Bare Knuckle Pickups Forum
Forum Ringside => Pickups => Topic started by: gwEm on June 15, 2009, 09:52:38 PM
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well, its a remarkable pickup. don't choose this one if you want an open and airy sound... in fact better fasten your seatbelts!
tried this in my Steinberger GP, hard maple body, graphite neck.
its undoubtedly the most compressed pickup in the BKP range, I wouldn't use it with an uber gain amp (for example a recto), though it is fine with my Marshall 2204, and whats more I would use it with a booster too. the compression isn't taken too far - but its enough to make a real easy playing pickup - laugh out loud stuff! no way would i order this pickup overwound though - Tim has judged it perfect.
bass response is thick and heavy - ideal for downtuning - ideal! IDEAL! but its great in standard tuning, or even tuned up (thanks to my TransTrem). It sounds contemporary though, rather than vintage. its a tight bass too... not surgical tight (for example painkiller), but tight anyway.
detuned, its a bit rammstein-esque. standard tuning is a sort of compromise between black album period hetfield, and crazy world period schenker... if that makes any sense at all (maybe not)!
the mid range is very prominent with an alnico character - its a smooth hump, rather than peaky. treble is balanced, not as sweet as something like the holy diver maybe (though it is hard to say).. the treble reminds of the miracle man perhaps.
this is definitely a fire breathing pickup - oh yes! but at the same time, it cleans up well, with a more than usable sweet clean tone. and it remains very clear - even detuned.
but, i'm not sure if its for me. i need to crank my marshall to be sure - i'll do it tomorrow. i could only get it to moderate levels just now. maybe tim was right, and the holy diver would be more my cup of tea.
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Nice review!
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I guessed what you meant when you said it was "hilarious" in the other thread! :D
I've always been slightly tempted to get a WP, just to have one guitar which produces that so-called "silly grin" effect. I'd guess it might work well with a series/parallel switch, they seem to suit high-output pickups.
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I guessed what you meant when you said it was "hilarious" in the other thread! :D
I've always been slightly tempted to get a WP, just to have one guitar which produces that so-called "silly grin" effect. I'd guess it might work well with a series/parallel switch, they seem to suit high-output pickups.
the warpig is probably at its most ideal in a basswood superstrat type guitar.
philking has an explorer with a warpig and series/parallel switch. as you guessed - it works excellently. sounds very different to this steinberger though - needless to say!
edit: somehow the alnico-ness of the warpig is the point of it. not sure i'd ever consider a ceramic one.
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I haven't got any basswood guitars, I guess if I was to get one it would go in my SG-X. And yes, definitely alnico - as you say, that would be the point of it, for super-fatness!
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That's a very nice review.
you make me LOVE the Pig ! :!
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Nice review gwem - many thanks :D
I'm another with a "maybe I ought to have a warpig in something...". A while back I was toying with getting one of those cheapie travel guitars and sticking one in that :lol:
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after morning crankage - i decided to keep the pig! the mids are in a really nice place. its really cool for playing scorpions stuff.
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edit: somehow the alnico-ness of the warpig is the point of it. not sure i'd ever consider a ceramic one.
That's exactly what I thought too - it's so OTT, powerful, saturated & heavy anyway, why would you put a ceramic magnet in it?
Of course, I've never tried a C-Pig so perhaps it would make sense if I actually had direct experience of one, but I just don't see myself wanting or needing it...
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the warpig is probably at its most ideal in a basswood superstrat type guitar.
that's where it resides ... well, when the charvel is put toggether :P
try it with a laney with the gain at noon ... instant iommi tone
you know what the next step is, right? Ceramic warpig :D .. don't deny the temptation!
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Nice review gwEm. I had an Ibanez S with a Warpig in for a little while, and I'd agree with everything you've said. It's definitely a pickup that I wouldn't dream of getting made ceramic, and it's certainly a beast beyond any reasonable belief.
I'd like another Warpig again one day, but I'm not sure I'm quite ready yet :lol: ... In a Blackmachine or something super-stratty with a fixed bridge. (perhaps a Jim Root style tele?).
(P.S. The lens of the camera was broken, don't blame me!)
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(perhaps a Jim Root style tele?).
that would be a proper guitar to have the pig!
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Been doing some experimentation with the 7 string A5 version in my Blackmachine.
It behaves really impressively with the volume control. From 50%+ you get little volume gain but a massive increase in saturation. Below there it does a remarkably good impression of a more vintage pickup, splits really well too. Cleans at very low volume on the guitar are really nice too. I broke my channel switcher on me Diezel Einstein and haven't bothered to fix it yet!
I was chatting to Doug about this today. The Warpigs are definitely not one trick ponies... although I use it mostly at fulll blast! :D
I agree with the 'Alnico-ness' comments above. The ceramic is a true monster and epic fun in the right guitar. The A5 stilll has plenty of definition plus the vintage vibe when rolled back.
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Nice review gwEm. I had an Ibanez S with a Warpig in for a little while, and I'd agree with everything you've said. It's definitely a pickup that I wouldn't dream of getting made ceramic, and it's certainly a beast beyond any reasonable belief.
I'd like another Warpig again one day, but I'm not sure I'm quite ready yet :lol: ... In a Blackmachine or something super-stratty with a fixed bridge. (perhaps a Jim Root style tele?).
(P.S. The lens of the camera was broken, don't blame me!)
YESS!! I've been looking for someone with a pig in their S, now you shall be grilled!
How does the pig work with the S's sound? Does it balance the bass out nicely or does it get the too-much-bass-from-the-pickup sound? (I have that in an alder strat with a super distortion,, you just hear all the bass is from the pickup, not the wood.)
And how do the mids sound in there?
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Cool! What do you think about it on a Flying V alike Gibson (all mahogany with rosewood or ebony fingerboard)
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YESS!! I've been looking for someone with a pig in their S, now you shall be grilled!
How does the pig work with the S's sound? Does it balance the bass out nicely or does it get the too-much-bass-from-the-pickup sound? (I have that in an alder strat with a super distortion,, you just hear all the bass is from the pickup, not the wood.)
And how do the mids sound in there?
Got a open-coiled C-pig in an S540FM tuned to C standard. If there's one word I can describe, it's sick :) Tim wound it at 22.5k and it definitely gives out the grin factor. Despite the uber-tight bass, it doesn't get woofy and is very articulate across the [fret]board.
Reg
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Cool! What do you think about it on a Flying V alike Gibson (all mahogany with rosewood or ebony fingerboard)
it would be nice in the right V a think.. a bright one
edit: it would be a risky choice if not
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Would be on a custom ^^
If works on PhillKing Explorer, what's up about the flying v
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Would be on a custom ^^
If works on PhillKing Explorer, what's up about the flying v
it is a little dark on that explorer, to be fair, which is probably why phil wired it up with a series/parallel switch. if its a custom you can arrange for it to be brighter with a maple/ebony neck/fingerboard combo
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Would be on a custom ^^
If works on PhillKing Explorer, what's up about the flying v
it is a little dark on that explorer, to be fair, which is probably why phil wired it up with a series/parallel switch. if its a custom you can arrange for it to be brighter with a maple/ebony neck/fingerboard combo
With the MQ it really kicks but for more clarity the parallel mode is great - there is still plenty of power. When it is in series you just want to do riffs of doom with it (which is sometimes what you want to play anyway 8) )
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I wouldn't be much about doom... but a damn fat and punch bottom end, but not muddy
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I should note that the Warpig in my Steinberger is actually surprisingly bright.. I even fitted a 350k volume pot. Graphite/Maple Steinbergers are brightness/attack oriented though.
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I guessed what you meant when you said it was "hilarious" in the other thread! :D
I've always been slightly tempted to get a WP, just to have one guitar which produces that so-called "silly grin" effect. I'd guess it might work well with a series/parallel switch, they seem to suit high-output pickups.
the warpig is probably at its most ideal in a basswood superstrat type guitar.
philking has an explorer with a warpig and series/parallel switch. as you guessed - it works excellently. sounds very different to this steinberger though - needless to say!
edit: somehow the alnico-ness of the warpig is the point of it. not sure i'd ever consider a ceramic one.
i've got pigs in a basswood RG and in a mahogany epi les paul. and that's where they sound better, IMO.
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Any PainKiller and it is a done deal!!!
G