New Guy - same old question

[Kevin B]

Well hello everyone here.

I have to come clean, I have been lurking for a few weeks, reading the posts listening etc.....

I have come to the conclusion that the consensus here is that for a SRV / Texas Bluesy strat sound = Irish tour.  Also for a very versatile strat = Irish tour.  I also get the feeling that for a Chicargo blues sound the recomendation would be = Irish tour   :D
Mmmmm.  Maybe I will order some in a little while... 8)
But what about Eric Johnson type tone?

What I am actually looking for is Humbucker recomendations.
The offending guitar is a mid 80's PRS standard, solid mahogany (a 20yr old in fact).  The guitar feels and plays great, but the sound is sort of generic 80's.   The pickups are (I think) HFS bridge and a vintage bass neck. My amps are a Lighting clone and a JTM45 reissue.

What I am looking for is a more Clapton Blues Breakers (Beno album), also getting into Billy Gibbons ZZtop tones would be nice .  What I do not want are High output pickups, so  am I right in thinking Stormy Monday's, Mules, or VHII's.  Is there any recomended combinations for neck or bridge preference, or specifics for a particular sound?

This kind of question has come up many times before, reading the forum, maybe a chart of the suitable uses of each BK pickup should be drawn up which lists the sort of sounds it produces? Just an idea, please don't flame me if its a bad one :lol:

Regards all

Kevin

[carlaz]

At the risk of starting another thread where everyone recommends Mules, I going to put those as my first recommendation :), mostly because Mules are good all-round PAF-style humbuckers.

Also, I observe that the SD Pearly Gates pups were modeled for a Billy Gibbons vibe, and Warren Haynes is a user (sometimes, at least) of the Pearly Gates pups, and the BKP Mules are (of course) made with a Warren Haynes vibe in mind.  OK, that argument is both silly and circular, but we're talking subjectives so I'm gonna make it anyway. :P

The Stormy Mondays might work well for a Bluebreakers thang, but I think the Mules will cover you pretty well there and do perhaps a better job of breaking into Tejas territory.

[jt]

:D I would have to recommend both the Mules & the VHII`s [ i`ve got both ] Both can do the blues thing really really well. The VHII will give you slightly more gain. But it has a wonderfull vintage type tone to it. The Mules are fantastic very very versatile can handle all types of applications no problem.

If your going after Gary moore/ Peter Green/ Eric Clapton i`d go for the Mules if your going more for the Billy Gibons type sounds i`d go for the VHII

 :D  8)

PS forgot to add "Welcome to the Forum"

[Searcher]

Mules or Mondays, I reckon.

[dave_mc]

Before I answer, I must point out I haven't tried any Bareknuckles (yet!  :twisted: ), but this is what I think, based on spec, what everyone else on the forum is saying, and my general (lack of) knowledge about pickups.

I have come to the conclusion that the consensus here is that for a SRV / Texas Bluesy strat sound = Irish tour.  Also for a very versatile strat = Irish tour.  I also get the feeling that for a Chicargo blues sound the recomendation would be = Irish tour   :D
Mmmmm.  Maybe I will order some in a little while... 8)
But what about Eric Johnson type tone?

I'm not going to chip in about the humbuckers. I'd say the mule suggestion is probably a good one. EDIT: they'd be probably the best for EJ humbucker tones too, since he uses vintage kit. However, stormy mondays might be worth a look too, becuase EJ's signature DM pickups are almost voiced like single coils (supposedly, i haven't tried them), and, from what i hear, the stormy mondays have a thinner bluesy tone, so might be worth a look.

As for the eric johnson tone: as far as i know, EJ uses very vintage equipment, and has a very "sweet" tone. I'd have thought either apaches or sultans would be the best for EJ. I'd say the IT's could do it too, though, if you play SRV-type stuff most of the time.

Of course, if tim, mr pig, or any of the other guys who have  tried them contradict me, disregard my advice.

Cheers, and welcome to the forum!

[carlaz]

Before I answer, I must point out I haven't tried any Bareknuckles (yet!  :twisted: )

I should then at least observe I haven't tried any BKPs other than the Crawlers ....  Though I've sure heard a lot of Mule clips! :)

[dave_mc]

Before I answer, I must point out I haven't tried any Bareknuckles (yet!  :twisted: )

I should then at least observe I haven't tried any BKPs other than the Crawlers ....  Though I've sure heard a lot of Mule clips! :)

:lol: touche!

Still, at least you know they're great pickups, I'm just going by hearsay that they're good.

 :D

[Tim]

Welcome :D
I've fitted alot of Mule sets to PRS and always been pleased with the results, they always make them sound the way you think they will but never do(if that makes any sense :lol: )
Another nice set in PRS is the VHII humbuckers-extremely harmonic, warm and plenty of depth.

[HJM]

Those old PRS standards can turn to mush like SGs - I might consider a Riff Raff, they work wonders in an SG. For another idea have you thought about a Mississippi Queen humbucker sized P90, they sound great in all mahogany guitars, perhaps a RIff Raff bridge with the MQ in the neck!

[Elliot]

EJ used to use tapped DiMarzio HS2's - I had HS2s and it was the worst pickup I have ever heard - worse than Korean Squier pickups.  I got some Mother's Milks for a replacement and they have that fluid EJ strat sound to a tee!

Although if you have a maple board I would go with Apaches as they seem to react better to maple (my rosewood necked strat has Milks and maple has an Apache in the bridge - i've swaped them around and think the combination works best the way i've described)

[PhilKing]

Hi, welcome to the forum.  I have a 1980 PRS Standard 24 with the new Alnico V HolyDiver pickups in it.  These may be more power than you are thinking of, but they have a great sound - they love to feedback in a really controlled mode and drive an amp really sweetly.  It is not a metal pickup at all.  It is what I think the JB was meant to be, if Mr Duncan was using Jeff Beck's sound on 'Blow by Blow' as his inspiration.

I also have a PRS Artist (22 fret hardtail), with VHII's.  These are a more of a fat PAF sound, but of course the Artist has a maple cap and does have a different sound to the standard.

['Ash' J. Williams]

I'm into the EJ thing as well.

For Humbuckers i would definitively go for the StormyMonday or Mules.
EJ's 335 sound like the mules (and what a sound :crzy: ), but his Les Paul sound more like Stormies, VERY open tone.

As for the singlecoil it would be the Apaches without any hesitations.

Good luck in your choice !

[Kevin B]

Hi everyone

Thanks for taking the time to read and reply.

Obviously the Mule looks to be a serious contender  :D

HJM -  Thanks for the Mississippi Queen suggestion I just looked it up.  That is an interesting option.  Isn't the RiffRaff sort of Early Zepp tone?  I agree with sound turning to mush -  the guitar has a definate Mid emphasis.  

Tim - I understand perfectly what you mean.  I find myself using the split coil modes on the PRS or both humbuckers rather than a single humbucking pickup on its own.  Great split sounds but somthing is lacking when using the bridge or neck on its own.

jt -  Thanks for your contribution.  I am definately looking to get some of that Gibbon's squeel (pinch harmonics) and the Rythum sound on alot of the old (Tres Hombres, Fandango) recordings is amazing.

How would a VHII bridge and a Mule neck work out?
Or should I use a calibrated set?  

Would the Mule set with some sort of talant booster get me into theZZtop tone zone?  Or should I use the more harmonically rich VHII's and back off the volume for the Clapton, Green, Moore sounds?

Sorry more questions  :lol:

Thanks to all the people who have contributed their thoughs, it has given me something to think about.  

Kevin

[Brow]

Isn't the RiffRaff sort of Early Zepp tone?  

If I remember correctly, the Riff Raff is a version of ACDC style tone.

I guess I'll have to follow the pack and say either Mules, or if you want a little more high end, Stormy Mondays.

A set of Mules is the next thing I'm buying for my Gibson LP standard, to replace the SD Seth Lovers that are currently in it :)

[_tom_]

I've got Mules in my LP and they are versatile, I can play pretty much anything on this guitar.