Which pickup to get for a heavy yet smooth sound?

[Fagatron]

I really love the guitar sound on the first few Saint Vitus albums. It's really heavy and fat, but it's not very distorted or gritty. It has kind of a smooth sound.

I wonder, in trying to achieve a sound like this, would it be better to go with a higher output humbucker, or a lower output humbucker?

The 500t/496r pair I have now gets too distorted/gritty when I add gain. It's the only humbuckers I really have much experience with though. Would a lower output humbucker, say like a 57 Classic Plus, be able to take more gain without getting too distorted/gritty? And when adding gain, would it get heavier and fatter while still maintaining a somewhat smooth sound?

I really don't know jack about guitars, pickups, and gear in general, so that's why I'm asking such a clueless question.

 

[OlinMusic]

Re: Which pickup to get for a heavy yet smooth sound?

hmmmm crap - don't know that album.

I can say, my favorite smooth gain combo is the Air Zone and Air Norton for METAL. I also like the Custom 5 for metal, but the lead tone is kinda a question mark. Many rave on the Custom Custom, but I have no experience, and do not know the deal with the highs and lows, which some say can be lacking (a touch) on both ends.

For smooth tone classic rock I like the Alnico 2 Pros (ask Slash!), which are quite low gain.

If the Air Norton intrigues you at all, may I also suggest the Virtual PAF bridge model in the neck for a kinda vintage tone.

I never liked the 57 classics on high gain. I love the Burstbuckers for high gain, but dammit they are NOT wax potted or 4 conductor (and that's work to remedy these issues). I love the Angus Young but it can be a bit compressed and focused at higher settings. Not always good for power chords and certain rhythm work.

Can you give me an idea of your rig and some other tones you like on records?

 

[Fagatron]

Re: Which pickup to get for a heavy yet smooth sound?

Can you give me an idea of your rig and some other tones you like on records?

http://s51.yousendit.com/d.aspx?id=2VVHGXH2S175525XF8MLOAZMQH

I don't really know any bands that have a similar guitar sound, so I uploaded this piece above so you can hear the guitar sound I'm looking for.

 

[OlinMusic]

Re: Which pickup to get for a heavy yet smooth sound?

hmmm that tone sounds like there is a wah or a tone rolled back somewhere. The amp or model (that thing sounds majorly saturated and like a lot of post prod EQ was put on there to smooth the mids) is verrrrrry grain-y in a modern metal sort of way. What type of amp? Rig? dark guitar?

I would figure a Custom custom would do the trick. I would also consider the same dimarzios I mentioned and possibly the Breed model. The Evolution has ceramics but it isnt horribly bitey.

 

[St_Genesius]

Re: Which pickup to get for a heavy yet smooth sound?

+1

Could go either way. In places it sounds like a wah half open, but more often it just reminds me of rolling off all the highs and playing loud. I did something like that (and then mic'd the cab with a Shure Green Bullet mic) and got a very similar sound.

hmmm that tone sounds like there is a wah or a tone rolled back somewhere.

 

[Fagatron]

Re: Which pickup to get for a heavy yet smooth sound?

hmmm that tone sounds like there is a wah or a tone rolled back somewhere. The amp or model (that thing sounds majorly saturated and like a lot of post prod EQ was put on there to smooth the mids) is verrrrrry grain-y in a modern metal sort of way. What type of amp? Rig? dark guitar?

My guitar is a Gibson V with the faded finish. Amp is a Roalnd VGA-5, which is a modeling amp I don't think is made any more. It has a JMP modeling sound that I can get kinda close to the sound I'm looking for if I use the neck humbucker, keep the tone knob on the guitar turned down, and go easy on the amp gain knob. But the sound doesn't seem to have any drive to it, and if I go up too much on the gain it gets too distorted. I was just wondering if a lower output pickup, like an APH-1 or the Dimarzio you mentioned, would allow me to go higher with the gain to get a fuller and heavier sound without becoming too distorted.

Could go either way. In places it sounds like a wah half open, but more often it just reminds me of rolling off all the highs and playing loud. I did something like that (and then mic'd the cab with a Shure Green Bullet mic) and got a very similar sound.

Yeah, I have a video of them playing live, and it looks like they're playing super loud. And the guitar sound on that video is very fat and heavy sounding but also smooth. The song I posted prolly wasn't the very best example, but it was the only one I had on the computer in mp3.

 

[RiffGuy]

Re: Which pickup to get for a heavy yet smooth sound?

After hearing that clip I'd say a Custom Custom would be good. It has those fat mids that this guy has going. It also sounds like he has a wah pedal on, stopped halfway, for the rhythm tone.

 

[More-Gear-Than-Skill]

Re: Which pickup to get for a heavy yet smooth sound?

hotrails is pretty aggro, but smooth and fairly balanced. Quite compressed, which is what i think is needed here...

 

[TwilightOdyssey]

Re: Which pickup to get for a heavy yet smooth sound?

If you read this thread, https://forum.seymourduncan.com/showthread.php?t=58341, I think that the Bare Knuckle Cold Sweat would be a perfect pickup for what you're trying to do. Although it has a ceramic magnet, with an output of about 14.5k, it is very clean sounding. With high gain, you get a really neutral, thick tone a la John Sykes.

The pickup is voiced to work in heavier-mass guitars, so in a Strat it tends to be a bit brighter, though I don't find that to be the case in my guitar.

www.bareknucklepickups.co.uk.