Brighten Pegasus 7

The Pegasus 7 has an Alnico 5 magnet. A ceramic magnet will give you more high end, a bit fuller mids, and punchier bass. The high end is however stiffer and less organic.

I might try and throw the Ceramic I have in there if the other stuff doesn't work. I definitely think heavier strings will help as well.

 

[Rex_Rocker]

Re: Suggestions to Brighten Pegasus 7

Ceramic has always been a "more of everything" kinda deal for me when compared to Alnico 5. More treble, yes, but also more bass. I don't know if more mids, but definitely a drier, more aggressive kind of mid voicing.

Double thickness emphasizes the uppermost highs and the lowest lows compard to standard-thickness ceramic, IMO.

Heavier strings have less treble and more bass. I don't think heavier strings will fix your problem.

 

[VinceT]

Re: Suggestions to Brighten Pegasus 7

Ditto on heavier strings being darker.


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[Despair]

Re: Suggestions to Brighten Pegasus 7

If the low strings are too bassy or could use a bit more treble bite, try replacing the #5-40 3/4" screw polepieces with 1/2". I like hex heads, but biggest sound-affecting differences between screw polepieces are length and alloy. [#5-40 -- 5 is the major diameter, 40 threads per inch. Crucial for getting a screw that will fit and not strip the threads in the pickup.]

Can do that under all the strings if you prefer, but I tend to like a fatter, less biting sound on the high strings, and tighter and more biting on low strings. But a lot of people find the shorter polepiece more articulate, faster attack, so swapping them all may work better for your situation.

Raising the screw polepieces is a great way to emphasize the screw coil and brighten things a little, and you can drop the pickup to balance volume. Can vary how much across the pickup and adjust the pickup height to angle it, closer to treble or bass strings as needed. A lot of people miss how much you can vary the tone of a pickup just by adjusting height and polepieces.

For an extreme example, I have a JB as a neck pickup, with an A3 magnet. It was still farty on the low strings, even after screwing the pickup way down on the bass side and raising the polepieces, so I put 3 0.5" hex heads under the wound strings. Shaved off just enough of the low end to make it usable for cleans and high gain.

 

[Bowtomecha]

Re: Suggestions to Brighten Pegasus 7

I might try and throw the Ceramic I have in there if the other stuff doesn't work. I definitely think heavier strings will help as well.

What did you end up doing to fix the issue with the pickup?