Need BKP advice!

[TheMagicEight]

Right now I've got Seymour Duncans in my two main guitars: a Les Paul and ESP Horizon NT-II. I'm not satisfied with either one, and am hoping to get any advice RT has to offer!

First, the LP. I've got a Full Shred in the bridge and right now, I'm getting a somewhat thin tone without a lot of power. I'm hoping that the BKP Black Dog will fix this, as I want something with a great midrange without an overbearing low end and a high end that provides smoothness without making the strings feel "sticky". My goal is to turn this LP into something that works very well for rock and hard rock, but can do metal with the right amp. Does that sound like the Black Dog to those with experience?

The Horizon I've never really bonded with. I get a LOT of string noise, and I've tried everything I can think of from thick strings (11-54 tuned to Eb) to raising the action and changing the volume pot to 250k. All have helped, but I'm thinking the Duncan JB just isn't what I want. I'm looking to use this guitar for metal mostly, but I want it to do rock and hard rock if necessary. Again, I want a thick, rich midrange with smooth articulate highs and a tight low end. I'm thinking either the Holy Diver, Rebel Yell or Nailbomb. Recommendations?

Thanks!

 

[luxxtone]

For the Les Paul, I think the Rebel Yell would be a good choice. Great for hard rock, and really anything else. Medium output, around 14k, very rich mids but also very neutral sounding. Doesn't have too much or too little of anything, plus it was designed around a Les Paul.

For the ESP, both the Holy Diver and the Nailbomb should be great. The HD is tighter in the lows and has great low mids and is very thick. The Nailbomb is similar, but in my opinion it's a little smoother with more upper mids than the HD. But both pickups would work great, all depends on how they react in your particular guitar.

 

[TeleBlaster]

I've chimed in on this subject before, but I have to say it again.
The Nailbomb is the most amazing pickup I've ever owned, just soooo much better than anything else I've tried.

 

[Devilinside]

I'd go painkiller for the horizon. It sounds like what your describing and honestly you could back of the volume just a hair and get a more mild gain, of course the amp plays a part there as well. Hell, I might use PK's in both but I haven't tried any other BK's but they sound awesome in my Paul!

 

[droptrd]

Im actually wanting to here a review on the blackdog. Havent seen anyone with one of those yet.

 

[nbarts]

Emerald or Rebel Yell for the Les Paul.

Truss Rodd adjustment for the Horizon

 

[luxxtone]

Im actually wanting to here a review on the blackdog. Havent seen anyone with one of those yet.

The Black Dog is a bumped up PAF style pickup. Very raw and open, alnico V magnet. So it has some growl and top end bite to it, and some grindy mids. I really like it...it's my favorite of BKP's PAF type pickups, even though it's a tad hotter. A lot of high gain guys are disappointed in it because they think it will be high output and be very distorted, but it's not that type of vibe. Kinda along thelines of the Motor City Detroiter, but a little more high-fi sounding and a little less mids. Even though I personally use lower output pickups for high gain stuff anyway...bigger tone, more solid and more open.

 

[Ventura]

I'd go painkiller for the horizon. It sounds like what your describing and honestly you could back of the volume just a hair and get a more mild gain, of course the amp plays a part there as well. Hell, I might use PK's in both but I haven't tried any other BK's but they sound awesome in my Paul!

Calibrated set of PK's in my ESP NT-II... Love 'em.

V.

 

[droptrd]

Im actually wanting to here a review on the blackdog. Havent seen anyone with one of those yet.

The Black Dog is a bumped up PAF style pickup. Very raw and open, alnico V magnet. So it has some growl and top end bite to it, and some grindy mids. I really like it...it's my favorite of BKP's PAF type pickups, even though it's a tad hotter. A lot of high gain guys are disappointed in it because they think it will be high output and be very distorted, but it's not that type of vibe. Kinda along thelines of the Motor City Detroiter, but a little more high-fi sounding and a little less mids. Even though I personally use lower output pickups for high gain stuff anyway...bigger tone, more solid and more open.

Thanks for the info. Sounds like something Id like to try. Would it compare to the Duncan Custom?

 

[DEWD]

I wonder why no one talks about the Cold Sweat in the bridge of a LP. Sounds like it would be great for any kind of rock/metal.

 

[Heritage Softail]

Join the BK Forum. Very active and lots of info. You can just call them and talk to one of the techs. One unusual thing on the forum is that the amps popular here, and not necessarily the amps most used there. Boogie is often thought of as a snob amp there with all the extra duties charged. Here.... average good amp.

 

[TheMagicEight]

Thanks for the replies! Sounds like the Rebel Yell is just what I'm looking for in the LP.

Emerald or Rebel Yell for the Les Paul.

Truss Rodd adjustment for the Horizon

Yeah, I've messed with the truss rod too. It really sounds great unplugged - very little fret buzz - but the second it goes into an amp, it sounds thin. I'm leaning more towards the Holy Diver for that now; Painkillers look cool, but I haven't traditionally liked ceramic pickups as much as alnico. luxxtone mentioned the Holy Diver is very thick and that's exactly what I want.

Join the BK Forum. Very active and lots of info.

Not a bad idea, but this place is familiar to me and I trust you guys!

 

[ericsabbath]

For the ESP, both the Holy Diver and the Nailbomb should be great. The HD is tighter in the lows and has great low mids and is very thick. The Nailbomb is similar, but in my opinion it's a little smoother with more upper mids than the HD. But both pickups would work great, all depends on how they react in your particular guitar.

I have to to disagree on that

the nailbomb I had in my custom was much tighter than the holy diver I had in two les paul copies (one is very close sounding to the custom)
and also had a lot less midrange than the diver
a lot more treble, but not upper mids
that's the main reason I ended up selling it
I was looking for a diver with more upper mids, not PAF style mids
I was afraid that the bomb could sound muddy or loose in my les paul, but it was the tighest alnico 5 pickup I've tried
and also the LOUDEST
EQ-wise, the nailbomb is more like a duncan custom V than like a JB, but hotter and punchier than both
the diver is more JB-like, with fat mids, but without the harsh top

 

[bj4rd]

I have never noticed a string noise problem with my horizon. It does sound thinner than a les paul though...which is to be expected. I never really thought it sounded bad with the stock pickups, but the sound could be improved. Thats why I have a nailbomb on order. I hope to have it in a week or so..I'll let you know how it sounds.

If the problem persists with the horizon, you may want to have a tech check it out.

 

[luxxtone]

For the ESP, both the Holy Diver and the Nailbomb should be great. The HD is tighter in the lows and has great low mids and is very thick. The Nailbomb is similar, but in my opinion it's a little smoother with more upper mids than the HD. But both pickups would work great, all depends on how they react in your particular guitar.

I have to to disagree on that

the nailbomb I had in my custom was much tighter than the holy diver I had in two les paul copies (one is very close sounding to the custom)
and also had a lot less midrange than the diver
a lot more treble, but not upper mids
that's the main reason I ended up selling it
I was looking for a diver with more upper mids, not PAF style mids
I was afraid that the bomb could sound muddy or loose in my les paul, but it was the tighest alnico 5 pickup I've tried
and also the LOUDEST
EQ-wise, the nailbomb is more like a duncan custom V than like a JB, but hotter and punchier than both
the diver is more JB-like, with fat mids, but without the harsh top

I guess that just shows how everyone's ear is different and how differently pickups act in different guitars. Guess I'll have to agree to disagree with you from my experiences!

 

[the4thlast1]

I think the Nailbomb is a little tighter than the Holydiver. The HolyDiver is thicker and even smoother than the Nailbomb. The Nailbomb is a bit more aggressive and modern sounding, The HolyDiver has that 80's hair sound.

 

[IntenseJim]

Black Dog bridge was a bit too bright or strident for my tastes. I prefer the Rebel Yell and Crawler. I desire pups with a sweeter or attenuated high end in my Les Pauls.


I did not try these pups in other guitars.

 

[mesanatic]

Black Dog bridge was a bit too bright or strident for my tastes. I prefer the Rebel Yell and Crawler. I desire pups with a sweeter or attenuated high end in my Les Pauls.


I did not try these pups in other guitars.

Have you tried the Emerald. I'm wondering how that compares to the Black Dog or Crawler for the bridge of my Les Paul. Or any of these close to the WCR Godwood.

 

[luxxtone]

Black Dog bridge was a bit too bright or strident for my tastes. I prefer the Rebel Yell and Crawler. I desire pups with a sweeter or attenuated high end in my Les Pauls.


I did not try these pups in other guitars.

Have you tried the Emerald. I'm wondering how that compares to the Black Dog or Crawler for the bridge of my Les Paul. Or any of these close to the WCR Godwood.

The Emerald is an awesome pickup, and not many people talk about it for some reason. It's hot, very raw and extremely pissed off sounding. Very grinding mids, and quite a bit of top end bite. It's very aggressive without sounding like a metal pickup. Not in the same realm as the Black Dog, more similar to the Crawler. But the Crawler accentuates the upper mids a lot and has a very crunchy tone. Not one of my personal favs from the BKP line...but that's just me. None of them sound like the Godwood. The godwood is much more creamy and smooth and has more of a vintage character in the way it reacts to your picking....even though it's pretty hot. BKP's tend to have a hi-fi type vibe to them, and are more modern feeling when you play them. The WCR's have more a a vintage feel, where they are a slightly more organic. Not that BKP's aren't organic....they just have a different feel.

That's one huge aspect of pickups that's often overlooked is how they feel and react. You can't get that from clips at all, sometimes you just have to try them to see how it fits your playing and rig. Some companies are very dry and raw, some are very vintage-y and organic, and others are very modern and hi-fi FEELING...not just tone-wise.

 

[nbarts]

Dry & raw is what Emerald is like in my experience, very tight low end, crunchy mids. Awesome rock pickup. Emerald neck is my favorite pickup in a les paul, coil tapped cleans are just amazing, it's so good, that it's almost unreal. Bridge is a great dry pickup, which works extremely well with amps that have loose feel. The only thing that I wished the Emerald bridge had would be a little more output & that's why I went with rebel yell. Rebel Yell has bigger low end, more loose fell & higher output.