Members Astray57 Posted January 5, 2010 Members Share Posted January 5, 2010 Hey everyone i just need some suggestions on what pickup would be best to replace my seymour duncan JB in the bridge of my ltd. I really dont know jack squat about pickups but i am dam sure that my JB isnt the greatest sounding pickup for my high gain/metal playing style. I have no problems with the 59 in the neck on my ltd so im pretty sure im going to keep that. I was doing a little research of my own and was thinking of putting in a duncan distortion in the place of the JB but but as i said before i dont know crap about pickups so i come to you people for some info and help. and thanks in advanced!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members eudaimonia02912 Posted January 5, 2010 Members Share Posted January 5, 2010 I've never meshed well with Seymour Duncans, but I have quite a bit of experience with DiMarzios. What kind of sound are you after? What are some of your favorite guitarists in terms of sound? I have an XXX, too, and I really like the DiMarzio D-Sonic and Crunch Lab pickups through it. I play a lot of progressive metal, and both pickups are good for switching between soloing and riffing. (However, I tend to use my neck pickup for most soloing.) The Crunch Lab is probably my favorite bridge pickup so far. It is fairly high output, has significant mids and bass, but is quite clear and and articulate. Pinch harmonics jump off the fretboard with it, but it's not a screamer. The D-Sonic, Crunch Lab, and Steve's Special all work well with the XXX. The XXX has a ton of gain and can get mushy, but these pickups are good at staying clear in high gain situations. If you're looking just to scream, try an Evo or, better yet, an Evo 2. If you want to smash the front end of the amp with as much output as you can (which can be good for grinding death metal), try the X2N or DeActivator. DiMarzio gives you a 30 day trial period. If you don't like a pickup, you can send it back and get another. EDIT: PS-- One of my guitars came with a JB, and I could not get it to sound good with the XXX. Do you play a lot of leads, or do you mostly do riffing? Are you planning to use the bridge for riffing mostly? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members gt_jumper Posted January 5, 2010 Members Share Posted January 5, 2010 If its standard tuning.....Invader!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Astray57 Posted January 5, 2010 Author Members Share Posted January 5, 2010 I've never meshed well with Seymour Duncans, but I have quite a bit of experience with DiMarzios.What kind of sound are you after? What are some of your favorite guitarists in terms of sound?I have an XXX, too, and I really like the DiMarzio D-Sonic and Crunch Lab pickups through it. I play a lot of progressive metal, and both pickups are good for switching between soloing and riffing. (However, I tend to use my neck pickup for most soloing.) The Crunch Lab is probably my favorite bridge pickup so far. It is fairly high output, has significant mids and bass, but is quite clear and and articulate. Pinch harmonics jump off the fretboard with it, but it's not a screamer.The D-Sonic, Crunch Lab, and Steve's Special all work well with the XXX. The XXX has a ton of gain and can get mushy, but these pickups are good at staying clear in high gain situations. If you're looking just to scream, try an Evo or, better yet, an Evo 2.If you want to smash the front end of the amp with as much output as you can (which can be good for grinding death metal), try the X2N or DeActivator.DiMarzio gives you a 30 day trial period. If you don't like a pickup, you can send it back and get another.EDIT: PS-- One of my guitars came with a JB, and I could not get it to sound good with the XXX.Do you play a lot of leads, or do you mostly do riffing? Are you planning to use the bridge for riffing mostly? yea i do mostly play leads but im planning on using the bridge for my riffage. I dont play any grinding death metal, i like to keep it on standard E tuning but i do play alot of thrash. I'd also like to keep the 59 in the neck just because of the awesome cleans it can get, and i do love to mess around with clean tones. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Mustaine-who? Posted January 5, 2010 Members Share Posted January 5, 2010 The SD Distortion is a great PuP with oomph and bite. I personally play thrash with some heavier stuff thrown in, and the SD Full Shred does that very nicely. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members eudaimonia02912 Posted January 5, 2010 Members Share Posted January 5, 2010 yea i do mostly play leads but im planning on using the bridge for my riffage. I dont play any grinding death metal, i like to keep it on standard E tuning but i do play alot of thrash. I'd also like to keep the 59 in the neck just because of the awesome cleans it can get, and i do love to mess around with clean tones. Personally, I would go with the Crunch Lab or D-Activator, then, if you go with DiMarzios. Both can do great thrash tones. You might also like the Steve's Special. It's got a scooped, somewhat hi-fi sound. You could play it through two stacked dimed Metal Zones and still hear the notes. Some people might find it a bit sterile, but it's good for 80s thrash riffing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Astray57 Posted January 5, 2010 Author Members Share Posted January 5, 2010 Personally, I would go with the Crunch Lab or D-Activator, then, if you go with DiMarzios. Both can do great thrash tones.You might also like the Steve's Special. It's got a scooped, somewhat hi-fi sound. You could play it through two stacked dimed Metal Zones and still hear the notes. Some people might find it a bit sterile, but it's good for 80s thrash riffing. I checked out some clips and im not totally sure thats the sound im going for but then again im not even totally sure what im looking for haha. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Hotcakes Posted January 5, 2010 Members Share Posted January 5, 2010 bg hellabucker Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Astray57 Posted January 5, 2010 Author Members Share Posted January 5, 2010 Ok so far out of all of the suggestions the pickups that im digging the most are the invader, distortion, and the dimarzio steves special. Except with steves special all i could find were clips of people using it with ibanez basswood guitars and im not really sure what effect my mohogany body ltd will have on its tone. anyone have any other suggestions??? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members K-Bizzle Posted January 5, 2010 Members Share Posted January 5, 2010 So what is it about the jb you don't like? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Astray57 Posted January 5, 2010 Author Members Share Posted January 5, 2010 So what is it about the jb you don't like? To my ears it just sounds really muddy and idk if its me or the way i dial my amp but its just not as aggressive and tight as id like it to be. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members K-Bizzle Posted January 5, 2010 Members Share Posted January 5, 2010 Also consider the SH-5 then. Don't go for the invader imo. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Astray57 Posted January 5, 2010 Author Members Share Posted January 5, 2010 Also consider the SH-5 then.Don't go for the invader imo. Oh wow i just listened to some clips and the SH-5 seems to be pretty much what i was looking for. Thanks alot for all the info and help everyone! I think i just might go with the SH-5. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members colejustesen Posted January 5, 2010 Members Share Posted January 5, 2010 I wouldn't rule out a low output pup for the bridge. I know that high output pups really push the front of an amp, but considering that you have a gain monster for an amp, you probably could pull off using a low or medium output pup in the bridge. I have always wondered how a Seymour Duncan '59/'59 combo would be. Or hell even a Pearly Gates in the bridge would be killer. Cole Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members colejustesen Posted January 5, 2010 Members Share Posted January 5, 2010 Oh wow i just listened to some clips and the SH-5 seems to be pretty much what i was looking for. Thanks alot for all the info and help everyone! I think i just might go with the SH-5. According to the SD website the SH-5 puts out more bass than the JB. Have you looked into the Full Shred? Cole Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Astray57 Posted January 5, 2010 Author Members Share Posted January 5, 2010 According to the SD website the SH-5 puts out more bass than the JB. Have you looked into the Full Shred?Cole Yes i have but the only clips i could find sounded pretty bad lol. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members colejustesen Posted January 5, 2010 Members Share Posted January 5, 2010 Yes i have but the only clips i could find sounded pretty bad lol. Have you asked on the Seymour Duncan forum? Those guys over there know their SD pickups very well. They might even have some better clips of the Full Shred for you. Cole Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Cookie Monster Posted January 5, 2010 Members Share Posted January 5, 2010 According to the SD website the SH-5 puts out more bass than the JB. Have you looked into the Full Shred? Cole Yes, but it's tighter than the JB! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members colejustesen Posted January 5, 2010 Members Share Posted January 5, 2010 Granted this was pulled from the HC Review section, so everything is always a 10, but I figured where this reviewer has it in a mahogany guitar that it might have some similarities to your setup. Product: Seymour Duncan SH-10 Full ShredPrice Paid: UNKNOWN Submitted 05/23/2008 at 03:07am by paulscape Features :Bridge position humbucker - apart from its sound its best feature is its black and has the classic cool seymour duncan logo.Instrument :I originally installed this on a cheap Jackson and didn't really get the most out of it because the guitar was a cheap dud. I do remember it was quite crunchy though. Then I installed it into the bridge position of my Zakk Wylde camo Les Paul replacing EMG's and totally love it now. It's a good choice for a metal style LP or heavy guitar but I could see this working in a range of other guitars too including strats with HB.Sound : 10The output level is hot but not excessively. Im using this with either an Elmwood modena90, Peavey JSX combo or Marshall plexi 50w through celestions. With each amp it sings. The tone feels fairly well balanced. At first I thought it was a little bright but after some use I quite like its tone. Relatively even...perhaps like a hotter custom custom pickup but with way more crunch. Ive found this pickup great in the Zakk Les Paul. Its got a fantastic crunch tightness so would be great for drop tunings and muted riffs along with fast runs where you are muting parts of the alternate picking. I also like the way harmonics jump out.I dont know if its just my guitar but the way harmonics jump out reminds me of some of the hotter dimarzio pickups but the tone is clearer, deeper and crunchier. Not muddy at all in the bridge. I dont know how it would go in the neck position.Overall Rating : 10Been playing 20 years and own quite a few seymour duncan, dimarzio and boutique pickups like WCR, Frallin, Suhr FL's (single coils). Some of the other Duncan pickups I own are: distortion, custom custom, pearly gates, seth lovers, JB, '59, screamin demon. I would say its most like the distortion only crunchier. I think I chose it on specs...nont neccesarily for the shred name, although that's the main style I (try to) play. In the Les Paul it's awesome. Fat defined and still fluid. Did I mention crunchy? Cole Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Astray57 Posted January 5, 2010 Author Members Share Posted January 5, 2010 Have you asked on the Seymour Duncan forum? Those guys over there know their SD pickups very well. They might even have some better clips of the Full Shred for you.Cole haha wow i never even thought of that, thanks ill check it out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members colejustesen Posted January 5, 2010 Members Share Posted January 5, 2010 Yes, but it's tighter than the JB! I wish I had the cash to try all the Seymour Duncans. The Full Shred, Custom Custom, Pearly Gate, and Custom 5 have been on my list for a long time, and I mean a long time!Cole Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members colejustesen Posted January 5, 2010 Members Share Posted January 5, 2010 Check out this thread over at the Seymour Duncan forum: http://www.seymourduncan.com/forum/showthread.php?t=181763&highlight=full+shred Cole Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Astray57 Posted January 5, 2010 Author Members Share Posted January 5, 2010 Ok so far out of everything ive heard i think im going to go with the SH-5. I want to thank everyone who posted and helped me out and i appreciate it alot! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members grunge782 Posted January 5, 2010 Members Share Posted January 5, 2010 SH-5 is great! Is BKP or Motorcity out of the question because of price? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members OverDriven Posted January 5, 2010 Members Share Posted January 5, 2010 I always recommend this one, but I absolutely LOVE the Dimarzio Megadrive. Been using it as my main bridge pickup for something like 6 years. You can't buy them in stores though. You have to get them on ebay or call Dimarzio and order them direct. There is actually a guy on ebay that sells lots of new ones...or at least there was...haven't checked in a while. Anyways...If you get one, install it with the blade side toward the bridge. The sound is really big/3d with nice percussive attack and grindy mids...reminds me a lot of Adam Jone's sound, which I love. Add more gain and it stays tight. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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