VHII or Black Dog (yep, another which pickup thread!)?

[Serratus]

Hi all,
I'm after some opinions from everyone as I can't quite make my mind up which to get.
I've always had high output BKP's before (Warpigs, Nailbombs), but my new project wants some lower output pickups, I think. So I mailed Tim asking him about the VHII (for the bridge position), but because I want a really warm sound he reckoned the Black Dog might suit it better, but I can't find that many opinions on the Black Dog on here, so some opinions would be appreciated. I don't like alot of treble to my sound, more low mids and bass (which is why I have a Diezel Herbert!).
The guitar's a Les Paul-ish single cut but with a flat top, korina back, thick maple front, maple neck, rosewood board, mississippi queen neck pickup (so it has to work well with that), TOM bridge, and it's 7 string (as all my guitars are, apart from my 8-string!).
I basically mainly play heavy rock - Audioslave, Foo fighters, etc, and as far as players go I love Paul Gilbert, Guthrie Govan, but I grew up on Van Halen which is why I really fancy a VHII, as long as it's not too toppy (hence thinking of a Black Dog instead). I also host a jam night sometimes which involves lots of blues, and as a blues player I really like Robben Ford, just to throw some clean sounds in there!
Finally, everyone seems to love cold sweats so I'm almost also tempted by one of them even though they're higher output again..................decisions, decisions..................
Any help gratefully appreciated!

[Denim n Leather]

VHII has a WICKED amount of high freqs. Stick with the 'dog!

[Adam.M]

I'd also say go with Tims suggestion, i haven't once heard him be wrong!

The VH2 has a fair bit of treble so the Black Dog does make sence. I'm considering a VH2 bridge for my new and first 7 string, a Jap Ibanez 7621. Though i'm tempted to get Warpigs or the typical Nailbomb/Cold Sweat set.

Nice to see another 7 string player that has very similar musical preferences to me, i'd love to see what Mr Gilbert or Guthrie could do with an extended range instrument.

[Axe Palace]

Hi all,
I'm after some opinions from everyone as I can't quite make my mind up which to get.
I've always had high output BKP's before (Warpigs, Nailbombs), but my new project wants some lower output pickups, I think. So I mailed Tim asking him about the VHII (for the bridge position), but because I want a really warm sound he reckoned the Black Dog might suit it better, but I can't find that many opinions on the Black Dog on here, so some opinions would be appreciated. I don't like alot of treble to my sound, more low mids and bass (which is why I have a Diezel Herbert!).
The guitar's a Les Paul-ish single cut but with a flat top, korina back, thick maple front, maple neck, rosewood board, mississippi queen neck pickup (so it has to work well with that), TOM bridge, and it's 7 string (as all my guitars are, apart from my 8-string!).
I basically mainly play heavy rock - Audioslave, Foo fighters, etc, and as far as players go I love Paul Gilbert, Guthrie Govan, but I grew up on Van Halen which is why I really fancy a VHII, as long as it's not too toppy (hence thinking of a Black Dog instead). I also host a jam night sometimes which involves lots of blues, and as a blues player I really like Robben Ford, just to throw some clean sounds in there!
Finally, everyone seems to love cold sweats so I'm almost also tempted by one of them even though they're higher output again..................decisions, decisions..................
Any help gratefully appreciated!

The Black Dogs are cool, that's a good choice. However, I'd recommend the Nailbomb or Holydiver as well. Those kill in 7-strings for more of a rock/80s metal vibe. The NB isn't nearly as brutal as the name implies, it's very well-rounded and versatile, with good warmth/organic leads. And of course the HD is amazing too. Thicker, more low-mids, sweet highs yet very defined.

For the 8-string, I just installed a Cold Sweat in the bridge of mine and its amazing :)

[Serratus]

Cool, thanks for the opinions so far guys - sounds like black dog might be the one! I always used to like the Dimarzio tonezone7 and I'm thinking that the black dog might be similar in tone to that.

I have a Nailbomb7 in a 7-string explorer that I built, and my 8-string has a Warpig bridge/Cold sweat neck combo, so I have some experience with Tim's contemporary pickups, just not so much with the vintage ones.

[Roobubba]

I'm not yet boosting my amp (5150-II, I'm currently waiting for a Bloody Murder to use in front of it...), but I can report that my black dog has more than enough output for devastating brutality in my wezv custom baritone. Add to that the glorious cleans (although not necessarily through a 5150-II!!!), and you've got one VERY versatile setup. I can't wait to get the boost though, to give me even more flexibility!

Roo

[JamesHealey]

I found the black dog too dark, i would suggest a riff raff.

[Serratus]

Hmmmm, I don't want a pickup that's really dark, although my amp is pretty good at boosting whichever frequencies I want to, so I could probably add treble if I needed to. Tim has suggested a Riff Raff to me in the past, for a different project so maybe that is another option......
And he didn't completely recommend the Black Dog for me, he just said in response to my question that it probably had the more mid-heavy tone, compared to the VHII. Which is why I'm after some other opinions on the Black Dog - maybe it would be too dark for me - anyone have a Black Dog that they're really happy with? As long as it still has plenty of highs there, as well as all the mids, then I think it'll be fine.
And I know that whichever I go for, it'll still sound awesome, it's just fine tuning.....
So I guess the options are now Black Dog / VHII / Riff Raff

[Roobubba]

Completely depends on your setup. I can get a sound that is WAY too dark or WAY too bright from my setup just by tweaking the amp. The Black Dog in my guitar is NOT TOO DARK! There are loads of highs and mids present, in fact, if anything, I have to kill the highs more than by MM-loaded ibanez. It's not a direct comparison, because our guitars are definitely different, and so probably are our rigs, so your mileage my vary.
But, in response to your concerns, I am very happy with a black dog, and I don't find it too dark, but instead it's well balanced in my guitar, with my rig.

Roo

[Serratus]

Thanks Roo - as long as the highs are there then I'm happy that I can get them out if I need to, so thanks for the advice, I think that it might be the way to go, it does sound like the pickup for me.

[Adam.M]

I'm considering a Black Dog-7 for my 7 string... not 100% sure if it's a good idea for a rather lightweight basswood/maple guitar, though it is a string thru!

[blue]

did you say you have a 7 string Mississippi Queen? i didn't know you could get those, interesting

[Spat]

I've got a black dog in the bridge of my les paul and in my opinon it's brilliant I can pretty much nail any tone I want with it I highyly recomend it in a guitar of that configuration.However when I put one in the bridge of an sg I did find it way too bright for my tastes.

[Serratus]

did you say you have a 7 string Mississippi Queen? i didn't know you could get those, interesting

No, Tim doesn't do 7-string mississippi queens - I've made the bobbin and baseplate myself, then Tim is gonna wind and pot it and supply the magnets and pole-pieces. So it'll be as close to a 7-string queen as I can get!

[blue]

ah, thanks for clarifying that.  should sound good, i'd imagine it would be a great clear sound on the low B, or however you tune it.