Bare Knuckle Pickups Forum
Forum Ringside => Pickups => Topic started by: Alfi27 on November 09, 2015, 05:20:04 PM
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Evenin' lads! Last Friday I got a very nice package in the mail. A Gibson Les Paul Custom Silverburst :grin:
I was expecting the stock pickups to suck, but they did certainly not! They are actually quite nice, but after some time I noticed some rather unpleasant things: the 498T in the bridge position can sound a bit muddy with lots of gain (not shiteloads of gain, but quite high gain). Apart from that I have to admit that I like the tone, and it is a good fit for the guitar. The 490R is also quite nice, not quite sure if I want to replace that one, but it does certainly need a new bridge pickup. I am familiar with a few of the pickups in the Knuckle range in Les Pauls, but none of them were a Custom. Both were Standards, one was a Custom Shop 1960' Reissue and the other was a Standard 08 with quite heavy chambering. Anyway, the pickups are: Cold Sweat, Rebel Yell and Stormy Monday. For some reason my Les Pauls did not work well with the Cold Sweat. It sounded extremely awesome in a Mayones Setius which has similar tone woods, but different shape and thickness. The Rebel Yell worked very nice in a Les Paul, but if I am very picky it could be a bit more versatile. The Stormy Mondays were also nice, but it is about a year ago so I cannot quite remember. Most of my other guitars have pickups with quite high output, so I was thinking about maybe a bit lower output in this guitar. However, I won't sacrifice power and it has to work well for Metallica type of tones, but still nice for lower gain applications. My amps have more than enough gain, so output is not really an issue. I will consider a calibrated set or, of course, mixing different pickups even though the 490R is not bad. When I am first at it I might just swap both pickups, but I have to see what I can afford first. The Norwegian krone is really weak these days.. Very nice if you can recommend me a (not necessarily matched) set of pickups though!
Thank you for your answers, and have a nice evening!
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Since you liked the RY but wanted more versatility I might consider the Emerald bridge. Not entirely unsimmilar, but since it is more vintage hot it should deliver more versatility. Can certainly do blues sounds very well, yet it is also an absolute favorite for modern metal since its voicing holds up extremely well under tons of gain.
For the neck that can either be paired with the matched neck or, what I might prefer, the HD neck or even an MQ.
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Thank you for your answer! I used to have a Emerald set in a PRS McCarty, I did not have that guitar for a very long time but I am afraid I did not like the pickups very much... Might be a better match for a massive Les Paul though. What do you think about the Mule set? Too weak for my needs?
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Yeah, the Emerald certainly works best in darker LP types. But if you did not like it much maybe it is not for you. Only one way to know for sure, of course, but I totally get your hesitation then.
Well, the Mule is known to be able to do Ozzy types of heavy, but Metallica will likely be a bit out of the comfort zone here. The Riff Raff would fare better, but IŽd look Vintage Hot and up.
If you are intrigued by the Mule however you may consider the Abraxxas. It is a beefed up Mule when you get down to it. More output, more mids, bit less bright, and handling Metallica levels of gain a lot better. I distinctly recall people talking about using it for Metallica type stuff.
The Black Dog would also be an option, but I canŽt say much about it.
So have a look the the Abraxxas IŽd say now.
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Thank you Kiichi! The Abraxas sure looks nice, I will certainly check that out. I am also considering a more heavy type of pickup (maybe Nailbomb/C-bomb or something like that) in the bridge and a more vintage voiced pickup in the neck. For clean tones the bridge pickup is very rarely used, I always switch to the neck. But then again, such a high output bridge pickup might not handle low gain crunch that well.. This is a pain in the ass every single time, so many options, haha!
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A Mule-set will do, it's just a matter of tweaking the drivelevels and the eq on the amp. I remember Nolly's vid in which he plays metal with Mules. Great tones.
Here's another vid which shows the flexibility of the Mule.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NkfL9JzSJuY (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NkfL9JzSJuY)
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I also thought of the Emeralds, if it is not chambered.
Riff Raffs would be another good option.
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if you're willing to keep the output level of the 498t, the holy diver is a pretty good substitute
somehwat similar voicing but with actual character (unlike the 498t)
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While the Abraxas definitly does Metallica with brighter guitars (had it in a maple-bodied semi-hollow), I'm afraid that it might be too round on a LPC. It has alot of body (both the Abraxas and the LPC :smiley: ).
The Black Dog can handle it, but really does sound and feel more modern to me.
If it was I, I would aim for an Emerald, or chose the Riff-raff over the Mule, for it's tighter, quicker bass response.
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My Les Paul uses the 498T and 490R set and I also like them, though ironically, if I were to change one of them, it would be the 490R, which can be a little disappointing. Anyway, some thoughts....
The 498T I find to be quite tight and easily handles as much gain as I need. I like its slightly less compressed feel and the aggressive edge it has going on. I've often thought about what to change it for in the BKP range but it sits between a few different pickups. The C-Bomb, due to the ceramic magnet, will give you a very different feel so if you want to retain the basic character of the guitar and have more versatility, I'd probably stick to alnico. The A-Bomb is certainly more aggressive, raw and hairy than the 498T, though I don't find the core tone that different. I can see a case for the A-Bomb but it depends if you want to move your guitar into a slightly more modern and aggressive area or not. I remember being surprised and just how aggressive and hairy the A-Bomb was, though that was in a different guitar and I've remained tempted to try it in a Les Paul.
The common suggestion to replace a 498T is a Rebel Yell, and I imagine that's what BKP would suggest to you. As a lighter wind it's brighter than the A-Bomb and probably a tad more versatile and as you said you found the Rebel Yell to lack versatility, this also makes me think twice about suggesting the A-Bomb to you. To me, the 498T sits between the A-Bomb and the Rebel Yell. It's hotter, darker and more aggressive than the Rebel Yell but not as hot, dark and aggressive as the A-Bomb.
This leaves a problem and it's one I've thought about a great deal. Kiichi often describes the Rebel Yell as a modern pickup with a very vintage feel and I can understand that because I'd describe the 498T in a similar way and I think that's why I like it. I loved the Crawler for the same reason as it occupied this wonderful area between vintage and modern. As you have also mentioned both vintage and modern and said that you like the 498T in terms of its basic tone, I assume you feel much the same about this as I do so if it was me, I'd look at the Black Dog. Where the Rebel Yell is a modern pickup with a very vintage feel, the Black Dog is a vintage pickup with a very modern feel. It has the AV magnet that I think would work for you and it has the lighter wind of a vintage pickup to give you some PAF tones but it's wound with modern polysol wire to give it a more modern feel. This basic approach works very well on the Holydiver neck model, which is remarkably PAF-like but retains the cut of a more modern pickup and is absolutely sublime. The Black Dog will give you a lot of vintage PAF character but be easily tight enough for Metal tones. It will give your guitar the body that is characteristic of a Les Paul Rock tone and quite a bit of versatility. If I was changing my 498T, I think I'd either be getting a Black Dog or having a custom wind made for me. For the neck, I'd either go with the calibrated set or use a Holydiver.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CaqEET376-I
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I have used quite a lot of ceramic pickups and I really like the feel, but I am not sure if that would be right for this guitar. The Rebel Yell really opened my eyes and showed me that Alnico V can be very tight as well, that pickup really surprised me! It certainly has a vintage feel, but there is a spike in the upper mids that makes it sound very aggressive, even with lower gain. What I really like about this particular guitar is how it sounds acoustically! Very balanced and rich tone, but still massive when plugged in. I have to say that there is absolutely nothing that beats the tone of a good Les Paul for rock tones! And by the way, the guitar is not chambered but I believe it has swiss hole weight relieving.
So, if I am not going contemporary I guess the best options so far are the Black Dog and Emerald. I think I will send a mail to Bare Knuckle as well, just to see what they will recommend, they are usually quite spot on with the recommendations!
EDIT: judging from the modern metal clips the Black Dog sounds VERY nice, exactly what I am looking for! The Emerald sounds a bit less tight and not quite as powerful and "growly".
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That upper mid aggression you mention on the Rebel Yell is there on the A-Bomb too, which also surprised me. I found the A-Bomb to be far tighter and more aggressive than most ceramic pickups I've tried. I believe it's more aggressive than the Rebel Yell so possibly not for you.
The Emerald bridge is very bright so would probably sit well in a dark Les Paul. Mine had a really vintage feel to it with plenty articulation and loads of tone but I certainly wouldn't describe it as 'growly' at all. What appeals to me about the Black Dog is that it has a lot of that vintage tone we all love but the bottom end remains very defined under gain. It also has some of the middy qualities of a Holydiver, which I love for more modern tones as well as some of the growl that I loved in the Crawler. Furthermore, that 'weight' which seems to be characteristic of the Black Dog is exactly what I always associate with Les Paul tone. To me, a classic Les Paul Rock sound is big, beefy and growly; a vintage based tone that is rather angry with the world as it woke up with a bad head. In Rock terms, Fenders always seem to me like the fairly polite middle class kid who isn't that strong but can be a bit rebellious when he wants to be while the Les Paul is the angry and rough rebel who is a muscular, working class kid from the wrong side of the tracks but has a soul. That's probably a bit abstract but it's how I see it. From a 498T I would anticipate BKP will say Rebel Yell or similar but I think you'd really like the Black Dog.
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If you still have a Cold Sweat bridge pickup lying around I would try it in the LP Custom, as it would react differently to the heavier guitar.
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Yeah, the Emerald sounds good on paper, but I cannot say I really liked the clips especially compared to the Black Dog, and with my previous experience with the pickup I do not think I could get myself to spend that much money on it really... It could be a match made in heaven, but I really doubt it as all of the humbucker clips on the BKP site were recorded with a mid 80's Les Paul Custom. I think Black Dog and Rebel Yell are the safest choices here.
I have always loved the Les Paul tone, but for some reason I have always favored the playability of a good strat. Especially my Suhr Modern is exceptional in every way, and it has some awesome tones as well with its set of Juggs. However, the Les Paul Custom is one of the nicest Les Pauls I have ever tried both playability-wise and tone-wise, but it could maybe use a little bit tweaking on the setup.
Regarding the Cold Sweat, I exchanged it for a Rebel Yell with a really nice guy, and I could not be happier! But now the guitar that got the Rebel Yell is sold, so I have no BKPs lying around anymore... I do have a set of VHIIs in a PRS Mira which I am selling, do not know if these are considered good for a Les Paul type of guitar?
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From reports a VHII can be hit or miss in a LP. I would try it if you have time
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It seems to me you've got nothing to lose from trying the Black Dog as you've already tried a Rebel Yell anyway and while good, it didn't seem to strike you as ideal and let's face it, if you were that impressed with it, you wouldn't have started this thread. If the unthinkable happens and you don't like the Black Dog, you can always change it for a Rebel Yell anyway but the more you've said, the more the Black Dog seems like a good fit for you.
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Rebel Yells are fantastic pickups and they would likely be crazy awesome in a custom shop LP vs one of the factory ones. IN my Standard, I found that the bridge was tinny and the neck was boomy, which was a rather frustrating characteristic of the guitar. The Rebel Yell set mitigated that somewhat but I finally settled on an A-Bomb bridge and a Rebel Yell neck. My solid Mahogany instrument has a Rebel Yell bridge and a VHII neck. Both guitars are awesome but the solid mahogany guitar has a slight edge in terms of pickup perfection.
That being said, I'm very surprised that nobody has mentioned a Mule / Riff Raff combo yet. I think if I ever got another LP, this would be the first pickup combo I would try.
Also, juggernauts in a superstrat are <3
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Thank you very much for your replies guys, I really appreciate all of them! It looks like I have to postpone this pickup upgrade because I have done some trading and buying... The PRS Mira goes, a beautiful Czech made Epiphone Les Paul Standard and a 96' Gibson Les Paul Special comes :cheesy: I can post some pictures if you would like so! And I think it is a good idea not to rush a pickup upgrade, I have done so before and it ended with a sold guitar and a lot of money out the window... Maybe these two guitars will get some upgrades as well, but I have to give them time, especially the Epiphone because I am very conservative and skeptical to Les Pauls without the Gibson logo. Yes you got it, I am a true «brand-whore» :grin:
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Alright, so I got the Epi today. Great guitar with hands down the worst pickups I have ever tried... Schaller something from what the seller told me. I have been thinking, and if the next paycheck allows it I might buy a set of Rebel Yells and a set of Black Dogs. Another option is to put the Gibson pickups from the LPC in the Epi, they are as I said very decent and miles better than the Schallers at least. I settled for the BD in the LPC, but now I am not quite sure, I think the guitar might be a bit too bass heavy for the BD and the RY is a very safe and good choice. How is the RY neck pickup? Never heard or tried that one. The LPC will also get an RS-kit and maybe a set of locking tuners, not sure if I want to spend very much on the Epi even though it is a very good guitar. Guess I will have to give it a little more time.
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Neck RY is similar to neck CS
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Hello again mates! I have finally made up my mind, just have to measure the string spacing of the bridge pickup tomorrow and then I am ready to order. Riff Raff in the brige and Mule in the neck! :cheesy:
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What an odd choice to replace a 498T if you basically liked that pickup, especially given that none of the advice for what you were looking for was going that direction. Still, it's a very fine pickup in its own right even if it isn't an obvious 498T replacement so I hope you enjoy them :smiley:
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Hello again mates! I have finally made up my mind, just have to measure the string spacing of the bridge pickup tomorrow and then I am ready to order. Riff Raff in the brige and Mule in the neck! :cheesy:
Wow, this sounds really fun! Going to boost the Riff Raff for the heavies?
What inspired this?
If I ever happened to get another LP, I'd get the Riff Raff / Mule combo for certain!
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Well, I figured that I will put the 498T/490R set in another Les Paul, and I do not need two guitars that sound the same/similar. I also really like the sound of the Riff Raff, hard to compare clips but I liked it slightly better than the Black Dog for the metal stuff (a bit tighter), and it does the lower gain stuff better as well. Cannot quite remember which forum, but I found this guy Nolly, who recorded all of the clips on the BKP site. He was personally going for the Riff Raff, and he played them all! He sounds like he knows his high gain tone judging from his playing.
Really doubt that boosting will be necessary, my EVH 5150 is a beast and when I get my Kemper on monday I am pretty sure it will have more than enough gain as well :cheesy:
EDIT: I listened to some more clips, not quite sure how but I ended up on the Painkiller-site, but the tightness in the modern metal clip is just... Mmmm, eargasm! There is just something about the surgical tightness of a ceramic that really applies to me... Also listened to the C-bomb, and it sounded just as tight, very awesome! Actually did not find the CS quite as tight, even though it is ceramic too. I used to have a C-bomb in an Ibanez RG2020x, it was tuned to D standard so I used it exclusively for metal. How does it hold up for lower gain stuff? The Miracle Man is also nice and tight, but I do not imagine it being very versatile. I could be wrong though(?) If I am going this route I would like a lower output neck pickup, maybe an Emerald or Mule. God, so many options.. And back to start :embarrassed: :grin:
Also, if I am going that route, I am gonna have to ditch the 498T/490R set eventually and get a lower output set for the other Les Paul...
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No ceramic pickup will give you versatility. It seems to me that the tighter and hotter you go, the less versatility you get. That tightness costs you versatility and quality of tone, which is why the best tone and versatility comes with alnico but of course you have to sacrifice some of that tightness. It's all a balancing act and making the best compromise you can. Of the ceramic pickups I've tried, the Cold Sweat was the most versatile and while a touch sterile, it still offered some good tone. The Miracle Man was surprisingly good too but again, there are tighter options. Conversely, pickups like the Painkiller and Aftermath are very tight indeed but also very compromised on versatility and tone. Of course, if all you're after is surgical tightness through shed loads of gain then that hardly matters because versatility and quality of tone aren't really priorities, however, the more you back off the gain and search for versatility, the more the quality of tone starts to count and to get that tone you have to go to alnico pickups. The A-Bomb is certainly more versatile than most ceramics while also being very tight but that same tightness and aggression means it's not as versatile as other alnico pickups. The Crawler is also hot yet has a wonderful tone, though it does sacrifice the tightness and ultimate aggression of the A-Bomb to achieve that. Generally speaking (there are a lot more variables than I'm mentioning of course, this is just a rough rule of thumb), the lower the magnet number, the better the tone but the price you pay is less tightness. Tim did a very good thread on this here:
https://bareknucklepickups.co.uk/forum/index.php?topic=8005.0
When I started playing I used nothing but ceramics but then I was playing with a lot of gain, probably to hide some shocking playing. As my tastes became more varied and discerning, the more I gravitated towards alnico pickups. I wouldn't dream of using ceramic now and usually stick to alnico 5 in the bridge, though I really fancy trying the alnico 4 Abraxas. For the neck I'll use either a lightly wound alnico 5 like the Holydiver, a hotter alnico 4 like the Emerald or an alnico 2. What you choose is up to you but as a rough rule of thumb, the tighter the pickup, the less versatility and tone you'll get.
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The A-Pig is a very nice pickup, but I wouldn't put it in anything darker than a Gibson SG.
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Alright, I came to my senses and ordered a RiffRaff/Mule-set! Really looking forward to installing them in my Les Paul, I am sure they are awesome!
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Alright, I came to my senses and ordered a RiffRaff/Mule-set! Really looking forward to installing them in my Les Paul, I am sure they are awesome!
best and safest les paul set
:afro:
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A oailnbomb would do well in the bridge. For the neck maybe a VHII?
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God, so many options.. And back to start :embarrassed: :grin:
Also, if I am going that route, I am gonna have to ditch the 498T/490R set eventually and get a lower output set for the other Les Paul...
If you're a metal head and you want versatile pickups, Alnico Nailbomb in the bridge and a Rebel Yell in the Neck. The Rebel Yell will shred but it can also do blues and it has a nice, bell like clean tone. The A-Bomb can get gnarly with the volume rolled back but it gets crazy on full tilt. Mule, Riffraff would be incredible too, but if you want more output then A-Bomb and Rebel Yell may be more what you are after.
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Alright, so I finally got the RiffRaff/Mule set installed in the guitar. Well, I think I am done with high output pickups... They sound bloody great, I am not missing anything. The Riff Raff is tight, it has lots of balls and it can growl with the best of them if it wants to. The Mule sounds smooth and fluid with higher gain, but still a beautiful clean tone. I rarely use the neck pickup for straight forward rock n roll, but it can do that too. Awesome pickups, no wonder this is the "go to" set for Les Pauls!
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Great to hear you like them a lot. I prefer most of the time low output pickups. They do so well on highgain amps.
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best les paul set for me too
before them, I rarely kept the same pups in a guitar for more than 6 months
had many many BK pickups and a motor city set in my main guitar, a 1973 les paul custom, until I installed the riff raff/mule set
that was over 4 years ago and they're still rockin in that les paul
I ended up selling all my other guitars, except this one, and this set does pretty much everything
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That's awesome that the Mule / Riffraff combination worked out for the LP. As much as I like what is currently in my LP, the Mule / Riff Raff combo is always this thing gnawing away in the back of my brain.
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All this talk about the Riff Raff/Mule set makes me want one! The only thing is that I did not like any low output pickup set in my Les Pauls for long and always seemed to prefer slightly stronger bridge pickups.
Cheers Stephan
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Yeah, I think that every Knuckle head should try that combination! Easily the best sounding BK set I have owned, and I have tried quite a lot of them. However, I figured that the Epiphone with the 498T/490R is a really dark sounding guitar... The 498T, which is a quite bright pickup, almost does not cut it. Sounds great with the right amp/settings but it can easily get too bassy. Although I cannot get myself to spend that kind of money on pickups for an Epiphone, even though it is easily as good as my first Gibson LP Std. :laugh:
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you can always buy used bk pups for cheap at the Seconds Out section and sell the stock gibson pups
even if you don't intend to keep the guitar forever, you can keep the pickups
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All this talk about the Riff Raff/Mule set makes me want one! The only thing is that I did not like any low output pickup set in my Les Pauls for long and always seemed to prefer slightly stronger bridge pickups.
Cheers Stephan
For sure. Slightly (or a lot) more powerful pickups are particularly great for amps that don't have as much gain on tap.
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you can always buy used bk pups for cheap at the Seconds Out section and sell the stock gibson pups
even if you don't intend to keep the guitar forever, you can keep the pickups
Hmm, where is this Seconds Out section? I cannot find it..
EDIT: I could not find it because I wasn't logged in, lol :laugh:
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A little update, fellows. After extensive testing, experimenting and adjusting I am afraid the Riff Raff is just too bright for the LP Custom... I was prepared to send it back, but I thought that I could try it in my other Les Paul just for fun, which is a quite dark guitar. Well, it sounds the way I hoped the LPC would sound... I guess I should have listened to you after all, I will order a Black Dog for the LPC soon :laugh:
I find the guitar quite balanced sounding actually, it had quite a lot of bass with the 498T. With the Riff Raff I would not say that it lacked bass, but the high end was so over the top that the low end was less pronounced. At the time I have a Juggernaut in the bridge, which is not too bright but damn that's middy! When I play single note riffs on the bass strings it almost sounds like my LP Special with P90s. It does sound good with certain settings, but I think I can do better (hopefully the Black Dog that is).
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Maybe you should consider the Abraxas too: a little bolder, tad more compressed Mule with some exra mids. The topend is a also tad rounder and less pronounced than the BD...
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Thank you for your tip! I just ordered the Abraxas actually. I figured that the Juggernaut, although not as bright as the Riff Raff obviously, was still quite pronounced in the highs and had this unpleasant wah pedal-ish boxy mid range thing going on. The Abraxas is more rounded in the top end than the Black Dog from what I read, and not as middy so I hope that I have finally made the right choice! It should match quite well with the Mule in the neck as well :smiley:
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Thank you for your tip! I just ordered the Abraxas actually. I figured that the Juggernaut, although not as bright as the Riff Raff obviously, was still quite pronounced in the highs and had this unpleasant wah pedal-ish boxy mid range thing going on. The Abraxas is more rounded in the top end than the Black Dog from what I read, and not as middy so I hope that I have finally made the right choice! It should match quite well with the Mule in the neck as well :smiley:
Yeah, they fit well together. A good combo if the Mule-bridge is a little too open and vintage for your taste.
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If the Riff Raff is too bright I don't think the Mule would solve the problem. :laugh:
I have to admit that I am still a little bit skeptical to the Alnico IV magnet, Alnico V and Ceramic have always been where it's at for me in the bridge. Well, I guess that it won't hurt to give it a chance :smiley:
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If the Riff Raff is too bright I don't think the Mule would solve the problem. :laugh:
I have to admit that I am still a little bit skeptical to the Alnico IV magnet, Alnico V and Ceramic have always been where it's at for me in the bridge. Well, I guess that it won't hurt to give it a chance :smiley:
I was talking about the Abraxas-Mule-neck combo. Abraxas is a good alternative if the Mule is too open, vintage and maybe a tad bright for your taste. I must say that the Mule-bridge is quite balanced and the highs are pleasant, not shrill at all. But brighter than the Abraxas.
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I'm sorry, it was meant as a joke and not an argument. Sure the Mule might have worked for my LP, but most likely not. I have never tried it (the bridge version that is) though, so everything I say about it is somewhat invalid :laugh:
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Alright mate, I'm sleepy so not that sharp anymore. :blank:
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Yeah it's quite late :laugh:
I will of course report back and maybe write a review when I receive the Abraxas :smiley:
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I'd be very interested in what you think. I've always been drawn to the Abraxas but while I love an AIV in the neck, I'm far more hesitant about an AIV in the bridge position as I fear it may lack some bite and articulation. These days I tend to stick to AV in the bridge with 43PE wire and either AIV or AII in the neck with either 43PE or 42.5 poly wire.
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I know what you mean, I am not entirely convinced myself but I have not tried it yet so I hope I will be. The LP Custom can bite even with the Juggernaut so I really doubt that will be a problem, at least in that guitar.
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This is of particular interest as I may change the 498T in the bridge of my Les Paul so it would be interesting to know how they compare.
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I understand. The 498T is a good pickup, but when I replaced it with the Riff Raff in the Epiphone the guitar just came to life. It sounds exactly how a really good Les Paul should in my ears. Not quite sure about this, but I believe the Epi is entirely solid as it is made in the Czech Republic at a much higher standard than other Epiphones. The LP Custom is ironically not solid (swiss holes) so that might contribute to the darker more solid tone of the Epi. Really hope the Abraxas can bring some of that tone to the LP Custom. Not that it sounds bad, but it is a bright guitar.
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I really like the raspiness you get on a 498T. The upper mids give it some aggression and hairiness while remaining more open than something like a Holydiver or Juggernaut. The A-Bomb is clearly cut from a similar block but I find it far too aggressive and hairy compared to the 498T. The Rebel Yell might be closer but I've never tried one of those.
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I've replaced a 498T with an A-Bomb and they are nothing alike. The Cold Sweat is a lot closer in basic tonality. I don't have any experience with the Rebel Yell. I can tell you that the Emerald has less output and less bass than the 498T.
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I've always been drawn to the Abraxas but while I love an AIV in the neck, I'm far more hesitant about an AIV in the bridge position as I fear it may lack some bite and articulation. These days I tend to stick to AV in the bridge with 43PE wire and either AIV or AII in the neck with either 43PE or 42.5 poly wire.
At least in case of the Abraxas bridge there is nothing to worry about its articulation. I had it back to back with the Crawler bridge in the same guitar and it is not any less articulate than the Crawler - even more so but I attribute that to the slightly lower winding.
Cheers Stephan
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I've replaced a 498T with an A-Bomb and they are nothing alike. The Cold Sweat is a lot closer in basic tonality. I don't have any experience with the Rebel Yell. I can tell you that the Emerald has less output and less bass than the 498T.
When I had an A-Bomb it was certainly hairy and had some solid upper mids to give it some rasp and that reminds me of the 498T, though I realise the A-Bomb is on a whole different level. The Emerald was less aggressive and less raspy than the 498T. It had a sweet tone but it wasn't what I'd call similar at all.
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What about the C-bomb? Would you say it is just as hairy? I used to own one a while back, but it's hard to remember. It did not strike me as particularly hairy though, from what I remember.
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I'd say the c-bomb is less hairy and more compressed compared to the a-bomb
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From what I can tell the C-Bomb is probably fairly close to the 498T. Certainly less hairy and more compressed, judging from clips.
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The Abraxas is in no way lacking in bite. It has a great 'sizzle' and punch that is really close to the old school sound of an LP through a totally cranked 60's Marshall. Definitely more of a vintage sound than the RY but with a lot more muscle than a PAF. It can get seriously heavy if you want it to. The neck and middle positions are equally glorious. Best sounds I've ever had.
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Thanks Richard, sounds like I have made a really good choice then! :smiley:
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Alfi - hope it works as well for you as it does for me. Don't forget to do some height tweaking for best results. Let us know how you get on.
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Looks like it will hit the post office later today, just in time for christmas (here in Norway we open the presents on christmas eve)! Very excited, now I can finally pull that hideous reverse zebra Juggernaut out. Zebra pickups do not look nice in a LP Custom Silverburst... I will let you know what I think! :smiley:
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The Abraxas is up and running, and it sounds great! My first thought was that there is certainly no lack of highs, but it is more smooth than the Riff Raff, and it does sound more balanced. With shiteeeloads of gain it can lose a little tightness, but it can still chugg like a champ with the right amp. And to Slartibartfarst: it lacks neither bite nor articulation, as you can hear in my clip. The amp is a Marshall DSL + TS profile on my Kemper.
https://soundcloud.com/alfi27/abraxas-demo/s-TRvEx
EDIT: apparently something went wrong with the recording, it cut in the middle of the pinch harmonic... Well, it is just for you to hear what it sounds like so I won't do anything about it :smiley: