Bare Knuckle Pickups Forum
Forum Ringside => Pickups => Topic started by: aisuru on April 04, 2005, 09:46:23 PM
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hi there, i need some advice on pickups. i've heard nothing but good things about BK pickups, and i've been checking out the site for a while now.
i've got an Epiphone G-310 SG, been playing guitar for about eight months, and i'm looking to change the pickups, because the stock ones... well, they're a bit cr@p really. i'd like the guitar to be versatile, as it's used for recording practically all the guitar parts for the band i'm in. we've got a number of different styles, so it needs to be quite varied in the tones it can produce. idealy i'd like to be able to get good clean sounds, as well as bluesy rock overdrive sounds, and good metal sounds.
i've been thinking about an Alnico-II Mule in the neck position, and a Blackdog for the bridge. both with Chrome covers.
would this work out? what sort of sounds would i get with this setup? would an Alnico-IV Mule be better?
sorry if i'm asking a lot, but i'm a bit clueless, so i'd really appreciate an honest, straightforward explanation if you can. cheers! :D
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The Black Dog is one of my fav's, but it's very much a perfect Page tone....if you want that it's perfect!!
I haven't got a set of mules in any of my guitars but I have played them, they're probably perfect for you, great all rounders (must buy more guitars to fit the entire range :twisted: ...no must resist... :evil: no must get more... :twisted: )
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cheers HJM. i'd love a Page tone, Led Zepp are one of my favs. i take it the Blackdog replicates 'Balck Dog', but does that make it a kind of 'one trick pony'? no offense Tim! :)
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As with all these things it's what you do with them that counts and in that repect the Black Dogs are very good. They're quite hot with serious mid range bite-not spikey but punchy.
As for the neck, a calibrated set is the best option, it's cheaper and the neck is voiced specifically to pair up both tonewise and powerwise with the bridge.
The other option is an Alnico V version of the Mules-I do this for alot of SG players as the solid mahogany body really necks a V to drive the lower frquencies properly. Also the wind is a little more open so the mids are balanced and sweeter.
Overall, if you're playing rock the Black Dogs are great and will cover everything in the classic rock field.
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i think i get you, cheers Tim. only thing is the Epi isn't a Mahog body - it's an Alder body with a Mahog neck. would that make that much difference?
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Hmmm- I'd be tempted to go with the Alnico IV Mules rather than the Alnico II, although the Alnico V is probably a winner - even in an alder body.
It has a nice hard edge, and there is definition as well as power.
And as for Mules vs Black Dogs
You're kind of spoilt for choice with what Tim winds- there are a lot of pickups - all sounding fab within a fairly tight spectrum of tones- each imparting a slightly different vibe.
It also comes down to interpretation of tones as well.
One players idea of hard rock may be anothers idea of classic rock or even metal....
I'm lucky to get to play with different BKP pickups all day in very different guitars and so far have not had a duff tone.
I'd certainly go with Tim's choice
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cheers guys. one more question though before i order - is it 50mm i need for the SG? 52mm is for a Fender, right? just need to make sure, don't want to order the wrong size :lol:
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cheers guys. one more question though before i order - is it 50mm i need for the SG? 52mm is for a Fender, right? just need to make sure, don't want to order the wrong size :lol:
Yes, it's 50mm for a Gibson spaced bridge. The wider 'F' spaced pickups are generally for trem equipped axes.
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cheers Tim, you're some guy :D
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I would recommend measuring the spacing at the bridge, as Epiphone (and Gibson) are often 52mm spacing at the bridge.
The schaller made "Nashville" bridge used by Gibson has a wider spacing than the old TBR-1 they used in the past.
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I would recommend measuring the spacing at the bridge, as Epiphone (and Gibson) are often 52mm spacing at the bridge.
The schaller made "Nashville" bridge used by Gibson has a wider spacing than the old TBR-1 they used in the past.
Fair comment although Gibson used 49.5mm spacing on their humbuckers with the old ABR1s, the 50mm spacing still lines up best on the Nashvilles-it's all down to how wide the saddle slots have been cut. I've seen some really narrow and some wide.
It's definately fair to say that all post 2K Gibsons seem to be featuring a wider bridge spacing so for the sake of wipping out the old ruler........... :D
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d'oh! why didn't i think of that? anyway, yea, the stock is a 52mm at the bridge. i ordered a 50mm BlackDog though, hope it's not too late for you to change it Tim? :?
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i recently purchased a pair of black dogs, i put them into a 97 jimmy page les paul, suprisingly easy to swap as gibson have added small plates to the pots and the pickups just have the 4 wires + earth going to the plates.
so mine now have coil splits, series parralell switching & phase switching.
not had a chance to gig them yet, but so far they seem pretty cool.
i think the wood & weight make a lot of difference, i have a std with burstbucker pro's and i get a great tone every time, the guitar is a little lighter than average though.
back to the page one with the black dogs, i need more testing, so far it's not quite as good as my std, but then ive tried quite a few LP's since getting that one, and a few before it, and nothing comes close to it.
ive found the neck black dog has a lovely tone but the bridge seems a little weak, which makes me think i may have put them in the wrong way round, tim, how can i identify the neck from the bridge? i took the neck one to be the one with ½ inch of extra cable on it?
i'll let you know how i get on with them anyway, and post again soon
mike
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Now what would be interesting is to try the BKPs in you Standard, and put them up against the Burstbuckers!
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i definately think it's the weight and other factors of the guitar that makes it sound good to begin with.
i do want to try this, but im scared that when i put it all back together it wont sound the same! silly i know, but wierd things happen!
also i think i may have just been very lucky & got a great sounding set of burstbuckers!
i have a nice 58 custom shop too, which at the moment has a BB 1 & 2 in it. again i need to test this out gigging, but i think i may go for a set of mules or stormy mondays.
this sounds closer to my std in terms or crunch & grind!
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i definately think it's the weight and other factors of the guitar that makes it sound good to begin with.
i do want to try this, but im scared that when i put it all back together it wont sound the same! silly i know, but wierd things happen!
also i think i may have just been very lucky & got a great sounding set of burstbuckers!
i have a nice 58 custom shop too, which at the moment has a BB 1 & 2 in it. again i need to test this out gigging, but i think i may go for a set of mules or stormy mondays.
this sounds closer to my std in terms or crunch & grind!
Don't be scared :twisted: -as long as you go slowly you won't damage anything-I swap pickups in and out of my LPs all the time and I can always get back to where I started no trouble.
BB's are very variable-I get sent a lot to rewind, change magnets etc and I see a huge difference in them.
The early ones weren't potted-'scream for me Donnington!'- the coil offsets are unusual in that the slug coils are hotter-some are barely offset at all and they feature Alnico II magnets.
If you've got a good set of BBs, great, hold onto them although don't be afraid to experiment. The Black Dog bridge is definately hotter than any of the BBs and it's Alnico V too so will have alot more poke, darker mids and plenty of bite.
The Mules are my take on the early PAFs-I offset the coils, scatterwind them with 42 AWG plain enamel and use Alnico IV magnets. DC8.4K and 7.1K-the Alnico IV is certainly less syrupy than Alnico II and the bass is more defined too. When I've A/Bed against LP's with BBs in, the BB's always sound grainy in comparison-I defy anyone to try Alnico IV and not prefer it over Alnico II, it's beautiful!
Timber really does play a big part in the tone and combining the right pickup with the right timber is the trick . I make several variations on the Mule wind, different offsets and sometimes Alnico III for very bright guitars-Terry Morgan at Garric guitars likes these-or Alnico V for very dark LPs, it just pushes the highs a little better. Some of my '70 Customs are very dark and the A V Mules work a treat.
If in doubt call me and I can talk you through and find the best combination.