thinking of some new pickups for my rich bich

Oudy

New member
im getting a bit bored of active pickups and i want to try something new in the next couple of months in my main

nato body, maple neck thru, ebony fretboard 24.75 scale stop tail rich bich

i currently use the mustaine set but i want to try something a bit different that's preferably not active. im leaning heavily towards a cream dimarzio x2n/air norton combo but im not sure if that will do what i want with it (heavy metal sound, creamy leads, chunky rhythm) so bros what do you think. great choice on my part or can you recommend something better

(i know i have to change the pots so i might throw a push/pull or two into the mix to get split and parallel with both pickups, not sure)

what do you guys think
 
Re: thinking of some new pickups for my rich bich

Don't really have much experience with DMZs but I do like the Suhr Aldrich and the Pearly Gates for "creamy leads" although, depending on the guitar the PG can be way too dark.

The 59 on the other hand splits as good as the Aldrich but doesn't have that same lead tone when full, more PAF-ish sounding (which, although not a bad thing, not really what we need here).

Again, I haven't had 1st hand experience with either but I hear great things about the Air Norton.

About the Bridge, if not for the X2N, how about some A8 goodness like the Alt 8 or Custom 8? (all the alnico warmth but with the Ceramic byte)
 
Re: thinking of some new pickups for my rich bich

Don't really have much experience with DMZs but I do like the Suhr Aldrich and the Pearly Gates for "creamy leads" although, depending on the guitar the PG can be way too dark.

The 59 on the other hand splits as good as the Aldrich but doesn't have that same lead tone when full, more PAF-ish sounding (which, although not a bad thing, not really what we need here).

Again, I haven't had 1st hand experience with either but I hear great things about the Air Norton.

About the Bridge, if not for the X2N, how about some A8 goodness like the Alt 8 or Custom 8? (all the alnico warmth but with the Ceramic byte)

honestly dude, i was leaning more towards dimarzio since i used a super distortion/super distortion (or maybe it was an evolution bridge in the neck and a super in the bridge) and i was very fond of the sound i got from it untill the guitar disappeared (which i miss dearly, it was an epiphone demon with a schaler floyd on it [the pickups and floyds were modified on a bit after i bought the guitar]).

so i was looking at the x2n because of wanting to use one since i was around 15-16 and being fond of the sound of someone who had one and used it for jazz and thrash) and later when iwas 18ish and heard chuck schuldiner with one in his bridge and loved his lead and rhythm tone. the air norton in the past year because it's been praised when i asked on the forums, and what i've heard its been creamy as hell so i wanted one. im open to other suggestions and im gona think about it definitely. if anyone else wants to weigh in that would be cool
 
Re: thinking of some new pickups for my rich bich

Your description sounds like it's one of the NJ Classic series guitars. I had a Mockingbird with the same setup and had a heck of a time finding the right set of pickups for that guitar. Everything was just so bright. I can't help you out with the DMZs, but I can tell you that after trying several Duncans I ended up settling on a Gibson 490/498T set. Oh, and chrome covers look killer on the NJ Classic... assuming that is what you have. ;) Good luck with your search.
 
Re: thinking of some new pickups for my rich bich

Your description sounds like it's one of the NJ Classic series guitars. I had a Mockingbird with the same setup and had a heck of a time finding the right set of pickups for that guitar. Everything was just so bright. I can't help you out with the DMZs, but I can tell you that after trying several Duncans I ended up settling on a Gibson 490/498T set. Oh, and chrome covers look killer on the NJ Classic... assuming that is what you have. ;) Good luck with your search.

yeah, mine's an nj classic, i hated the bc rich pickups so i traded for a mustaine set and they do a pretty good job on it, but i wanted something different this time around, i was considering putting the old pickups from my les paul in (the 490 and 498t ) in but i didnt like the sound of them
 
Re: thinking of some new pickups for my rich bich

If you liked the super distortion/super distortion why not go really extreme with a x2n bridge and super distortion neck! Then use push pulls for parallel wiring on each. This would be a very extreme set up, but could work for the type of sounds you are after.
 
Re: thinking of some new pickups for my rich bich

I'm thinking man that you've gotten to that set for the right reasons so you might as well go with it.

Does the return and replace policy apply where you live?
If so then it's an easy enough thing.

If not then I'd probably go used for them, that way you won't take a bad hit if they don't work the way you like.
 
Re: thinking of some new pickups for my rich bich

i was considering putting the old pickups from my les paul in (the 490 and 498t ) in but i didnt like the sound of them

24.75, mahogany set neck w/maple cap vs 25.5, maple neck-thru. Trust me, you'd never know it was the same set of pickups. I'm not saying they were the end-all-be-all set, but they did work exceptionally well for me in that scenario.
 
Re: thinking of some new pickups for my rich bich

24.75, mahogany set neck w/maple cap vs 25.5, maple neck-thru. Trust me, you'd never know it was the same set of pickups. I'm not saying they were the end-all-be-all set, but they did work exceptionally well for me in that scenario.

i might get my les paul pickups mailed to me then since i took them out of my les paul. if i can't get ahold of them though ill see if i can get a deal on them.




im not sure about the exchange policy here, i moved from australia to vermont so im not 100% on it
 
Re: thinking of some new pickups for my rich bich

For chunky, beefy rythms and creamy leads (from Dimarzio), I'd go with an Air Zone bridge and an Air Norton combo.

The X2N can be a bit of a screamer at times.
 
Re: thinking of some new pickups for my rich bich

For chunky, beefy rythms and creamy leads (from Dimarzio), I'd go with an Air Zone bridge and an Air Norton combo.

The X2N can be a bit of a screamer at times.

ill talk to the dude that is at the store near here to see what he thinks since he seems to know a lot about pickups. i went to go talk to them (actually to see how much my strat was going to cost to get out with the new trem bar and graphtech nut) and he seemd to really like the x2n/super distortion or air norton idea. ill remmber to ask him about those.

bump for anyone else who wants to chime in
 
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