Trying to choose pickup for HSS Strat (Sh-6 vs Sh-8?)

[lazerus250]

I recently purchased a lefty MiM 2007 Stratocaster and am switching it over to an HSS setup. It has a maple neck. I just need some help deciding which pickup to get, or any recommendations.

I want to mainly use it for metal (Lamb of God, Amon Amarth, Metallica, Iced Earth, Judas Priest, Iron Maiden, Black Sabbath type stuff)

I also plan on setting it up to be coil split so I can also use it as a single coil.

Any recommendations?

 

[MikeM]

Re: Trying to choose pickup for HSS Strat (Sh-6 vs Sh-8?)

My vote goes to a Custom with an A4 mag in.. Nice and tight and dark enough for that stuff.

 

[Franknfilms]

Re: Trying to choose pickup for HSS Strat (Sh-6 vs Sh-8?)

Can't go wrong with Custom, my Custom 8 can dish out the metal better than my SH-6 ever did imo. If you are really hankering for that As the Palaces Burn tone go with the SH-8, you'll need a Mesa Mark IV too

 

[lazerus250]

Re: Trying to choose pickup for HSS Strat (Sh-6 vs Sh-8?)

What is a custom 8? I'm having trouble finding it on the Seymour Duncan site.

 

[ACH91332]

Re: Trying to choose pickup for HSS Strat (Sh-6 vs Sh-8?)

It's a Custom with an A8 mag in it. It isnt production but it ought to be and probably will be at some point seeing how thats how the Custom Custom and Custom 5 were brought about.

Going C8 would be badass but if you dont want to mag swap a Custom Custom would be a little darker and suit the Strat well and when split will sound nice seeing how the pickup is hot and dark. You could go Custom as well since it has a little more bite to it which would probably work out a little better if you want to go metal. Are you running 250k pots? If so maybe the Custom 5 since it's sorta scooped. The fact that you are using 250k pots would compliment it nicely since 250ks are darker and the C5 is more scooped. There are many options in the Custom line.

 

[lazerus250]

Re: Trying to choose pickup for HSS Strat (Sh-6 vs Sh-8?)

I was planning on using a 500k when I switch the volume over to a push/pull for splitting the humbucker.

Is it hard to find a A8 Magnet? And how hard is it to switch?

 

[bagouser]

Re: Trying to choose pickup for HSS Strat (Sh-6 vs Sh-8?)

Heard alot of Classic Metal in that description.......Custom, JB, Distortion, Invader.
In that order........If you want a "new" metal kind of sound, try the latter two first, be warned, the Invader is a beast, but lacks treble, so if you play leads, I'd use a different pickup or switch to one of your SCs.........
I havent tried the ALT 8, but most reviewers like it for hard rock/heavy rock circa 1985-1990.

 

[Nightburst]

Re: Trying to choose pickup for HSS Strat (Sh-6 vs Sh-8?)

I preferred a JB over a Custom(123456789 or whatever magnet!) in a strat.
If yours has an alder body then both the Custom and JB will work nicely, depends on what you want exactly, amp type and if you play lead or rythem.
If it's ash then I don't know, lol. Never tried an ash bodied guitar.
Some MIM strats have ash bodies so you might want to clarify that before deciding.
Hope this helps.

 

[lazerus250]

Re: Trying to choose pickup for HSS Strat (Sh-6 vs Sh-8?)

I think it's an Alder body but I've just sent Fender the Serial so they could tell me a definate answer.

I play through an older Roland Cube-60 (Big orange thing)
http://www.justgreatguitars.com/images/ProductImages/R96/5sold.jpg
http://www.justgreatguitars.com/images/ProductImages/R96/Original Files/6.png
^
Same as this guy.

I tend to lean toward rhythm(like a chugging sound when I palm mute), but also do leads (pretty much do all my own recording). So I'm trying to find something that would be a good balance between the two.

 

[Nightburst]

Re: Trying to choose pickup for HSS Strat (Sh-6 vs Sh-8?)

Well I would say the JB is more versatile but the Custom has a better chug.

I would almost say get an Ivader, best chug in a strat and splits nicely. Mark morton uses one in his jackson.

 

[Stef]

Re: Trying to choose pickup for HSS Strat (Sh-6 vs Sh-8?)

l500xl

 

[Benjy_26]

Re: Trying to choose pickup for HSS Strat (Sh-6 vs Sh-8?)

The best chug I've gotten has come from one of three pickups (depending on the guitar).

The Demon works in guitars with big mids, the Dime is an all around beast of a pickup, has worked well in everything from a Hamer to a HM Strat, and the Super 3 is a dark, compressed pickup that gets a thick rythm tone with a somewhat chopped treble response.

 

[lazerus250]

Re: Trying to choose pickup for HSS Strat (Sh-6 vs Sh-8?)

Also I'm wondering if I'd need a Trembucker version of the pickups for my strat or if the regular would be fine? I've measured the strings (Middle of High E to middle of Low E, and its basically 50mm bang on.

 

[LatsMcGee]

Re: Trying to choose pickup for HSS Strat (Sh-6 vs Sh-8?)

You could always get an invader set and just make the guitar a HxH setup, I get great sounds out of the invader neck for solos, I seldom use the bridge PU for leads.

There are a lot of great high output PUs out there though, My friend just picked up a Crunch Lab and that sounds great.

 

[cakire82]

Re: Trying to choose pickup for HSS Strat (Sh-6 vs Sh-8?)

Also I'm wondering if I'd need a Trembucker version of the pickups for my strat or if the regular would be fine? I've measured the strings (Middle of High E to middle of Low E, and its basically 50mm bang on.

If it is an alder body JB is the obvious choice considering the type of music you like to play. Trembucker version should fit fine.

 

[lazerus250]

Re: Trying to choose pickup for HSS Strat (Sh-6 vs Sh-8?)

Heard back from fender, it's definately made of Alder. Lots of recommendations for a JB here but I'm just worried it wont be able to go heavy enough to do stuff like:



?

 

[Franknfilms]

Re: Trying to choose pickup for HSS Strat (Sh-6 vs Sh-8?)

Heard back from fender, it's definately made of Alder. Lots of recommendations for a JB here but I'm just worried it wont be able to go heavy enough....

Whoa, stop right there, you don't need you're pickups to be ridiculously high output to play the heaviest of metal. That is very wrong assumption, one that I made and paid the price for. I absolutely had to have a distortion or similar output when I first started pickup shopping even though when I described what tone I wanted forum members steered me to the Custom series. I went ahead with distortion anyway and here I am now with a Custom...since I don't do my own installing that cost me a bit of cash, but at least I learned my lesson. Don't forget that all of the metal tone is mainly coming from the amp.

And, as far as output goes, the JB is super hot and capable of the deathiest and doomiest of metal.

 

[Franknfilms]

Re: Trying to choose pickup for HSS Strat (Sh-6 vs Sh-8?)

Check out fellow forum member surface's clips here, he's using the Custom 8. Also, do some other searches on that netmusicians website and you'll hear clips of JB and other Customs doing metal, rock, and everything else...maybe even a jb and fender combo.

 

[lazerus250]

Re: Trying to choose pickup for HSS Strat (Sh-6 vs Sh-8?)

Oh! thanks, that's a great site. Yeah I've never bought pickups before. This site seems like it'll help though

This clip in particular http://netmusicians.org/?section=id&value=6750 has got me leaning more towards a custom. The SH-6 clips on here sound pretty terrible :/

 

[lazerus250]

Re: Trying to choose pickup for HSS Strat (Sh-6 vs Sh-8?)

I think I'm gonna go with a Trembucker of the custom. Thanks you guys