Help me with pickups !

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EnGl

EnGl

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OK , screw the 8 string guitars ! I ordered legendary Gibson Explorer !
I'm very happy due to this. And fortunately I was able to check guitar quality (I looked mainly at fretwork, searched for finish flaws or electric issues) - 10/10.

Ok so this is the "problem":
I know that pickups are very subjective thing , I only heard a very few pickups so you know , my knowledge isn't big.
Few facts:
- I'm playing in C standard , so this must be pickups which will work well with downtuning.
- I'm searching for saturated, fat , smooth, dynamic sound with lots of clarity.
- Passive or Active pickups ? Damn , I don't know. If it will be passive pickup I will only change bridge pickup(as you know stock gibsons are passive , and I play Bridge pickup in 99% ). And for active i will buy set.
- I'm playing on ENGL Pro with V30 , I love this speakers and even if I buy another cab - It will be equipped with V30's.

Here are my few offers :
- SD AHB-3 (Mick Thomson)
- SD AHB-1
- EMG 81/85
- EMG Het Set ( But I'm not sure if this pickups can allow me great leads)
- Bare Knuckle - Warpig , Miracle Man or Painkiller.

Ok , thats'a all . I'm waiting for your suggestions.
 
Can't go wrong with EMG's. I had an explorer and the pick ups in it sounded better than the EMG's. Not sure about the newer models though.
 
I have a BK Warpig in the bridge position of my explorer and I think it's too muddy, can't remember if it's the ceramic or alnico one though.
 
Whats wrong with the pups you have?

Are you just simply looking for more output? BKP yes but also consider Motor City if your looking into high end.


IMO SD Actives will Destroy EMG by far so take EMG off the list now.

AHB-3 > AHB-1

But consider that wiring from passive to active sucks big time and the tech you bring it to will probably do it wrong anyhow.
 
I had a BKP Miracle Man/Black Dog combo in my Thunderhorse and that sounded unbelievable.
 
maddnotez":36vjbuaa said:
Whats wrong with the pups you have?

Are you just simply looking for more output? BKP yes but also consider Motor City if your looking into high end.


IMO SD Actives will Destroy EMG by far so take EMG off the list now.

AHB-3 > AHB-1

But consider that wiring from passive to active sucks big time and the tech you bring it to will probably do it wrong anyhow.
Click to expand...

Why ? As far as I remember AHB-3 , AHB-1 or even EMG - all of them came with pots , wiring etc ...
 
EnGl":31vk5uea said:
maddnotez":31vk5uea said:
Whats wrong with the pups you have?

Are you just simply looking for more output? BKP yes but also consider Motor City if your looking into high end.


IMO SD Actives will Destroy EMG by far so take EMG off the list now.

AHB-3 > AHB-1

But consider that wiring from passive to active sucks big time and the tech you bring it to will probably do it wrong anyhow.
Click to expand...

Why ? As far as I remember AHB-3 , AHB-1 or even EMG - all of them came with pots , wiring etc ...
Click to expand...


Most Passive guitars have little room in the cavities. When you cram a couple of 9 volt batteries in there it puts pressure on the wires, that can lead to bad connections down the road.

I use 18v (2 9v batteries) in one of my guitars and even with instructions the "certified tech" still wired it wrong come to find out, after one of my more knowledgable friends saw the work.

If you know how to do it go for it. I love actives for metal. :rock:

But still highly prefer my Duncan HMET's to any EMG i have ever heard.
 
maddnotez":14keodbo said:
moltenmetalburn":14keodbo said:
Have fun!
viewtopic.php?f=3&t=124577
Click to expand...



:lol: :LOL:


The thread title doesnt say hurt my brain with pickup choices.
Click to expand...
Yeah , Digged this thread and damn ... so many brands. It can be very helpful , thanks !
Anyway , anyone tested A/B AHB-1 vs AHB-3 and could tell me the difference ? I'm really interested in this AHB-3.
 
ahb3 ftw

dont even need a neck pickup...just make sure you have a .047 cap on it, and roll back the cap when you want to solo..it's just enough high end cut to smooth it out and make it creamy.

or, get the set...im debating an ahb neck to match with my ahb3 in one of my les pauls...i've tried TONS of passive neck pickups in it with the ahb3 in the bridge, and NOTHING works sonically.....some match up decently....but none of them offer the 2 pickup options in the middle positions.
so i think im going to get an ahb3 or another active type 25k pickup for my neck

you'll love the ahb3. there's SO much metal in them, it's unreal.

watch this vid....and, pay attention to whats written in the vid (which pickup is being used).
it's SPOT on of how the AHB3 sounds through a high gain amp.

 
yeti":3n0tffkz said:
ahb3 ftw

dont even need a neck pickup...just make sure you have a .047 cap on it, and roll back the cap when you want to solo..it's just enough high end cut to smooth it out and make it creamy.

or, get the set...im debating an ahb neck to match with my ahb3 in one of my les pauls...i've tried TONS of passive neck pickups in it with the ahb3 in the bridge, and NOTHING works sonically.....some match up decently....but none of them offer the 2 pickup options in the middle positions.
so i think im going to get an ahb3 or another active type 25k pickup for my neck

you'll love the ahb3. there's SO much metal in them, it's unreal.

watch this vid....and, pay attention to whats written in the vid (which pickup is being used).
it's SPOT on of how the AHB3 sounds through a high gain amp.

Click to expand...


Thanks Yeti !
I must say that from this clip I like the AHB3 more. It's more "metal" but this Doug Aldrich pickup is also very nice !
But I'm not convinced if this AHB-3 will fit to the Gibson Explorer which has big low end itself and this pickup can only take the sound to the muddy side without clarity. And just now pair it with ENGL XXL and Engl Fireball 100 and god damn ... probably too muddy. BUT - I'm not sure about this , I didn't played this pickups so this thoughts are only mine assumption.

About the pots - You know which kind of pots EMG(and SD of course) currently add to their sets (ZW set for example) and pickups ? Long or short ? I'm asking because my buddy mounted ZW set in his korean Epiphone and that looks very ridiculous ...

Oh damn , so many pickups and I must just take one ...
 
My singer plays an Explorer. Same thing, 95% bridge. Uses an 81/85 set with 18v mod on a slider switch. On the back that allows him to choose either 9v mode or 18v mode. There's your answer.
 
you'll be fine with the ahb3. it's not muddy at all. it's actually accentuated for more high end and cut, from what i gather. regarding mids and lows, it's a pretty clear pickup..you wont have any mud with it. if anything, you'll have more gain right off the bat, than you are used to.

mine came with short pots. but i needed long pots, so i just called the seymour duncan customer service # (805) 964-9610 ext 501, i THINK i talked to trever. explained that i had a les paul, and had bought the pickup used, and that it needed long shaft pots, not short ones. he sent them out in like 3 days, no charge. talk about killer customer service! those are like 8 bux a pot, and he sent me FOUR of them "in the case you decide to add the neck pickup too"

if you have long pots, you're in luck in that you can adjust them/fix it to be lower... you can back them off so they're not so high off the guitar body's face and set them that way with the second lock nut they send on the pot...if you have short pots, and need long pots, there's nothing you can really do to fix that....
 
race, what does running it between 9 and 18 do? add more gain? i know it's an easily do-able mod..just wondering what it introduces sonically?
 
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