New versatile bridge humbucker for 24.75" scale hss strat

[McBrain]

Hi,
I'm a long time lurker, but first time poster.

I need a new bridge pickup to replace the stock one in my medium scale (24.75") hss strat. Aside from the fact that it's got a Gibson scale neck, it's basically a normal strat with a slightly smaller alder body, maple neck and rosewood fretboard.

I would like it to be as versatile as possible since I use it to play anything from powerpop (Weezer) to Rock/Hardrock (AC/DC/Thin Lizzy) to grunge (Nirvana) to old school metal (Iron Maiden).

I don't need it to do thrash or death metal stuff. Got another guitar for that.

My first thought was to get a Dimarzio Norton, but since they are not available in europe in the double cream colour I needed, I decided to look elsewhere, so here I am.
After reading lots of reviews and forum posts, I think my choice is between the Holy Diver or the Alnico-Nailbomb. Would any of those be a good choice for my guitar and in terms of the versitility I need?

Thanks!

[Telerocker]

Holy Diver!

[Dave Sloven]

I have an A-bomb in an SG, and it does a mean AC/DC but a lousy Iron Maiden and Thin Lizzy.  It could probably manage a decent Nirvana.  Not sure how it would sound in your guitar but I'm thinking if you are choosing between those two the Holy Diver would be a safer bet. I'm guessing you could get a decent AC/DC tone out of it too if the settings on your pots, amp, and the rest of the signal chain are set right, but probably not quite as nasty as the A-bomb.  When I play AC/DC through the A-bomb in my SG the tone would be closest to that on the Powerage album, rather than the ones before it.

[Mr. Air]

I think there's a few contenders here. The Holydiver is a good option, but you could also look at the Crawler, Abraxas and VHII which are all in the vintage hot section - Come to think of it the Crawler might be in the contemporary section, but I think it's the least modern sounding of the lot in that category.

[McBrain]

Thanks! Sounds like the HD is the best choice of the two. Btw, it doesn't have to be one of the two I suggested. They just seemed like the best choices from what I read and heard. It also doesn't have to be BKPs, but I've been wanting to try one for a while. It will, however, have to be available in the EU in double cream.

Agent Orange: That definitely takes the A-Bomb out if the equation for me. I really need this guitar to pull off a convincing Maiden tone. The A-Bomb does, however, sound like a pickup I will have to check out sometime in the future.

Mr. Air: Judging by the clips, I'm afraid the Crawler won't be tight enough. Also, I like the clean tone of the HD better in the clips I've heard. As for the Abraxas and VH II I think I'm looking for something with a bit higher output. Also, I would like it to have an A5 magnet and the Abraxas are IV. But thanks a lot for your input!

[Slartibartfarst42]

For what you're after I have no doubt at all that it's a Holydiver you want. A pair of Trilogy Suites would go nicely with it too  :D

[Dave Sloven]

Agent Orange: That definitely takes the A-Bomb out if the equation for me. I really need this guitar to pull off a convincing Maiden tone. The A-Bomb does, however, sound like a pickup I will have to check out sometime in the future.

The A-bomb is really the pickup for playing aggressive '80s hardcore and '90s metal tones.  Sepultura's Chaos A.D. album is pretty much at the centre of its vocal range and the rest of the sounds you get out of it are variations on that, volume down or tone down can make a big difference but I have never found that it has that smoothness in its 'voice' that I think you need for Dave Murray type stuff.  The Holy Diver should be great for what you want to do for that guitar, but yeah keep the A-bomb in mind for those hard-edged tones that the Holy Diver might struggle with.  In terms of metal it is very good for certain '80s tones as well ... it has a voice that suits more raw sounding styles like Possessed or even early Sodom or Bathory if your amp is right, but without their low-fi sound (if that makes sense)

[McBrain]

I'm getting the HD. Thanks everyone!

A pair of Trilogy Suites would go nicely with it too  :D

Actually, I think I'm going noiseless with this one. Just have to decide if I want them to sound more like real singlecoils (Dimarzio Area 67s) or more like humbuckers (Dimarzio Chopper/Fast Track 1).

[Slartibartfarst42]

I've used both Trilogy Suites and Sinners - neither were noisy. Not quite as quite as DiMarzio or Seymour Duncan single coil sized humbuckers but there was surprisingly little in it and the BKP sounded vastly superior.