the best JB mods ever.. :)

[blueman335]

Re: the best JB mods ever..

Speaking as someone who plays considerably more diverse music than Blueman, and loves pickups from 7k to 17k and those with batteries on occasion, and is considerably more objective…

I agree with Blueman. The JB will do everything it needs to do to a Strat or Superstrat especially. It is MADE for those things and made well. But there is no question it just doesn't jive with all Mahogany guitars. I have had JB's in both Superstrats and LP's back in the day and recently. Loved it in a Kramer. Hated it in my Les Paul. Hated it in the Cadillac.

And as always - the Hate was in my practice room. On stage it apparently got nothing but love.

JB in Strat/Superstrat equals WIN. JB in a Les Paul = ???? Listen and decide.

Thanks for the support. You may be more objective in playing more genres of music; maybe I'm more 'objective' in having owned more models of PU's (Duncan and other brands). There's a whole big world of great PU's out there; no need to obsess over just one of them.

Of course how a guitar sits in the mix on stage is important, but as a player you also have to have tones that inspire your playing too. If you don't like your guitar's sound, but the audience hears it well, you're just not going to play your best. A good news-bad news kind of thing: 'Your sound cuts thru, but you playing is lackluster.' I work on getting tones that sound good on stage and to the crowd. I have to be into my sound to play my best.

 

[Aceman]

Re: the best JB mods ever..

but as a player you also have to have tones that inspire your playing too. If you don't like your guitar's sound, but the audience hears it well, you're just not going to play your best. A good news-bad news kind of thing: 'Your sound cuts thru, but you playing is lackluster.'

See THIS I disagree with. I don't think 99% of the crowd knows or cares about your "lackluster lead playing" or any playing. If the band is tight, and selling it out, they will enjoy it. Every pro guitar player has stories about having a crap night and receiving compliments out the wazoo, and playing it all spot on, on fire, and not a word.

I get it that a bunch of bedroom shredders and self-absorbed people feel this way. At the end of the day you need to decide if you are a PERFORMER, or a self-indulgent weenie who is more concerned about your personal little gear tendencies than the audience having a good time!

And I am not saying that is you at all Rick. Just raising the issue of the dichotomy/focus. If you are there for YOUR personal enjoyment first - don't be there, IMO. I have played where I can't even hear myself. Hey - the show goes on. You count it, you watch the other members, you do your best to survive. My tone isn't inspiring? If I can hear me, I'm good!

Now - back to our eternal debate of JB in Mahogany…..

 

[blueman335]

Re: the best JB mods ever..

See THIS I disagree with. I don't think 99% of the crowd knows or cares about your "lackluster lead playing" or any playing. If the band is tight, and selling it out, they will enjoy it.

When everything clicks and my tone sounds great to me, my playing is much better, whether on stage, band practice, or at home. My fingers fly and I come up with things that surprise even me. If I'm not thrilled with my tone, I just don't have as much passion and feel in my solos. I think crowds pick up on that to some degree.

 

[treyhaislip]

Re: the best JB mods ever..

See THIS I disagree with. I don't think 99% of the crowd knows or cares about your "lackluster lead playing" or any playing. If the band is tight, and selling it out, they will enjoy it. Every pro guitar player has stories about having a crap night and receiving compliments out the wazoo, and playing it all spot on, on fire, and not a word.

When everything clicks and my tone sounds great to me, my playing is much better, whether on stage, band practice, or at home. My fingers fly and I come up with things that surprise even me. If I'm not thrilled with my tone, I just don't have as much passion and feel in my solos. I think crowds pick up on that to some degree.

I can understand where both of you are coming from. For me, I have not sounded my best and people have complimented me on my guitar sound and have asked what I was doing to get my tone. But for me, I play better when my tone is best–if I'm not happy with my tone then I simply don't play as well as I could because I'm focusing on what I'm hearing and not what I'm playing.

Personally I don't really think there is a right or wrong here...yes some people don't care what it sounds like and will praise you even if you out of tune and flat awful BUT on a personal level I think I should always strive to be the best I can be so I think I should be concerned with how I sound because if I am happy with my tone then my focus is on my playing and not on what to change/needs adjusting...

 

[Frogman]

Re: the best JB mods ever..

I've done this exact mod (though with hex screws only on the 5th and 6th) with an A5, A8 and ceramic -- this was all in my Les Paul Custom.

Didn't care for the A5 in the LPC, but did enjoy the ceramic and A8 versions -- but they were both all RAAAAAWWWWWWR and after a while I ended up going to something lower in output and more versatile (for that guitar).

The aforementioned JB currently sits in my other guitarist's Tele (didn't want it to leave the 'family' ), with the A5 & still with the 5th & 6th hex screws -- sounds awesome.

 

[Sensates]

Re: the best JB mods ever..

I guess the use of the hex screws will tighten the low strings, to counter the soft bass of the Alnico 2s??

I'm gonna give this mod a try later, already has a JB2 in a PRS that is smokin :smokin::smokin:

 

[Chickenwings]

Re: the best JB mods ever..

i quite like the JB, but this is not a popularity contest. its all horses for courses.

However i would like to say that there is a lot of talk on this forum that goes along the lines of something like this:

"X" pickups sound like "Y" in "Z" species wood.

I would like to remind everyone that you might own a guitar that is made from "Z" species wood and it might sound a certain way. This does not necessarily mean that every other guitar that uses the same species of wood will have the same sonic characteristics as your guitar.
To take this further, you might own a guitar made of "Z" species wood, but that the guitar might be constructed from multiple pieces of said wood glued together. Or you might own a guitar that is one solid piece, but it might also be built from the batch of "z" species wood that john west rejected. You might have a guitar that is made from 3 pieces of wood but it sustains and resonates amazingly, and you might even have a guitar built by the same company out of the same species of wood that sounds thin a brittle. You might have a guitar made of "Z" wood that has a fat bottom end, and another guitar made of the same species that barks like a dog.


So what i'm trying to say is this:

Every guitar is different. Species of wood is only part of the equation.

Analyze the sonic characteristics of each instrument individually and choose a pickup to accentuate or complement the inherent sound of that particular guitar and what musical purpose the guitar will be used for.

....trust your ears and don't believe everything you read on forums....

 

[B2D]

Re: the best JB mods ever..

I have such a love/hate relationship with that pickup. I think after 16 years of playing and having had 4 or 5 different JBs I think I've got it, though.

Using a 300k or 250k pots and a good capacitor in a Strat with a JB is an improvement. Take some readings on those pots though to make sure you know what's what - the three 500ks in my Eclipse read 480, 460, and 475, just FYI. Also, know how to devalue a pot to get easy tweaking.

JB-Js and JB-M's from the 80'a just sound better than the newer ones. I've had two of them now - one of which I just gave to a student, and I do prefer their sound over the new ones.

The Antiquity JB, I think, also sounds better than the production model. I'm told the roughcast A5 is a big part of the equation as well as scatter-winding but I've not tried JUST that, only the Antiquity version.

The JB with an Alnico 8 is a beat of a pickup and very hot - mine read north of 17K! It's a good solution tonally but the problem I found is that it tends to fatigue your ears under high gain. You can always back off the gain, run with the guitar's volume backed off or lower pickup height to tame it but you lose that snarl in the process. It's sort of a double-edged sword.

I've not tried the JB with an A4 or an A2.

 

[KRKBAB]

Re: the best JB mods ever..

I really liked a stock JB in my H/H alder Strat with a 250k tone pot.
I can't explain why (it's a mystery to me), but it became more versatile with the 250.
With a 500k, i seemed to only play a specific way because of the tone.
With a 250k pot I don't feel like the sound makes me want to play the same way every time I play that guitar. weird

 

[Big Flannel]

Re: the best JB mods ever..

I still love the JB in mahogany with 500k pots. Call me crazy but it rocks.

 

[marcello252]

Re: the best JB mods ever..

See THIS I disagree with. I don't think 99% of the crowd knows or cares about your "lackluster lead playing" or any playing. If the band is tight, and selling it out, they will enjoy it

This IS the point. The pickup is only little part in a much more complex thing.

I think that nobody except the player (and some really really picking corksniffer, but that's a different story) can really hear any difference at all, the shades in the sound are subtle, very subtle. BUT for the player the pickup is an incredibly important thing, because if the sound of your guitar suits you and you have the right feedback feel from the instrument (and pickup is a major actor in this), well, this is the real key to be a good part in the sum.

 

[Aceman]

Re: the best JB mods ever..

STill, derailed as this thread is…wait:

 

[blueman335]

Re: the best JB mods ever..

This IS the point. The pickup is only little part in a much more complex thing.

I think that nobody except the player (and some really really picking corksniffer, but that's a different story) can really hear any difference at all, the shades in the sound are subtle, very subtle. BUT for the player the pickup is an incredibly important thing, because if the sound of your guitar suits you and you have the right feedback feel from the instrument (and pickup is a major actor in this), well, this is the real key to be a good part in the sum.

Right. Yes, the audience may enjoy the gig even if you're not thrilled with your tones and your playing is accordingly uninspired. But...When you really dig your tones, and your playing is on fire because of it, the audience will enjoy the gig even more. When I'm on stage I want to do more than just play the songs. I want to get into them, play things and add things I don't normally do; it's nice to get applause after each solo, and during breaks have people shake your hand and buy you drinks. It's definitely more fun when the crowd can tell the band is having an 'on' night and just cooking. Makes them part of something special. Those are the best gigs. Maybe they can't tell the difference in tones, but on stage I can, and great tones push me to play my best, and it's a good night for everybody.

 

[Chickenwings]

Re: the best JB mods ever..

any recordings of these amazing gigs where you are "on fire"?

 

[Dahla]

Re: the best JB mods ever..

Right. Yes, the audience may enjoy the gig even if you're not thrilled with your tones and your playing is accordingly uninspired. But...When you really dig your tones, and your playing is on fire because of it, the audience will enjoy the gig even more. When I'm on stage I want to do more than just play the songs. I want to get into them, play things and add things I don't normally do; it's nice to get applause after each solo, and during breaks have people shake your hand and buy you drinks. It's definitely more fun when the crowd can tell the band is having an 'on' night and just cooking. Makes them part of something special. Those are the best gigs. Maybe they can't tell the difference in tones, but on stage I can, and great tones push me to play my best, and it's a good night for everybody.

I have an awesome night when the crowd have an awesome night. They get fired up, which channels through me and out to the crowd again. A perfect loop.

I would never feel bummed because everyone is having a good time, but I wish I had a custom instead of a JB in my guitar. That sounds really backwards to me...

 

[Edgecrusher]

Re: the best JB mods ever..

Right. Yes, the audience may enjoy the gig even if you're not thrilled with your tones and your playing is accordingly uninspired. But...When you really dig your tones, and your playing is on fire because of it, the audience will enjoy the gig even more. When I'm on stage I want to do more than just play the songs. I want to get into them, play things and add things I don't normally do; it's nice to get applause after each solo, and during breaks have people shake your hand and buy you drinks. It's definitely more fun when the crowd can tell the band is having an 'on' night and just cooking. Makes them part of something special. Those are the best gigs. Maybe they can't tell the difference in tones, but on stage I can, and great tones push me to play my best, and it's a good night for everybody.

I think about all the great gigs ive had where it had nothing to do with my tone. Hell one of my most memorable and best was done on a guitar that wasnt even mine! At that moment no one not me not the crowd not anyone on the planet cared that it wasnt my guitar with my favorite tones. Maybe its because im listening to the band as a unit pump out music and not the minutia of my guitar tone. Ive had many gigs where we had to use the house back line or had to use the backline of a another band cause there wasnt stage space. Most of the time just due to acoustics your tone is less than optimal but that has never gotten in the way of it for me. And ive never thought afterword... "Wow that was a great night but i sure wish i had an A8 mag"

 

[blueman335]

Re: the best JB mods ever..

And ive never thought afterword... "Wow that was a great night but i sure wish i had an A8 mag"

And neither have I.

I also listen to the band as a unit, and at the same time want my contribution to be as good as it can be. In most bands, the spotlight is on the singer and the instruments that do solos. I improvise a lot, and my tones are part of my inspiration (as is the band, the material, and the audience). For me, a great night is when all these things come together.

 

[Mad-Max]

Re: the best JB mods ever..

Honestly, what's more important about a guitar is the feel, and not necessarily the tone it creates. Some may bark at that statement, but it doesn't matter if the tone sounds like heaven. If the guitar plays like absolute crap, then your playing will suffer. It's really more of a matter of the way the neck feels, or the fretboard, or even the body for that matter.

When you have a guitar that feels the way you want it to feel, that's what makes the biggest difference, not the pick-ups or the tonewood. Sure, they contribute to some degree, but if you had a guitar that had your favorite pick-ups in it, had your preferred tonewood, but when you pick it up, it just doesn't feel right at all, then none of that matters. The first thing you'll be doing is putting that guitar down.

 

[blueman335]

Re: the best JB mods ever..

Honestly, what's more important about a guitar is the feel, and not necessarily the tone it creates. Some may bark at that statement, but it doesn't matter if the tone sounds like heaven. If the guitar plays like absolute crap, then your playing will suffer. It's really more of a matter of the way the neck feels, or the fretboard, or even the body for that matter...if you had a guitar that had your favorite pick-ups in it, had your preferred tonewood, but when you pick it up, it just doesn't feel right at all, then none of that matters. The first thing you'll be doing is putting that guitar down.

Not seeing the point here. You can do a basic set-up in minutes and get a guitar playing like you want it to. And if the neck or body 'doesn't feel right', why would you have have bought that guitar in the first place? I intentionally have a variety of neck thicknesses with my guitars, so I don't get hung up on a certain size. I won't turn down an otherwise good guitar (at a good price!) because I'm picky about necks. Best to be versatile. There are other players that do this too.

If you get on stage and don't have one of your guitars with you, then you take your chances with what's available. Pot luck. You may not like the neck, string gauge, action, the guitar in general, the amp, etc. Besides, when I'm playing a gig and some guy pesters me to let him play my guitar for a couple songs (in most cases a guy that's had a few drinks), I'm thinking: 'If this guy shows up to live music and expects to play with the band, he really needs to bring his own guitar, or I can't him seriously.' It's one thing to get talked into going up on stage, but to bug the band until they relent, and not have brought a guitar with you, is pretty lame. If I suspect that I may get asked to join a band onstage, I bring along a guitar and amp in in the trunk of my car. That way, 'a song or two' usually winds up being a set or two. I usually talk to bands between sets, guitar and PU stuff. A lot of times they'll say: 'Did you bring a guitar with you?'

 

[Mad-Max]

Re: the best JB mods ever..

Not seeing the point here. You can do a basic set-up in minutes and get a guitar playing like you want it to. And if the neck or body 'doesn't feel right', why would you have have bought that guitar in the first place? I intentionally have a variety of neck thicknesses with my guitars, so I don't get hung up on a certain size. I won't turn down an otherwise good guitar (at a good price!) because I'm picky about necks. Best to be versatile. There are other players that do this too.

If you get on stage and don't have one of your guitars with you, then you take your chances with what's available. Pot luck. You may not like the neck, string gauge, action, the guitar in general, the amp, etc. Besides, when I'm playing a gig and some guy pesters me to let him play my guitar for a couple songs (in most cases a guy that's had a few drinks), I'm thinking: 'If this guy shows up to live music and expects to play with the band, he really needs to bring his own guitar, or I can't him seriously.' It's one thing to get talked into going up on stage, but to bug the band until they relent, and not have brought a guitar with you, is pretty lame. If I suspect that I may get asked to join a band onstage, I bring along a guitar and amp in in the trunk of my car. That way, 'a song or two' usually winds up being a set or two. I usually talk to bands between sets, guitar and PU stuff. A lot of times they'll say: 'Did you bring a guitar with you?'

I never said necessarily that you had bought the guitar. In the terms of trying it out at a music store or what have you, if say you play a guitar that sounds amazing, but doesn't play nice, then the first thing you'll be doing is putting it back. Plus, sometimes you do an impulse buy online and get a guitar you initially thought was gonna be great, but then you receive it, play it out of the box, and realize it needs a fretjob, intonation is out of whack, and the truss rod needs adjusted. I wouldn't necessarily call that a 'basic set-up in minutes', especially if we're talking about going on stage and playing live in that regard.

As far as necks go, I'm actually not entirely picky. I like different necks for different applications, and all of the guitars I own have different necks to each other. Maybe similar fretboard radius, but the feel is different when I hold it. I have a Jackson King V with a really wide and thin neck, but not super thin like an Ibanez Wizard, then I have an Ibanez Destroyer that has a baseball bat of a neck (Which I find has the beefiest tone), and then my other King V has something inbetween the two, can't remember the specifics.

What I'm saying though, is yeah, of course when you're in a situation where you can't necessarily help what guitar you have, then you just got to stop being a wuss and play the damn thing, but on the other hand, your playing might not be up to par because it doesn't play as nice. I find myself slipping up a lot and feeling less creative on guitars that don't feel at home to me. It's more or less how the guitar feels when I'm picking and when I'm fretting. If I have to fight the notes, then it leaves a lot to be desired. Therefore, in which case, brings me to the point once again, that you'll immediately be looking for something else no matter how great it sounds. I find that problem with a lot of Gibsons I've tried.