Pearly Gates Pup With Fender Deluxe Amp

[madhattr88]

not sure if this is the correct sub-forum, ....

looking for that Weezer distortion sound. Right now I have one of my builds equipped with a Seymour Duncon Peraly Gates PUP in the bridge position and a 1 12" Fender Deluxe and a Boss Blues Driver distortion pedal. Not getting the sound I want. Any suggestions on how I can get that nice heavier, fuller, Weezer sound?

thanks!

[Samba Pa Ti]

i had the same problem with that pickup, wanted the zztop sound, didnt get anywhere near, i didnt try it with boosters tho so that might be the missing link

[madhattr88]

i had the same problem with that pickup, wanted the zztop sound, didnt get anywhere near, i didnt try it with boosters tho so that might be the missing link

exactly!.. did u ever get the sound??? different PUP maybe?

[madhattr88]

what if i would drop the boss pedal and get a Marshall JMP-1 Tube Pre-Amp

[Paul Marossy]

I hate to say it, but just because you have the same exact pickups or whatever as your favorite guitar hero doesn't mean it will make you sound like them. I see this idea constantly at every forum, and it's a rampant fallacy. There's a lot of factors involved, the biggest one being the player themselves. They will always sound like they do no matter what they are playing.

Anyway, things they do in a studio can't easily be reproduced by someone wanting to get the same kind of sound. They could have miked the amp from front and from behind. And where you place the microphone matters a lot, too. And then they tweak the EQ to get the sound just how they want it. Or maybe the guitar tracks were doubled to make it sound bigger, etc, etc, etc. You can't just buy some distortion pedal and use a certain pickup in the same kind of guitar that you know they use and expect to sound like them, it's just not that simple. Not even close to simple. I mean even stuff like what kind of pick you use and how you hold it is even a factor in how you sound. Even string gage is a factor.

That's not to say that you can't get close to a certain sound, but the usual formula people use (getting all the same stuff as their guitar hero) doesn't normally work just by itself. When they can also mimic whatever player's technique in how they play guitar, they get a LOT closer.

Edited June 2, 2010 by Paul Marossy

[madhattr88]

I hate to say it, but just because you have the same exact pickups or whatever as your favorite guitar hero doesn't mean it will make you sound like them. I see this idea constantly at every forum, and it's a rampant fallacy. There's a lot of factors involved, the biggest one being the player themselves. They will always sound like they do no matter what they are playing.

Anyway, things they do in a studio can't easily be reproduced by someone wanting to get the same kind of sound. They could have miked the amp from front and from behind. And where you place the microphone matters a lot, too. And then they tweak the EQ to get the sound just how they want it. Or maybe the guitar tracks were doubled to make it sound bigger, etc, etc, etc. You can't just buy some distortion pedal and use a certain pickup in the same kind of guitar that you know they use and expect to sound like them, it's just not that simple. Not even close to simple. I mean even stuff like what kind of pick you use and how you hold it is even a factor in how you sound. Even string gage is a factor.

That's not to say that you can't get close to a certain sound, but the usual formula people use (getting all the same stuff as their guitar hero) doesn't normally work just by itself. When they can also mimic whatever player's technique in how they play guitar, they get a LOT closer.

understood...thanks

[ihocky2]

Trying to copy a studio sound is very difficult usually because you don't really know what was used. Jimmy Page is known for playing a Les Paul, but in the studio he used plenty of other guitars, even Telecasters. Getting a Les Paul to sound like a Tele, isn't going to happen. Guys play Mesa or Marshall on the road because they are sponsored to play them. In the studio they have a huge choice of amps to play from. They'll even layer tracks with different amps and different guitars.

Live sounds you can at least get an idea what they are playing and try to get closer to the sound.

[Paul Marossy]

Trying to copy a studio sound is very difficult usually because you don't really know what was used. Jimmy Page is known for playing a Les Paul, but in the studio he used plenty of other guitars, even Telecasters. Getting a Les Paul to sound like a Tele, isn't going to happen. Guys play Mesa or Marshall on the road because they are sponsored to play them. In the studio they have a huge choice of amps to play from. They'll even layer tracks with different amps and different guitars.

Live sounds you can at least get an idea what they are playing and try to get closer to the sound.

Yeah, all good points. But trying to copy SRVs live tone for example would be hard. He had so many amps going at the same time!

[Tim37]

theres also a lot of small things that you dont even think of. like pick material, strings, even cables.

[Samba Pa Ti]

i think the main problem is the pickup itself, the one i have sounds like crap, doesnt matter which guitar its in or which amp (ive tried it on loads). it put me right off SD pickups.

swapped it out for a gibson PAF and was much more satisfied.

[Paul Marossy]

i think the main problem is the pickup itself, the one i have sounds like crap, doesnt matter which guitar its in or which amp (ive tried it on loads). it put me right off SD pickups.

swapped it out for a gibson PAF and was much more satisfied.

Yeah, that happens sometimes.

My two favorite pickups are the DiMarzio FRED and my vintage Seymour Duncan Allan Holdsworth model. I like the SD a little more than the DiMarzio, more of a resonant midrange to it. They both work very well with the guitars that I put them in.

[psw]

The problem with a lot of the Hype and artist models in pickups is that, like effects presets, they tend to be overblown. Things like the PAF are classic because they are less powerful and more balanced, get a bit more of the guitar sound through as well. There's nothing 'wrong' with SD, it's just the market forces driving for 'more power' etc.

There really isn't a need for it really, most amps and stompboxes and such have so much preampslification on hand, you can always boost "power' but do it with windings and you are going to get a bit of a 'one trick pony' at best.

That said, I'm near completing a LP with some no name pickups, all slug poles and overwound...but the wiring has treble bleed caps on the volumes and effective tone controls plus splitting and local paralel options...has a broad palette of sounds and by simply turning down the volume control, you can get these fairly powerful over-wound, mid-rangy pickups to really open up...and sound a lot like the real PAF's in the real LP.

So...if your guitar has treble bleed caps in the vol's you should be able to get a less bass heavy and cleaner sound with the controls on hand...it is amazing how often people don't use the things. In my tele, it is excessively bright, so I left off the treble bleed and so when the vols turned down a notch, it tones down the 'bite'.

If thinking that a more 'single coil' sound would be good, this is the first guitar I have put in local parallel on the bridge pickup...and that's a surprisingly good sound with over-wound pickups...a bit like a split, but without any hum and nothing like the kind of nonsense people say about such things. It looks like people just look at the resistance, local parallel will read about 1/4 of the same thing in series, but it isn't anything like half the power even and a really good brighter sound, no noise...

What ever happened to people wanting to create their own "tone" anyway...I mean, all well to take some tips from those you admire, but there are so many factors, the player being a huge part, wy not find your own tones with your own guitar and maybe someone will want to copy you?

[borge]

There is much hype around the web about the mesa boogie amp (a prototype IIRC) that alot of Weezer was recorded....

Not a tone an open backed fender is likely to get close to regardless of pickups...