Strat Pick-up Configuration

[brandonr]

Good Moring All,
I have been working on my 3rd strat build for the last three months and at last its playable. Only problem is I am not happy with my pick-up selection. Right now I have a Dimarzio Area 67 in the neck, Area 61 in the middle and those sound great. The bridge is where my problem lies. I decided to try a SD JB and frankly it just isn't doing it for me. My other two strats sound great Dimarzio Super Distortion in one and a Tone Zone in the other. I'm just looking for a different sound out of this one but I still want to keep my heavy rock roots. I realize this is a purely subjective question but I am open to opinions.
Thanks,
Brandon

 

[tfarny]

Why not get a lower output bucker - plenty of hard rock has been made on normal output alnico pickups, and it will be a better match for those vintage output singles. Get Ken @ roadhouse pickups to make you something, or head onto ebay and pick up a SD '59, Pearly Gates, etc.

 

[brandonr]

Lower output was one option I was definately considering.

 

[Cagey]

Another thing that might be worth trying is simply adjusting the pickup height. Many guys just install them and say "that looks about right" and leave 'em there. But, bridge pickups don't influence the strings as much as neck pickups do, so you can get a lot closer. Or, if that starts to sound harsh, or it's harsh already, back it down some. SD has been making JBs for a long time and they're very popular pickups for a reason.

 

[brandonr]

Yeah I have been playing with the height. Its not that it sounds terrible. It actually sounds very close to the Super Distortion with a bit more treble. But who wants two guitars that sound the same.

One difference with this configuartion is the 500K ohm volume potentiometer I put in vice the normal 250K. I wouldn't think that would make a big change, but it may have. 

 

[hannaugh]

The different cap might give you a tiny bit more treble, but if the problem is that you don't want two guitars that do the same thing, it's probably a good bet to go with a classic tone in the bridge rather than a hot pickup.  I'd personally go with Roadhouse because I love the pups I got from Ken for my Strat, but one of SD's vintage 'buckers could suit you pretty well too.  Pearly Gates might be a good one for you because it's a little bit hotter than some of the other ones, but still in the vintage realm. 

 

[brandonr]

I hear 2 votes for Pearly Gates

 

[hannaugh]

2 votes for Roadhouse too, don't forget

 

[brandonr]

Seem to be having a phase problem between the JB and the middle Dimarzio as well. I gotta tell you this project has fought me the whole way. Unlike others there hasn't been one easy step. I will post some pics here in a bit.

 

[brandonr]

A work in progress.

 

[brandonr]

Ok that picture sucked.

 

[brandonr]

Here is a better one

 

[Johnfv]

Nice looking guitar. I must admit the JB is one of my favorite humbuckers, by comparison the Super Distortion does not have enough midrange "honk" for my taste.  I too had the phase problem with my Strat and a Duncan in the bridge (Hot Rails in my case) and a DiMarzio Area '58 in the middle (total loss of low end when combined). Since the Area '58 sounded good combined with the neck (HS-2 in this case) I just reversed the wires on the bridge pickup and everything is good.  One other thing you could try with your bridge is parallel wiring (reduces output a bit and gives a more single coil tone). I run a lot of dual coil pickups this way (including the Hot Rails, I much prefer it wired in parallel). At least that will give you a different tone...

 

[brandonr]

Thanks John. I love the JB too and am a bit disappointed. I knew this build would produce a bright guitar and I knew that the JB has a tendancy to be treble heavy, I guess in this situation I just underestimated both. No big deal though live and learn.

So I had a Dimarzio Tone Zone sitting around and started doing some wiring experiments. I took the 500K ohm pot and wired it as a bridge tone control with a .047f Sozo cap and put a 250k ohm pot in the volume control. huge difference. I tried wiring the mid and neck pickups to the middle tone pot but it killed the neck pickup. Does anybody know how to do this right?

 

[Bruno]

DiMarzio Heavy Blues 2 in bridge.
Ok it's not an humbucker, but it's a great pup for me (especially with two others that you already have)
My 2 cents

 

[brandonr]

Ok so I found the right combination for me. A Dimarzio Crunch Lab in the bridge, Chopper in the middle and Fast Track 1 in the neck. I went with all 500K pots and a .047 cap in the tone circuit. Very nice sounding.

BTW anybody who is still using copper to shield cavities needs to try that conductive paint. A bit expensive but so much easier and effective its well worth the money. A small can will do several guitars.

 

[Cagey]

You used noiseless pickups, which undoubtedly also have shielded cable hookups. The paint has nothing to do with your lack of noise. You'd have obtained the same results with copper, or nothing at all.

 

[brandonr]

Very true. These are humbucking pickups. However, for whatever reasons (probably the unshielded wires in the control cavity) I did notice a difference after I applied the shielding paint. Also true, copper will work just as well. My point is that it took me have the time and looks much more professional.

 

[brandonr]

Sorry for the TYPO..... I meant half the time.