MCP DEMO: Dragon Suit - Hot Head - Detroiter - T-Wreck

[Hey_bert_whtcha_doin_bert]

I've got a dragon suit on order, should be here any time. This is literally the only video I found of it and I was probably the 3rd listen... It sold me on it. I love intense huge mids and growl. After talking to Wade to see if my assessment of which pickup that was a fit for me was right I ordered it. Should be any time now to get it. That was 4/5 weeks ago and he said he was on a 4-6 week lead. I can't wait!!!

 

[Hey_bert_whtcha_doin_bert]

There is however another video since with a dude playing it through a bogner and it sounds good there too

 

[firejack]

bump for response

(i can't send pm's, sorry)

Sorry mate, just saw this now.
Will respond soon.

 

[firejack]

No but I switched the magnet in the solution I had to an alnico 5 unorientated and I like it better. I wrote wade and he said he prefers orientated regular alnico 5 so I ordered one of those to try. I almost wrote the solution off but now I'm digging it. It feels very different than other mcp. It doesn't even feel like the few emg's I've tried. Its very clear and bold. I do have a custom wind under 8k neck pickup in the bridge of one les Paul and it sounds crazy good at home. Let's see how it holds up in a band situation. Still digging the easiness of playing the
Afwayu which is my fave so far but haven't practiced with band lately to see where it stands in a mix.
Wanted to try a dragon suit eventually but it sounds just like a mcp with slight tweaks so not a priority but who knows maybe it's perfect. You never know till its in a guitar

Good to hear Hale.
The Afwayu is the highest output MCP I have tried and its output and compression are almost too much for my tastes. I don't think I'd dig any higher output MCP's.
The HotHead gives about as much compression and push as I like without being overcooked.
I must say though, the Afwayu really does make soloing a joy. Afwayu and Detroiter are my faves for leadwork. Whilst the HotHead is my fave overall.

Nice demo

In you're clips I also preferred the Dragon Suits and Hot Heads. The Dragon Suits sound a bit more open with more upper mid focus and chime, while the Hot Heads are more compressed with more lower mid growl. The thing that sticks out to me in your Hot Head clip and a couple of others I've heard is they seem to just settle in the mix extremely nice. I have a set of Hot Heads I still need to try, but I've been really enjoying the Dragon Suits, so I just haven't got around to it yet .

Thanks mate.
Yeah the Dragon Suit bridge has the same clearness that the Detroiter bridge has, which is what gives them that extra clanky sound.
The Dragon Suit just has a bit more thickness in the lows than the Detroiter.
The HotHead bridge shares some of the tonal qualities of the Dragon Suit and Detroiter, but without the extreme clank and clearness.
And the compression of the HotHead bridge is just right for me. It's my fave MCP by a whisker. You really need to get the HotHeads installed in a guitar man!

Awesome Gavin! Sounds great and a monster player!! I've said it before and I'll say it again...I miss those horror themed originals you used to record a few years back.

Thanks Chad! Monster player yourself good buddy.

 

[firejack]

Firejack, have you tried your T-Wreck in a Les Paul style axe?

Yes mate, had them in my Burny Les Paul copy.
They are great sounding pickups no doubt. But I prefer a little more push from the pickup to help me along.

Good demo man. I liked your black dog detroiter demo as well. I love the detroiters in my les Paul. Just the perfect punch.

Thanks mate.
I really need to try my Detroiters in an LP. I can see why they would be a perfect fit for that type of guitar.

Thanks for taking the time to break things down and offer up your findings on these pickups. I was thinking about ordering another 2nd degree black belt for another of my super strats, but you have me thinking that I should give the Detroiter a go instead.

Cheers man.
Ha! Have you ordered yet? Which did you go with?

 

[firejack]

Great bit of work you've done here, really....

As a pickup shopper you've put together a great objective base in which to make comparisons, being able to compare/decipher each of their characteristics side by side - truly the only way to show off pickup sounds accurately. The only other meta factor is knowing what guitar was used, and you can deduce from there. Much regards to you sir, this may have even sell me a pickup

I have a quick question regarding the Dragon Suit -

I have a Bare Knuckle Black Dog i was looking to replace. Judging by the names on each of these pickups, i would assume they were both going for a similar character.... and since you've owned both now, how would you compare the two? I liked how it (the DS) sounded in the clip... and both seem to have a healthy bit of mids and low mids, with the top end slightly tapered off.... but what would the real differences be would you say, having used them in practical applications?

Thanks Gepetto. That was the goal, so it's great to hear it was of some use to you.

It's been quite a while since I had my Black Dogs, but I remember the Black Dogs feeling stiff and sterile compared to the MCP's. I find that's generally the difference between the BKP's and the MCP's. The BKP's I have owned all had a degree of dryness and sterility when compared next to the MCP's, whilst the MCP's had more character and personality, especially in the mids.
It doesn't always translate in recordings, but when I switch between guitars in the room I can hear and feel it.
The only BKP I still have around is the Painkiller. Every other humbucker I own is a MCP.
Hope this helps.

I've got a dragon suit on order, should be here any time. This is literally the only video I found of it and I was probably the 3rd listen... It sold me on it. I love intense huge mids and growl. After talking to Wade to see if my assessment of which pickup that was a fit for me was right I ordered it. Should be any time now to get it. That was 4/5 weeks ago and he said he was on a 4-6 week lead. I can't wait!!!

Good luck with the Dragon Suit man! It's a great pickup.

 

[gepetto33]

Great bit of work you've done here, really....

As a pickup shopper you've put together a great objective base in which to make comparisons, being able to compare/decipher each of their characteristics side by side - truly the only way to show off pickup sounds accurately. The only other meta factor is knowing what guitar was used, and you can deduce from there. Much regards to you sir, this may have even sell me a pickup

I have a quick question regarding the Dragon Suit -

I have a Bare Knuckle Black Dog i was looking to replace. Judging by the names on each of these pickups, i would assume they were both going for a similar character.... and since you've owned both now, how would you compare the two? I liked how it (the DS) sounded in the clip... and both seem to have a healthy bit of mids and low mids, with the top end slightly tapered off.... but what would the real differences be would you say, having used them in practical applications?

Thanks Gepetto. That was the goal, so it's great to hear it was of some use to you.

It's been quite a while since I had my Black Dogs, but I remember the Black Dogs feeling stiff and sterile compared to the MCP's. I find that's generally the difference between the BKP's and the MCP's. The BKP's I have owned all had a degree of dryness and sterility when compared next to the MCP's, whilst the MCP's had more character and personality, especially in the mids.
It doesn't always translate in recordings, but when I switch between guitars in the room I can hear and feel it.
The only BKP I still have around is the Painkiller. Every other humbucker I own is a MCP.
Hope this helps.

Awesome, thanks for the response. Normally those type of adjectives would go right over my head... except for that i've owned a couple motor city's now!!! Basically they possess a different set of adjectives.... things like "feel", "response", and the like all apply here. I equate a lot of this to his cleverness in winding... whatever is going on between these two types (BKP and MCP for example) it feels like he's achieving similar things, but in different, more efficient ways. I just got a Nasty Nasty in, and comparing it to the Black Dog it seems to have less of a "hard eq hump" than the bare knuckles. The Black Dog has a low mid eq hump inherently, to the point where high strings get masked... a very natural occurrence between high/low balance that i run into frequently in mastering work. Similarly with a bright pickup like the Riff Riff... the highs mask any semblance of low frequency response... it just isn't there, no matter what you dial in.

All of the MCP pickups (that i've tried at least) seem to be more balanced overall, relying less on these EQ'ed spikes, and more on EQ "response". If he has a midrange-y sounding pickup it "responds" well to those frequencies, but doesn't block out the others. Almost like they compress/respond to those frequencies, though without SOUNDING compressed (excluding the high output models, which undoubtedly do). It gets quite nebulous in the explanation, but i would relate this phenomenon to something like the Dragon suit - a pickup that can have very strong low end and midrange response, yet with very clear sounding highs. It's certainly not a bright pickup, but the difference is you can actually dial in the highs, whereas on something like the black dog you really can't. Those highs try and force through the treble knob are probably just more odd order harmonics (if you're using a distorted sound).

I wasn't offered availability of the Dragon Suit, as it seems there's some exclusivity in purchasing until it gets added to the website. I'm not sure what he means, but after this last experience chances are i'll stick with the Nasty Nasty and look for a DS to pop up on the used market. Cheers for all you've done with the demo-ing... it's much appreciated.

 

[halebox]

I bought my dragon suit used as he said not available yet. He prob took orders a while ago. He said it was still in development and will be added soon. Mine measures 9.7 and firejacks measures 12? Not sure where the production model will land. The DS seems to have a bit of everything and lays in between all his pickups Ive tried