Neck question

[Slartibartfarst42]

I was looking over some of the reviews in Kiichi's excellent review thread and I found myself very curious about the neck versions of the Miracle Man and Warpig as there aren't any reviews for either of them and it struck me that they're pickups we very rarely mention. I wondered if anyone could shed any light on a few questions:

1) Are these much the same pickup? I only ask because they're both alnico V, they both use  45 polysol wire and they both have a DC resistance of 17.4

2) Could anyone provide some details on what these are like? Full reviews would be ideal.

3) Due to the very high output of these pickups, can they only really be used with their matching bridge pickups? Could I, for instance, not use them with a Holydiver bridge?

Thanks

[fps_dean]

Honestly, I have no idea but typically a neck pickup would sound a little thinner in the bridge slot, but it might work.

I'm sure you'd be better off getting a pickup designed for the bridge even so.

I'd be interested to hear a recording if anyone has tried this.

[Slartibartfarst42]

Sorry, that's not what I meant. I am curious about them as neck pickups so I wondered what they're like in that role and if they could be used with other bridge pickups like, for example, a Holydiver.

[Philly Q]

I can only answer the first question, I'm pretty sure they are the same pickup apart from having different polepieces.

I seem to recall a very (very) old thread in which Tim explained how the Miracle Man neck and bridge work as a calibrated set, despite having very similar DC resistance - which suggests the MM neck may not have a very high perceived output, despite the high DC.

And that's the sum total of my knowledge, I'm afraid.

[Dave Sloven]

The Warpigs are currently out of my Explorer as I am in the process of completing the shielding and having a full custom harness made and SD Triple Shots fitted, so I can't play it at the moment and I don't want to make a final comment until these changes have been made, but this is what I know so far.

1) With a high-gain amp like my Peavey there is no real clean. The output is so high that even on the 6534+ rhythm channel - the cleanest of the 5150 series amps - the guitar sounds like my Cold Sweat with the tube screamer on as a boost, in other words it always has a warm, slightly overdriven sound.  When I have the ability to split the coils on the neck with the Triple Shots I'll let you all know if that improves the cleans, but I would strongly suggest installing a coil tap on the neck pickup at least on a Warpig set.

2) I have no idea why you would want to use this neck pickup with a Holy Diver bridge!  I imagine it would be very overbearing. I have not tested it in the same guitar with my Cold Sweat or A-Bomb bridge pickups but the idea never occurred to me. The neck values are lower than the bridge ones in order to compensate for the differences in string vibration.  I would think you would be happier with the Rebel Yell neck if the Holy Diver neck does not appeal to you. From what I can tell it is a slightly warmer sounding version of the Cold Sweat neck

[Slartibartfarst42]

It's not that I'm personally interested; it was a purely academic question. They're not pickups that have any reviews but I vaguely recall someone saying they're both great neck pickups. If that's the case, it just seemed a shame if the only bridge pickups you could use them with were the Miracle Man and Warpig.