What pickups for Variax JTV89?

[crispsandwich]

I've got a JTV Variax. It's the 89 model (24 frets, thin neck, Ibanez style). I love the guitar. The Variax tones are fantastic. The magnetic pickups are pretty good, but they lack sparkle and grunt. I'm looking for pickups that will sound great for clean and slightly-driven tones, but can also pull off then chug-chug stuff if needed (i.e. Dream Theater, old Metallica, Van Halen). The guitar itself is made of mahogany. Any suggestions?

Thanks :)

[Mr. Air]

Have a look at the VHII. I haven't tried it, but it's often described as having some really great cleans with a kind of a single coil character and it's an excellent rock machines as well.