Which vintage hot bridge with a mule neck

[remak]

Got my iv-mules in a LP Std, the neck is lovely, but the bridge isn't doing for me (not with this axe and a Rivera Chubster amp anyway). I need something a touch thicker and a fair bit hotter for the bridge.

Which of the vintage-hots BD, Emerald, Abraxas blend well with mules? I'm tempted by the Abraxas bridge but I'm thinking it may overpower the mule. I need a kick at the bridge and a bit more midrange but not so much that could overpower the neck. Anyone have this vintage/vintage-hot combination?

How do the 3 p/u differ in bridge position?

[Buddha]

I would say black dog, but i don't have any experience with either, just gut instinct. I'm sure guys with more experience will chime in soon  :)

[PhilKing]

I have an Emerald with an AIV Mule in my Zemaitis clone and the combination is great.  I think you would be very happy with it.   It is hotter than the Black Dog and more dynamic than the Abraxas.  The Abraxas has an AIV magnet and so will match with the Mule happily, but I like the Abrazas better in my Hamer than I did in my LP.  When I had the Emerald/Mule set in the LP, I really liked the combination, but I wanted to put the PG Blues set into the guitar, that's the only reason I moved them to the metal front.

[viking]

Got my iv-mules in a LP Std, the neck is lovely, but the bridge isn't doing for me (not with this axe and a Rivera Chubster amp anyway). I need something a touch thicker and a fair bit hotter for the bridge.

I would say the exact same thing for my PRS Cu22 w/A4Mules :? .And i don't want to compromise the "single coil" sounds either...I was about to buy a BD/bridge from somebody here but he changed his mind since (yesterday)...Suggestions?

[remak]

Phil, how is it with Abraxas vs Emerald. Not too many people seem to own both. They look quite different from the spec - Abraxas is a AIV/14k, the Emerald is AV/11K. How do they differ in tone and hotness?

[HTH AMPS]

100% Crawler - the neck p/up for the Crawler is essentially just a Mule neck p/up anyway (I think it's something like 500ohm hotter which is mice nuts really).

I've owned the Crawler and it will do you you want.  Didn't care for the Black Dogs or Emeralds much, but ymmv.

[Philly Q]

Phil, how is it with Abraxas vs Emerald. Not too many people seem to own both. They look quite different from the spec - Abraxas is a AIV/14k, the Emerald is AV/11K. How do they differ in tone and hotness?

The Emerald bridge is actually about 13K, the specs on the product page are out of date.  I emailed Tim about it and he replied:

"I revoiced the Emerald a couple of years ago(apologies if the site is still showing DC11K), these days I aim for @DC13.1 ish same voice just a touch more power and punch.Basically a great LP humbucker."

[Scotty477]

Phil, how is it with Abraxas vs Emerald. Not too many people seem to own both. They look quite different from the spec - Abraxas is a AIV/14k, the Emerald is AV/11K. How do they differ in tone and hotness?

The Emerald bridge is actually about 13K, the specs on the product page are out of date.  I emailed Tim about it and he replied:

"I revoiced the Emerald a couple of years ago(apologies if the site is still showing DC11K), these days I aim for @DC13.1 ish same voice just a touch more power and punch.Basically a great LP humbucker."

I can confirm that. The Emerald bridge pup in my LP Std Classic is 13k DC. The neck is 10k DC.

I find the bridge Emerald to be well balanced, with a distinctive bite to its attack - which can feel bright on some EQ settings. I really like the bridge Emerald and can certainly recommend it in a LP.

[remak]

Forgive my naivety, but wouldn't a 13K bridge overpower a 7k neck. That's a genuine question, I really don't  know - all my p/us are around the 7/8k mark.

[Scotty477]

That's a good question.

I wonder if anyone has a set of pickups with this kind of difference in DC?

One thing I would say is that I very rarely have the Emerald neck at full volume these days, as I feel it tends to be a little 'full' for my taste. It does clean up very nicely though when it's between 4 - 7 volume - and of course I can whack it back to 10 when I want the full kaboodle.

[Philly Q]

Of course it'll depend on the particular combination, but I have a 14.5K Rebel Yell bridge and 7.3K Abraxas neck, and there's no mismatch at all in volume.

[Scotty477]

Question answered.  :D

One thing to remember is that because of their position, more in the middle of the strings, the neck pickup is always louder - hence the lower DC on them.

That's certainly not aimed at you Phil, just a general observation.

[remak]

One thing to remember is that because of their position, more in the middle of the strings, the neck pickup is always louder - hence the lower DC on them.

Dumb question:  7.3k to 14.5k is almost 200%, aren't the calibrated sets meant to compensate for position, and in the case of the mules the calibration is only  a differential of around 20% or so.

Is this based on the vintage neck/bridge differential rather than a genuinely compensated output?

[il˙ti]

100% Crawler - the neck p/up for the Crawler is essentially just a Mule neck p/up anyway.

I'm pretty sure that's wrong. The Mule uses AWG 42 gauge wire, the Crawler uses 43. But I could be wrong on this.

As for pairing a Mule with a hotter bridge: it is possible and it will balance with a little height adjustment. Tim has suggested Cold Sweat brige + Mule neck in the past, so I wouldn't be worried if it would pair with an Emmy or Abraxas. The Crawler calibrated set pairs a 15,6 bridge with a 7,6 neck. Also keep in mind that DC resistance is NOT the same as perceived output.

[Fikealox]

Ilyti is right about it not being a simple relationship between DC resistance and output. If you're interested in a bit of an explanation about how they relate, I wrote a bit of a spiel here: http://bareknucklepickups.co.uk/forum/viewtopic.php?t=12588