Bare Knuckle Pickups Forum

Forum Ringside => Pickups => Topic started by: black_crow on January 17, 2018, 01:00:16 PM

Title: Pickups on Ibanez s type guitar
Post by: black_crow on January 17, 2018, 01:00:16 PM
Hey everyone,
After I've spent some time reading all of the threads with Ibanez s recommendations,
I've reached the following setting:
B - Holydiver
M - Trilogy
N - VHII

Would really love to hear some opinions\improvements for this rig,
also, should the Trilogy come with zinc plate steel? won't it make it too loud?

Guitar type:
1992 Ibanez FGM-100 (It's the Frank Gambale Ibanez s),
So it's super thin, Mahogany body, Maple neck with Rosewood binding, 22 frets and a Lo-Pro Edge tremolo.

Desired genres:
Rock\Classic Rock\Metal (more towards Heavy\Thrash\Folk\Maybe black)

Any help would be much appreciated.  :afro:
Title: Re: Pickups on Ibanez s type guitar
Post by: capac on January 17, 2018, 01:48:16 PM
Should receive my holydiver set this week...
Title: Re: Pickups on Ibanez s type guitar
Post by: Telerocker on January 17, 2018, 09:55:10 PM
A baseplate enhances the bass, yes, so could be a bit boomy in the middle-position. Overall this combination looks like a great rocking/early metal-set to me.
Title: Re: Pickups on Ibanez s type guitar
Post by: black_crow on January 18, 2018, 08:39:44 AM
Thank you for the response!  :smiley:

So I think that I'll skip the baseplate.
Title: Re: Pickups on Ibanez s type guitar
Post by: Kiichi on January 18, 2018, 11:34:08 AM
I agree with Telerocker. Good mix. Got an S myself and have a similar focus, but lighter (mainly classic rock and blues with old school metal and the ability to go higher still). Went RY/IT/Mule initially as I like bright tones (and will go back to in the near future just need to rewire and all when I have time) and currently Crawler/SH/MQ. Both work well.
Got the HD in another axe and if it was not a 7 string IŽd put it in my S right now to try. Should be amazing.

Anyhow, good selection. One thing that I would recommend is to wire the 2 and 4 position to use a split humbucker with the middle or at least have a push pull to switch to that. Especially with the outer coil being used for a more tele like sound. Did that on my original combo and will again cause those positions were gold.
Title: Re: Pickups on Ibanez s type guitar
Post by: black_crow on January 23, 2018, 06:15:44 PM
Made an order today, so now we wait  :tongue:

Telerocker - skipped the bassplate, not sure it will go well as a middle single, probably better for bridge, so no go this time.

capac - care to share any thoughts regarding your new pups?

Kiichi - I do plan on splitting the humbuckers, hope it goes well (found a highly recommended tech guy so I feel good about this).

Thank you everyone again for your comments, rock on  :cool:
Title: Re: Pickups on Ibanez s type guitar
Post by: capac on January 23, 2018, 08:28:35 PM
Yeah, just received them today.

They are actually pretty bright, but not shrill. High mids are definitely there - makes them pretty tight (not as tight as a-hawk or aftermath). They aren't as chunky as I expected them to be, but I quite like it.

Neck pickup is super clear as well.

They handle lower tuning (drop C) very well, at lest with 10-52s on there.
Title: Re: Pickups on Ibanez s type guitar
Post by: Telerocker on January 23, 2018, 10:47:30 PM
BKP's are clearer, with good noteseparation. In the beginning you have the idea they eat your gain, cause you hear all nuances better and the clarity might suggest they are brighter. I had to get used to that. Now I dont want to go back.
Title: Re: Pickups on Ibanez s type guitar
Post by: capac on January 24, 2018, 05:45:17 AM
Yep, that was pretty much the case with every BKP I've owned.
Title: Re: Pickups on Ibanez s type guitar
Post by: black_crow on January 24, 2018, 10:05:10 PM
I think that the only way to make an Ibanez s super thin guitar more chunky\les paulish,
is to find another Ibanez s guitar and glue them together, these models really want to scream  :evil:
Title: Re: Pickups on Ibanez s type guitar
Post by: capac on January 25, 2018, 05:48:14 AM
...or throw some EMG 85s in ;).

But for real, holydiver is the right choice.
Title: Re: Pickups on Ibanez s type guitar
Post by: one on January 25, 2018, 07:39:34 AM
I had a Crunch Lab in mine and though happy I changed it to a Black Winter and now it kills, awesome axes.
Title: Re: Pickups on Ibanez s type guitar
Post by: Nolly on January 26, 2018, 12:47:12 PM
While I'm sure you'd be very happy with the Holy Diver/Trilogy/VHII set, you could also contemplate the Juggernaut bridge and neck - the symmetrical wind gives them a fatness in the mids and a less peaky top end, while it's hotter output also produces more low end that will fill out your guitar's naturally thinner sound nicely. Don't be put off by the "djent" tag, they're very versatile pickups that are if anything on the smoother end of the pickups BKP offers, and as a bonus also have a great coil-split sound too.
Title: Re: Pickups on Ibanez s type guitar
Post by: capac on January 26, 2018, 01:42:00 PM
I've never really heard HD is a djent pickup, but it can handle it.

Nolly, I was always wondering, do you prefer HD or NB in super strats?
Title: Re: Pickups on Ibanez s type guitar
Post by: Nolly on January 26, 2018, 03:02:50 PM
I've never really heard HD is a djent pickup, but it can handle it.

Nolly, I was always wondering, do you prefer HD or NB in super strats?

I was referring to the Juggernaut when I mentioned the "djent" label. I'd personally go for an HD assuming the typically brighter tone of most superstrats, though as per my recommendation above, the Juggernaut is an extremely attractive option too.
Title: Re: Pickups on Ibanez s type guitar
Post by: capac on January 26, 2018, 03:05:53 PM
I was considering juggernaut myself but went with HD for its more classic voicing compared to the juggernaut (since I'm playing in drop D).
Title: Re: Pickups on Ibanez s type guitar
Post by: Nolly on January 26, 2018, 04:50:26 PM
Actually, I just revisited some pickup comparisons I've done and was surprised to hear the nailbomb is darker than I had in my memory, and the HD has a more prominent edge - I might actually go as far as to recommend the NB over the HD in both this instance and in general for brighter guitars.
Title: Re: Pickups on Ibanez s type guitar
Post by: capac on January 26, 2018, 08:39:48 PM
I think HD has a little more attack judging from clips on the website. Those high mids just seem to make it sound brighter.
Title: Re: Pickups on Ibanez s type guitar
Post by: stratguy23 on January 27, 2018, 11:13:20 PM
I've played both the Holy Diver and Juggernauts, but not in the same guitar, or even same type of guitar. I really liked both pickups. The Juggernaut is definitely more modern sounding, but it is very versatile. A guy I know has one in an ESP Eclipse, and I played around with it through a Mesa Boogie (can't remember the model). It has nice tight lows and can really handle high gain, but what really surprised me is how good it sounds clean. The Holy Diver, which was in a Super Strat, nails '70s and '80s hard rock and metal. It isn't as tight as the Juggernaut, but it is relatively tight. It is hard for me to directly compare them to one another because I never played them side by side, and I haven't played them through the same amps or in the same guitars as well. I really enjoyed both though. I'd probably lean towards the Holy Diver since it has enough top end to cut but can also fatten up a Super Strat, but I think the Juggernaut could be an interesting option to try in a Super Strat.
Title: Re: Pickups on Ibanez s type guitar
Post by: black_crow on February 13, 2018, 09:35:44 PM
My tech guy has just sent me these pics! can't wait to pick it up on Thursday!!  :shocked:
Title: Re: Pickups on Ibanez s type guitar
Post by: capac on February 13, 2018, 10:47:05 PM
Zebras are the best  :wink:.