markbastable
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These...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sXQnUHK7XOc
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sXQnUHK7XOc
All Time Favorite Pickups?
- Thread starter migetkotla
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migetkotla
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Last year SD released what was supposed to be a limited edition "Concept Set".....modified JB and Jazz pups....more close to the ones Seymour Duncan used when he built the Telegib/Tele Gib in the early-mid 70's. They provide kind of a unique sound that while clean and a dose of sparkle they also have a good amount of mids and easily come through the mix if you are playing in a band (especially if need guitar tone to break through mains).
Good info....thanks so much for sharing!
Good info....thanks so much for sharing!
misterfinn
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My favorite pickups are in my favorite guitar: a Warmoth Jazzmaster(ish) build with Curtis Novak pickups. I have a JM-FAT in the bridge and a JM-V in the neck. The JM-FAT is amazing. Puts some muscle behind the Jazzy's signature sound.
Honorable mention to the Nordstrand NP5 I just put in my 5-string bass build. The bottom end is full without getting boomy and there's plenty of definition in the mids without sitting weirdly in the mix.
Honorable mention to the Nordstrand NP5 I just put in my 5-string bass build. The bottom end is full without getting boomy and there's plenty of definition in the mids without sitting weirdly in the mix.
Cagey
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To paraphrase Tonar's sig: My favorite pickups are the ones under my pick at the time.
Take any set and move it to another guitar, and it won't sound the same. How could you pick a favorite? Too many variables; necks being the biggest. Even if you went from one dirt-common Rosewood over Maple neck to another one, the wood won't be the same. I run a lotta necks through here, and every one is like meeting a new person.
Take any set and move it to another guitar, and it won't sound the same. How could you pick a favorite? Too many variables; necks being the biggest. Even if you went from one dirt-common Rosewood over Maple neck to another one, the wood won't be the same. I run a lotta necks through here, and every one is like meeting a new person.
Strat Avenger
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I've noticed that no matter what pickups George Lynch plays through, it always sounds pretty much the same. 75% of electric guitar tone comes from your fingers.
Different pickups can sound louder, softer, more compressed or more "open", and have different EQ characteristics, but the basic fundamental tone really isn't changed all that much.
Different pickups can sound louder, softer, more compressed or more "open", and have different EQ characteristics, but the basic fundamental tone really isn't changed all that much.
Super Turbo Deluxe Custom
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1st, EMG JV set in my first Warmoth Jazz Bass built in '08. I don't quite have an ear for subtleties, I either like something or I don't and really have to think about why, but that bass in particular has had 2 offers from 2 different studio engineers to buy it. They've heard my others, and they don't even turn their heads. They say just straight into a mixing console, it sounds great before they starting tweaking EQ, compression, etc. It's a good pallet to start with.
2nd, my Fender American Special P-Bass I added a Carvin MM style bridge pickup to. I'm trying to pinpoint exactly which P pickup they put in that with no luck. My other Warmoth with P/MM Seymour Duncan combo, I wish it sounded like the Fender. The Fender's P isn't overly woofy and somehow a pickup from another manufacturer designed in another style voices well with it. With a 3 way Gibson style toggle, the 2 solo'd sounds sound good with the middle position being the perfect blend.
2nd, my Fender American Special P-Bass I added a Carvin MM style bridge pickup to. I'm trying to pinpoint exactly which P pickup they put in that with no luck. My other Warmoth with P/MM Seymour Duncan combo, I wish it sounded like the Fender. The Fender's P isn't overly woofy and somehow a pickup from another manufacturer designed in another style voices well with it. With a 3 way Gibson style toggle, the 2 solo'd sounds sound good with the middle position being the perfect blend.
There are lots of great choices here. Even though I don't currently use one, I will echo the sentiments on the Screamin' Demon pickup. Many moons ago, when I played in a band, I had a Screamin' Demon in the bridge slot of my Kramer Stagemaster. And that was my go-to guitar for most of the songs we played.
I like pretty much anything DiMarzio makes. I've built 14 Warmoths and all but four of them have DiMarzios. Two have EMGs, one has Seymour Blackouts, and one has Rio Grande single coils. Most of my other store-bought guitars also have DiMarzios, but a couple have Seymours.
Of the guitars I have, only two of them have the same pickups. That is the Tone Zone. I think that is a great all-around pickup. It is high-output, but still cleans up nicely. It is one of the few high-output bridge pickups that I think sound as good clean as it does dirty.
For neck pickups, I really like any of DiMarzio's PAF-style ones. The 36th Anniversary, PAF Pro, and Breed Neck all give that cool, tubular, tone when dirty. Clean, they sound quite glassy, to me. Also, the Humbucker from Hell is a great neck pickup. It is about as close to a single coil sound as a humbucker can get, IMHO. Many people see the name and assume it is a high-output metal pickup. It is actually vintage-output. It's name came from DiMarzio trying it in the bridge position in a bright amp. :laughing7: Another non-PAF style neck pickup that I like is the LiquiFire. I have this in the neck slot of a BC Rick Mockingbird. It is warm, but doesn't mud-up with gain. But it really shines with clean chords and arpeggios.
I'll also add that it is too bad that Rockfield went out of business. Their pickups used to come standard in BC Rich guitars. I have a BC Rich Draco Ghost that came with a Rockfield Fat Ass bridge pickup. I was certain I was going to have to swap this out for something else, but I love it! It is really crunchy when playing distorted rhythms. With the Tube Screamer kicked in, the tone is almost howling. It sounds pretty good clean, too.
Also, for vintage-gain applications, the DiMarzio EJ (Eric Johnson) Custom pickups are pretty sweet, as well. I have these in an Ibanez Artcore AS73. Great clean sound and actually sound really good distorted, even in a semi-hollow body guitar. Apparently, they were modeled after the pickups in a Gretsch Country Gentleman guitar. I've never played, nor even seen, one of these.
Anyway, great topic! Thanks for posting it.
I like pretty much anything DiMarzio makes. I've built 14 Warmoths and all but four of them have DiMarzios. Two have EMGs, one has Seymour Blackouts, and one has Rio Grande single coils. Most of my other store-bought guitars also have DiMarzios, but a couple have Seymours.
Of the guitars I have, only two of them have the same pickups. That is the Tone Zone. I think that is a great all-around pickup. It is high-output, but still cleans up nicely. It is one of the few high-output bridge pickups that I think sound as good clean as it does dirty.
For neck pickups, I really like any of DiMarzio's PAF-style ones. The 36th Anniversary, PAF Pro, and Breed Neck all give that cool, tubular, tone when dirty. Clean, they sound quite glassy, to me. Also, the Humbucker from Hell is a great neck pickup. It is about as close to a single coil sound as a humbucker can get, IMHO. Many people see the name and assume it is a high-output metal pickup. It is actually vintage-output. It's name came from DiMarzio trying it in the bridge position in a bright amp. :laughing7: Another non-PAF style neck pickup that I like is the LiquiFire. I have this in the neck slot of a BC Rick Mockingbird. It is warm, but doesn't mud-up with gain. But it really shines with clean chords and arpeggios.
I'll also add that it is too bad that Rockfield went out of business. Their pickups used to come standard in BC Rich guitars. I have a BC Rich Draco Ghost that came with a Rockfield Fat Ass bridge pickup. I was certain I was going to have to swap this out for something else, but I love it! It is really crunchy when playing distorted rhythms. With the Tube Screamer kicked in, the tone is almost howling. It sounds pretty good clean, too.
Also, for vintage-gain applications, the DiMarzio EJ (Eric Johnson) Custom pickups are pretty sweet, as well. I have these in an Ibanez Artcore AS73. Great clean sound and actually sound really good distorted, even in a semi-hollow body guitar. Apparently, they were modeled after the pickups in a Gretsch Country Gentleman guitar. I've never played, nor even seen, one of these.
Anyway, great topic! Thanks for posting it.
BlueTalon
Junior Member
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Since I'm a bass player, if I had to pick one type of pickup to use, I'd probably go with the Fender Super 55 split-coil jazz bass pickup.
For guitar... I hate the noise associated with single coil pickups, so I got a set of Fender Super 55 split-coil strat pickups, and also a set of twin-rail strat humbuckers, to try when I put a guitar together.
For guitar... I hate the noise associated with single coil pickups, so I got a set of Fender Super 55 split-coil strat pickups, and also a set of twin-rail strat humbuckers, to try when I put a guitar together.
Bob Hoover Ross
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I have a real fondness for the original Bill Lawrence dual-blade humbuckers -- was that the L-500? -- with a coil cut switch for the neck position of a Gibson-esque (i.e., 24.75" scale length) guitar. Does the thick chunky Les Paul thing, does the faux jazz ES-335 thing, and does a respectable Strat emulation, all with satisfying clarity, detail, and sparkle.
I have a SD EVH $150 in my main guitar, it's a good all around pup that cleans up nice, I would buy another.
I'm surprised no one mentioned the pearly gates, I have played a buddies guitar who has them, they are on my short list to get for myself.
Great thread :hello2:
I'm surprised no one mentioned the pearly gates, I have played a buddies guitar who has them, they are on my short list to get for myself.
Great thread :hello2:
Jumble Jumble
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My #1 Strat has had a lot of pickups in it over the 20 years I've had it. So I feel like in this guitar I can reasonably have a "favourite" set.
It's the set that are currently in it. They are Stack Plus pickups. The bridge pickup is the STK-S6, Custom Stack Plus, which is basically a noiseless version of the famous SSL-5 that David Gilmour was the first user of. However, rather than having STK-S4 pickups (Classic Stack Plus) in the other two positions, I've got some custom shop pickups in there. The STK-S4 is based on a 50s Strat tone. I wanted that scooped sound from the late sixties/early seventies, that you get from the Fender CS69s. But I wanted noiseless. So they're Stack Plus pickups made to those specs.
That, for my playing and preferences, is a perfect Strat set.
It's the set that are currently in it. They are Stack Plus pickups. The bridge pickup is the STK-S6, Custom Stack Plus, which is basically a noiseless version of the famous SSL-5 that David Gilmour was the first user of. However, rather than having STK-S4 pickups (Classic Stack Plus) in the other two positions, I've got some custom shop pickups in there. The STK-S4 is based on a 50s Strat tone. I wanted that scooped sound from the late sixties/early seventies, that you get from the Fender CS69s. But I wanted noiseless. So they're Stack Plus pickups made to those specs.
That, for my playing and preferences, is a perfect Strat set.
Ace Flibble
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I've a few. I've spent far, far too much money on pickups over the years but in doing so I've managed to come up with a very focused idea of what makes a fully responsive and dynamic pickup, so now I've got my selection pretty tight and down to just the same handful for every guitar.
#1 good-for-everything, default pickup: EMG 60AX. Note the 'A' and 'X', which for some reason most people completely overlook. This is not the 60 and most certainly nothing like the 81 and 85 which are all many people are familiar with. The '60' is the winding, the 'A' is a different magnet and the 'X' is a different preamp. Basically, it's a very low-wound humbucker with incredibly mismatched coils, with a flat preamp to get the signal back up to usable levels and, of course, the full sealing and noiseless operation of an active unit. It sounds a lot like a Firebird pickup, only a bit more 'open' because the coils are so underwound and unbalanced. People who say active pickups are bad, are less dynamic than passives or have—God forbid their English skills are this poor—"less tone" than passive designs have very obviously never tried the 60AX. Perfect as both a neck and bridge pickup.
The only way the 60AX is improved is by switching the horrible A5 magnet for an A4 one. This isn't a standard option and is not a modification you can do yourself, but if you ask EMG very, very nicely and happen to be a regular direct customer of theirs, they might knock you up a set. I do like the standard A5 60AX—it's one of only two pickups which make an A5 magnet sound acceptable—but the A4 is an inarguable improvement for general-purpose needs.
#2 good for-almost-everything, default pickup #2: Gibson BurstBucker #3. For my money, the best PAF-esque humbucker on the market. Gibson really got the coil balance just right with the BB#3. The #2 is good, too, though the #1 is rather poor. I've tried nearly every brand you can name, from big companies, small makers and the ''top'' boutique names, and the BB#3 is still the best PAF pickup I've heard. Hell, I've played with actual original PAF humbuckers and if given the choice, I'd still stick with the BB#3. The only drawback with the BBs is they are the most height-sensitive pickups I've ever found and they quickly become inaudibly thin or a muddy mess if you move them just a fraction of a millimetre too low or high. They can sound real bad if you don't get the height exactly right. Perfect as a bridge pickup, pretty good as a neck pickup although the #2 may be slightly better there depending on how much neck output you want.
#3 personal favourite for my particular style: Seymour Duncan Full Shred set with A4 or A8 magnets. I use these in a couple of Les Pauls with the tone controls disconnected completely. Much greater string separation than any other pickup with bar magnets, but still smoother than a pickup with pole piece magnets. The only problem is the horrific A5 magnet they come with as standard. One of my sets has A4 magnets instead and the other guitar has A8s. The tone between A4 and A8 isn't that different, it's mostly just a question of how well it handles low tunings before the 6th string becomes a muddy mess. I use the calibrated neck and bridge models in their respective positions. As a bonus, if you order directly from Seymour Duncan you can get metal covers as a shop floor mod but with the normal black hex poles showing through, which is a look I absolutely love.
Honourable mentions:
DiMarzio EVO 2: it's a Full Shred but with a more annoying magnet structure. At least it comes in purple, though. Bridge only, shit in the neck.
Seymour Duncan & Fender Pearly Gates Plus: kind of like a non-active 60AX. Still has the usual A5 problem of being on a nasal side, but it does better than any other passive A5 pickup. Makes a good neck pickup other than the pole spacing; a touch weak for the bridge.
Creamery humbucker-size P-90 with A4 magnets: the best hum-size P-90 without exception. It is indistinguishable from a standard P-90 pickup. Good for either position.
Swineshead AMP: the best use of pole piece magnets in a humbucker for proper single coil split tones and Wide Range-esque humbucker tones. Shame that the cockend behind Bare Knuckle drove them out of business with slander. Best at the neck.
Fender Vintage Noiseless Tele: Does what it says on the tin. Take your standard Tele bridge tone, lose the hum and shave the worst harshness from the treble end. Not a fan of the neck equivalent, but for a Tele bridge pickup there's nowt better.
EMG SAV: The only humless single coils worth a shit. Basically a 60s-style single coil with no hum and just a tiny, tiny bit more output so you can get more range out of the volume control. No loss of treble at all and no change in the bass-treble balance. Good in every position, though the neck & middle position is the real star.
#1 good-for-everything, default pickup: EMG 60AX. Note the 'A' and 'X', which for some reason most people completely overlook. This is not the 60 and most certainly nothing like the 81 and 85 which are all many people are familiar with. The '60' is the winding, the 'A' is a different magnet and the 'X' is a different preamp. Basically, it's a very low-wound humbucker with incredibly mismatched coils, with a flat preamp to get the signal back up to usable levels and, of course, the full sealing and noiseless operation of an active unit. It sounds a lot like a Firebird pickup, only a bit more 'open' because the coils are so underwound and unbalanced. People who say active pickups are bad, are less dynamic than passives or have—God forbid their English skills are this poor—"less tone" than passive designs have very obviously never tried the 60AX. Perfect as both a neck and bridge pickup.
The only way the 60AX is improved is by switching the horrible A5 magnet for an A4 one. This isn't a standard option and is not a modification you can do yourself, but if you ask EMG very, very nicely and happen to be a regular direct customer of theirs, they might knock you up a set. I do like the standard A5 60AX—it's one of only two pickups which make an A5 magnet sound acceptable—but the A4 is an inarguable improvement for general-purpose needs.
#2 good for-almost-everything, default pickup #2: Gibson BurstBucker #3. For my money, the best PAF-esque humbucker on the market. Gibson really got the coil balance just right with the BB#3. The #2 is good, too, though the #1 is rather poor. I've tried nearly every brand you can name, from big companies, small makers and the ''top'' boutique names, and the BB#3 is still the best PAF pickup I've heard. Hell, I've played with actual original PAF humbuckers and if given the choice, I'd still stick with the BB#3. The only drawback with the BBs is they are the most height-sensitive pickups I've ever found and they quickly become inaudibly thin or a muddy mess if you move them just a fraction of a millimetre too low or high. They can sound real bad if you don't get the height exactly right. Perfect as a bridge pickup, pretty good as a neck pickup although the #2 may be slightly better there depending on how much neck output you want.
#3 personal favourite for my particular style: Seymour Duncan Full Shred set with A4 or A8 magnets. I use these in a couple of Les Pauls with the tone controls disconnected completely. Much greater string separation than any other pickup with bar magnets, but still smoother than a pickup with pole piece magnets. The only problem is the horrific A5 magnet they come with as standard. One of my sets has A4 magnets instead and the other guitar has A8s. The tone between A4 and A8 isn't that different, it's mostly just a question of how well it handles low tunings before the 6th string becomes a muddy mess. I use the calibrated neck and bridge models in their respective positions. As a bonus, if you order directly from Seymour Duncan you can get metal covers as a shop floor mod but with the normal black hex poles showing through, which is a look I absolutely love.
Honourable mentions:
DiMarzio EVO 2: it's a Full Shred but with a more annoying magnet structure. At least it comes in purple, though. Bridge only, shit in the neck.
Seymour Duncan & Fender Pearly Gates Plus: kind of like a non-active 60AX. Still has the usual A5 problem of being on a nasal side, but it does better than any other passive A5 pickup. Makes a good neck pickup other than the pole spacing; a touch weak for the bridge.
Creamery humbucker-size P-90 with A4 magnets: the best hum-size P-90 without exception. It is indistinguishable from a standard P-90 pickup. Good for either position.
Swineshead AMP: the best use of pole piece magnets in a humbucker for proper single coil split tones and Wide Range-esque humbucker tones. Shame that the cockend behind Bare Knuckle drove them out of business with slander. Best at the neck.
Fender Vintage Noiseless Tele: Does what it says on the tin. Take your standard Tele bridge tone, lose the hum and shave the worst harshness from the treble end. Not a fan of the neck equivalent, but for a Tele bridge pickup there's nowt better.
EMG SAV: The only humless single coils worth a shit. Basically a 60s-style single coil with no hum and just a tiny, tiny bit more output so you can get more range out of the volume control. No loss of treble at all and no change in the bass-treble balance. Good in every position, though the neck & middle position is the real star.
Wolfie351 said:
Old post is old, but I have to change "my tone" to the Wagner Godwood. Bought one soon after this thread and have been playing it for about 5 months and in that time I've purchased 4 additional and different Wagner sets just to try them out but I'm keeping them all. Maybe it's just that I haven't had much experience with hand-wound pickups before, but I'm just in awe. Harmonics galore, very responsive to your picking style and it's almost as if you were playing through a perfectly set up EQ but without the added hardware in your rig. I'm keeping my Screamin' Demon for old times' sake but pretty much everything else is getting replaced by a Wagner.
TonyFlyingSquirrel
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I've been using the 6 & 7 string versions of Dimarzio's Evolution for well over 8 years now as they work well in my basswood bodies for what I'm using.
Having said that, I think that my all time favorite pickups that sound good in almost every guitar that I've either installed them in or played as OEM installed would be the combination of the Seymour Duncan JB in the bridge combined with the '59 in the neck.
I've yet to hear them in a guitar, regardless of its other makeup and appointments, that didn't sound good and useful for a variety of applications.
The second would be their AN II (Slash) set.
Having said that, I think that my all time favorite pickups that sound good in almost every guitar that I've either installed them in or played as OEM installed would be the combination of the Seymour Duncan JB in the bridge combined with the '59 in the neck.
I've yet to hear them in a guitar, regardless of its other makeup and appointments, that didn't sound good and useful for a variety of applications.
The second would be their AN II (Slash) set.
Death by Uberschall
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My 'go to"
EMG 81 bridge
EMG 85/SA neck
SD Invader/JB/Alternative 8/Distortion bridge
SD Jazz neck
My "wanna try"
EMG 57 bridge
EMG 66 neck
SD Seth Lover/Antiquities bridge
SD Seth Lover/Antiquities/Quarter Pounder neck
Anything Bare Knuckles (although I'm afraid to find out they are more hype than tone)
EMG 81 bridge
EMG 85/SA neck
SD Invader/JB/Alternative 8/Distortion bridge
SD Jazz neck
My "wanna try"
EMG 57 bridge
EMG 66 neck
SD Seth Lover/Antiquities bridge
SD Seth Lover/Antiquities/Quarter Pounder neck
Anything Bare Knuckles (although I'm afraid to find out they are more hype than tone)
TonyFlyingSquirrel
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Death by Uberschall said:
I have an '89 that I received as payment for a repair job, that I haven't installed yet into one of my own builds. Still toying with ideas for a higher output neck single coil that still has the quack & definition that I'd like. I like what I've seen/heard of the SAV.
Death by Uberschall
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That 89 is pretty cool. It's an 85 in dual coil mode and a SA in single coil mode.
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