Best Pickups For Metal

[PhoenixCreations]

okay, I'm surprising my friend with a guitar, and I need to know the best pickups for him. I know emgs are top of the line, but I fear they may be too sterile of a sound, plus he already has 7 guitars with emgs, any ideas? Thanks.

Michael

postscript, don't forget to mention what about the pickup makes them so rocking, what quality puts them above the rest!

[Nitefly SA]

anything with ceramic magnets, i used evolutions, they sound good, good harmonics

[PhoenixCreations]

that was a quick response. Evolutions, huh? who makes them? well... I'm sure I can find out.

thanks,

Michael

[Daniel Sorbera]

Well if he has seven guitars with EMG than he must like them.

EMG are really the best sounding for metal. IMO of course.

BTW I don't think I've seen any pics of your guitars. How many have you built and would you mind posting some pics? I'd love to see them

Edited March 13, 2006 by Godin SD

[redwhiteandthemaple]

Try BillLawrence L500XL although... you practically have to wait about 2 months.. (im into my 2nd week now )

Its the pup Dime used before he got his own sig SH-13 dimebucker.

I heard the dimebucker. I like 'em alright, gives me the control I need for speed.

I really don't know about much about BillLawrence, but since it's so "HYPE" and relatively cheap, I got/getting them.

-IR

[Nitefly SA]

DiMarzio makes the evolution, they also make the D-sonic which sounds close to what you're looking for.

[Canuck Brian]

I'm a big fan of the Parallel Axis Distortion Trembucker. It keeps everything so clean when you've got crazy gain happening.

[crafty]

I have a few of questions: what kind of amp is he going to use, does he play old school or nu metal, and what kind of effects are going to be in the chain? Processor or stompboxes?

[Maiden69]

Great question Crafty. There are a lot of variables that influence the tone produced by the pups. I love my EMGs but there are a lot of bands that use passives, and they all have great tone.

I was listening to Opeth last week, and decided to do a bit or research to see what they use, and to my surprise it was SD pups. I could swear they were EMGs, but there was somenthing on their clean sound that was very distinct.

[PhoenixCreations]

well, I plan on talking to him in a few minutes, so I'll ask all of these awesome questions. btw, opeth is his favorite band (mine too, actually I just got home from work, and was listening to them in the car, God, I love opeth.)

thanks for all of the imput, I'll get back to you soon.

And, as for the guitar question, I haven't made any myself yet, I've been doing repairs for a few years on and off, but when I came across this site a few weeks back, I knew my calling. I could get a couple pictures of my repair works and put them all on here, most are consisting of stripping the paint, arting it up, replacing the hardware and putting emgs in basses. (I also am a major fan of EMGs, but I play bass, and I love the sterile, yet emotional sound it offers when used correctly) Somehow I manage to take really cheap basses and make a good money off of it. For the most part, on ebay, if someone sees the letters "EMG equipped" and like the art, I end up making tons of money, but honestly I don't really do it for the money, just a love for the guitar, so when I discovered I could make guitars, it gives such more meaning and personality to what I'm doing, instead of just scraping off someone else's love and hard work to replace it with my own.

Michael

[PhoenixCreations]

well, I just re-read some of the posts, and realized I can answer a few of the questions now:

I'm not sure the cab, but the head he uses is either a triple rectifier, or some kind of marshall (top of the line I'd have to assume, marshall heads all look the same to me), He owns both and uses them both. I know he has a few cabs, and usually plays with a 4.12, but as before stated, unsure of the brand, wattage, ohms, etc.

He plays Melodic Death Metal (I'm sure even he doesn't truly know what that means, but that's what they call it.) It's black metal without the keyboard and death metal without the blast beats, if you want to hear some of their stuff, to get an extremely accurate feel for what he plays, heres the site:

Seared

Their webpage is currently... crappy, so they're using myspace, but there's three songs on there, all off their new album (released march 2nd... the day I joined!)

the effects I'll have to ask him about, but if you can pick it out of the music I've provided that saves us all a step. Either way he will be asked, and his response will be provided, so don't ponder too hard over it.

... there was something else... OH!

Okay, he likes EMGs, a lot, has seven guitars. But that's why I want to get him something different, something special. Something that doesn't sound like every other guitar he owns. Something unique. -nods- I just practically repeated myself a bunch of times. YAY. sorry, I work night shift and post in the mornings, so... I'm tired. BYE!

Michael

[crafty]

Weeellll....if you want something truly different--and I mean different, try a set of DiMarzio PAF Classics. Here's why:

1. Has a few hot amps

2. Already has seven hot guitars

3. I like his music, but it does have a bit of sterility

4. It's different in a good way--one could always use a good, clean guitar for nice melodies

Now, for those of you who are concerned about vintage-power being used for 'melodic death metal', consider his setup. His amps have more than enough power to make up for the loss of front-end overdrive. He'll be able to get more definition and clarity for playing those bitchin' melodies.

This setup may not be great for heavy driving rhythm work, but for leads, he'll love it.

BTW, I've just recently installed this set into my Lester. I love it. It'll clean up for the clean stuff and absolutely kill through a triple-rec. They're covered and double-potted, so feedback is controllable. Give 'em a shot, at worst, you can trade the set out at no cost for a set of Breeds or Evos if he doesn't like the sound. Within 30 days, of course

[thewrathofraf]

im usin a duncan invader in the bridge and a duncan jazz in the neck and i play metal. i think they sound excellent. and for my next project im goin with a duncan jazz neck and a jb bridge, but im not tryin to get metal tones out of that one...i like duncans.

-RAF

[PhoenixCreations]

Okay, I really like the idea of using the DiMarzio PAF Classics, and think I'm going to try it, he is is love with leads, so this would be a great gift for him. My next question is, where should the pickups be placed? Should I look into getting a DiMarzio Evo for the neck and a PAF Classic for the bridge? Should I stick with two classics? I don't know much about pickup placements (I deal in basses primarily) What are the advantages of the different pickup locations?

Thanks again.

Michael

another question: Passive vs. Active. I know the technical differences, but what are the advantages of either? I've been wondering this for awhile. Maybe I should start a new thread about it, but someone probably already asked this question so I'll keep it here. I tried searching, but couldn't find what I'm looking for, so if it's already been asked, feel free to refer me there, or just call me an idiot and tell me to look harder, that works too. (hard work never killed anyone... except elvis)

Michael

[Guitarfrenzy]

I don't think there is a certain pickup that is best for metal, it really just depends on what kind of tone you want. You can't go wrong with good quality pickups though, like EMG, Seymour Duncan, DiMarzio, etc. Just try different guitars out at a local music store to see which pickups suits you best. If you already like EMG though, don't mess with a good thing..

[crafty]

I wouldn't mix a PAF Classic bridge with an Evo in the neck--the balance won't be right. Maybe a Breed neck in the bridge with a Dimarzio regular PAF in the neck, which would be a nice balance but you'll lose some definition overall.

It's up to you, I like the PAF Classic set, looks sharp with the covers, too. Also, Woodwind/Brasswind has them for the same price as the other DiMarzio pickups, so you don't have to pay the $20 upcharge for the covered PAF Classics.

Like Frenzy said, there's really no right or wrong pickup--EMGs, DiMarzio, Duncan--they're all good, active or passive. I love my EMG-equipped Strat as much as my DiMarzio-loaded Lester. Once you get it dialed in, it's all good. In my opinion, it's easier to get a consistent sound with active pickups because they're voiced for a specific range in the preamp. My MIM Strat never sounded good with passives because it really wasn't a very toneful guitar, but it plays like butter. Now it rocks with soul power on those EMG-SAs. My Lester sounded great with the stock high-output Gibson pickups, but the vintage-style pickups have really opened up the natural sound of the guitar and it just sings and rings like a marimba now.

Edited March 17, 2006 by crafty

[PhoenixCreations]

Alright, Thanks for all the great information guys, you've really helped, I think I am going to go with a set of PAF classics, as previously said, if he hates 'em, he probably has 15 extra sets of EMGs laying around, so no big deal, if he loves them, awesome. No way to lose, really. Plus it'll give him something different that he can really make sing. Thanks again guys!

Michael

[Nitefly SA]

since he is done with this thread, i would like to ask a question, would a PAF Joe (neck) go well with an Evo in the bridge or would that be too much of a contrast?

[crafty]

since he is done with this thread, i would like to ask a question, would a PAF Joe (neck) go well with an Evo in the bridge or would that be too much of a contrast?

Depends on what you're going for. The PAF Joe is essentially an overwound PAF with really good highs. The Evo neck is essentially a PAF Pro with a ceramic magnet and a more even output across the freqs. I'd use the Evo neck with the Evo bridge if I were wanting a high-output setup. For a little more warmth, maybe an Evo neck in the bridge with the PAF Pro in the neck.

[Jalien21]

anyway. allow me to show my ignorance. i honestly feel that when you're playing metal and all that high-distortion stuff, it dosen't much matter what kind of pickups you use. it seems to me that at that point, any unique tone that the guitar once had has been covered up by all the distortion and the harmonics that come out. and the type of music itself inherently makes it difficult to hear any specific tones alot of the time.

i realize that i'm probably completely wrong. but i'd like to know how

[Nitefly SA]

In a way i am with you, i am always tired of reading pickup reviews that say "not good for metal" when any pickup is "good for metal" when distorted enough. but some pickups are really bassy and lose a lot of clarity when distorted some sound a lot better distorted some pickups are made for cleans some for light overdrive,some for death metal thats just how it goes.

[fookgub]

In a way i am with you, i am always tired of reading pickup reviews that say "not good for metal" when any pickup is "good for metal" when distorted enough. but some pickups are really bassy and lose a lot of clarity when distorted some sound a lot better distorted some pickups are made for cleans some for light overdrive,some for death metal thats just how it goes.

I think the tonality of the pickup is a factor with high distortion. A pickup will lots of mids will tend to cut better than something bassier. Since overwound pickups tend to have more mids they work well for metal. But it's not the high output that helps, it's the peaky midrange.

[JohnA]

PhoenixCreations said something about how he doesn't want the pickups to be sterile. This is interesting, because I often find that more sterile flat pickups sound great with heavy distortion. A fuller pickup would probably overload and get muddy under more distortion, although it would sound great clean.

Obviously, this is an 'all-the-time, every-single-pickup' kind of deal, but it seems to hold generally true.

[Thunderblitz]

JB/Jazz combo from Seymour Duncan.

Its a SH4 JB in the bridge and a SH2N Jazz in the neck. These are sold in a set called the Seymour Duncan Hot Rodded Pickup set. They are used by my idol Dave Mustaine and alot more people. They are also the Seymour Duncan's favorite combo.

The SH4 JB has a high output with powerful highs which gives a freaking nice sound. The SH2N Jazz has a medium output and adds a nice sound combined with the SH4.

Edited March 21, 2006 by Thunderblitz

[Al3x]

im a seymour duncan sh-8 invader fan my self..