Need BKP advice!

[luxxtone]

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.

Totally agreed on the Emerald description. I personally don't go for higher output than that, but I totally agree on the Rebel Yell description too! All the Emeralds I've received from BKP have been wound around 14k, even though it's listed on BKP's site as 11k. I wonder if Tim changed it or what? So now they're right around the Rebel Yells output, but they react so differently, being as dry as they are, they come off as less hot for sure.

 

[nbarts]

All the Emeralds I've received from BKP have been wound around 14k, even though it's listed on BKP's site as 11k. I wonder if Tim changed it or what?

Now why would you say that! Fuck!!!!!

 

[TheMagicEight]

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.

In theory then, someone who is a BIG fan of organic and vintage-y might be happier with WCRs than BKPs? If you don't mind, if I were to ask the same question as I did originally but this time for WCRs, what would be your recommendation? I've really like the Godwood clips I've heard so far for the Les Paul, but how about the ESP NT-II? Organic, thick and articulate is what I desire.

And thanks very much to all for these responses! My funds are very limited right now unfortunately, so I want to make sure I get as close as I can before submitting any orders.


EDIT: After listening around and stumbling across James Lugo's pickup shootout, the Godwood looks like it's the one for my LP. For the Horizon, would anyone recommend the Afwayu?

 

[luxxtone]

In theory then, someone who is a BIG fan of organic and vintage-y might be happier with WCRs than BKPs? If you don't mind, if I were to ask the same question as I did originally but this time for WCRs, what would be your recommendation? I've really like the Godwood clips I've heard so far for the Les Paul, but how about the ESP NT-II? Organic, thick and articulate is what I desire.

And thanks very much to all for these responses! My funds are very limited right now unfortunately, so I want to make sure I get as close as I can before submitting any orders.


EDIT: After listening around and stumbling across James Lugo's pickup shootout, the Godwood looks like it's the one for my LP. For the Horizon, would anyone recommend the Afwayu?

Don't get me wrong , some BKP models have that vintage type feel too.....they just have a lot of higher gain models and many models have a certain feel to them that is different than WCR. I wouldn't pigeon hole them as JUST this or that. And a majority of WCR stuff is lower gain, so they have a certain feel to them too and it extends into the higher gain pickups some also. Like I said, you really don't know for sure until you try them! It can get a little crazy when it comes to expense, but that's the only way to know for sure. But you're doing the right thing and pinpointing more of what you need and want, which is the best way to go about it! Any of the above mentioned pickups would get you what you want tone-wise.

 

[mesanatic]

In theory then, someone who is a BIG fan of organic and vintage-y might be happier with WCRs than BKPs? If you don't mind, if I were to ask the same question as I did originally but this time for WCRs, what would be your recommendation? I've really like the Godwood clips I've heard so far for the Les Paul, but how about the ESP NT-II? Organic, thick and articulate is what I desire.

And thanks very much to all for these responses! My funds are very limited right now unfortunately, so I want to make sure I get as close as I can before submitting any orders.


EDIT: After listening around and stumbling across James Lugo's pickup shootout, the Godwood looks like it's the one for my LP. For the Horizon, would anyone recommend the Afwayu?

Don't get me wrong , some BKP models have that vintage type feel too.....they just have a lot of higher gain models and many models have a certain feel to them that is different than WCR. I wouldn't pigeon hole them as JUST this or that. And a majority of WCR stuff is lower gain, so they have a certain feel to them too and it extends into the higher gain pickups some also. Like I said, you really don't know for sure until you try them! It can get a little crazy when it comes to expense, but that's the only way to know for sure. But you're doing the right thing and pinpointing more of what you need and want, which is the best way to go about it! Any of the above mentioned pickups would get you what you want tone-wise.

The Emerald sounds more like what I'd like than a Crawler. I need something in my LP bridge that stays articulate when playing fast chords under some gain. And can do lead work really well. Like with my '74 JMP, JCM 800, or Mk IIc+.
My '57 Classic + was tight, great for strumming chords, could hear every note, but was a bit stiff for lead work. My BB3 was perfect for leads but smeared the notes a little too much when fast strumming chords. Especially on the first 5 frets.
Not sure if the Godwood does leads as well. But it is fairly hot and compressed enough.
I'm keeping my '57 classic in the neck.