Pickups for a Sabre Ghost

[lyonk55]

Hello folks,

Not too long ago, I asked about pickups for a Mayones Regius. Well turns out I didn't go for it an I'm about to put down a deposit for a Sabre Ghost 7 string. Since it's pretty different from the Regius, I could use some advice for pickups again.

The plan is for a limba body, with myrtlewood top, bolt on wenge/maple neck and an african blackwood fretboard.

Tone? Something for prog of melodic death with a mix of nice cleans and heavy riffs. Dark Tranquility and Katatonia are probably good bench marks, with Hypocrisy and Coheed and Cambria being the range to cover.

I'm leaning towards a Nailbomb (probably ceramic) or Miracle Man for the bridge. Neck, I fancy something different from the Cold Sweat and Miracle Man I already have. Any thoughts on pairing a VHII or Emerald with high output bridges?

[Kiichi]

I think you will find it hard to get recommendations here cause the woods your are going for are very unusual. I for one have not heard of 2 out of 5 woods you mention and have no idea how 4 out of 5 sound (I know maple xD).

All I can say is that from what I know both VHII and EM can keep up with the bridges you mention in their way and that the Nailbomb should do well for the style in general, but I can not say if it will play nice with the woods at all as I mentioned....so that is that I guess.

[darkbluemurder]

Since the strings move a lot more in the neck position you don't need as high output in the neck spot compared to the bridge spot. For example, a VHII neck keeps up easily with an Alnico Nailbomb in the bridge, and I can confirm that from personal experience with this combination in two different guitars.

As far as the wood combination: limba (aka korina) tends to be a bit brighter than mahogany. Never heard of myrtlewood so no idea what to expect from it. The neck and fretboard woods suggest that the overall acoustic sound of the guitar will be on the brighter side. Nailbomb/Miracle Man bridge plus VHII neck should in principle work well. Unfortunately wood does not equal wood. Even wood pieces of the same species can sound vastly different from one to another.

Cheers Stephan

[lyonk55]

Myrtle should give a similar sound to a maple top, but like you said: wood isn't an exact science.

Good to hear about the neck pickups though. I knew pickups would be louder in the neck than the bridge, but wasn't really sure how far you could go before there was a poor volume match.

Thanks guys. Even if it's not too specific, all advice is welcome.

[Telerocker]

Wenge/maple neck and blackwood will provide a percussive tone. Limba = korina, so probably a touch brighter than mahogany. Maybe, but I'm no expert in these musicstyles, Juggernauts would give a good balance.

[lyonk55]

So you think something on the thicker end of things would work best? Maybe a Warpig then? Or an alnico Miracle Man?

[Alex]

I think a Nailbomb set would be a good choice, as it works very well in a wide range of guitars.

About the neck pickup, the VHII is warm, loud yet clear. I'm surprised how loud it is (though still undistorted). It will not have the glassy shimmer of other pickups though, it always keeps a warm and full character. I use it with a Miracle Man in the bridge and they work well together.