stoner/doom/heavy rock for Gibson SG?

[djpatb]

Hey guys,
I wanna get a new set of Bare Knuckles for my SG Standard. I play heavy rock with hints of stoner and doom. I plug into an Electric Amp Innovations Master Volume Unit, and Orange cabs with V30's and H30's. I actually like the Gibson 498T for the most part...but I'd like it to be a little clearer, better pick attack on the low end, and a tad bit fuller on the leads/single notes. Basicly, I want a more organic/lively 498T. Also, I need it to clean up nicely when I roll the volume pot down.

So many of these pickups have such great write-ups, and I've considered Black Dogs, Holy Divers, Rebel Yells and PIG90's. What would you guys do? Think tones from Sabbath, ZZ Top, the Cult, Alice in Chains...to Clutch, DOWN, Sleep, Goatsnake, Hermano, etc.

[dheim]

i'd go for a set of warpigs (it's not just the name, they handle doom sounds like no other)... i'm still waiting to put my hands on my les paul gothic with a warpig/pig90 setup, so i can't yet tell you about that combination...

[99_not_out]

I have some Alnico V Warpigs in an SG, and they will definitely do Doom. The lower the tuning the better, the bass response is immense and clear. The neck cleans are nice and deep too, the bridge doesn't really do clean though without a substantial volume knob adjustment :-) But they do respond very well to volume adjustment, no mudding up. If you want brutal organic low end riffage accept no substitute. The mid position is also nice I find on lower gain settings, but still bass laden. Not boomy or muddy, just HEAVY. Definitely good for Sabbath and all those beyond.

I can't really get them to do ZZ Top or The Cult sounds however due to the massive ammount of lows and low mids. They are more Changky than Crunchy if you get my drift.

Maybe a Holydiver if you want something with a bit less gain but still thick and heavy?

The Warpigs will have you grinning from ear to ear however in an SG if you like that heavy heavy sound ...

Edit:
A lot of people pop a Mississipi Queen in the neck to match an Alnico V Warpig, a very very nice combination by all accounts.

[dheim]

I have some Alnico V Warpigs in an SG, and they will definitely do Doom. The lower the tuning the better, the bass response is immense and clear. The neck cleans are nice and deep too, the bridge doesn't really do clean though without a substantial volume knob adjustment :-) But they do respond very well to volume adjustment, no mudding up. If you want brutal organic low end riffage accept no substitute. The mid position is also nice I find on lower gain settings, but still bass laden. Not boomy or muddy, just HEAVY. Definitely good for Sabbath and all those beyond.

I can't really get them to do ZZ Top or The Cult sounds however due to the massive ammount of lows and low mids. They are more Changky than Crunchy if you get my drift.

Maybe a Holydiver if you want something with a bit less gain but still thick and heavy?

The Warpigs will have you grinning from ear to ear however in an SG if you like that heavy heavy sound ...

Edit:
A lot of people pop a Mississipi Queen in the neck to match an Alnico V Warpig, a very very nice combination by all accounts.

+1. every single word. i don't know yet how's a pig90, but i've got a set of MQ and, as it is (no overwound) maybe the neck unit is just a bit too clean compared with the filthy tone of the bridge warpig... clean but definitely not gentle, under heavy gain... MQs scream with a fuzzy tone that's great for the sounds you're after...

[HTH AMPS]

I think it was Tom on this forum that has the Pig90 and recorded some 'Sleep' tunes - sounded awesome.  I had a Warpig and it was great for those crushing low end chords, but pretty tough to get any kind of clean with.

I'd go with a Pig90, well actually it would need to be an MQPIG90 if it needs to go in a humbucker space.

The single coil nature of the Pig90 gives more attack and the most grindy midrange response.  Tom's tone on the Sleep tunes was spot on - actually, I'm sure he recorded some 'Down' tunes with that setup too.

[jibidy]

I got Emeralds and they are sweet. They have strong output but have a raw ruckus sound!
they can do AC/DC ZZTop and through to more modern metal tones like Lamb of God well(with plenty of gain). Nice middley tone.

I use them for mostly high gain but I also have a less gainy setting and they are very balanced throughout.

[the_bleeding]

stoner doom player here. I'm using an AV warpig. The cleans are sweet on a clean channel, but if the channel is set to clip, the pig will push it over.

Great thing about it is that if you roll of the volume knob, it will roll off some of the bass so you can get a pretty vintagy metal feel out of them along the lines of Black Sabbath.

But yeah, the warpig will do everything you need. Much fuller on single notes. Much smoother on leads. And it will clean up as you roll it down. Maybe not to fender clean, but it does get very nice.

[djpatb]

Thanks a lot guys. I knew the Warpig would probably be mentioned. I can't imagine going that hot (22k!!), but everyone seems to love it. Are the lead tones smooth with the Warpig? I just want my leads to be full and typical hot alnico sound.

[dheim]

this is not exactly a doom song, but you can hear some warpig smooth lead tone!

http://bareknucklepickups.co.uk/forum/index.php?topic=15092.0

[_tom_]

I use Mules and a pig 90 and they both do the doom tones well. I prefer the Pig 90 bridge more for this kidna stuff as its a bit mushy, but it sounds huge. The neck Mule can nail the Stone the Crow clean intro tone, I've deleted that clip I did of it though so will have to re-record it some time!

Heres the Mule tuned down to D - http://www.soundclick.com/bands/page_songInfo.cfm?bandID=493678&songID=7291917

And the Pig 90 in standard -
http://www.soundclick.com/bands/page_songInfo.cfm?bandID=493678&songID=6737692

[djpatb]

Thanks Tom! That PIG90 clip has always intrigued me. I'm really liking the doomy Mule clips that I've heard too.
How does the PIG 90 sound for leads? And how does it clean up when you roll the vol. off?

[ericsabbath]

Maybe a Holydiver if you want something with a bit less gain but still thick and heavy?

my Holy Diver sounded a bit dark and loose in my SG (way darker than in the les pauls)
was absolutely awesome for leads, with long sustain, really thick tone and huge sounding harmonics, but not so defined for rhythms as it did in the LPs
it's perfect for mahogany body + maple top, but didn't sound as good in all mahogany
the Warpig has a brighter top (probably because it's wound with a thinner wire)

I installed an alnico 8 magnet in the diver, so now it sounds louder, brighter and tighter than it was with alnico 5, BUT it sounds a bit less deep and fluid and a bit more ceramic-like (something closer to the Cold Sweat tone), but still has no harshness at all

[the_bleeding]

Thanks a lot guys. I knew the Warpig would probably be mentioned. I can't imagine going that hot (22k!!), but everyone seems to love it. Are the lead tones smooth with the Warpig? I just want my leads to be full and typical hot alnico sound.

VERY smooth lead tones. I upgraded from a Rockfield SWV (9k), and it sounds so much better. Single notes are seriously thickened up and smoothed out. Chords are incredibly thick. Mines covered and 21.6k

[_tom_]

Thanks Tom! That PIG90 clip has always intrigued me. I'm really liking the doomy Mule clips that I've heard too.
How does the PIG 90 sound for leads? And how does it clean up when you roll the vol. off?

It's great for leads and seems to clean up nicely when you roll off the volume. when you do that, it gets twangier and more like I'd expect a "normal" p90 to sound. I can probably record a clip through my laney tomorrow though I'll have to use my laptops onboard soundcard so it wont be amazing :(

[99_not_out]

Am interested to hear too, always fancied a Pig90 :)