Help for BKP choice for a LP studio: Aftermath or Miracle Man or...?

[fenril06]

Good afternoon guys!

just seeking your advice here, as the more I read, the more I get lost :P
I have a couple of guitars now and especially 2 Gibson Les Paul Studio. I want to keep the oldest one as it is but would like to change the newest one s pickups for something a bit meany. Talking about the bridge here only (the neck will stick with a duncan 59). I play mostly classic rock with my band but when on my own, I m quite into metal stuff and I quite love the sound of Periphery.
My rig is H&K tubemeister with EQ MXR 10 bands in the loop and a HT Dist X in the front that I barely use.

Obviously I was quite after the aftermath but I have the opportunity to get a miracle man. Just that when I see the EQ, i m afraid it would be too bassy in a Gibson LP? I like organic and warm sound (I got rid of my EMG, not my cup of tea) but I want something that has balls and when you play with some high gain, the chords do not turn into a big noise :)

Obviously, I m not an expert, just seeking some guidance from the people who will definitely know better than me!
Thanks in advance

[Slartibartfarst42]

The Aftermath is very modern, dry and super tight. It would be great for the Periphery stuff, which is why I guess you mentioned it but less so for the more Classic Rock material you do with your band. It's great at what it does but certainly not the most versatile pickup in the world so I'd look elsewhere.

The Miracle Man has more of an 80's Metal feel to it but with some of the tightness and aggression of more modern tones. It's thick and smooth. I find it can do some very good Classic Rock sounds if you like your Classic Rock to have a more modern edge and aggression to it. It's great at 80's Metal and the tightness and aggression allows it to move into more modern tones. It's certainly not a one trick pony. It's not an overly dark pickup but the lower mids help to give it a very thick sound. I can confirm that the Miracle Man is organic and warm but has real balls. Like all Bare Knuckle pickups, it is highly articulate and won't mush at all. I doubt you'd be disappointed in the Miracle Man, it really is a very good pickup.

Another alternative that I feel may be better suited to your needs than the Aftermath is the Holydiver. Like the Miracle Man it's thick, warm, smooth and organic only more so than the Miracle Man. It seems to work in pretty much any guitar. It doesn't have the natural tightness and aggressive edge of the Miracle Man so it's more obviously an 80's Metal pickup that will do great Classic Rock but it also loves overdrive so with a decent boost pedal it will take you towards those more modern tones. Like all other BKP, it simply doesn't turn to mush even with some pretty high gain settings.

Personally, I think either the Miracle Man or Holydiver are your best options. The Holydiver is a VERY versatile pickup in any guitar. The Miracle Man isn't quite as versatile but does give more of a nod towards your more modern tones.

[richard]

I'd really like a Holy Diver but I'd put it in a Strat. It's recommended for bright/bolt on guitars. I've heard some clips of HDs in a Les Paul and, while it sounded great, it sounded like it might be a touch too smooth to cut through a mix at a gig. Rebel Yells on the other hand are designed for LPs/set neck/ darker guitars and were Tim's recommendation for my Firebird Studio which is a huge lump of mahogany with a set neck.  Tim was spot on.

The RYs are aggressive, punchy and just a joy to play. If your LP Studios are all mahogany without a maple cap don't discount the RY. Or even if they do have a Maple cap. I play in a gigging classic rock band myself and I think that the other pups you've mentioned would possibly be a little too metal for the classic stuff.

[Toe-Knee]

THe miracle man will do what you need but I have had issues in LP type guitars with it being too bassy but the high end can balance this out to a degree as the high end is fairly in your face.

The aftermath I would say is more versatile. It does appear to be a one trick pony but it really isn't it can cover quite a lot of ground if you are creative with your amp controls and with you having an EQ also you should be able to cover a lot of ground. My main gripe with it is how dry it is. This can lead for it to be quite tough at times to get a really saturated sound without excessive boosting,

[fenril06]

Hmm I see, thanks for this so far guys! The problem is that most often when I play in a band it s more classic rock. But for me I am more a metal guy. That s why I thought I d keep the classic 498T on one gibson and make the other one a bit more metal for my pleasure. However I do not want to do the mistake I did once with my jackson RR, where I put some EMG and ended up doing nothing but metal with it.
Heard about the rebel yell a bit as well but never about the holy diver! Initially I wanted to go for the nailbomb Alnico. Then I saw the miracle and the aftermath... And every time I listen to the samples on the site, I just think they all sound great :p

[Toe-Knee]

Well the miracle man can also do classic rock but it would have more oomph which can be great if that's your thing.

It's really hard choosing pickups as everyones idea of good for X is kinda different and well its hard to actually try before you buy.

[ElectricTurkey4369]

I have a Holydiver in a LP studio as well, and as far as I can tell, it has no difficulties cutting through the mix. In fact, it's very balanced (with the exception of a slight mid bump) and well-voiced for any genre you throw at it. I love the HD so much I ordered one for my 7 string guitar. It definitely has become "my" pickup.

[WeAreNotGentlemen]

Blackhawks are great for the the Periphery II album sound. Not so much for the first album. They can also do classic rock very well and I'd actually say they get saturated really easily. Just throwing it out there as an option.

[fenril06]

Black hawk? Never thought about this one. Funny from the specs it does not look that hot.
Guys you are making it difficult :p Agree with you Toe-Knee, it s quite a pain all the time to choose a pickup...Everyone has his opinion but since you cannot buy all of them and try, it s still good to get some opinion. I think that in general I liked the clarity and agression of my EMG, but it really lacked tonal character. Funny that even people who were not musician at all, always told me after a gig that the gibson sounded better than the one with the EMG.

[Toe-Knee]

If you liked what you got from the EMG you will really bond with the miracle man quite easily.

It's not the same but it has kinda all the good points but with a lot more character and uniqueness.

[Slartibartfarst42]

I think that in general I liked the clarity and agression of my EMG, but it really lacked tonal character.

Then there is no doubt at all that you'd absolutely love the Miracle Man. It has both clarity and aggression but the thick, smooth and warm characteristics that go with that give it its own personality. The biggest surprise of the Miracle Man is just how much tonal character it actually has. The clarity and aggression you could expect from a top drawer ceramic pickup but it drips tone in a way I would only have expected from an alnico pickup. When I got mine, I was amazed at how close it was to the Holydiver in terms of tone. Given the name of the pickup, I expected something far more generic, like an EMG but it's like it has all of the best qualities with none of the drawbacks.

[WeAreNotGentlemen]

^^^^^

Those two posts. +1

[ericsabbath]

you could replace the 498t of the other studio with a holy diver
it's just slightly hotter, but way clearer and doesn't get muddy under gain
much more versatile than the 498t, as it cleans up better and does metal just as well as the other higher output models

[itamar101]

I'd really like a Holy Diver but I'd put it in a Strat. It's recommended for bright/bolt on guitars. I've heard some clips of HDs in a Les Paul and, while it sounded great, it sounded like it might be a touch too smooth to cut through a mix at a gig. Rebel Yells on the other hand are designed for LPs/set neck/ darker guitars and were Tim's recommendation for my Firebird Studio which is a huge lump of mahogany with a set neck.  Tim was spot on.

The RYs are aggressive, punchy and just a joy to play. If your LP Studios are all mahogany without a maple cap don't discount the RY. Or even if they do have a Maple cap. I play in a gigging classic rock band myself and I think that the other pups you've mentioned would possibly be a little too metal for the classic stuff.

I have no problems with the HD cutting through the mix in a LP. Its one of the few pickups that work well in any guitar.

[fenril06]

Thank you all for your share of experience. For now I think I ll stick with the miracle man for this gibson. Then maybe I ll be tempted to try another one ;-) Especially looks like the holy diver gets some good feedback here.