Talk me out of the DMZ Super Distortion.

Reaper of Doom

New member
So I have a DD in my Mahogany Charvel with maple fingerboard which I love but sometimes I fight with that high end bite that can really grate on your ears. I'm thinking of something a little bit smoother and I'm feeling the Super Distortion. Convince me either way because my soldering iron is speaking to me.
 
Re: Talk me out of the DMZ Super Distortion.

Sounds good to me man. I'd probably go a step further and get a Super3.
 
Re: Talk me out of the DMZ Super Distortion.

Maybe just install a nickel cover - or if there's no tone control use a 500K resistor and an tone cap of your choosing. Could also go for a longer or a higher capacitance cable.

Just speaking in generalities, a few ideas that could mellow the sound just a touch.
 
Re: Talk me out of the DMZ Super Distortion.

The SD is awesome!

One of my favorite DMZ pups.
 
Re: Talk me out of the DMZ Super Distortion.

I saw the title and though "why?" The Super Distortion is awesome. If you want one then you can't go wrong getting one in my opinion.
 
Re: Talk me out of the DMZ Super Distortion.

Try to use your tone control. It's free, and it usually works better than any pickup swap, if too much high end is your problem. If you don't like what the tone control does, just modify it for peanuts compared to the cost of a new pickup that may or may not give you what you want.
 
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Re: Talk me out of the DMZ Super Distortion.

I have the exact opposite problem: mine lacks high end and bite. I have it installed in a floyd strat with 500k pots.
 
Re: Talk me out of the DMZ Super Distortion.

I had a Super D in my BC Rich Gunslinger (Alder body/Maple neck and fretboard) and didn't much care for it.

I swapped it over to my Mahogany Firebird Studio and love it :D
 
Re: Talk me out of the DMZ Super Distortion.

try lowering the pickup first

Yeah this is what I'm in the middle of doing and trying to use my amp to eq the harshness out. My Charvel is a natural finished San Dimas with no pot and single hum and it's going into a 5150.
Sometimes it sounds like small European countries are being flattened it sounds so massive and then another time it'll feel like a piranha is chewing on your ears.
I just love some of the descriptions of the SD it makes me want one.
 
Re: Talk me out of the DMZ Super Distortion.

So I have a DD in my Mahogany Charvel with maple fingerboard which I love but sometimes I fight with that high end bite that can really grate on your ears. I'm thinking of something a little bit smoother and I'm feeling the Super Distortion. Convince me either way because my soldering iron is speaking to me.

What about Carvin's M22SD? It's cheaper than either Duncan or DiMarzio and it's a real scorcher. I love it.

:reporter:
 
Re: Talk me out of the DMZ Super Distortion.

Talk you out of it?
i had one a couple of years ago. It wasn't until much later that i found out that it gave me crabs and made off with my boss tuner.

Stupid super distortion........
 
Re: Talk me out of the DMZ Super Distortion.

I am going to take a bunch of alternative approaches here.

#1 Consider simply turning the tone control down to about 7. Seriously.

#2 Consider replacing the tone pot with a Gibson 300k pot - my approach. Then again, I'm playing Les Pauls...

#3 That said, let me suggest a more radical approach. This is honestly what I have done, and it really works for me. I have TWO great Les PAuls! A 73 with a Super D, AND a 79 with a Distortion!!!!!

This way, I can have either SuperD or DD goodness whenever I choose.

The DD is seriously my sound, but you gotta love the awesomeness of the superD too. Which is, by the way, more brighter than it gets credirt for.
 
Re: Talk me out of the DMZ Super Distortion.

The super distortion i tried was oK,nothing to write home about or pimp out my sister for but it must be good considering the hundreds that used one in the 70 and 80's:fing2:
 
Re: Talk me out of the DMZ Super Distortion.

The super distortion i tried was oK,nothing to write home about or pimp out my sister for but it must be good considering the hundreds that used one in the 70 and 80's:fing2:

There wasn't a ton of choice in aftermarket pickups back then. The DMZ was one of the earliest aftermarket pickups out there.
 
Re: Talk me out of the DMZ Super Distortion.

I like the Super D in the bridge of my heaviest LP. Really is a hard rock monster. It's a classic and for good reason. That said, I like the JB a tad more but the Super D's have that thing about them that I need (treble).
 
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