Bare Knuckle Pickups Forum
Forum Ringside => Pickups => Topic started by: Vilches3 on April 12, 2009, 01:25:07 AM
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I just want to be sure that the Holy diver is what I want. I just ordered myself the rest of my parts now all thats left is the pickups. Its gonna be a flush-mount floyded guitar made of alder with a maple top, clapton profiled maple neck with a pau ferro fingerboard and a heel contour ( I think all of these can vastly effect tone). I decided on the Holy diver because I imagined a coldsweat or any of the ceramic magnetted ones would be a bit too bright in these woods. Im also gonna go for an abraxas for those smooth santana tones. I just want to make sure that a holy diver could get me decent cleans in the bridge position and get me decent rock/ thrash/ oldschool metal tones and really clear smooth leads and a nice crunch to it for some 80's styled stuff like Van Halen and stuff. Im also really into Vai and Gary Holts lead tones. I just wanna make sure the Nailbomb or Coldsweat wouldn't be better options before i buy my pickups? any input? thanks
P.S i barely ever use both pickups at once
Rob
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any takers? :D lol
http://www.myspace.com/beholdthearctopus
i like the tone of this dudes leads alot as well.................so i want some warmth, some crystal clear leads, decent cleans and some heavy for thrash and hard rock.
Nailbomb, coldsweat or diver?..........im thinking diver since ive got a bright guitar?
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I love the sound of nailbombs so that takes my vote but we all have different tastes...
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I love the sound of nailbombs so that takes my vote but we all have different tastes...
for the stuff i mentioned and woods though?
thanks- rob
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uhm... judging from the weird stuff i listened on that band's myspace i'd say that both your side options would be a better choice. in particular i'd say nailbombs for those lead tones. not divers anyway! even in such a bright guitar, but maybe i'm wrong... i've got no experience at all with alder, but i think your wood combination should be a bit scooped so i'd choose a middy pickup.
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What did Tim say?
There's your answer :)
Roo
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I think that the HD/ Abraxas will do what you are asking, the 80s stuff will be covered easily, HD cleans are very good (splits well too)
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thanks for the replies guys, i thought that the holy diver was incredibly middy. I also still think a cold sweat might be just a hint too bright with a maple neck, maple top and pau ferro board on top of mahogany. I steered away from the nailbomb because I heard it wasn't tight enough for certain styles of metal. Which retains more tightness, the bomb or the diver? and which is clearer? and which is more diverse? I'll probably go to Tim right before I'm about to buy the pickups, (like the same day)
thanks!
Rob
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maybe mine is just a case of unlucky guitar/pickup combination, but my holy divers sound no way middy... at least i speak of middy pickups when i hear a lot of mid and hi mids. HD has got plenty of low-mids AND treble, and my impression is that of a quite scooped pickup. or maybe it's just the guitar i've got it in that's scooped... nailbombs are definitely middy. not the tightest pickups around but i wouldn't call them loose.
your is a very bright guitar, though, maybe too much for the bombs... i don't want to confuse you, ask tim anyway!
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my impression is that of a quite scooped pickup.
wut :?
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Based on the clips I've heard, the HD is nowhere near scooped..
I was recommended the Nailbomb for my upcoming (being built) custom strat. It has a maple cap (4mm thick) on top of alder body, and a bolt-on maple neck with a rosewood fretboard. Hipshot US contour tremolo. In short, I was asking for a mix between Doug Aldrich's tone on DIO's 'Evil or Divine' DVD, and old Van Halen tone. Tim's other suggestion was the Holy Diver.
Comparing to your guitar, yours is probably a tad brighter, given the floyd and pau ferro fretboard. I don't think it would be too bright..and not definitely the Holy diver. Well, you might as well ask Tim :)
-Zaned
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In a nutshell I understand the HD to be more rounded with a good amount of low mids / mids and the NB to have more edge with some mids / high mids, with just a 'little' less output.
Anyway, here you've got some helpfull discussions about the differences between the HD and the NB
http://bareknucklepickups.co.uk/forum/index.php?topic=14620.0
http://bareknucklepickups.co.uk/forum/index.php?topic=7042.0
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:? maybe my impression comes from the last times i used my HD equipped guitar with my tube amp in band situation... on the POD it's nowhere scooped and, even if much less aggressive than nailbombs, it sounds very good. i don't know why, i love HDs on POD and find them almost pointless on tubes.
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The tightness and pinch harmonics you're after are more typical of ceramic powered humbuckers-maple topped Strat bodies are often alot harder sounding in the mids and not as bright as you'd expect so I'm not sure if either the NB or HD is going to give you the low end tightness and punch you're after.
On reading your PM my first thought was Cold Sweat but if you feel this may be too bright then the Miracle Man would be my next choice.
kindest regards
Tim
He seems to be a really helpful guy so I think I may just go with the cold sweats assuming that they perform bridge cleans better than Miracle mans?
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Then you must apply forum rule number one !
Anyway don't know what you asked to Tim in your pm but if you fear the brightness of your tone, you have to know the CS is one of the brightest BKP (at least in the modern range). That's what he told me when I asked for an humbucker for some heavy metal riffage for a bright sounding guitar, so much so that he didn't recommend it for me...
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well.. for vai, exodus and most 80's stuff, I'd definitely pick the cold sweat
the holy diver can do that too, but it needs boosting for some extra edge and will never sound as raspy and aggressive as a ceramic
maybe this is also related to scooped feel that dheim mentioned
most people confuse amount of frequencies with the percepted distorted frequencies
the cold sweat, for example, does not have a lot of mids, but the mids are very present, cause they crunch a lot through distortion
the holy diver has a ton of mids, but they are totally clean and smooth, so they may not get as evident on distortion
this is exactly how I felt about my Framus Cobra
it had a ton of mids, but the mids didn't distort along of the other frequencies as much as I wanted (like a Soldano, with the open/clear midrange)
so I had it modded to crunch the hell out of the mids (like a Laney or Bogner)
it's as middy as before, but now the mids are way more evident, since they distort along with everything else
the tone got more dense and crunchy, instead of open (hollow) and clean
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for starters, this is an all Warmoth project Its got a strat body with a heel contour and a maple top and it's routed for a flush mounted floyd. The neck is made of maple and has a pau ferro fingerboard and a Clapton profile (I think that qualifies as a large neck?). I've been stuck looking at the Nailbomb, Coldsweat and Holy Diver pickups and they all seem just incredible. I'm looking for a very clear tone (I imagine all BKP's give that) but I don't want this guitar to sound as massive as my warpigged ibanez. I really like Steve Vai and Eddie Van halens lead tones and I also enjoy playing alot of thrash, late exodus type of toned thrash. So I guess I'm looking for something that has crystal clear leads, retains a good amount of tightness and bottom end, can clean up fairly and can release piercing harmonics with ease. I've also already decided on an Abraxas for the neck position for those warm liquidy Santana type leads. So far I've been leaning most on the Nailbomb and Holy Diver as I imagine the cold sweat might be a little too bright.
this is part of the message I sent him for those who were wondering
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did you order de body already?
maybe you could try other wood than alder
something between alder and mahogany
like cedar, or maybe limba (korina)
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did you order de body already?
maybe you could try other wood than alder
something between alder and mahogany
like cedar, or maybe limba (korina)
yeah its been sitting behind my sofa for a week lol, alder and maple
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I mean im considering the miracle man for less brightness.....but the cleans! lol.......and the painkiller would be way harsh in this right?
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Well i have a cold sweat i can chime in its very bright but not hard and has amazing smooth tone on leads and aggressive and amazingly clear on chords! clearst pickup ever not be scarred of it being to bright you can allways alter that with your amp but thats just my point of you if you dont want it to be overall bright you can get a C-bomb a ceramic nailbomb its close to the cold sweat but darker
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Well i have a cold sweat i can chime in its very bright but not hard and has amazing smooth tone on leads and aggressive and amazingly clear on chords! clearst pickup ever not be scarred of it being to bright you can allways alter that with your amp but thats just my point of you if you dont want it to be overall bright you can get a C-bomb a ceramic nailbomb its close to the cold sweat but darker
what type of guitar do you have the sweat in?
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"maple topped Strat bodies are often alot harder sounding in the mids and not as bright as you'd expect so I'm not sure if either the NB or HD is going to give you the low end tightness and punch you're after."
this makes my decision harder lol
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ask Tim about a slightly overwound cold sweat (for a darker response) :?
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ask Tim about a slightly overwound cold sweat (for a darker response) :?
It sounds alright, but wouldn't overwounding it further make it less capable of cleans? WOuldnt i be better off just getting a miracle man if i got it overwound? just asking
thanks
Rob
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i took notice that vai uses an alder bodied guitar and the evolution have specs which are a tiny bit similar to the sweat........so would the sweats be too bright for my axe? i feel really caught in a corner here lol
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Reading your message to Tim (and reading his response), the Cold Sweat might just be right for you!
It is bright, but in a pleasing way. It won't sound small, as some bright pickups do. The high end doesn't just cut through, it crunches. It will give you that midrange of your guitar and tight low end. The tight low end is nice, you can use the amps low end..if you like it that way. It won't loose definition.
The Miracle Man I have no personal experience with, but it has more low end (but very tight) and less mids. Probably less highs. More output!
Your call :)
-Zaned
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My guiatr was a les paul with a heavey maple cap my guitarist has a alder jazzmaster which has a super distortion it sounds very dark and muddy so to be honest i think the cold sweat would be perfect!
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alright, I think I'm gonna just pull the trigger and if worst comes worst, I mean amps have EQ and i could always switch the pickup into one of my Bare Knuckle virgins lol.....thanks guys, I'll post picks and report when this whole thing goes through.
Rob
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if you dont want it to be overall bright you can get a C-bomb a ceramic nailbomb its close to the cold sweat but darker
^+1
I think the C-Bomb would be a serious alternative for you. Have you asked Tim about his one ?
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if you dont want it to be overall bright you can get a C-bomb a ceramic nailbomb its close to the cold sweat but darker
^+1
I think the C-Bomb would be a serious alternative for you. Have you asked Tim about his one ?
I thought about it but I haven't gotten around to asking about that one yet...hmmm
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do it. Seriously.
http://bareknucklepickups.co.uk/forum/index.php?topic=16628.0
On this topic you have a great explanation of the difference between the C-NB and the CS. I'm pretty sure you'll read here what you are waiting for....
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Given so many questions in your mind do you not have a cheap set of pickups you could put it together with to see just how lively it is?
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Given so many questions in your mind do you not have a cheap set of pickups you could put it together with to see just how lively it is?
the neck and bridge and all that jazz is still in process from warmoth, and the only pickup I have lying around is an EMG 85
As for the C-bomb I just messaged Tim about it, thanks guys
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Actually do people who build guitars - decide beforehand what pickups they will use or build and check the off amp acoustics then decide or have a standard set of pickups that they assess it with before hand.
And before anyone bites my head of I am guessing that for the professional builders they make the decision from their experience and knowledge I am thinking more of amature and kit builders?
/hijack
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Actually do people who build guitars - decide beforehand what pickups they will use or build and check the off amp acoustics then decide or have a standard set of pickups that they assess it with before hand.
And before anyone bites my head of I am guessing that for the professional builders they make the decision from their experience and knowledge I am thinking more of amature and kit builders?
/hijack
I take no offense, this is my first real guitar build, from warmoth.........besides that all ive done is fix up an old ibanez, id check the acoustics but I dont know how to solder wires well and I definately dont wanna experiment on Bare knuckles lol