one of those topics - i really need some help

[etzel]

i decided to purchase of these gorgeous(as described by everybody) pickups. problem is that i never heard one and the samples are not really representative because of some many elements involved.

i know there are categories, but i am lost. i have a Tokai Love Rock, the ls150 model. it has the original "paf" style pickups which i kind of hate. i play rock with a mixture of blues. i think i need a "hot" something, but have no idea. my setup is a Engl Thunder, 2x12 cab and AxeFx. as i mentioned, i am into rock with a lot of things beetwen: sometimes we go harder, but not metal. we do play some experimental stuff, some blues thrown in, and sometimes we just explode, but again, not really get into metal....really rare

the most difficult for me would to get a pickup pare that has a wide spectrum but can go pretty mean if needed

thanks for any help

[Roobubba]

the most difficult for me would to get a pickup pare that has a wide spectrum but can go pretty mean if needed

thanks for any help

Thankfully for you, this part is not so difficult for BKPs :)

I'm not best placed to advise on these particular types of music, but I'd be guessing that Mules are going to crop up, possibly also Emeralds. You should definitely phone Tim to ask his advice, and hang around here for someone better placed than me to give you some hints, too!

Roo

[Twinfan]

Can you give us some examples of the kind of tone you're after?  Bands or players?  That should help us narrow down the options, otherwise we'll all just suggest our personal favourite pickups  :)

[AndyR]

I'd say definitely give Tim a call.

I've put Mules in my Love Rock, and, to be honest, tonally they're not a lot different than the ones that were in it - just "better" :lol:

Having said that I bought the guitar for the pickups, and the old ones were only in for an hour or so when I got it home (I did play it for a couple of hours in the shop as well though...). If I hadn't had the Mules already, I'd have happily lived with what it came with.

So, what i'm thinking is Mules might not be what you're after... My only other practical experience of BKP humbuckers is Riff Raffs - and I think that might be a good call. They're not particularly hotter as far as I can tell, they just sound "tighter" and more late-70s/early-80s than late-60s like the Mules do in my guitars. Seeing as I grew up on rock in the late 70s, my idea of "PAF" was that sound, not a PAF sound at all really, as it turns out! :lol:

If you want a wide spectrum from both pickups, Riff Raff bridge and MQ neck sounds like a popular choice - I'm getting tempted to try it myself, I have the pickups to do it... but it'll leave me with MQ bridge and Riff Raff neck in the other guitar!!

If you want to go hotter than that, you'll need other help than me. But with you saying "rock" and "blues", and "rarely metal", I'm not sure you need to go too hot?

Definitely sounds like one for Tim to me - like Twinfan says, we're all going to tell you our favourite pickups!!

And welcome! :D

[Spitfire]

the pickups you get in tokais are very good.  I lived with them in my SG for quite a while, and the neck one is still in there (will be replaced in time tho)..

if you are not liking the stock pickups and want something a bit hotter.. mules may be it, but might not be hot enough.. if i had a LP id get a black dog set in there. no question.

[Roobubba]

the pickups you get in tokais are very good.  I lived with them in my SG for quite a while, and the neck one is still in there (will be replaced in time tho)..

if you are not liking the stock pickups and want something a bit hotter.. mules may be it, but might not be hot enough.. if i had a LP id get a black dog set in there. no question.

I love my black dogs, but trust me when I say that I'm not qualified to comment on their sound in a normal guitar :D

Roo

[etzel]

thanks for the warm welcome and the answers

i do not have the time to put up some samples of what i would consider as representative for my style, but wanted to mention that after all, i am thinking that not PAF, at all.

yes, i do play rarely metal, but it gets hard in a few moments, you know, some power riffs and stuff. i had a Burny which i sold to a fellow, had in it Pearly Gates, which i thought gave me way more output, but hated the lack of life

i will talk to Tim also, but until then, maybe the most i am after is a pickup/s that would be versatile, in the same time hot and warm. yeah, hard, i know

what i listen too? tough call. i will list some, but they are not the top, just for reference:

Ritchie Kotzen - thinking of that instrumental album
Petrucci....some of his tones
Incubus - again, a few things i like

i think i'll get up some clips so we can talk specific

[carlaz]

When I hear things like rock, blues, hot, and sometimes edging into metal but not full on, I think Crawler.  8)  Those are very versatile pups that will cover a lot of ground while keeping the vintage vibe.

Mules are a classic PAF, classic rock tone and a clear choice if you decide you want something of "classic hotness" after all.  Slightly hotter than PAF, the Emeralds -- or a Emerald/Mule mix -- could be another option.

[Roobubba]

Crawler is a good call, also you could go hotter (but still very versatile!) and try nailbombs. No experience with these though, I'm afraid!

Roo

[ailean]

I dropped a set of Black Dogs in my Tokai LP a few days ago but haven't had time to play it since, so I can't help there. They sounded pretty good for the 2 minutes I played it, but I haven't lived with them yet. Sorry, not much help there.

Prior to that I had a set of Nailbombs in there and loved them (I swapped them out just to try the BD's out). The NB neck is smooth and mellow, the bridge rocks up beautifully. All BK's are articulate and clear.

The other choice might be Cold Sweats, vintage winding but with a ceramic magnet in the bridge to give it a tighter contemporary feel. I've not tried them in an LP but my wife has them in an SG and they sound great.

It is hard to make a choice I know, but BK's are versatile.