WICKED has a confession

[walt]

Re: WICKED has a confession

hmmm, I had a custom and switched it to a C5. I found that ceramic mags to me, sound compressed compared to alnico mags. I had a 59 in my strat and found that the guitar sound actually "breathed". When I replaced the 59 with the Custom, I found the tone more compressed. As a C5 it seems to have a little more room to breathe but not as much as the 59. I believe that it is a lot easier to take a low output pickup and "push" it to get the tones you are searching for than to take a higher output pickup and try to scale it back (for clean tones). I think you can cover more styles of music with a lower output pickup than with a higher output one. Just my 2 cents for what it's worth.

 

[Zhangliqun]

Re: WICKED has a confession

I like the Custom series, particularly with either the C3 and C4 mod. For medium to high output humbuckers, it may be Seymour's best work...

 

[theodie]

Re: WICKED has a confession

The custom is my most favorite Duncan pickup!!!!!!! Seymour hit a home run when he made it!!! If anything, I think the custom should be getting all of the hype instead of the JB! LOL!!!!!!!!!!

 

[ErikH]

Re: WICKED has a confession

The custom is my most favorite Duncan pickup!!!!!!! Seymour hit a home run when he made it!!! If anything, I think the custom should be getting all of the hype instead of the JB! LOL!!!!!!!!!!

We know, Dave. We know. LOL

 

[theodie]

Re: WICKED has a confession

We know, Dave. We know. LOL

:18: :18: :18: :18: :18: LOL!!!!!!!!!



Did I mention, THE CUSTOM RULES!!!!!!!!


Or some would say, "THE CUSTOM OWNS"



BTW erik, I see that you are a 2100 player also!!! Killer amp!!! I Love mine!

 

[ErikH]

Re: WICKED has a confession

Hmmm, I think I missed that somewhere. :18:

If it makes you feel better, the JB has taken second fiddle to the Custom Custom for me. I still like the JB but the Custom Custom to me is the sheeit!

I love my 2100 too. It's was retubed earlier this year with EH 12AX7's and Svetlana EL34's. :32:

 

[theodie]

Re: WICKED has a confession

Hmmm, I think I missed that somewhere. :18:

If it makes you feel better, the JB has taken second fiddle to the Custom Custom for me. I still like the JB but the Custom Custom to me is the sheeit!

I love my 2100 too. It's was retubed earlier this year with EH 12AX7's and Svetlana EL34's. :32:

Right on!!!! I am using Sovtek LPS 12AX7's and Sovtek WXT's EL 34's!! I LOVE them!!!!! They are a huge improvement over the JJ's I had in there before!

 

[ErikH]

Re: WICKED has a confession

Right on!!!! I am using Sovtek LPS 12AX7's and Sovtek WXT's EL 34's!! I LOVE them!!!!! They are a huge improvement over the JJ's I had in there before!

I haven't tried JJ's in it. The tubes that were in there were really old and worn out. What's in mine now were recommended to me. Good recommendation.

 

[Majestic]

Re: WICKED has a confession

The Custom is NOT in any way a pickup Eddie used. The Ceramic mag *is* completely different, unless you've got a tin ear-drum, or have such poor right hand attack, that the pickup doesn't sound bright. You can sound like EVH with tons of different pickups, and amp configurations....we've been over this.

Van Halen 1 is bright because Templeman absolutely cranked the treble at the mixing board, while Eddie's settings while different as well. When Eddie had his input AFTER that record, the whole thing changed.

That doesn't mean that the Custom pickup isn't awesome.

 

[Nate]

Re: WICKED has a confession

I'm really beginning to dig my Customs. In my strat, it ****ing owns all when it comes to brutal riffage and soloing, However, it does lack in the clean areas (thin/tinny tone, as was previously mentioned).

My Custom 7 is the greatest thing I've ever done to my Universe. It does exactly what I want it to do anytime I want to do it. The cleans aren't thin at all; they're rather bright, but by no means thin.

For those of you wondering what set to get in a basswood guitar (namely a seven stringer), go for the Custom/59 set. If you don't like 'em, I'll buy them from you.

 

[chill]

Re: WICKED has a confession

I recently learned there are different grades of ceramic...anybody know what grade is in the Custom? Seems like a weaker ceramic would help ease the icicle treble that ceramics are known for.

the C3 and C4 mod.

How do those sound compared to the custom and/or the custom 5 and/or the custom custom? I'm particularly interested in the C4 because I have some 490's sitting around and I've been thinking of sticking A4 magnets in them. Seems like A4 has more treble and less output than A5, and more treble and about the same output as A2.

My Custom 7 is the greatest thing.

Is that alnico 7? And how does it sound compared to the custom and/or the custom 5 and/or the custom custom?

 

[theodie]

Re: WICKED has a confession

I recently learned there are different grades of ceramic...anybody know what grade is in the Custom? Seems like a weaker ceramic would help ease the icicle treble that ceramics are known for.



How do those sound compared to the custom and/or the custom 5 and/or the custom custom? I'm particularly interested in the C4 because I have some 490's sitting around and I've been thinking of sticking A4 magnets in them. Seems like A4 has more treble and less output than A5, and more treble and about the same output as A2.



Is that alnico 7? And how does it sound compared to the custom and/or the custom 5 and/or the custom custom?

No, the custom 7 is a regular Custom that is set up for a 7 string guitar. Instead of having 6 poles, it has 7.

 

[WICKED LESTER]

Re: WICKED has a confession

Your (Lester) Custom still sounds great in my Paul...

:lmao:
yeah bro i said to myself right after i sold you that one
"why did i sell that" :lmao:

no sweat i got another one for my strat that was trem spaced from slightly rude over at the trading post
and bought a new one for my one Lester
so everyone's happy! :yo:

 

[WICKED LESTER]

Re: WICKED has a confession

The Custom is NOT in any way a pickup Eddie used. The Ceramic mag *is* completely different, unless you've got a tin ear-drum, or have such poor right hand attack, that the pickup doesn't sound bright. You can sound like EVH with tons of different pickups, and amp configurations....we've been over this.

Van Halen 1 is bright because Templeman absolutely cranked the treble at the mixing board, while Eddie's settings while different as well. When Eddie had his input AFTER that record, the whole thing changed.

That doesn't mean that the Custom pickup isn't awesome.

I do believe i said that seymour made this for guys that wanted eddies over the top tone that had no variac going with thier marshall
seymnour made this pup with his tone in mind when every guitar player and thier mother wanted eddies tone(1979)
but it is NOT the SAME pup that eddie used
eddie used a rewound 1961 PAF that he had seymour repair ONE coil on
in 1978 till 1981 when he then used the custom-custom along with his original
PAF mentioned.
the CC is all over fair warning and 1984
for those that want to hear the definitive CC lead tone listen to the solo in "JUMP"
for the ryhthm tone of the CC listen to eddie's unchained riff

 

[JeffB]

Re: WICKED has a confession

Heh..I won't get into the "argument" about what eddie used and didn't he's notorious for giving everyone the run-around over the years re: his gear. I would only believe what I see..not what I hear (no matter the source)...

However.....

The Custom in my experience is far from duplicating/approaching any kind of "Brown Sound" variac Eddie tone...regardless of guitar....I've had them in Gibsons, Strats, a Jackson, and an Ibanez and although it's billed as a "beefed up" PAF, it's not terribly PAF-ish... (though it's a great sound, and I love it! )....

Though I don't know, I just could not imagine that was the Seymour's intention w/ the SH-5....A 59, Seth, APII, or (apparently) the C-5 would be much more similar to the pickups from eddie's early days (assuming again, he's not lying through his teeth)..the Custom has a markedly different tone than a PAF: abundance of lower mids, slightly compressed highs, etc vs/ the less mids, janglier/rounder bass, and biting highs of a PAF.

EDIT: If I were to build a Frankenstrat seeking out the early eddie tone..I would most likely choose a Seth, a 59, Pearly gates, or the A2 Pro (as they all have the generallly correct output level) loaded into an Alder Strat/maple neck with a Fender vintage trem or OFR....Custom would damn near be my last choice in the Duncan lineup for that tone...

 

[Zerberus]

Re: WICKED has a confession

BTW: Eddi is NOTORIOUS for telling different people different things over the years regarding his gear...

For that reason, I wouldn´t even believe it if he told me himself, but only with theactual guitars in hand and the recording running

 

[WICKED LESTER]

Re: WICKED has a confession

BTW: Eddi is NOTORIOUS for telling different people different things over the years regarding his gear...

For that reason, I wouldn´t even believe it if he told me himself, but only with theactual guitars in hand and the recording running

yeah man this is so true!
my bud that knows him said he is a mental mess :disappoin
he cant remember things correctly at all and really has no real direction with his music beleive it or not :dunno:
as far as his tone i really just wanted the VIBE of his older tone you know that rowdy beefed up PAF tone that screamed,pinched,moaned,howled,cried, and the custom gets me there.
i know HE never used it but i DO!!!!!!!! :headbang:

BTW i have tried the custom with a alnico 8 and it is pure SWEET!!!!
like a mesh of the C5 and custom with some of the CC thrown in there :notworthy

 

[Kamanda~SD]

Re: WICKED has a confession

This is great to hear as I cam getting a Custom put in my strat by the end of the year.