I want Bareknuckles! But which set...?

[hermantehgerman]

^thanks for that! i really liked the santana tone, and am happy to hear that something like that is possible with the PG blues set as well!
oh, and i totally agree on the diming the buckers part:P, thast what ive been doing..

very nice and informative review btw
have you tried the PGs through a (treble)booster?


what would sure be awesome is if someone could play the same lick on mules and on PG blues...but i doubt anyone owns both sets...


oh, and my name's hendrik - herman the german is just a nickname

[Stringkiller]

Hendrick

No I haven't tried a treble Booster ( Yes I know that whatt Clapton says he used with the Marshall on the Beano album)
The last time I sed one of those was in the sixties on a non top boost Vox - wow long time ago.

If anything I normally have my Mids on full,
 Bass as much as I can before Flabbing out and treble way down with LPs and Telecasters.

Yesterday I was playing My Tokai LP at a gig and I noticed I had the treble on zero and the bright switch on - the amp was a Laney VC 30 with 2*10s - I noticed as I don't normally turn the treble down that much.

Good luck with your quest and keep us informed (with soundclips) of your choice. Bear in mind the amp has a big role to play in all this.

Cheers
Bruce

[PhilKing]

Also Peter Green used a Strat on some things (Black Magic Woman for example), so some of the sounds could be that.  I think a big recommendation for the PG Blues is that Gary Moore is using them.  The problem with recording Mules, PG Blues, SM's etc, is that they really need to be in the same guitar to give the result you are looking for (for example my 335 has AII Stormy Mondays, but they sound really different in there to what they would in a Les Paul.  I actually don't have any Mules in Les Pauls (I have them in a Zemaitis clone, PRS Artist and hollowbody PRS clone.  My LP's have Black Dog set, PG Blues set and Riff Raff/SM.

[hermantehgerman]

^well the PG sounds i like a lot are green manalishi and oh well - thats definitely LP right?

oh and its too bad that you own the mules but dont have em in a LP...ah well, nothing i can do about it :(
would it be possible for you to record the same short lick with your PGLP and the artist with mules?
i think that would help quite a bit for me to get to know the differences in voicing and the likes
only if its no problem for you though!


^^i'll definitely keep you informed on what my decision is going to be in the end
my amp's a champion 600, the goal is to ultimately have an ac30 - i just do not see the point in having a 30w tube amp at home...

[il˙ti]

Go to the Players forum. There's plenty of clips with Mules in LPs, and a few of the PG Blues.

[hermantehgerman]

but then i'd have the different playing styles, amps, mics/recordings in there as well while i just want the different pickups...

[badgermark]

That's life I'm afraid. The clips are a very good indication of a pickup's ability and tone. Playing style doesn't affect tone, but if someone has a clip of a guitar and amp similar to yours it will give a good idea of it's capabilites. There can never be a 'pure' pickup test, unless you use the EXACT same settings and guitar for each one, slightly impractical as certain pickups are voiced and designed for certain types of guitar, the 'true' designed tone won't shine through.

Remember if you're not happy with your choice BKP will exchange the pickups within 14 days to something else. But around 90% of the time Tim and the team are bang on with pickup suggestions. You can't go wrong if you listen to the staff, they know their stuff.

[il˙ti]

Yeah, and besides, my tone varies from day to day. It might be my fingers feeling different, the strength of my picking hand, the strings aging, the humidity in the air, or it might be dwarfgoblin-people sneaking in at night to change my amp settings, I don't know. Point is, a complete unbiased comparison is virtually impossible. But if you listen to enough, you WILL learn to hear the common characterics of the different pickups.

And +1 on the staff.

[hermantehgerman]

you both have a point there...

the thing is that I know I'll like either set (its between PG Blues and Mules for me right now) but i'll never know if the other set might not have been even better...


ill check the clips section!

[Philly Q]

the thing is that I know I'll like either set (its between PG Blues and Mules for me right now) but i'll never know if the other set might not have been even better...

Buy both!  :P

I do sympathise about the clips, it's very difficult to get much from them unless they're A/B comparisons.  But as Badgermark said, different pickups are voiced and designed for different types of guitar, so even A/B comparisons are problematic.

I also agree with il˙ti that you can hear the distinct characterics of the different pickups, but it's generally something that only becomes apparent (to me) once I've actually owned those models!  :roll:

[hermantehgerman]

see...i dont wanna go through the hassle to actually just send back the PGs (if i decide to get them) to try out the mules...-_-


damn this is a hard decision:P

[PhilKing]

Ireally think you will like the PG Blues set.  I have many of the same favourites that you do, and I really love the sound of the PG Blues.  They can get Paul Kossoff's tone (he uses quite clean tones but with a lot of volume to get his overdrive sound and a wah to tweek the tone), they can get the sustain required for the start of Supernatural, and they absolutely nail things like Need Your Love So Bad.  If you add a treble/mid boost (I have a reissue Rangemaster, but the Phil Hilbourne Thundertome(?) sounds incredible for this), you will get all the rest of the sounds you want (assuming you have a valve amp that is).

[hermantehgerman]

^thanks for that! i really appreciate that - i was actually thinking about getting a booster some time soon...


is there enough output in them to get a black dog sorta sound with only a marshall plexi (or whatever small amp he used to record that) - assuming you have one?

[PhilKing]

Yes, but if you only have a plexi it will be pretty loud!!  I have a few amps, but with my Silver Jubilee I can get that fat lead tone.  I have a JTM45 clone, but with a master volume and with a boost to the mids I can get the Jimmy Page sounds. 

[hermantehgerman]

awesome! i wasnt saying i have a plexi...its just that you'll only get the right tone through the same setup right?

it looks like, at the moment, i'll be getting a PG Blues set - makes more sense to me, because if i do happen to not like em that much (and the only reason i can see me not liking them is them not having enough output) i can always get mules or something

cheers!