Okay this is the final

[Vilches3]

I just want to be sure that the Holy diver is what I want. I just ordered myself the rest of my parts now all thats left is the pickups. Its gonna be a flush-mount floyded guitar made of alder with a maple top, clapton profiled maple neck with a pau ferro fingerboard and a heel contour ( I think all of these can vastly effect tone). I decided on the Holy diver because I imagined a coldsweat or any of the ceramic magnetted ones would be a bit too bright in these woods. Im also gonna go for an abraxas for those smooth santana tones. I just want to make sure that a holy diver could get me decent cleans in the bridge position and get me decent rock/ thrash/ oldschool metal tones and really clear smooth leads and a nice crunch to it for some 80's styled stuff like Van Halen and stuff. Im also really into Vai and Gary Holts lead tones. I just wanna make sure the Nailbomb or Coldsweat wouldn't be better options before i buy my pickups? any input? thanks

P.S i barely ever use both pickups at once

Rob

[Vilches3]

any takers?  :D lol

http://www.myspace.com/beholdthearctopus

i like the tone of this dudes leads alot as well.................so i want some warmth, some crystal clear leads, decent cleans and some heavy for thrash and hard rock.

Nailbomb, coldsweat or diver?..........im thinking diver since ive got a bright guitar?

[sebby123]

I love the sound of nailbombs so that takes my vote but we all have different tastes...

[Vilches3]

I love the sound of nailbombs so that takes my vote but we all have different tastes...

for the stuff i mentioned and woods though?

thanks- rob

[dheim]

uhm... judging from the weird stuff i listened on that band's myspace i'd say that both your side options would be a better choice. in particular i'd say nailbombs for those lead tones. not divers anyway! even in such a bright guitar, but maybe i'm wrong... i've got no experience at all with alder, but i think your wood combination should be a bit scooped so i'd choose a middy pickup.

[Roobubba]

What did Tim say?

There's your answer :)

Roo

[kevinr]

I think that the HD/ Abraxas will do what you are asking, the 80s stuff will be covered easily, HD cleans are very good (splits well too)

[Vilches3]

thanks for the replies guys, i thought that the holy diver was incredibly middy. I also still think a cold sweat might be just a hint too bright with a maple neck, maple top and pau ferro board on top of mahogany. I steered away from the nailbomb because I heard it wasn't tight enough for certain styles of metal. Which retains more tightness, the bomb or the diver? and which is clearer? and which is more diverse? I'll probably go to Tim right before I'm about to buy the pickups, (like the same day)

thanks!
Rob

[dheim]

maybe mine is just a case of unlucky guitar/pickup combination, but my holy divers sound no way middy... at least i speak of middy pickups when i hear a lot of mid and hi mids. HD has got plenty of low-mids AND treble, and my impression is that of a quite scooped pickup. or maybe it's just the guitar i've got it in that's scooped... nailbombs are definitely middy. not the tightest pickups around but i wouldn't call them loose.
your is a very bright guitar, though, maybe too much for the bombs... i don't want to confuse you, ask tim anyway!

[ericsabbath]

my impression is that of a quite scooped pickup.

wut  :?

[Zaned]

Based on the clips I've heard, the HD is nowhere near scooped..

I was recommended the Nailbomb for my upcoming (being built) custom strat. It has a maple cap (4mm thick) on top of alder body, and a bolt-on maple neck with a rosewood fretboard. Hipshot US contour tremolo. In short, I was asking for a mix between Doug Aldrich's tone on DIO's 'Evil or Divine' DVD, and old Van Halen tone. Tim's other suggestion was the Holy Diver.

Comparing to your guitar, yours is probably a tad brighter, given the floyd and pau ferro fretboard. I don't think it would be too bright..and not definitely the Holy diver. Well, you might as well ask Tim :)

-Zaned

[Dr. Vic]

In a nutshell I understand the HD to be more rounded with a good amount of low mids / mids and the NB to have more edge with some mids / high mids, with just a 'little' less output.

Anyway, here you've got some helpfull discussions about the differences between the HD and the NB

http://bareknucklepickups.co.uk/forum/index.php?topic=14620.0

http://bareknucklepickups.co.uk/forum/index.php?topic=7042.0

[dheim]

 :? maybe my impression comes from the last times i used my HD equipped guitar with my tube amp in band situation... on the POD it's nowhere scooped and, even if much less aggressive than nailbombs, it sounds very good. i don't know why, i love HDs on POD and find them almost pointless on tubes.

[Vilches3]

The tightness and pinch harmonics you're after are more typical of ceramic powered humbuckers-maple topped Strat bodies are often alot harder sounding in the mids and not as bright as you'd expect so I'm not sure if either the NB or HD is going to give you the low end tightness and punch you're after.
On reading your PM my first thought was Cold Sweat but if you feel this may be too bright then the Miracle Man would be my next choice.

kindest regards

Tim

He seems to be a really helpful guy so I think I may just go with the cold sweats assuming that they perform bridge cleans better than Miracle mans?

[Dr. Vic]

Then you must apply forum rule number one !

Anyway don't know what you asked to Tim in your pm but if you fear the brightness of your tone, you have to know the CS is one of the brightest BKP (at least in the modern range). That's what he told me when I asked for an humbucker for some heavy metal riffage for a bright sounding guitar, so much so that he didn't recommend it for me...