And the Best Hard Rock/Metal pickup is......

[ericwylde]

did you try a gibson 500t?
sounds like a tighter, more balanced and less muddy duncan distortion
and the bare knuckle painkiller sounds like a tighter, more balanced and elss muddy gibson 500t
i tried them all in mahogany guitars

but my favorite ceramic is bare knuckle miracle man
i'll order another miracle man (i had it once) as soon as i get another guitar

[Chrisjd]

did you try a gibson 500t? sounds like a tighter, more balanced and less muddy duncan distortion and the bare knuckle painkiller sounds like a tighter, more balanced and elss muddy gibson 500t i tried them all in mahogany guitars but my favorite ceramic is bare knuckle miracle man i'll order another miracle man (i had it once) as soon as i get another guitar

The distortion is about as clear and tight as I would want. The reason they might sound tighter is because they are less output so they are easier to control and stop on the dime, however you would have to add gain to compensate.

[Ice Aak]

The distortion kicks ass in most applications, nice heavy tone if that's what you're after

[ericwylde]

The distortion is about as clear and tight as I would want. The reason they might sound tighter is because they are less output so they are easier to control and stop on the dime, however you would have to add gain to compensate.

 

 

actually the 500t has a bit more output than it (probably because of the extra magnets)

a bit more bass too, but it sounds more concise

the painkiller is not so high output and crunchy as the 500t, but it sounds a lot clearer than it

probably both were based on duncan distortion with some improvement

[Faust2016]

So how would you reckon it sounds through a maple neck thru mahogany body ?
Too bright?

[JoshuaLogan]

I just bought the bare knuckle ceramic warpigs set. can't wait to get them here and check them out.

[jeracuda]

I just installed a matched set of Bareknickles miracle mans in my '80 Dean ML. Beleive it or not I'm not impressed. I was expecting an incredibly thick metal sound and it falls short. I do have to say that it sounds great for classic rock to rock, but it just is'nt giving me metal. My burstbucker in my Les Paul sounds thicker and heavier in high gain.

[lenduffy]

I like the 59.... beautiful clean, all the way through to hard rock and metal and stays pretty well defined under higher gain......

ftw!

[TomCTC]

I like the 59.... beautiful clean, all the way through to hard rock and metal and stays pretty well defined under higher gain......

 

 

+1

 

There's nothing that pickup can't do with the right amp.

[thenakedarab]

I'm partial to the DiMarzio version. The super distortion.

 

 

My Les Paul was loaded with two Dimarzio Super D's for years, and the neck pick up crunch tones were fookin' humongous. It sounded good in the bridge position too, but the aggressive mids just killed in the neck position.

 

Unfortunately they squeal like stuck pigs now, but they're gonna be replaced when I ship my guitar off to either Gibson or Heritage in the next week to have; a refret, the binding repaired, the new pickups put in, possibly a third pickup added, the jack and all the pots replaced with push pull pots so I can split to either coil of the pickups, and the tuners replaced, and their "Pro Set-up".

[guitarsjb]

DiMarzio X2N

[JoshuaLogan]

I just installed a matched set of Bareknickles miracle mans in my '80 Dean ML. Beleive it or not I'm not impressed. I was expecting an incredibly thick metal sound and it falls short. I do have to say that it sounds great for classic rock to rock, but it just is'nt giving me metal. My burstbucker in my Les Paul sounds thicker and heavier in high gain.

 

 

well 1. the triamp is definitely more of a rock amp than metal amp.... and 2. the miracle man isn't really the most "metal" of the BK pickups.... those would be nailbomb, warpig, and ceramic warpig....

[The Idiot]

SD is awesome in mahogany guitars and Dimarzio are awesome in super strat type guitars.

[The Idiot]

What would you recommend for a basswood body?

 

 

Dimarzio Tone Zone.

[ericwylde]

I just installed a matched set of Bareknickles miracle mans in my '80 Dean ML. Beleive it or not I'm not impressed. I was expecting an incredibly thick metal sound and it falls short. I do have to say that it sounds great for classic rock to rock, but it just is'nt giving me metal. My burstbucker in my Les Paul sounds thicker and heavier in high gain.

 

 

burstbucker?? wtf?

well you just installed it and in another guitar

maybe you did something wrong, or your dean sounds too much thinner than the les paul

 

i tried 13 pickups in the same guitar (including emg, duncan, gibson and other brands) and a lot more other pickups in other similar guitars and the miracle man sounded the MOST METAL pickup for my ears

the bass is huge and extremely TIGHT, very focused mids, strong harmonics and cutting highs

it has a strange low midrange roar that sounds different from any other pickup and the weird clarity on shred stuff gives an active pickup feel

 

i needed to sell my other guitar and didn't keep the pickup instead of the holy diver cause it's an one trick pony, a full metal pickup, definitely not made for classic rock, and i love the versatility of the holy diver

[jeracuda]

burstbucker?? wtf? well you just installed it and in another guitar maybe you did something wrong, or your dean sounds too much thinner than the les paul i tried 13 pickups in the same guitar (including emg, duncan, gibson and other brands) and a lot more other pickups in other similar guitars and the miracle man sounded the MOST METAL pickup for my ears the bass is huge and extremely TIGHT, very focused mids, strong harmonics and cutting highs it has a strange low midrange roar that sounds different from any other pickup and the weird clarity on shred stuff gives an active pickup feel i needed to sell my other guitar and didn't keep the pickup instead of the holy diver cause it's an one trick pony, a full metal pickup, definitely not made for classic rock, and i love the versatility of the holy diver

 

 

 

You had me then you lost me.

[Exocaster]

I like the Duncan Distortion. I used one in a couple Jacksons (DKMG and SL3) for a while. Very tight and clear, and I prefer the growl of the Distortion to the comparative smoothness of the EMG 81. I had the Super Distortion in the bridge of an Ibanez RG for a while, and while I didn't like it as much as the Duncan Distortion, it might just have been the guitar and body wood.

I'm a Custom 5 guy these days, because I want something darker and lower output than the Distortion, but the Distortion is a very nice pickup, especially for straight-up metal stuff.

[Cibyl]

I think a Duncan JB is a great hard rock/metal pickup -- especially in a mahagony bodied axe.

[Chrisjd]

I like the Duncan Distortion. I used one in a couple Jacksons (DKMG and SL3) for a while. Very tight and clear, and I prefer the growl of the Distortion to the comparative smoothness of the EMG 81. I had the Super Distortion in the bridge of an Ibanez RG for a while, and while I didn't like it as much as the Duncan Distortion, it might just have been the guitar and body wood. I'm a Custom 5 guy these days, because I want something darker and lower output than the Distortion, but the Distortion is a very nice pickup, especially for straight-up metal stuff.

 

 

well said.

[Bob Savage]

So who's got a Distortion trembucker they want to trade for a Duncan Custom 5 Trembucker?

[JeWol]

I've swapped out quite a few pickups over the last few years and I've found that in order to really hear what a pickup has to offer, you need to make sure that you have good volume pots with low resistance when turned all of the way up and good clean solder joints. I actually went through 4 volume pots when I bought my second RGT42 before I found a good one. I wonder how many people have had similar problems to this and ended up not liking a pickup when it really had nothing to do with the pickup itself. The first pickup replacement I did was to put a Super Distortion in one of my RGT42's. I was hoping for higher output and clarity. I got neither. So I took it back and tried a Duncan Distortion...still nada. So I hardwired the pickup to the output jack bypassing all of the internal controls and voila!!! Sounded awesome. I later discovered that the Evolution suited this guitar much better so I swapped it out and the DD ended up in my MH201. Those pickups (Duncan Distortion) just love mahogany. Some pickups match up better with different amps also.

[Guest Anonymous]

EMG81 and Bill Lawrence l500xl (b) or l500r (n)

[StevePage]

Bareknuckle Painkiller for me. I've tried these

 

BKP Miracle Man

BKP Warpig

BKP Holy Diver

SD JB Junior

Dimarzio X2N

Dimarzio Air Zone

Dimarzio Paf Pro

Bill Lawrence L500-XL

PRS HFS

EMG 707

 

But my all round favourite is the Painkiller.

[Chrisjd]

I've swapped out quite a few pickups over the last few years and I've found that in order to really hear what a pickup has to offer, you need to make sure that you have good volume pots with low resistance when turned all of the way up and good clean solder joints. I actually went through 4 volume pots when I bought my second RGT42 before I found a good one. I wonder how many people have had similar problems to this and ended up not liking a pickup when it really had nothing to do with the pickup itself. The first pickup replacement I did was to put a Super Distortion in one of my RGT42's. I was hoping for higher output and clarity. I got neither. So I took it back and tried a Duncan Distortion...still nada. So I hardwired the pickup to the output jack bypassing all of the internal controls and voila!!! Sounded awesome. I later discovered that the Evolution suited this guitar much better so I swapped it out and the DD ended up in my MH201. Those pickups (Duncan Distortion) just love mahogany. Some pickups match up better with different amps also.

 

 

yeah, thats the frustrating part about it. My guitar sounds great, but would it sound better with different pots?? i also asked myself this question.

 

Agreed on the DD loving mahogony.

[ChS]

Bill Lawrence l500xl (b) or l500r (n)

 

 

Just ordered an L-500R for the neck position on my LP Studio, I have a L-500XL in the bridge which I find ideal for my playing style, it's my favorite rock humbucker.