Opinions Wanted: Best Bridge Pickup for Metal

  • Thread starter Thread starter Oblivion DC
  • Start date Start date
If you tuned just a bit lower, I would go with BK Aftermath, they are so lethal. Nazgul is often compared to them, but the Nazgul has a weird mid thing going on that drove me nuts. Probably don't need something that tight as those 2 if tuning in Db.

I don't know enough about the tones you seek, but mark me down as a BK fanboi. I have lots of sets (Juggernaut x2, Miracle Man, Aftermath, Blackhawk x2) and I find them to be well worth the extra cost. Cool website clips and excellent email customer service to help you select the right match too.
 
I'm with the hot PAF crowd. Too hot of a pickup and the tone sounds more like the pickup regardless of guitar. Any modern high gain amp should have enough gain on tap to accommodate weaker pickups
 
Oblivion DC":f61zcw5h said:
OK I've decided on the following three pickups and we'll play with each of them for a while to see which one is gonna stick:

Seymour Duncan: Nazgul
Motor City: Solution
DiMarzio: X2N

Thanks for the input fellas.
Click to expand...
If you happen to decide to sell the Nazgul and Solution, I'll buy both from you.
 
Duncan JB is what I always come back to, it's "home" for me. I've had a number of BKPs, Aldritch, DiMarzios, and other Duncans, but in the end I want a JB.
 
RJF":3uwuwkhy said:
Oblivion DC":3uwuwkhy said:
OK I've decided on the following three pickups and we'll play with each of them for a while to see which one is gonna stick:

Seymour Duncan: Nazgul
Motor City: Solution
DiMarzio: X2N

Thanks for the input fellas.
Click to expand...
If you happen to decide to sell the Nazgul and Solution, I'll buy both from you.
Click to expand...

Ended up not liking the Nazgul because it was way compressed and thicker in the low end than I wanted it. Also tried to make a Distortion work but there was something in the high end that I couldn't gel with. Kept researching and kept reading more and more about how great the Nazgul was, "articulate" was the descriptor that stuck out the most. So I dropped the Nazgul in again and tuned to drop-C. Still sounded too chubby for my liking but I lowered it way way down and wow what a difference. Most other pups sound kinda limp at that height but the Nazgul still crunched really well and only needed a little eqing to make it sound fantastic.

Thanks for all the good info.
 
Seymour Duncan SH-13 Dimebucker and Black Winters..I have 2 guitars with the Dimes and 1 with the Black Winter set..love them both.
 
For all out metal no cleans needed? X2N or Dimebucker
 
MCP Afwayu so far has given me the feel I like for a bridge pickup for metal. Punchy punchy punchy.
 
In my experience the hotter the pickups the less natural dynamics you get from your guitar and its wood combinations. Good pots and caps make a huge difference as well as finding the sweet spot on pickup height.
 
If you've never played a Seymour Duncan AHB-3 Mick Thompson EMTY signature bridge pickup, you're definitely missing out. It sounds like if you used a regular blackout with an awesome Od pedal between it and the amp. Super tight lows, awesome crunch, it slays.
 
I really like blackouts. Quite curious about nazguls and black winters.
 
Oil City Blackbird:

http://www.oilcitypickups.co.uk/blackbird.html

This is the pickup that goes in the new Blackmachines - plenty of grunt for metal but does amazing cleans as well! I've got them in my B6 and it's the only guitar I gig that does not have active pickups of some sort, really really good!
 
I've got a few sets of 18v-modded EMGs in a couple guitars, and I absolutely love how consistent they are. I modded a switch that allows me to select between 9v and 18v on the fly, and I hardly ever go back to 9v, but...

I've unexpectedly been a huge fan of these Gibson '57 Classic / '57 Classic Plus pickups. These came stock in my '68RIs, and I used to tear them out as soon as I could, but I picked up some PIO caps and figured I should try them out with a set of passives, and I was forever changed! I play everything from Thrash to blues to drop Db and drop B, and these things are so thick, with a really robust grind, that I haven't heard from any of my other pickup combinations. I love these pickups! I'm not sure why I used to hate them, but I adore them now! If you get a chance to try them, definitely check them out.

Oddly enough, they're fairly low on the output, but they track fast palm mutes really well...



 
I prefer the Suhr SSH+ and Aldrich. They both have slightly more upper mids than Seymour Duncan and BKP, which lets you cut through the mix better. They are compressed enough to chug, yet don't feel stiff or sterile.
 
Great for metal : BKP Nailbomb
Also great and fatter sounding but less precise : SD Distortion SH6/TB6
 
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