A slightly hotter, less full bodied VH II

[darkandrew]

I've recently installed a VH II set into my Fender Showmaster and am extremely happy with the neck pickup but, although the bridge is nearly there, I'm feeling that the bridge is a little too full bodied in the low end to be the ideal pickup for what I'm looking for. Ideally I would probably want something a little hotter too, so I'm thinking of a Rebel Yell or Cold Sweat bridge to replace it. I remember reading that Nolly uses a RY bridge / VH II neck in basswood so that combination certainly comes with some approval. What do you think?

[FELINEGUITARS]

Worth looking at Abraxas or Emerald

I personally love the Cold Sweat but wonder if the ceramic magnet might be a bit crispy for you ?

CS bridge and VH2 neck is a nice combination (I've used it in a Blackmachine )

[darkandrew]

Worth looking at Abraxas or Emerald

I personally love the Cold Sweat but wonder if the ceramic magnet might be a bit crispy for you ?

CS bridge and VH2 neck is a nice combination (I've used it in a Blackmachine )

I know what you mean about possibly being too crispy, I had a Nailbomb set in that guitar and it was great apart from the overly crisp top end. Have you got a CS bridge in one of your demo guitars? I'm off work next week (half term!) and could quite easily pop over to Croydon.

[Duck2587]

I've recently installed a VH II set into my Fender Showmaster and am extremely happy with the neck pickup but, although the bridge is nearly there, I'm feeling that the bridge is a little too full bodied in the low end to be the ideal pickup for what I'm looking for. Ideally I would probably want something a little hotter too, so I'm thinking of a Rebel Yell or Cold Sweat bridge to replace it. I remember reading that Nolly uses a RY bridge / VH II neck in basswood so that combination certainly comes with some approval. What do you think?

Whats the scale length on your guitar? Construction? neck wood? This makes a huge difference on your tone. Also, how does it sound acoustically? Take into consideration the RY is a pretty bright pick up and so is the cold sweat. 

[m t soule]

I started with the vhii Ry combo and yes it is slimmer at the bottom and rips in distorted mode!
I did find a volume discrepancy which for me was too much to be happy with. The vhii much louder than the ry.

Ry is an awesome sound!

[Yellowjacket]

The RY bridge / VHII neck is an enviably awesome pickup combination.  It just screams R&R mojo!!

[ericsabbath]

how about a mule? it's not exactly hotter, but it is more fluid and compressed, if that's what you're after
the rebel yell has a different much middier voicing
the cold sweat actually has a lot in common with the vhII, but that includes big bass response

[darkandrew]

Thanks for the suggestions. I've got a Rebel Yell set in another guitar and I'm going to try the bridge in this guitar sometime this week, it sounds as though it's worth a try.

As for construction, etc it's a basswood superstrat with a maple set-neck, rosewood fret board and floating trem. It's fairly bright but not overly so, with a certain type of 3D property that emphasises the peculiarities of which ever pickup you put in there. So far I've tried the following in this one:

Crawlers - Neck too dark, bridge clear and very forceful in the mids but lacking bite.
Nail Bombs (Alnico) - Neck cold and too harsh, bridge good but a little too bright at top end (especially on lighter gauge, unwound strings).
VH IIs - Neck very good (great balance between warmth and bite), bridge very full with equal amounts of bottom, mid and top (but actually a little too full in the lower end for what I want).

If having tried the RY in there I'm still not convinced, I might have a think about the Abraxas but I'd be worried it's too similar to the Crawler.

[JimmyMoorby]

I think an emerald matches your description.

[Duck2587]

Thanks for the suggestions. I've got a Rebel Yell set in another guitar and I'm going to try the bridge in this guitar sometime this week, it sounds as though it's worth a try.

As for construction, etc it's a basswood superstrat with a maple set-neck, rosewood fret board and floating trem. It's fairly bright but not overly so, with a certain type of 3D property that emphasises the peculiarities of which ever pickup you put in there. So far I've tried the following in this one:

Crawlers - Neck too dark, bridge clear and very forceful in the mids but lacking bite.
Nail Bombs (Alnico) - Neck cold and too harsh, bridge good but a little too bright at top end (especially on lighter gauge, unwound strings).
VH IIs - Neck very good (great balance between warmth and bite), bridge very full with equal amounts of bottom, mid and top (but actually a little too full in the lower end for what I want).

If having tried the RY in there I'm still not convinced, I might have a think about the Abraxas but I'd be worried it's too similar to the Crawler.

Time to Mule it up 

['Ash' J. Williams]

If having tried the RY in there I'm still not convinced, I might have a think about the Abraxas but I'd be worried it's too similar to the Crawler.

I own both the Crawler and the Abraxas bridges and FWIW, the Abaraxas feels a little less middy and powerful than the Crawler but it's clearer and maybe sweeter sounding overall.
I'd say it really IS a Mule only more powerful and a tad more compressed but still with alot of the dynamics and clarity of the Mule.
I actually like the Abraxas more than the Mule to be honest as I find it more versatile.

[m t soule]

From the Kbps i use the holy diver sprung to mind

[Yellowjacket]

I wonder how bright and middy the RY will be in that guitar?  I have it in a solid mahogany guitar and it sounds enormous, but a guitar that lacks lows may not be the right guitar for such a pickup.  It doesn't have the same treble spike as the A-Bomb but it has the focused upper mids and this wonderful harmonic sheen.  I just don't know that these qualities would great without the ample low mid contribution of a darker sounding axe.