What..Me?..Stupid??

The New Guy

The New Guy

New member
Alright here's the dilema...My long-time (about 18 years) bestest buddy guitar is in danger of it's owner having a big hole hacked in it....

I cannot find a neck position single coil sized pick up that I like the sound of!

I love the sound of neck position humbucking pick ups like the '59 and dimarzio's paf pro etc...I have tried several single coil sized p/u's in then neck position of this guitar and I like none of them very much....

I will never sell / trade / or otherwise get rid of this guitar so although resale value is of little concern, I still feel a little queezy about taking it to a luthier and having him route for a full-size neck position humbucker...since it is a top routed guitar I would also want to have a pick guard made and installed to make it look clean..(right now it's a hum/sing/sing with the middle p/u removed)

I absolutely love everything else about the guitar and I don't know what to do...I know guitars are made to be played but...

Please give me your opinions, thanks!!!!

p.s.by the way it's an '86 Jackson sl-1 U.S.A model...thanks!
 
Re: What..Me?..Stupid??

Don't do it! You'll regret it! Maybe not today, maybe not tomorrow, but for sure the next day. HSS is an incredibly versatile layout and someday you'll want a single coil back in there. Especially if you can't hide the operation with a pickguard. If you're dead-set on a neck 'bucker consider another guitar. It'll probably run you the same amount as paying a luthier and replacement pickups.

What pickups have you tried in there so far? You can get a single-coil sized '59 that'll squeeze in there. I don't know exactly what sound you're going for but I've had good luck with a DiMarzio HS-3 if you're looking for a fatter single coil sound. Also if you've been looking at hotter or overwound designs for there, maybe take a step back and try a standard Strat single. You may be pleasantly surprised what a stock single in the neck can do.
 
Re: What..Me?..Stupid??

Try a JB Jr. neck. I'm coming to realize that my HSS topmounted G&L Legacy Deluxe just doesn't sound good with vintage singles. It's maple on basswood, which sounds great for humbuckers, but makes singles sound small. I'm about to order a JB Jr. neck in black, and also a lil 59 for the middle, along with the C-5 or JB humbucker.
That way, I can try both, and keep both, or exchange one for another match.
 
Re: What..Me?..Stupid??

dont do it. I wld go with Gamera on that. If u r looking for a slightly muddy tone or a warmmer tone why not try running the pickup through a cap? I am sure u will find a single coil sized pick up .
 
Re: What..Me?..Stupid??

I'd leave the Jackson alone. Let it be what it is.

Then I'd look for a new or used guitar with two humbuckers.

Don't hack up your Jackson.
 
Re: What..Me?..Stupid??

You've had it for 18 years? You CAN'T hack that thing! There must have been something you liked about it. I know I go through fazes where I feel the need to, and are temepted to bust out the router and do some heavy mods. Give it time, it will pass. Maybe you will rediscover what you liked about it.
 
Re: What..Me?..Stupid??

go get a sl2h :D

up till now i never had a use for a single coil, maybe it will change when i get my hands on the charvel fusion deluxe that's reserved for me, so i'll remain openminded about it.

tried the hotrails btw? they sound pretty fat
 
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Re: What..Me?..Stupid??

Just got in this morning and checked your posts...well...you guys are probably right...thanks for pulling me back from the edge! I have tried the JB Jr. and found it was somewhere between a single coil and a full size humbucker and it didn't do either very well..maybe I just didn't give it a good chance...I have a Dimarzio Fast Track II in there now and find the same thing, although it's closer to what I want. The stock Jackson single coils were not good at all....I have an Ibanez Rg as a back up guitar with double hums in it but It just isn't near as enjoyable to play (for me) as the Jackson...

Maybe I will step back and try a nice slightly hotter single coil...I really haven't given that a shot yet....sell the Ibanez...that way I can build a Warmoth!!

There you go...with all your help I've now justified spending more money and getting the 2nd guitar that I want ( I mean need).

Thanks again for the help everyone....now on to the pickup lounge for some advise on single coils!
 
Re: What..Me?..Stupid??

HOT RAILS man!! try em before you do anything else =P

as for selling the RG and going the warmoth route, absolutely :D go for it

and put a hotter single coil into the middle position that way you'll have pretty much all the bases covered =)
 
Re: What..Me?..Stupid??

The New Guy said:
Maybe I will step back and try a nice slightly hotter single coil...I really haven't given that a shot yet....
Click to expand...

Again, I'm not sure what sort of sound you're after but I was in a similar situation as you awhile back. I kept trying to find a hotter single coil, one that had all the characteristics of a humbucker. I finally realized that a single-sized bucker will never truly sound full-sized so I went in the exact opposite direction. I let the single be a single (although I admit it's stacked since I really needed noise cancelling.) And to top it off, instead of raising the height of the pup as I might do with a humbucker to make it "hotter," I tried lowering it almost flush with the guitar. Wow! A huge, powerful, cutting tone that was everything I had hoped for, although it sounds nothing like a humbucker.
 
Re: What..Me?..Stupid??

That sounds like what I'll try, after reading the posts I kind of realize I may be trying to make it something it's not...the sound I'm after is really based on the neck position humbuckers i've played i.e. the 59 and paf pro...theres something about soloing with those in the neck position that just sounds great, especially in the up the neck...just sounds beautiful...thick and creamy etc..,the paf pro has just a touch of air and presence that keeps it articulate at the same time...

what stacked single coil did you go for?
 
Re: What..Me?..Stupid??

Gamera, any idea how the hot rails compares to the JB jr.? also would it be too much for say a C-5 or another medium to high output bridge p/u? i've heard those are pretty stout, but I may be wrong.
 
Re: What..Me?..Stupid??

yea, the hotrail is pretty damn hot hehe.

how i percieve it.. it's fatter than the JBJr and has a bit more output, but its also a tad closer to the humbucker. it has a bit of that single coil sparkle (you will never get rid of it with single coil sized buckers)
as for how it would go with a C5 in the bridge? IMO it would be a good match. about the output issue, i wouldnt worry about it =) try the rail before you sell off any of your guitars. it just might be what you are looking for
 
Re: What..Me?..Stupid??

Sounds like it's worth a shot...heck I'll get a hot rails and try a stacked single and return the one I don't like, that way I've covered my bases....

I think I've already talked myself into selling the Ibanez and looking at warmoth though...G.A.S. has taken hold!
 
Re: What..Me?..Stupid??

EHEHEHEHEHE, aint it great?

gotta love gas (if you can afford it that is)
 
Re: What..Me?..Stupid??

Have you considered having a pickup custom-wound? It would be cheaper than having work done to the guitar, and it's completely reversable ;)
 
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