Perhaps it depends on the wood but that's how it sounds to me and I don't think I'm unique in that view. When I was looking for an alternative to the Holydiver I contacted Bare Knuckle and said I wanted something that was essentially similar to a Holydiver in being smooth, warm and organic but was a little tighter, a touch more aggressive, more screaming highs and a bit more balls in the bottom end; a bit like a Holydiver +. They came straight back to me and said I'd described a Miracle Man perfectly and in my guitar at least, that's just the way it is. I can only conclude that it behaves very differently in your guitar but I guess sometimes that's the way it is. Before I got the Nailbomb I heard loads of positive things about it that just weren't true in my experience of it. Where it was described as versatile I found it to be anything but that. Where it was described as warm and organic, I found it to be harsh, aggressive and hairy. I wouldn't say that's because other people were wrong, just that it works better in guitars that aren't maple neck-thru. BKP seem to be more sensitive than other pickups to the wood they're in, just as they're very sensitive to height adjustment. All I can say is that I've tried the Holydiver and Miracle Man in the same guitar and while the MM is certainly tighter and more aggressive, it's also very obviously from the same family as the HD because in that guitar at least, it's also quite warm, smooth and organic. Not as much as the HD for sure but it's in the same ballpark. That suits me because both pickups fit in with what I play. The HD covers everything from Blues to 80's Metal and the Miracle Man will run from Classic Rock to more modern Metal while not sounding fundamentally different. Put it this way, in a Rock covers band I could happily play our entire set with either pickup if need be.
