Best BKPs for classic Slayer

[Dave Sloven]

I have a quick question which I'm sure has come up before but I am wondering what the consensus might be now.  I often read people saying stuff that boils down to Slayer=EMGs but on their classic albums of the 1980s they did not use EMGs.  These are something that came into their sound after Reign in Blood, maybe with South of Heaven but it seems there was a period when they weren't consistently using EMGs - as late as Seasons in the Abyss - or only one guitarist (Hanneman?) was using them and the other (King?) wasn't.  From Decades of Aggression onwards its EMGs all the way but we all know that the quality of their work also dropped off at that point and they certainly weren't the only ones using EMGs!  For a while everyone in metal seemed to be using them, even Venom when they reformed for Cast in Stone in 1996 (the guitar sound on that album is awful and very much Venom trying to update their sound).

So it's clear that Slayer does not equal EMGs and I wondering what BKPs people think are closest to the sounds of stuff like Show No Mercy, Haunting the Chapel, Hell Awaits, and Reign in Blood?  These seem to be the most likely candidates:

Holy Diver
Cold Sweat

A bit further out:

Miracle Man

Wild guess:

Rebel Yell?

Later Slayer sound: Black Hawk, Miracle Man, or Painkiller?

Anyway interested to see what people here think.

EDIT: Here are some clips from their early albums (in order)

Slayer - Die By The Sword

Slayer - Aggressive Perfector (Haunting the Chapel) [HQ]

Slayer - Necrophiliac

Slayer - Raining Blood

Slayer - Dissident Aggressor (HQ)

slayer-dead skin mask

[Dr.Pain]

They were using DiMarzio's and I think they were super d's.  I asked they guys at BKP a while ago what's the closest they have to a super d and they said aftermath.  Ceramic magnet that's dry is typical of a super d and the aftermath offers this but they don't have anything exactly the same.

[Sarkasis]

I've gotten classic Slayer tones with the Holydiver. I think I would pick that before the Cold Sweat if you wanted that slightly softer attack, smoother, midrangey 80s thrash sound. I don't think a ceramic bridge is quite what you want, since those tones certainly weren't as hard-edged on the palm mutes as some of the modern voiced BKP ceramics. I haven't had a Cold Sweat bridge but I feel like the HD would be the choice unless you wanted a slightly different take on that sound.

[Dave Sloven]

I have a Cold Sweat now but I haven't tried getting a Slayer tone out of it yet.

As I have an SG the Holy Diver isn't the best option, actually the Cold Sweat is probably the closest to it in terms of pickups around the same output that don't mud up in an SG (otherwise I might well have bought a Holy Diver set).  I should be able to coax Slayer tones out of it.  I've been getting fairly decent Celtic Frost tones out of it - much better than I could get with the A-Bomb - by rolling off the tone control (a 500K CTS pot) back to 6 or so.

The Cold Sweat bridge is quite bright in my guitar and for a lot of stuff I have to roll the tone knob back slightly.  Slayer is probably the same deal, though I'd say not as far as for Celtic Frost.  Although people have this idea that ceramics can't do good cleans of the three BKP bridge pickups I've had - alnico Nailbomb, alnico Warpig, and ceramic Cold Sweat - the CS has the nicest cleans, almost as nice as the CS neck and they sound great in the middle position.

[Slartibartfarst42]

The Aftermath is often cited as being closest to the Super D but if you want a slightly more organic version of it, why don't you look at the new Juggernaut?

[Dave Sloven]

I don't need to get it exact, I just want a passable Slayer tone close to that on Show No Mercy and Hell Awaits.  I only have two humbucker guitars ... I think I'm just going to try my best with the Cold Sweats.  The question was in part out of curiousity, although I am surprised when people suggest the Painkiller and Aftermath as I haven't heard much by way of clips of them getting those kinds of sounds (this is less true relative to the Painkiller, but the Aftermath I've mainly heard stuff that sounded like djent or mathcore).

Have you tried getting those sounds from your Holy Diver Slart?

[Slartibartfarst42]

I'm afraid Slayer isn't really my thing so it's not something I've ever tried. I have, however, just devoted some time to listening to some Slayer tracks, including 'Show No Mercy' to try to make sure I'm saying the right thing. Their tone is certainly dry, hence the suggestion of an Aftermath is entirely logical and there seems to be a fair bit of compression going on there too. The Cold Sweat may be a bit too open sounding for that tone so of your top two suggestions, I'd say the Holydiver would be more likely as it's thicker and carries a bit more compression. Having said that, I still feel that based on the limited amount we know so far, the Juggernaut would be my first port of call.

[JimmyMoorby]

Maybe a distortion pedal is more what you need?  I bet the painkiller would be cool as would many others tbf but it just depends on the guitar.  Cold sweat and nailbomb also spring to mind but its mainly down to a distortion pedal or the amp for that kinda authentic 80's sound most of those bands had similar tones bordering on harsh

[Dave Sloven]

Yeah back in the early '80s the distortion came mainly from pedals and not from the amp itself.   The high-gain amps by Soldano, Peavey, Mesa etc were all in the future.  I wonder what pedal?  Maybe a Boss HM-2?  I will have to look into this more.  The Boss DS-1 though seems like a more obvious one for them to have used.

To be honest I am more interested in developing my own sound and early Slayer is just one of several reference points.  I'm not in a Slayer cover band or anything, it's just a sound that I like, and I like it much better than the sound they started to use after Seasons in the Abyss.

[GuitarIv]

I can just give you the Kill 'em all Metallica recipe that worked: Marshall JCM 800 boosted with a Pro Co Rat Overdrive Pedal

Cheers

[Dave Sloven]

That reminds me - is there a pedalboard-friendly equivalent of a Pro Co Rat?

[JimmyMoorby]

I can just give you the Kill 'em all Metallica recipe that worked: Marshall JCM 800 boosted with a Pro Co Rat Overdrive Pedal

Cheers

Word.

Therell be many other alternatives but this is tiny, cheap and good.

http://www.mooeraudio.com/en/ProductInfo.asp?id=30

[Dave Sloven]

I'm guessing I could probably get close through the 'rhythm' (clean) channel of my 6534+ with this little pedal, cheers! The pedals are very close in the following clip:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8zuCV0_yAnQ

[Dr.Pain]

I wouldn't go a HM-2 for a slayer type tone.  Maybe look at a MXR Zakk Wylde over drive.  I use the MXR KFK eq mid range boost into my HT-5 and the guitar I use has EMG X series 81/60.  I know that's not the older tone you're looking for but it works for me.  I tried it with my Les Paul and it doesn't sound too bad for older stuff.

This gives me a chance to post some Slayer too. :)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w65dTBb7HaY

[Dave Sloven]

I love that song!