In search of the right BKP set

[Sinok PLA]

Hello everyone! This is my first post and I would really love some help from the veterans. :)

I have bought the A/Warpig set and A/Nailbomb set, but still can't find the tone I'm searching for, as my sound and play-style seemed to "choke" in bass and compression with these pickups .

I have a Gibson SG and Gibson Explorer, both full mahogany and rosewood board.

The style I play is a mix of 80's metal/rock with some modern aggression.

My band is influenced by Judas Priest, The Sword, Mercyful Fate, Down, Metallica,etc

I used 57 Classic and BB Pro and while both served me well, I needed to upgrade because i needed some more "balls" and less humming noise. My band mate plays with the SD JB set on his Gibson V, but while it sounds and plays awesome, it has something "soulless" in my ears.

My distortion pedal is CTC Black magic, my amp head is a Marshall JTM45/2245 30W, my strings are Ernie Ball Not even Slinky Cobalt and our tune is C Standard. The cab differs in what studio or gig I play.

So having in mind all this, I would like to hear your suggestions for the appropriate BKP pickups.

Cheers! :D

[Telerocker]

Cold Sweats (scooped tones) or Rebel Yells (agressive uppermids, not too much bass). 

[Dave Sloven]

I would agree.

Cold Sweats or Miracle Man for the SG.

Cold Sweat or Rebel Yell for the Explorer.

Actually I would probably say get a Cold Sweat set, try it out in both, and get back to us.  I'm sure you'll like it in both guitars, and you might end up ordering a second set the same.  The Rebel Yell will also work in each.  The Miracle Man might be a bit dark in the Explorer but has an excellent rep in SGs.

I have an SG with a  Cold Sweat set in it that I am very happy with.  I didn't like the A-Bomb in it for the kind of tones you are after.  I'm not sure which pickups you put it what, but I found the A-Bomb very good for '80s hardcore, especially the UK 82 sound associated with The Exploited etc.

I also have a Warpig set (with alnico bridge) in an Epiphone Explorer with the 'korina'  or limba body, which I believe might be *slightly* brighter than mahogany. I find it to be reasonably dark but it suits the styles I play in that guitar, which are a combination of crust punk, old school death metal, old grindcore, and doom.

I couldn't get a good Judas Priest sound out of the A-Bomb.  The Cold Sweat is nice for any JP stuff from Sad Wings of Destiny to Nostradamus

The only thing that throws me a bit is the tuning - doesn't sound very '80s rock to me, unless you count the most extreme acts of the late '80s like Autopsy and Entombed ... I think the CS will handle C standard well though.  The seven string versions of the Cold Sweat and Rebel Yell have been well-received.

[Alex]

Something from the Vintage Hot range should do!

[Sinok PLA]

I have the Apig on the SG and the Abomb in the Explorer. Neither works well, the bass drowns the clarity of the power chords and dynamics.

This is a sample of what we play and our sound: http://youtu.be/ER5D6KQCACs
I play with SG and the 57 classics on this.

I hope this video helps you to redirect what is the best choice to equip. :)

Side note: I want to avoid Ceramic cause I don't like the way it bites, I want the sound to be more 3D with depth and clarity.

Thanks for detailed replies <3

[ericsabbath]

first riff already caught me  :D
welcome to the forum

vhII sounded great in my gibson SG
for the explorer, the rebel yell might be worth a try

[richard]

I have a Gibson Firebird Studio that has a lot more in common with an Explorer than it does with a full blown Firebird - all mahogany with a set neck and rosewood board.

This is my guitar with Rebel Yells. Obviously nothing in common with the stuff you play but should give you an idea. I'm using a Cornford Roadhouse with the gain about half way up.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZtwUEr8v17Y

Here's the first gig I played with the RYs. I've adjusted them a bit since then.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ei7tXpewNUM


They are great pickups that will that take tons of gain. Liked your song. Reminded me of early Sabbath. Your SG sounds good. The low end on RYs is held back a bit - I love it because it has a lot of clarity. I hate mushy low end.

[Slartibartfarst42]

I agree that Cold Sweats will work well. It's much brighter than the Warpig and is a lot more open sounding but retains a distinctly 80's Metal feel to it in a different way to the Holydiver.

[Dave Sloven]

Yeah I think definitely the Cold Sweats for the SG and the Rebel Yell for the Explorer.

The Rebel Yell will give you all that you like from the Nailbomb but without that extra bass you don't need, and it's a little smoother sounding as well.  The Explorer body provides a lot of bass on its own.

The Cold Sweat does not sound especially 'ceramic' in sound.  It's cleans for example are excellent - I like them better than what I had with the A-Bomb, which people compliment on its cleans.

The neck pickup in both of these sets is exceptional.  Basically they are similar, but the Rebel Yell is a Cold Sweat modified to better fit with the Rebel Yell.  I find it hard to imagine that you wouldn't be happy with these two sets.  I had a listen to your clip and I think I could get a similar sound from my SG with the Cold Sweats

[ericsabbath]

the cold sweat sounds quite bassy in explorers, in my experience
and combined with body wood and size, there's a lot of low mids as well, although not as much as a nailbomb
I'd definitely pickup the rebel yell over the cold sweat in his case
maybe even an emerald

[Sinok PLA]

You guys are AWESOME! :D
Very helpful replies

I'm going for the Cold Sweats on my SG even though it's ceramic, I'm gonna let you know Agent Orange what I think, but I'm pretty sure they will be awesome. ;)

Richard, your clips where very helpful (and rockin' \,,/), so i'll go for the rebel yell. Though I would like to ask something first:

1: Does the bass get out of control? (in the nailbomb it does)
2: Does the palm muting sound close to the video I posted?

Thanks once again for your detailed replies. <3

[Lucas]

The Cold Sweat does not sound especially 'ceramic' in sound.  It's cleans for example are excellent - I like them better than what I had with the A-Bomb, which people compliment on its cleans.

I only have neck Cold Sweat, but I totally agree that it has amazing and excellent cleans, but neck version is an Alnico V one.

[Dave Sloven]

I have the set, and I was very surprised by the excellent clean sound in the bridge.  The clean sound in the neck is fatter and more rounded (and generally sounds more like a neck pickup!), but the cleans on the bridge are excellent and blend very well with those on the neck in the middle position.

[Lucas]

I found CS neck as bright, very clear, defined and crisp sounding pup. I match it with CBomb and to be honest, cannot complain on mid-position tone. I think in that position CS`s crispiness and bright character slightly dominates and stands out over rather darker sounding CBomb. To clarify I have mahogany body/neck, maple top and rosewood fingerboard guitar.

generally speaking very nice pup, highly recommended.

[Dave Sloven]

You guys are AWESOME! :D
Very helpful replies

I'm going for the Cold Sweats on my SG even though it's ceramic, I'm gonna let you know Agent Orange what I think, but I'm pretty sure they will be awesome. ;)

No worries, I hope you like them as much as I do.  They are very versatile in the SG.  Ben from BKP described them to me as 'the pro's choice' when I asked him which out of them and the Miracle Man set I should go for. I find that they can cover stuff from Thin Lizzy to Celtic Frost.  With the latter I just turn down the tone knob and I'm there.  If you were in an Accept cover band I would have recommended the A-Bomb, but other than Accept and a few other similar sounds I found that it didn't do metal that well in an SG, and sounded very hardcore most of the time.  People describe it as '90s metal but there's a lot of '80s hardcore in '90s metal and that's what I could hear ... Sepultura was the main metal band I heard in it.  The Cold Sweat bridge has a much broader range in metal and rock.

I don't think you can go wrong with a Cold Sweat and a Rebel Yell playing alongside a bandmate with a JB.  Ben from BKP suggested both of those for a friend of mine who plays alongside a guy with the SD Jazz/JB combination in a Les Paul Standard.  You'll definitely be able to sit nicely alongside him in the rhythm parts and then blow him away with your lead sound ;)