BKP Recommendation for PRS

[albertroc]

Hello,
After a couple of years with my PRS Custom 24, I decided it was time for a change in tone.
I've grown a bit tired of the HFS Bridge pickup that I use mostly for distorted tones, there's something to be lacking with it, it doesn't sound that clear or tight, and it also doesn't sound pretty when playing on the clean channel :s and since I'm looking to swap it, I'm also going for the neck pickup :P
I tune one step down to D standard and I play mostly metal, but I'm also into rock and blues.
I use the neck pickup for cleans since it usually doesn't respond that well to heavy distortion.

I really like Mikael Akerfeldt kind of warm cleans, especially those in the Blackwater Park and Ghost Reveries albums. I'm not that into those glassy cleans a la Periphery,
I also like same era Opeth distorted sound, but I also like Periphery (II) guitar tone and The Haunted's One Kill Wonder... but I'd also like to get that warm drive like ZZ Top. I know it's like too much to ask LOL :D

What I really want is versatile pickups that can also deliver metal. I think my distorted tone is lacking clarity and my cleans are OK but I'd also like to be able to use the neck pickup with distortion without it sounding like a wall of mud.
What pickups would you recommend in order to start checking them out?
Thanks in advance!!!

[Telerocker]

Hi and welcome!
Rebel Yell for the bridge is a good option. If you play with the guitars vol.knob you can achieve more classic sounds. The RY does metal well.
If you want a rounder topend: Holy Diver.
Neck: Cold Sweat for fluid leads and pristine cleans, or Emerald-neck with a bit more vintage touch, but handles gain very well.

[Djentleman!]

How tight are you looking for? I recently put a set of Aftermaths in the same guitar and love em. At first I wasn't sure whether or not I liked them, because the HFS was ALOT warmer sounding than the Aftermaths. If you're looking for awesomely clear distortion no matter how much gain, I really recommend the Aftermaths for the Periphery sound. Opeth is a looser, beefier sound, and for that I'd recommend checking out the Miracle Man, I've heard it's a monstrous sound with a pretty good amount of clarity and alot of low end (albeit less tight than the Aftermath or Painkiller). I will foreworn you that the Aftermath isn't the most versatile PUP, but I have been able to get some sweet blues and rock tones with the right amp settings and messing with the coil splits (I have the 5-way rotary switch). What's your PUP selector because there's various PUPs like the Miracle Man that sound awesome with a split. Other people know infinitely more than me regarding how BKPs sound split, so I'll let them do the talking with that.

Another one to bear in mind is the Alnico Nailbomb. I'm thinking about actually swapping out the Aftermath bridge I've got for one of those because I tend to like Alnico better than ceramic. I strongly recommend figuring out whether or not you want ceramic or alnico PUPs for the bridge. I find ceramics to be rather cold sounding, like in the Aftermath for example, and it's great for a tight, distorted tone. The HFS is also ceramic. Here's a good video by Nolly showing the differences: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X2kvQkpz5sM

You might actually wanna check out the Abraxas for a neck option. They sound absolutely stellar clean, very warm like what you're going for. It's more of a vintage sound but vintage usually goes hand in hand with warm (tube amp vs Axe FX is the ultimate example).
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qfANqu0k3qw

I also recommend emailing Tim at BKP telling him everything you want in your sound, as well as your guitar and rig specs. He's going to obviously know way more than I do about these things, and I'm still new to BKPs, but if you're curious about the Aftermaths I could give you an essay on them  :P

[Slartibartfarst42]

If you want a really versatile set, I'd say Holydiver bridge and Emerald neck. It's the combination I use and I love it as I can use it for pretty much anything. The Emerald cleans are superb and without match in my experience but it can also take gain really well. The Holydiver is fat and smooth but with plenty of articulation and stick an overdrive in front of your amp and it really starts to growl. Beautiful lead tone too. If you want a bridge pickup that's a bit tighter and more aggressive but in the same tonal ballpark, try the Miracle Man bridge, though the cleans aren't quite so good on that one. Mind you, you'll have the Emerald in the neck for that  :D

[ericsabbath]

sounds like a rebell or nailbomb job
rebel yell being brighter and middier, nailbomb being darker and heavier on the bass and low mids
both should work pretty well

[albertroc]

Thank you all for the inputs!  :D
It's great to know where to start, I'll be looking deeply into the topic during this next few day in order to finally make up my mind.
Seems like I'll start with the Emerald/Cold Sweat in the Neck and the Rebel Yell/Nailbomb/Holy Diver/Miracle man/Aftermath!
It's better to start with these than with the whole enchilada  :P
Hope to make up my mind soon!

[TheyCallMeVolume]

My vote goes to the RY.

[darkbluemurder]

I have had the same complaints about the HFS - lows too loose, slightly nasal midrange and not enough clarity overall. I have a Holydiver in my PRS right now (well that right now is more than two years now), and this is what I would recommend if you want to retain the midrange warmth and push of the HFS but want more clarity and get rid of that nasalness. If you need more cut in the highs, Rebel Yell would be it. The Miracle Man would provide more output than the Holydiver (probably as much as the HFS). The Alnico Nailbomb would offer a bit more grunt than the Holydiver if that's what you want.

As regards the neck pickup, I have the Cold Sweat neck in there which works very well with the Holydiver bridge. It would certainly work as well with the Rebel Yell bridge since the Rebel Yell neck is similar. The Emerald neck has been used and praised by several people here. And if you have the 5-way rotary switch, I would also consider the VHII neck as an alternative, too. The reason why I once stated that I did not like the HD/VHII combination as much was the tone of both pickups together which was not distinct enough from the neck pickup alone. That could have been due to the guitar though. Volume and tonally they match well on an individual basis though, and the 5-way rotary in its stock form does not offer both pickups as humbuckers together. The HD/VHII combination has also been used successfully by at least one forum member.

Cheers Stephan

[darrenw5094]

I have had the same complaints about the HFS - lows too loose, slightly nasal midrange and not enough clarity overall. I have a Holydiver in my PRS right now (well that right now is more than two years now), and this is what I would recommend if you want to retain the midrange warmth and push of the HFS but want more clarity and get rid of that nasalness. If you need more cut in the highs, Rebel Yell would be it. The Miracle Man would provide more output than the Holydiver (probably as much as the HFS). The Alnico Nailbomb would offer a bit more grunt than the Holydiver if that's what you want.

Cheers Stephan

I have been droning on about this nasel mid range from the PRS CU24 for a while now. I think it's the guitar, but pickups might show this even more. The HFS is very bassy and loose at that. Any BKP would be tighter than the HFS mess, but maybe the Cold Sweat is the one to cancel out the mids.

[lebowski77]

I have an Alnico nailbomb set in my PRS single cut and they're really nice and warm and organic and versatile. They would sound great for your cleans and will have the nice warm Opeth gain sound. Other than that, to combat the mid range maybe go for a miracle man bridge and cold sweat neck. Or go for a ceramic nailbomb for something in between. 

[ericsabbath]

the miracle would definitely be a great improvement over the HFS without going any hotter
not sure it would do a proper classic zz top, but wouldn't sound bad either
definitely a glassier top and much more open midrange than the HFS
if you're main purpose is metal and more modern rock stuff, the miracle man is a real badass in PRS guitars and one of the most surpringly versatile pickups I've played (n fact, I find it to be a little more versatile than the nailbomb, which is usually known as the jack of all trades model)