Yet another "which pups for this axe" question...

[dheim]

you should definitely ask tim... he's busy for sure, but still manages to reply EVERY email in few hours. and of course he knows the matter better than us! :)

my personal advice, at this point is still a nailbomb neck BUT complemented with a Holy Diver bridge... if you want low mids, few hi mids and a nice crunchy tone that is not overly saturated you'll be surely glad with it.
DON'T go for the MM (not if you want to tame the "bright and tight" nature of your axe) or the CS (same as above).
in general i'd avoid ceramic, besides - maybe, but i've never personally tried it - a Cbomb (ceramic nailbomb...)

[ShotgunInnocence]

Don't even hesitate to email Tim......the man is THE EPITOME of fast and friendly customer service.  He's replied to numerous questions and emails I've sent him,and ALWAYS within 24 hrs or less (bless his dedicated little heart).  The only other pickup I might toss into your equation might be Mules.  It's supposed to be one of Tim's most versatile pickups.  The MM and C-bomb are definitely METAL pickups (I'm considering a C-bomb also myself, and Tim's only advice to me was that its cleans would be "efficient" as opposed to sweet and warm.....the MM would be even less efficient for clean stuff).  

[ShotgunInnocence]

Ok, I lied about "the only other pickup"......one other suggestion might be a Blackdogs.

[BigB]

Ok, I lied about "the only other pickup"......one other suggestion might be a Blackdogs.

:lol:

Ok, I think I will skip Mules and PG Blues - they don't have the 4-wires options, and may not be that useful in a split or parallel mode.

The MM and C-bomb are definitely METAL pickups (...) Tim's only advice to me was that its cleans would be "efficient" as opposed to sweet and warm.....the MM would be even less efficient for clean stuff

Well... While I mostly use my other Vox (yes, I do have another one - the Standard 25, strat-like but with a bit more punch) for clean tones, I do want to have that sweet, warm clear "about to break" humbucker tone. And possibly usable in parallel or split mode too, cf above (well, the serie/parallel switches are part of the Custom 24 features, and that's something I'd like to keep if possible - I don't plan on transforming this axe into a strict LP copy).

So after ruling out C-pups and "true-vintage" ones,  it seems I'm left with Emerald, Abraxas, and possibly Black Dog (but from the products descriptions I don't know if it would have that much of the warmness I'm after ?) as possible options...

I'll try and find a couple more infos about (and possibly meaningful samples of) these three models then ask The Master for advices - eventually linking to this thread for more details.

Thanks again to everyone (dheim, ShotgunInnocence, syr2012, Zaned...) for your educated hints, comments and advices. Friendly and helpful place, for sure - I'll be back soon !-)

[Keven]

Emerald would be pretty warm from what i've heard. Black Dog has character. very even response throughout the frequency range, not spiky at all.

the mule is a GREAT neck pickup by the way.

just a note, also, all BKP have 4 conductor options. ask tim.

[PhilKing]

I just got a custom Les Paul with an Emerald set and I love it.  It is an all mahogany guitar with an ebony fingerboard (Les Paul custom neck), and with my Ceriatone JTM45-18 I can get all the Paul Kossoff tones.  There is great clarity with just the right amount of breakup and lean on the note and it goes into harmonic feedback.  The neck has a touch of sweetness and the bridge gives the bite.  Put both on and use the volumes to add the rest of the colours for blues and classic rock tones.  With a higher gain amp or pedal I'm sure that you can get all the heavy rock sounds that you want too.

[BigB]

Emerald would be pretty warm from what i've heard.

Well, I've never been a huge fan of Thin Lizzy, but I really like what Robbo did with Motorhead - and boy, it sure sound hot

Black Dog has character. very even response throughout the frequency range, not spiky at all.

the mule is a GREAT neck pickup by the way.

Yeps. FWIW, googling for some BKP samples, I found this (I guess most of you already know this vid, but just in case):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nadbs-0AfQ0

just a note, also, all BKP have 4 conductor options. ask tim.

Oh, my, just when I thought I had a good reason to rule them out  :? Now, being available as 4-wire is one thing, but is it of real use for a vintage low-output pup ? I mean, not all humbuckers sounds fine split or parallel, and I guess there's a reas why Tim only officialy mentions this options for some (hotter) pups ? Or is it just me being clueless once again ?

Ok, nuff said, mailing Tim now...

[syr2012]

Oh, my, just when I thought I had a good reason to rule them out  :? Now, being available as 4-wire is one thing, but is it of real use for a vintage low-output pup ? I mean, not all humbuckers sounds fine split or parallel, and I guess there's a reas why Tim only officialy mentions this options for some (hotter) pups ? Or is it just me being clueless once again ?

Ok, nuff said, mailing Tim now...

Hotter pups generally have higher output (per coil) and are used more often in four-conductor situations (coil split, parallel, out of phase wiring) than vintage pickups, which are generally used in more traditional applications. I haven't heard much about coil splitting a Mule, but I have about Nailbombs, Holydivers, and Warpigs.

[BigB]

Oh, my, just when I thought I had a good reason to rule them out  :? Now, being available as 4-wire is one thing, but is it of real use for a vintage low-output pup ? I mean, not all humbuckers sounds fine split or parallel, and I guess there's a reas why Tim only officialy mentions this options for some (hotter) pups ? Or is it just me being clueless once again ?

Ok, nuff said, mailing Tim now...

Hotter pups generally have higher output (per coil) and are used more often in four-conductor situations (coil split, parallel, out of phase wiring) than vintage pickups, which are generally used in more traditional applications. I haven't heard much about coil splitting a Mule, but I have about Nailbombs, Holydivers, and Warpigs.

Yeps, what I meant, mostly. Ok, so I'm perhaps not _that_ clueless

[BigB]

Ok, nuff said, mailing Tim now...

And I just got Tim's answer, which is:

"""
I really think that the Crawler humbuckers will serve you the best in your Vox as they are really good in what I term 'tight' sounding guitars and inject a good level of warmth and sweetness without loosing definition. The bridge  is alnico V and the neck is alnico IV and you can cover a huge range of classic tones with plenty of power and a good mix of clean and driven tones.
"""

Thus spake the Master...

[Zaned]

And I just got Tim's answer, which is:

"""
I really think that the Crawler humbuckers will serve you the best in your Vox as they are really good in what I term 'tight' sounding guitars and inject a good level of warmth and sweetness without loosing definition. The bridge  is alnico V and the neck is alnico IV and you can cover a huge range of classic tones with plenty of power and a good mix of clean and driven tones.
"""

Thus spake the Master...

I would go with the Crawler then. I did think about that pickup, but I wasn't sure if it would be too hot (remember, the DC rating doesn't directly tell it). But as it most probably isn't (I'd trust Tim), it's a spot on suggestion. You'll have  thick, warm but clear tone and tight tone.

Go for it!

-Zaned

[BigB]

I would go with the Crawler then. I did think about that pickup, but I wasn't sure if it would be too hot

Yeps, I had some doubts on this too. According to Tim's quote on the topic of hot alnico pups for bright maple axes, I thought it might be too hot, but I listed it as a possible choice nonetheless...

(remember, the DC rating doesn't directly tell it). But as it most probably isn't (I'd trust Tim), it's a spot on suggestion. You'll have  thick, warm but clear tone and tight tone.

Go for it!

I'll order them as soon as I have the "legs size" point sorted out (clueless once again) - FWIW, if you guys can help me on this ? Oh, well, I could just unmount one of the x2n and have look by myself, duh... I tend to forget I now have a second guitar, so I can afford having this one out of order for a few days :oops:

[dheim]

I would go with the Crawler then. I did think about that pickup, but I wasn't sure if it would be too hot

Yeps, I had some doubts on this too. According to Tim's quote on the topic of hot alnico pups for bright maple axes, I thought it might be too hot, but I listed it as a possible choice nonetheless...

(remember, the DC rating doesn't directly tell it). But as it most probably isn't (I'd trust Tim), it's a spot on suggestion. You'll have  thick, warm but clear tone and tight tone.

Go for it!

I'll order them as soon as I have the "legs size" point sorted out (clueless once again) - FWIW, if you guys can help me on this ? Oh, well, I could just unmount one of the x2n and have look by myself, duh... I tend to forget I now have a second guitar, so I can afford having this one out of order for a few days :oops:

take short legs, they fit anyway...

[Philly Q]

take short legs, they fit anyway...

Agreed.

And your X2N will have short legs, all DiMarzios do.

[BigB]

take short legs, they fit anyway...

Agreed.

And your X2N will have short legs, all DiMarzios do.

Thanks you both guys - I was just about to unmount one of them to make sure, but seems I won't even have to bother !-)