KsE Tones -> Which Pickup?

[ericsabbath]

But bringing it down just to the Nailbomb and the Diver:
Which one is the tighter sounding pickup and which one has the better harmonics?
And most important: Which one handles the drop b tuning better?

slightly tighter = nailbomb
better (easier, louder, fatter) pinch harmonics = holy diver
both handle low tunings well

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T1RafxMYU5w

[Alex]

That low tuning I'd definitely go with the Nailbomb.

[explorer76]

doesn't make the decision easier...
pinch harmonics are a quiet important part of my playing -> so I'd like to take the Diver...
on the other hand better handling with low tunings -> Nailbomb...

Eric, what tuning did you play in your video? And who else played a Diver in a "strat"-style guitar in low tunings?

[fr33man1]

I had an explorer based on strat woods (bubinga , some sort of bright and more dense alder, maple neck and ebony fretboard) . I had a nailbomb and it was sharp and bright even in C std... I turned to a holy diver and Holy Schmidt !  :P

It turned my axe into a tight fat growly machine. Riffs, pinch harmonics and leads turned out to be so middy but a dense midrangey sound where the nailbomb was all upper mids and got your ears tired very quickly despite its tightness or percussive bottom. I used to play on a 5150 so having my holy diver to sound tight was not really an issue.

Your dellinger is mahogany if I recall caparison models well. So it should not be as bright as an alder strat but still a nailbomb could be too sharp and not as warm as expected. The painkiller despite being described as uber tight and very middy is quite growly and packs some good low mids. To me its far more balanced than a nailbomb so you if you want it fatter then the HDiver is what you need imo.

[ericsabbath]

doesn't make the decision easier...
pinch harmonics are a quiet important part of my playing -> so I'd like to take the Diver...
on the other hand better handling with low tunings -> Nailbomb...

Eric, what tuning did you play in your video? And who else played a Diver in a "strat"-style guitar in low tunings?

drop C
sounds kinda loose cause that little power amp head was very saggy sounding with any pickup, and so was that cheap rack preamp
the diver sounded pretty tight and clear through that framus cobra or through my friends 5150 or the peavey rockmaster preamp I had
being in a boosted superstrat, I wouldn't worry about that at all

you could wire some sort of bass cut on the uberschall
it's a pretty easy mod, actually (just installing a pot or switch, or removing a capacitor if you want it as a fixed value)
but if you're happy with its huge and bassy tone, then you'll be fine
the diver isn't a bass heavy pickup at all

[explorer76]

Thanks for the reply Eric... I was always keen on trying the Diver so I'll give it a try and if it doesn't fit, I'll go with the A-Bomb.

Ampwise I'm totally fine with the Überschall and its tone. It was love at first sight and still it is my favourite amp for heavy high-gain and compared to an Orange Rockerverb/Thunderverb I don't find it that bass heavy at all.
It was an odysee to get there having had a Mesa Single Recto (great wall of sound with chords, but lacks definition in single note riffs), a Marshall DSL 100 (imo one of the best Marshalls ever built, just sold because my Bogner and Valvetech can cover all the DSL sounds) or a Koch Powertone, Framus Dragon, Laney GH100 or an Engl Screamer before...
There are better amps for cleans and crunch sounds (therefore I love my Valvetech Hayseed 30 head) but for modern metal, for me, there is no better amp on the market. I also like the new Peavey 6534+ or the Splawn Nitro, but as I said, for me nothing comes close to the Überschall, just total raw EL34 Power :lol:.

[Alex]

I get lots of pinch harmonics on both pickups. It's not as if I've noticed any difference in that respect.

[explorer76]

We'll see how it turns out ;).

Anyway, many thanks for all the replies!

[explorer76]

One question left...
Got this mail today:
"Hi Bastian,

Thanks for the order, but the bolts are only available on the Aftermaths and Warpigs.

Kind Regards,

Ben
--
Ben French"

Since when isn't it possible to get allen head screws on other pickups than the aftermath or Warpig?

[explorer76]

just to bring this one to an end...
I finally got my HD quite a while ago and just put it into my Dellinger.
And whoa... I'm quite impressed, it does the job perfectly!
The Painkiller and A5 Pig have been quite great in this guitar, but the Diver blows both of them away. The HD has that modern sound I like and stays transparent and tight with my low tunings. But now leadlines sing and the overall sound is much warmer, open and organic than with the PK. A true masterpiece!

[pop]

just to bring this one to an end...
I finally got my HD quite a while ago and just put it into my Dellinger.
And whoa... I'm quite impressed, it does the job perfectly!
The Painkiller and A5 Pig have been quite great in this guitar, but the Diver blows both of them away. The HD has that modern sound I like and stays transparent and tight with my low tunings. But now leadlines sing and the overall sound is much warmer, open and organic than with the PK. A true masterpiece!

Glad that you like it :-)

[ericsabbath]

best pickup in the contemporary line, imo

[Transcend]

I really need to try one of these HD's i wonder if Tim will do a ceramic one as i can't stand alnico for metal.

[explorer76]

best pickup in the contemporary line, imo

Indeed it is, so versatile, so punchy, but screams when it needs to!
Played my first show with the Diver last friday and it was like heaven!