Which cross-brand pickup pairings do you like?

[Rex_Rocker]

Wonder what you guys have had success with in the past when combining pickup brands.

I'll start. For me:

Duncan '59B/DiMarzio PAF 36th Anniversary

I've always liked the '59B. It's brash, twangy, and scooped, but it has a solid, bold bottom-end. It's the epitome of what a PAF-type should sound like to be able to be usable for high-gain. However, I've never liked the '59N. It's all boominess with some chirpy attack thrown on top. The 36th Anniversary PAF is better, IMO. It's fat, but it's not all boominess. It's smooth and not nearly as chirpy, but it's not muddy either.

DiMarzio PAF Pro/Duncan Phat Cat

I like the PAF Pro in the bridge a lot, personally. It has a really emphatic pick attack. Contrary to what some may say/think, I don't find it's mid-boosted whatsoever. But it's not scooped like the '59 either. It's really balanced in the mids with some tight low-end. However, I've always hated it in the neck. I find it unusably attacky and scratchy with no weight whatsoever, and a bit low output to be matched with actual hot pickups, contrary to what the DiMarzio site suggests. The Phat Cat is a great pairing to me. I find it has a bit of that single coil jangliness, but no horrible scratchiness like a Fender-style SC. An overall very balanced pairing in the vintage-output realm.

Gibson 500T/DiMarzio Evo Neck

You guys know I love the 500T. It's like the best things from a Black Winter and a Duncan Distortion merged into one with some of that Gibson raspiness and ratiness. I haven't tried the 496R. I once ordered a used one off eBay and got a pair of P-Rails by error, LOL. However, I don't feel like I need to. The Evo Neck compliments it beautifully. Good thing about the Evo neck is it's asymmetrically wound, so if you find it too dark for 22-fret guitars, turn the hotter coil towards the bridge. If you find it too thin for 24-fret guitars, flip it around.

So what about you guys? What other sets have you had luck with?

 

[beaubrummels]

Bare Knuckle Black Dog bridge / Seymour Duncan 59N with A4 magnet in the neck

Quintessential "Gibson Les Paul" sound, or even Gibson ES- type sound, for me. Definitely a Jimmy Page-like set, which is what I was after when I tried this. But I've found it does so much more. It just sounds like a Les Paul should, to me.

 

[Rex_Rocker]

I guess on the new year, I'm going to test how the D Activator matches with either the Hot Rails or the Quarter Pound.

 

[xxxplorer]

Right now I'm digging my Les Paul Classic with a Jim Wagner Ironman Neck in the Bridge possition (17K ceramic, so still hot), and a motor city 2nd degree black belt in the neck. Very clear and almost single coil like neck, and a Ripping cutting bridge with some chunk. I usually use the normal Ironman at 22K, but had this neck laying around and it makes for a great bridge pickup.

 

[Rex_Rocker]

I've also had a Duncan Blackout in the bridge with an EMG 81 in the neck, but it didn't work. The Blackout was way too hot for the 81.

 

[Chistopher]

I've always liked the vibe of throwing a Super Distortion in the bridge of a Strat without changing the stock neck and bridge pickups.

 

[larryguitar]

JB bridge/Air Norton neck. The Air Norton is an AWESOME neck pickup, and I'm not usually a big DMZ fan.

Larry

 

[beaubrummels]

Another mixed setup that has worked well for me so far is Custom Custom bridge, Injector neck in the middle and VV 54 Pro in the neck in my Jackson. I have the vol/tone wired like a triple shot on the Custom Custom, so I get 80's mid-thick biting kerrang, telecaster bridge sound (in parallel), P90 punk tone (split to screw coil), Fendery spank and twang (split to sliug), then the Injector in the middle sounds like a Gibson neck pickup, and the 54 Pro in the neck gives me Stratty/Hendrixy neck sounds. Position 2 and position 4 are additional levels of funk and spank. I just wired the neck/middle with reverse hot/ground to match the Custom Custom and they all work together.

 

[hamerfan]

I had my troubles with the 59n as well. First I got an A4 for it: definitely better! Recently I bought some unoriented short A5: I'd say what the doctor ordered.
The Phat Cat neck was a Desaster for me. I did not fit any of my guitars - too weak, too warm. A last resort was quite nice: It fit quite well in es335 copy, because it transformed the spikey attack to a more mellow tone.
I struggled with the 500T and compared it to the SH-6. Then I read about changing out one of the side magnets to a wooden spacer. I became a bit softer and less spikey in a good way. Highly recommended.

 

[Archer250]

Duncan Custom Custom and Suhr MLs

It's just

 

[soulforger]

Dimarzio Super Distortion bridge and a Custom Custom neck in a Jackson Dominion, that guitar though mahogany, was quite bright being chambered with a maple top and ebony board, never tried that combo in anything else though!

 

[Rex_Rocker]

Dimarzio Super Distortion bridge and a Custom Custom neck in a Jackson Dominion, that guitar though mahogany, was quite bright being chambered with a maple top and ebony board, never tried that combo in anything else though!

Oh, wow. What does a Custom Custom sound in the neck like?

 

[soulforger]

In that guitar it was a bit like...an Air Norton with the usual complaint fixed, like the blanket has been taken off it so you can hear the pickup underneath it, the missing sizzle.

 

[nienturi]

Dimarzio Paf Pro and S.Duncan Custom 5 (b)
Dimarzio Pearly Gates bridge and Dimarzio Virtual Hot Paf (b)
Fender Texas Special neck and middle and S.Duncan Pearly Gates neck or 59 neck or Jazz neck
Fender typical singles from american std series and Gibson 490T

 

[marcello252]

SD SSL-1 on neck and middle and DMZ FS-1 on bridge, a classic for my strats.
I do prefer FS-1 over the SSL-5, less middy oriented, fatter on bass