Bare Knuckle Pickups Forum
Forum Ringside => Pickups => Topic started by: kingneptune117 on December 11, 2013, 03:56:45 AM
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Hey all,
New to this forum! Just got a custom Agile 3200 (it's awesome!) but the pickups are not exactly the greatest.
This guitar is 10-11 pounds of solid mahogany, and it gives off a fairly dark sound. I notice this especially under heavy distortion. It just sounds really "boomy" if that makes sense. Tons of dark tone/bassiness, and not much high end definition.
I really like my high gain bridge tones to be punchy, bright, crisp, very clear, and to have fairly tight bass resposne(not super tight, but not so loose and boomy). I also want to retain that bawlsy tone that a les paul gives you. I could probably provide a sound sample if that helps.
I know most people will disagree with my music tastes, but i'm heavily into pop punk and stuff that is slightly heavier. Here's two songs that might help with the genre I like.
Pop punk example
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bFB8sibwRL4 (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bFB8sibwRL4)
"slightly heavier" example
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aVx88gqVYuE (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aVx88gqVYuE)
As you can see from my pop punk example, I can't get enough of that bright, punchy, and crisp high gain bridge tone (if it matters, I like to play with a little more gain than he has applied in that video.)
And from the slightly heavier example, I need something that could cover this kind of sound as well.
Can anyone help me choose a good bridge/ neck combo? I was almost thinking about sticking something with a ceramic magnet in the bridge (one of my other guitars has a ceramic pickup in the bridge and it gives me that punchy bright sound).
I want my pickups to be articulate, so that all my notes come through and it doesn't sound like a jumbled mess. I also want to have good cleans. Not sure if this is possible.
Thanks everyone, i'm excited to be a part of this forum!
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The pickup that best gave me a pop-punk tone was a triple ceramic, high output humbucker. So, from the bkp range, I have to sugest the Painkiller, as a set or with a Mississippi Queen on the neck for those cleans (I think the MQ can hang with the PQ in punch).
As a second option for something very different, a Riff Raff with a boost/TS.
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littleredguitars2 is probably the regular poster with the tastes closest to yours.
He has a Rebel Yell set in his Les Paul, which I think might suit you too. If the neck pickup doesn't sound like your type of thing I'm pretty sure an Emerald neck would work well with the Rebel Yell bridge.
I'm not sure if it could also cover the heavier stuff you mention, but littleredguitars2 might be able to give you some idea on that.
A Painkiller would certainly do the heavier stuff you are interested in, but I'm skeptical regarding its suitability for pop punk. You might want to look at the Juggernaut. It seems to tick your boxes
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Actually, I'd be tempted to look at an Emerald set for this. The bridge is certainly a bright pickup and has enough power to do heavy styles but also is light enough to be versatile.
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Actually, I'd be tempted to look at an Emerald set for this. The bridge is certainly a bright pickup and has enough power to do heavy styles but also is light enough to be versatile.
I was wondering about that but I thought the bridge pickup might not manage those heavier tones.
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From the pickups i have played, i think the Painkiller would suit it well
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Actually, I'd be tempted to look at an Emerald set for this. The bridge is certainly a bright pickup and has enough power to do heavy styles but also is light enough to be versatile.
I was wondering about that but I thought the bridge pickup might not manage those heavier tones.
The reference to heavier tones does suggest something hotter but as it's 'pop punk' I thought that many pickups in the contemporary range would be too 'Metal' and something a little more vintage and 'open' would work better. The Emerald bridge, as well as being bright, is a VERY articulate pickup with plenty tightness so it will take loads of gain without mushing up. It's also quite a hot pickup in its own right. Certainly more 'hot' than 'vintage'.
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I have a Rebel Yell in my Agile Les Paul. It sounds so good, and very close to your first clip.
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Actually, I'd be tempted to look at an Emerald set for this. The bridge is certainly a bright pickup and has enough power to do heavy styles but also is light enough to be versatile.
I was wondering about that but I thought the bridge pickup might not manage those heavier tones.
Actually the Emerald can go very, very heavy. If memory does not betray me Nolly is a big fan of it and has recommended it a lot for modern metal, dropped and on 7&8 strings. Since it is on the bright and tight side you can have your amp take it heavy as heck and not mush or anything. The open brightness really gives a great flavour. The Emerald and RY are usually the choices to brighten up a LP and give life to any big chunk of wood.
So here actually both RY and EM bridge could work wonderfully and deliver.
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Rebel Yell is certainly close.
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Hey guys, thanks for the responses!
I was considering a set of rebel yells, but i'm worried they won't handle anything higher gain than some pop punk. I really want a set of pickups that will do it all pretty well, from cleans to as heavy as that breaking benjamin sound goes (but I want most of the quality to be with the high gain applications, as long as it has decent cleans that will be fine)
I was considering a set of ceramic nailbombs or a set of cold sweats. How would these do?
Also, I was thinking about the painkillers, but from the graph those really emphasize mids (not sure that is what I want).
Is a rebel yell a pickup that can't really handle lots of gain?
The main point of this though is to get more of a crunchy sound out of my pickups, especially the bridge. I want it to be brighter, crunchier, and to have a tighter bass response.
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Hey guys, thanks for the responses!
I was considering a set of rebel yells, but i'm worried they won't handle anything higher gain than some pop punk. I really want a set of pickups that will do it all pretty well, from cleans to as heavy as that breaking benjamin sound goes (but I want most of the quality to be with the high gain applications, as long as it has decent cleans that will be fine)
I was considering a set of ceramic nailbombs or a set of cold sweats. How would these do?
Also, I was thinking about the painkillers, but from the graph those really emphasize mids (not sure that is what I want).
Is a rebel yell a pickup that can't really handle lots of gain?
The main point of this though is to get more of a crunchy sound out of my pickups, especially the bridge. I want it to be brighter, crunchier, and to have a tighter bass response.
The Rebel Yell does all of these things, it just doesn't have as much bass as some other BKPs like the Nailbomb or Cold Sweat. Having owned both of the latter I tend to the think the RY might suit *you* better. What the Rebel Yell works really well with is a guitar that already has a lot of bass and can tend to be too dark, like an Explorer, Flying V, or many Les Pauls. It sounds like your guitar might be similar. If that is the case the guitar will provide plenty of bass on its own; adding a scoopy pickup like a Cold Sweat or C-Bomb may not address your issue. I tend to think you need upper-mids, and a tightening up of the bottom end, which is what the Rebel Yell does.
For the neck I would recommend either the matching neck (if you are a shredder) or maybe the Emerald (if your lead style is more blues-based). Both will give nice cleans, and both should work well with the RY bridge
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Hey guys, thanks for the responses!
I was considering a set of rebel yells, but i'm worried they won't handle anything higher gain than some pop punk. I really want a set of pickups that will do it all pretty well, from cleans to as heavy as that breaking benjamin sound goes (but I want most of the quality to be with the high gain applications, as long as it has decent cleans that will be fine)
I was considering a set of ceramic nailbombs or a set of cold sweats. How would these do?
Also, I was thinking about the painkillers, but from the graph those really emphasize mids (not sure that is what I want).
Is a rebel yell a pickup that can't really handle lots of gain?
The main point of this though is to get more of a crunchy sound out of my pickups, especially the bridge. I want it to be brighter, crunchier, and to have a tighter bass response.
The Rebel Yell does all of these things, it just doesn't have as much bass as some other BKPs like the Nailbomb or Cold Sweat. Having owned both of the latter I tend to the think the RY might suit *you* better. What the Rebel Yell works really well with is a guitar that already has a lot of bass and can tend to be too dark, like an Explorer, Flying V, or many Les Pauls. It sounds like your guitar might be similar. If that is the case the guitar will provide plenty of bass on its own; adding a scoopy pickup like a Cold Sweat or C-Bomb may not address your issue. I tend to think you need upper-mids, and a tightening up of the bottom end, which is what the Rebel Yell does.
For the neck I would recommend either the matching neck (if you are a shredder) or maybe the Emerald (if your lead style is more blues-based). Both will give nice cleans, and both should work well with the RY bridge
Thanks for the response! So you think the rebel yell can handle heavier gain while also tightening up the bass response? Have you ever played one of these in the bridge in a les paul?
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Not gonna lie, these RY's are sounding more and more enticing.
Just listened to this video
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qum0jkf-bZc (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qum0jkf-bZc)
At around 0:55 he starts his "wanted dead or alive" solo and man I can just hear that crunchy, bright tone i'm looking for in some of the power chords he throws down...
Would they be able to handle something like this?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q1Gjwcx-MHU (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q1Gjwcx-MHU)
Wait about 10 seconds for the song to pick up, it gets fairly heavy. If these pups can handle a tone like this, then i'd be happy.
And also, I need something that can handle tones as clean as this
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7ynSJsOxXZk (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7ynSJsOxXZk)
I feel like the rebel yell is a good option since I feel like it can cover a broad range. Is this true?
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So I just found this thread
https://bareknucklepickups.co.uk/forum/index.php?topic=27001.0
Not sure what to think. Everyone over in that thread says Nailbombs, and those bands he has in the title of the thread are extremely similar to what I listen to. I'm actually a huge mayday parade fan.
Not sure what to go for :/ One thing is that his guitar is a les paul standard, which is a lighter guitar than mine due to chambering. Maybe his guitar isnt as dark sounding.
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Thanks for the response! So you think the rebel yell can handle heavier gain while also tightening up the bass response? Have you ever played one of these in the bridge in a les paul?
I haven't had the chance to play one, I've only heard recordings. There are no really good recordings of it playing the heavier style of stuff you like, as far as I know, but there is a video of the 8 string version that gives the impression that it can handle a bit of bottom end.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3QGpa_HOsbU (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3QGpa_HOsbU)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zohVcKcSdeY (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zohVcKcSdeY)
Those 8 string players always seem to be into djent though :?
There are some threads here around the place from people who have put them in various mahogany guitars. Not one bad report that I've read, although someone did swap the bridge out for a VHII on a Les Paul because it wasn't really his thing.
I expected littleredguitars2 to be all over this, but he seems to be away.
If you went for the Nailbomb you would probably be happier with the alnico version, but it doesn't like some thinner bodied, middier sounding mahogany guitars, like most SGs. The RY on the other hand works well on either SGs or the bassier Gibsons like Les Pauls and Explorers. The A-Bomb just seems to clash with the resonant qualities of the SG. Some people have been warned off of Nailbombs for Explorers due to the Explorer being too dark. Unless the guitar is the same as yours it's hard to go by these discussions. I would say that the RY is a safe bet. Others are less safe. littleredguitars2 had a Nailbomb and didn't like it for pop punk, but that was in a Strat and he replaced it with a Stockholm P-90. TBH having used a Nailbomb - admittedly in an SG, which wasn't the smartest gamble - I'd say its punk qualities lie outside of the kind of punk you like, much more in the hardcore vein, and everything seems to have a hardcore edge to it with the Nailbomb. If you want to play stuff like The Exploited, Poison Idea, RDP, Sepultura, etc go for it, it's a no-brainer for those styles. It does have a very distinctive sound that immediately evokes those bands for me. It can do other things, but its scope depends very much on your guitar. In general the more mid-focused your guitar is the more hardcore it sounds.
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Thanks for the responses! Hopefully littleredguitars2 can give me some input here. Anyone know the difference in sound between a C-Bomb and a coldsweat for the bridge position?
I was thinking a ceramic pickup because it seems to emphasize the highs, whereas the rebel yell emphasizes the highs and mids. Although it seems like many people are reccomending a set of rebel yells, so it's a tough choice.
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Honestly, if you're wanting bright, you REALLY need to check out the Emerald. Brighter and more open than the Rebel Yell and it will take as much gain as you can throw at it.
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Hey man, I'm into some of the bands you've posted links of, ATL and ADTR are a few of my favourite bands (hence the username CC haha).
I just put an Aftermath in my main band guitar which is a Les Paul and it sounds huge! We play drop tuned chuggy power chordy stuff and it sounds phat! I understand the guitarists of ADTR or one of them used EMG or Seymour Duncans.
I love the guitar sound which sounds like its been triggered to lock in with the kick drum on the 16th note chugging parts. The main riff "Dead and Buried" on CC is the kind of sound i'm looking for. Npt too overly gainy but still enough punch to maintain clarity.
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Thanks for the responses! Hopefully littleredguitars2 can give me some input here.
Seems he's around again now. I'm sure he can give you his opinion on the RY set for pop punk.
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The RY is absolutly lovely for pop punk. It has that light, agile feel, and that lively agression which just lends itself perfectly.
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Anyone know the difference in sound between a C-Bomb and a coldsweat for the bridge position?
The Cbomb had more oomph in the bottom end and the CS had a tad more high end-they are quite similar to be fair, i believe the Coldsweat is an underwound Nailbomb
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I thought the Nailbombs had a more asymmetric wind than the Cold Sweat? The Cold Sweat seems closer to the Miracle Man from what I've heard, brighter and cleaner than the Miracle Man but with a similar scoop
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The RY is absolutly lovely for pop punk. It has that light, agile feel, and that lively agression which just lends itself perfectly.
How about for some heavier music that requires more gain?
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The RY is absolutly lovely for pop punk. It has that light, agile feel, and that lively agression which just lends itself perfectly.
How about for some heavier music that requires more gain?
Well since the bottom end is so tight and punchy it really holds up well. More gain usually mostly adds bottom end (bass and low mids) as it saturates, so the high mid heavy voicing of the RY fits very well. It is one of the last PUs you can turn to mush, it likes to stay punchy, tight, alive and cutting.
The forums own Nolly (who also is BKPs demo man) used them for a long time for his band Red Seas Fire, though now he has switched to Juggernauts. Just one example.
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This guitar is 10-11 pounds of solid mahogany, and it gives off a fairly dark sound. I notice this especially under heavy distortion. It just sounds really "boomy" if that makes sense. Tons of dark tone/bassiness, and not much high end definition.
I really like my high gain bridge tones to be punchy, bright, crisp, very clear, and to have fairly tight bass response (not super tight, but not so loose and boomy).
This is exactly the sort of situation in which the Rebel Yell has the reputation of performing best: a dark, boomy guitar, which they transform in exactly the direction you want. The Emerald set has a similar reputation, although it is not as widely used and if perhaps not as tight in the low end? Personally I think either a Rebel Yell set, an Emerald set, or a RY bridge/Em neck is the three choices here. You could also pair the RY bridge with a VHII neck.
Here's littleredguitars2's video:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=65zOouArFDo (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=65zOouArFDo)
Rebel Yell (bridge) & VHII (neck) combo:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dX7Fbw5refI (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dX7Fbw5refI)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S_tnOFRowug (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S_tnOFRowug)
7-string version through a series of amps (RY starts 1:25):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SunTM0U311Y (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SunTM0U311Y)
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I didn't realize One Direction even played guitars! 8)
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I didn't realize One Direction even played guitars! 8)
I've had such a lovely sheltered existence without television and radio that I don't even know what One Direction sound like 8)
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I have an all-mahogany SG so I know exactly what you mean when you described the "boominess". I put a Rebel Yell in the bridge and it now sounds brighter and clearer than the Gibson 490T (modern PAF) in my alder/maple Strat. It's not an aggressive pickup but it is clear, bright, punchy and with enough output to suit your needs.
I love it, although sometimes I wonder if what I was subconsciously trying for was a P90 sound and if I should have gone for Stockholm instead. Consider a HSP90 too.
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I didn't realize One Direction even played guitars! 8)
I've had such a lovely sheltered existence without television and radio that I don't even know what One Direction sound like 8)
Just _who_ is One Direction ???
:mrgreen:
@kingneptune117: Even the Mule and RiffRaff do handle a whole lot of gain without turning to mush so I wouldn't worry about the RY not being tight enough.
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Rumor is that they also make up the band members of Ghost with Cliff Richards fronting as Papa Emeritus.