Bare Knuckle Pickups Forum
Forum Ringside => Pickups => Topic started by: witeter on April 01, 2011, 03:44:51 PM
-
Hi guys quick question. Birthday is approaching and thanks to Tim's advice Ive been eyeing up a Nailbomb calibrated set for my PRS SE Custom 24 (mahogany body). However I had a look at the PRS SE spec and it turns out that the bridge pickup I currently have is a PRS HFS with an output of 15, while I noticed that the Nailbomb ceramic output is 15.7. My only concern, (which I dont know if its unfounded), is that I excpected the Nialbomb to have a higher output. Hence im worried whether I will notice much more tightness and power compared to my stock pickup? its my first time purchasing pickups so thats why I just want to make sure Im doing the right move. Its not that im not happy with the HFS but I want to make this guitar as good as I possibly can.
Many thanks
Chris
-
dc resistance is not output
BKP's usually feel lower output than other brands, cause they don't mud up the gain
judging by the cold sweat and the alnico nailbomb that are already lower output than the c-bomb, I doubt you'll miss anything
-
ah ok thanks for clearing it up, u dont know what the c-bomb output is btw?
-
only dimarzio measures their pickups output
output is not static and not pickup only related
a more resonant guitar, with pickups set close to the strings, in heavy playing hands will sound a lot higher output than the same pickup in a dead sounding guitar, set far from the strings, with a soft player
-
ah ok cool. and what does the resistance quantity mean? dose it reflect in any way the power of the pickup?
-
yes, it gives an idea of the "power", but it's not directly related with perceived output and has absolutely nothing to do with tightness, thickness and aggressiveness, even if a hotter pickup is usually fatter. you can't compare pickups in a very close range by their DCR, but of course a 7k pickup can't saturate more than a 15k
-
Ok thanks for that dheim :-) just wondered, in your experience will it be an upgrade going from my PRS HFS pickups to say a set of Nailbombs? i dont hate the HFS just want to make my guitar the best it can be.
-
... in your experience will it be an upgrade going from my PRS HFS pickups to say a set of Nailbombs? i dont hate the HFS just want to make my guitar the best it can be.
I felt it was a definite upgrade when I went from the HFS in my Custom to a Holydiver. I liked the fact that the HD had a little less output - even though the DC resistance was similar - and sounded less muddy in the bass and less nasal in the mids. I have not yet had the chance to play a C-Bomb but I would guess that it has about the same or slightly more output than the HFS.
I felt the even bigger upgrade was moving from the PRS Vintage Bass to a Cold Sweat neck - a lot more articulate and a lot less muddy.
As Eric said, DC resistance is only one factor that affects output. Frequency response has a lot to do with how the final output is perceived. A local dealer gave me a Cold Sweat set to try, and I the guitar I tested the bridge pickup in had a Miracle Man there. Due to its brightness the CS appeared to be at least as loud as the MM, even though the MM is supposed to be the higher output pickup. Hence I could imagine that the C-Bomb appears louder because it most likely will have more highs than the HFS. But unfortunately you will only know for sure after you tried one.
Cheers Stephan
-
Hey Stephan thank you very much for the info.
I had actually been looking at a cold sweat neckbut was going to go for a nailbomb set on Tims recommendation. And yes the HFS neck especially has a quite closed muddy sound, same for the bridge; ive kinda got used to it as Ive had the guitar a couple of years but i do remember noticing that when I first plugged in.
And yeah its shame I cant trial pickups on my guitar for a couple of days, cos as u say i wont know 100% till I try them. By the way - what music do u play? just interested to know so as to get a better idea of how those pickups work in your setup.
Thanks
-
By the way - what music do u play? just interested to know so as to get a better idea of how those pickups work in your setup.
Thanks
Hi,
I play everything from Southern Rock to Blues to Country (well - that style not with the PRS) and also 80s hard rock. I don't play any extreme metal styles. I have built and modded several amps. My current favorite is a modded Marshall 1959 SLP Reissue.
Hope that helps.
Cheers Stephan
-
Hi Stephan thanks for that. I mostly play metal in the vein of Metallica, InFlames, Nevermore and more progressive things like Opeth. It seems its quite different from your styles, though i have heard the CS is great for metal soloing also. Thanks!
-
i've got no experience with PRS guitars and pickups, but i can say that for your style C-bombs will be spot on! ;)
-
Like Eric said, BK can feel like they are lower in gain because they are cleaner.
On the other hand the Nailbomb still stays very clear when I turn up the gain more on my amp. There is just less "dirt" coming from the pickup.
-
Hey guys thanks for that-to add a spanner to the works i tried a guitar a couple of days ago with warpigs in, and liked the clarity and bottom end; do you guys have any experience of a ceramic warpig? cheers
-
There is just less "dirt" coming from the pickup.
I think this is the most accurate description for all BKPs I played so far. What you described as "dirt" I described as "unmusical trash" - that fizzy element that so many pickups have which is not musically related to the notes you play and just makes chords less articulate. Somehow BKP manage to subdue that without taking any important frequencies away.
Cheers Stephan
-
You just have to decide on a PU and go for it.
Im going through the same thing as you. i have a PRS CU22 and CE22. the CU has dragons in and Im definately replacing them with Mules - Its for the classic Rock style.
The CE though is causing a problem. I want hotter PUs than the Mules - its for similar styles to you plus the 80s rock and some more modern (but not metal) stuff. the CE is stock - with HFSs
I have an aversion to ceramic PUs - i have no idea why (even though the HFS bridge is ceramic). I want to get nearer the Mules Op than the 15K though really, as I dont want a hugh just in gain between guitars, just a little BUT I want a tonal difference (less vintage, smother) Initially I though alnico Nailbombs - then Cold Sweats. Tim said they'd be too bright and recommended the Abraxis. I then thought about Rebel Yells - then a mix of Ceramic Nailbomb Bridge with neck SC - but the DC rating worried me.
i STILL cant decide. Im going for the Mules first. Ill then know what direction to take. if I want the same kind of tonallity with more power its the Axraxis (or even Crawlers ??) if I want more highs its cold Sweats - more scouped its Nailbombs etc.
-
Hi Paul lol i know what u mean. Its my first time updating pickups and as theyre not cheap I want to get it as right as possible, but yes i could end up going round in circles. At least I have narrowed it down to Nailbombs vs Warpigs. I definetely want a ceramic bridge; if i went for the Nailbombs id be happy with a Nailbomb neck also. Though with the Warpigs I am still not 100% sure about whether the Warpig neck is what i should go for. As u say maybe i should take the plunge on one and see :-)
-
FWIW - I kinda did the same thing with my Strat. Went from wanting slow hands, to irish Tours, to Sultans, to Mothers Milk.
I susspect any of them would have made a drastic improvement. I ended up just takimng the plunge and went for Irish tours. Havent regretted it. I may well have felt the same whichever BK I went for mind - which is why I say just pick one and go for it.
-
Thanks Paul i think i will do that-as u say either way itll be an improvement on my current pickup; wish me luck :-)
-
Just an aside:
I swapped VB/HFS for a Cold Sweat set on my CuRo24 after asking Tim what the closest vibe pickups were.
Bridge - CS was cooler then the HFS, but much less woolly, gave far more clarity and was significantly more organic to boot. Deals with all gain levels very well, nicely hi-fi with it.
Neck - Funny one, this, as I don't use neck pickups much. CS neck is very smooth and clear but to tell the truth I tend to prefer "vintage" sounding neck pus over "clean" ones! It is, however, a soloist's dream (if you play proper solos, that is)!
I've never personally got on with Nailbombs - tried in a couple of other peoples' guitars and didn't feel right - but that's just me. Other folks get on with them just fine! :-D
-
The Abraxas is in a way a hotrodded Mule, with more balls and mids. You can cover a lot of styles with this pu. This one will do fine in the CE.
-
hey chris thanks for that - yeahi know what u mean about the HFS being wolly, im sure any bknuckle pickup will improve clarity when played under heavy gain. I think i will just have to sit in a darkened room and decide; Nailbomb or Warpig..