the mule neck + holy diver bridge

[Miracle Man]

can you go into how it was having the mule and the hd bridge together. like jumping from one tot he other is there a huge amount of difference? can you get away from going from a mule ryhtym tone to an hd bridge lead rockin tone. without much of a spike in volume increase?

In a nutshell, the HD bridge is quite agressive while the Mule neck is mellow. In fact, for my taste, it's too mellow. Going from HD to Mule can get you lost in the mix and you have to step on a boost pedal to get the same amount of output/saturation. If you set up the neck Mule as your main tone then going to the HD bridge will give you more output, cut and aggressiveness but also a harder feel with more compression.

[LaoTzu]

id really love sound clips from these two together

[TheyCallMeVolume]

I think they're just too far away from each other on the sound spectrum to be a really good match. I would rethink this and stick mainly to a more vintage area or a more contemporary area. Vintage and vintage hot pickups can pair really well together and get some sweet tones, and some contemporary and vintage hot pickups work well too. Is the mellow neck sound more important to you or is the aggressive bridge sound more important? I would pick one and then go from there.

[LaoTzu]

I think they're just too far away from each other on the sound spectrum to be a really good match. I would rethink this and stick mainly to a more vintage area or a more contemporary area. Vintage and vintage hot pickups can pair really well together and get some sweet tones, and some contemporary and vintage hot pickups work well too. Is the mellow neck sound more important to you or is the aggressive bridge sound more important? I would pick one and then go from there.

maybe a hd neck are they alright?

[itamar101]

If you want something vintage sounding but a better match for the HD then you'll really enjoy the emerald. They work excellently together.

[TheyCallMeVolume]

If you want something vintage sounding but a better match for the HD then you'll really enjoy the emerald. They work excellently together.

+1 for that, Emerald does match well with quite a few contemporary pickups. However, like Troy said earlier, I too think that matched sets are just your best bet overall as they were made to match up. The HD is a very vintagey pickup like others have stated and playing with volume and tone knobs can easily take you into Mule territory if need be.

[LaoTzu]

If you want something vintage sounding but a better match for the HD then you'll really enjoy the emerald. They work excellently together.

+1 for that, Emerald does match well with quite a few contemporary pickups. However, like Troy said earlier, I too think that matched sets are just your best bet overall as they were made to match up. The HD is a very vintagey pickup like others have stated and playing with volume and tone knobs can easily take you into Mule territory if need be.

i do love how the neck sounds on the neck mule tho from the clips it sounds like thats the right neck humbucker. as for the bridge im not so sure. coz i want it to scream rock. so far its the nailbomb (which is chunky, doesnt cut through the mid range as much as id like) the holy diver (which sounds Rock, i wonder about pinch harmonics and riffage i really want the bridge to cut through but not tear your ears off like a fender amp, think intial cut into your face then a nice after effect.) the rebel yell (to me it sounds great but the sounding great thing covers alot of the playing so im not so sure on the dynamics of the thing as im all about the playing is in the fingers.)

i checked out the emerald it doesnt make me feel a connection to the sound.

for pure tone i love the mules but for a more in your face rock/metal sound on the bridge id like something like an amplified Mule with more hair around the edges.

[itamar101]

If you want something vintage sounding but a better match for the HD then you'll really enjoy the emerald. They work excellently together.

+1 for that, Emerald does match well with quite a few contemporary pickups. However, like Troy said earlier, I too think that matched sets are just your best bet overall as they were made to match up. The HD is a very vintagey pickup like others have stated and playing with volume and tone knobs can easily take you into Mule territory if need be.

i do love how the neck sounds on the neck mule tho from the clips it sounds like thats the right neck humbucker. as for the bridge im not so sure. coz i want it to scream rock. so far its the nailbomb (which is chunky, doesnt cut through the mid range as much as id like) the holy diver (which sounds Rock, i wonder about pinch harmonics and riffage i really want the bridge to cut through but not tear your ears off like a fender amp, think intial cut into your face then a nice after effect.) the rebel yell (to me it sounds great but the sounding great thing covers alot of the playing so im not so sure on the dynamics of the thing as im all about the playing is in the fingers.)

i checked out the emerald it doesnt make me feel a connection to the sound.

for pure tone i love the mules but for a more in your face rock/metal sound on the bridge id like something like an amplified Mule with more hair around the edges.

The HD is excellent for riff age and cuts through easily. The rebel yell is excellent and will not "cover up your playing". It makes your tone better, not your playing. If anything, bkps make mistakes and how you use your fingers MORE evident. The whole "tone is in the fingers yet I want a new pickup" is a bit contradictory.

I stick by the suggestion of an Emerald neck and holy diver bridge if you want that vintage neck sound but a slightly more powerful and modern bridge tone. The emerald is jut an overwound vintage style pickup and the AIV magnet will make it sound rather similar to the mule.

[LaoTzu]

If you want something vintage sounding but a better match for the HD then you'll really enjoy the emerald. They work excellently together.

+1 for that, Emerald does match well with quite a few contemporary pickups. However, like Troy said earlier, I too think that matched sets are just your best bet overall as they were made to match up. The HD is a very vintagey pickup like others have stated and playing with volume and tone knobs can easily take you into Mule territory if need be.

i do love how the neck sounds on the neck mule tho from the clips it sounds like thats the right neck humbucker. as for the bridge im not so sure. coz i want it to scream rock. so far its the nailbomb (which is chunky, doesnt cut through the mid range as much as id like) the holy diver (which sounds Rock, i wonder about pinch harmonics and riffage i really want the bridge to cut through but not tear your ears off like a fender amp, think intial cut into your face then a nice after effect.) the rebel yell (to me it sounds great but the sounding great thing covers alot of the playing so im not so sure on the dynamics of the thing as im all about the playing is in the fingers.)

i checked out the emerald it doesnt make me feel a connection to the sound.

for pure tone i love the mules but for a more in your face rock/metal sound on the bridge id like something like an amplified Mule with more hair around the edges.

The HD is excellent for riff age and cuts through easily. The rebel yell is excellent and will not "cover up your playing". It makes your tone better, not your playing. If anything, bkps make mistakes and how you use your fingers MORE evident. The whole "tone is in the fingers yet I want a new pickup" is a bit contradictory.

I stick by the suggestion of an Emerald neck and holy diver bridge if you want that vintage neck sound but a slightly more powerful and modern bridge tone. The emerald is jut an overwound vintage style pickup and the AIV magnet will make it sound rather similar to the mule.

its not contradictory i just want the best pickups in my new guitar its what i do with my guitars customise them then play. im not too convince on the emerald neck tbh. doesnt sound as warm as the mule.

[Miracle Man]

its not contradictory i just want the best pickups in my new guitar its what i do with my guitars customise them then play. im not too convince on the emerald neck tbh. doesnt sound as warm as the mule.

Sounds to me like you really want us to tell you that the neck Mule will work great with the bridge HD, so you might as well go for it. I gave you my opinion but I guess you should follow your gut  :) I'm predominantly a rock player and I like to get some bite and sustain out of the neck pickup. I guess the neck Mule isn't the best choice for me but perhaps it will work out great for you.

[LaoTzu]

its not contradictory i just want the best pickups in my new guitar its what i do with my guitars customise them then play. im not too convince on the emerald neck tbh. doesnt sound as warm as the mule.

Sounds to me like you really want us to tell you that the neck Mule will work great with the bridge HD, so you might as well go for it. I gave you my opinion but I guess you should follow your gut  :) I'm predominantly a rock player and I like to get some bite and sustain out of the neck pickup. I guess the neck Mule isn't the best choice for me but perhaps it will work out great for you.

yeh its just that its alot of money to be wrong about

[Miracle Man]

yeh its just that its alot of money to be wrong about

Absolutely! That's why I'm sharing my experience in hope that you will avoid making the same mistake I made. I love the neck Mule and I love the bridge HD. It just so happens that they don't work particularly well together in the same guitar. I don't have experience with other BKPs like the Nailbomb or Abraxas, but, on paper at least, some other models might suit you. Maybe you should be looking at the Abraxas set? As I understand, the bridge unit is a fat overwound Mule - still sweet with great cleans but can also get down and dirty. And the neck Abraxas is supposedly very close to a Mule (correct me please if I'm wrong). I know HTH is very fond of the Abraxas even for heavy stuff.

[LaoTzu]

yeh its just that its alot of money to be wrong about

Absolutely! That's why I'm sharing my experience in hope that you will avoid making the same mistake I made. I love the neck Mule and I love the bridge HD. It just so happens that they don't work particularly well together in the same guitar. I don't have experience with other BKPs like the Nailbomb or Abraxas, but, on paper at least, some other models might suit you. Maybe you should be looking at the Abraxas set? As I understand, the bridge unit is a fat overwound Mule - still sweet with great cleans but can also get down and dirty. And the neck Abraxas is supposedly very close to a Mule (correct me please if I'm wrong). I know HTH is very fond of the Abraxas even for heavy stuff.

i was originally advised to put in the mule and the nailbomb apparently tim on the phone say they go well together even tho there output differences. so maybe it works in other guitars other than yours?

[Miracle Man]

i was originally advised to put in the mule and the nailbomb apparently tim on the phone say they go well together even tho there output differences. so maybe it works in other guitars other than yours?

Perhaps it is only my guitar that's the problem... My opinion was also about the HD/Mule combo, not the Nailbomb. The NB/Mule set might work great as far as I know, but you asked for opinions regarding the HD/Mule combo and that's what you got from me - only an opinion  :)

[LaoTzu]

i was originally advised to put in the mule and the nailbomb apparently tim on the phone say they go well together even tho there output differences. so maybe it works in other guitars other than yours?

Perhaps it is only my guitar that's the problem... My opinion was also about the HD/Mule combo, not the Nailbomb. The NB/Mule set might work great as far as I know, but you asked for opinions regarding the HD/Mule combo and that's what you got from me - only an opinion  :)

yeh of course im just thinking in terms of different magnets and output. as there simular output.