Pickup Advice

[Inceptic]

Hi!

I'm considering a 7-string US Strandberg with the following woods: koa top, limba body, cocobolo neck, and ebony fretboard.

For the pickups, I am considering Bare Knuckles, but since I've never played any, I decided to join the forum to get some advice!

Going by the soundclips alone, I'm thinking Holy Diver or Ceramic Nailbomb for the bridge, and an Emerald or Cold Sweat for the neck.

Tones I like: Dream Theater, Muse, Chevelle.

Any thoughts on what would suit me and the tonewoods best?

Thanks!

[Kiichi]

Hi and welcome!

Not that familiar with the woods sides ebony tbh, but I own a good few muse records and am a big DT fan. In terms of DT sounds it depends a lot on which era you like best. For the more modern stuff Cbomb/CS combo is pretty much it, while the Awake era would be more Holydiver bridge. Emerald certainly covers all eras well, but the Awake era tone is imho nailed by the Aftermath neck (donīt worry, it works with the AM bridge model but does not share a lot of DNA. A lot of calibrated sets work that way).

Assuming the woods you have are on the bright side as a whole the Holydiver bridge certainly is a good choice, but the Cbomb works as well. In the neck it is hard to go wrong with the Emerald as it covers an insane amount of ground, where as the coldsweat is a bit more modern in sound compared to it.

Holydiver and Emerald is a proven and extremely versatile combo which I have myself. Good stuff.

However, better recommendations can be made if you tell us more about the tone you are shooting for (outside of the band references which are very helpful) and the rest of your gear.

[Slartibartfarst42]

The Holydiver and Nailbomb are very different pickups. The Nailbomb is tight and aggressive whereas the Holydiver is thick and smooth but still very articulate. As Kiichi says, the Holydiver/Emerald set is very versatile so that would be my choice.

[Telerocker]

I'll throw in another option: humbucker-sized P90's - Stockholm-set, a Supermassive-set or a Stockholm-bridge/Supermassive-neck or a bit more clearer, and less heavy Supermassive-bridge/Mississippi Queen-neck. You can cover Muse for sure with any of those sets, but my pick would be a Stockholm/Supermassive-neck. Of course P90's hum a bit more, but they have so much character and they rock!

[Inceptic]

Thanks guys for the replies.

Regarding the brightness/warmth of the guitar, there seems to be conflicting information. Some people say that the combination of woods above would result in a bright-leaning instrument. Depending on which tonewood site you use as reference, I've seen koa, cocobolo as bright, ebony classified as very bright, and black limba (korina) as warm, but not as warm as mahogony.

Other sites classify koa, cocobolo, and limba as warm (although none of them as warm as mahogony) and ebony as very bright.

So I'm not sure which pair would be a safer bet?

My amp is a Mesa Mark V.

[seancorker]

I'm not sure the Holy Diver will get you the muse tone, it's too overwound. I'd look in the Vintage hot section and get a zvex!

[Kiichi]

I'm not sure the Holy Diver will get you the muse tone, it's too overwound. I'd look in the Vintage hot section and get a zvex!

Donīt forget that Bellamy uses the MQ a lot and sometimes the Nailbomb, which is more all out than the HD.

[Dave Sloven]

I'll throw in another option: humbucker-sized P90's - Stockholm-set, a Supermassive-set or a Stockholm-bridge/Supermassive-neck or a bit more clearer, and less heavy Supermassive-bridge/Mississippi Queen-neck. You can cover Muse for sure with any of those sets, but my pick would be a Stockholm/Supermassive-neck. Of course P90's hum a bit more, but they have so much character and they rock!

I tend to agree with the Stockholm/Supermassive combination.  I have a Stockholm in my SG Junior and it can cover the ground of a Nailbomb. It is a P-90 but has more bottom end than the other P-90s mentioned.  It can certainly get Muse tones.  I would recommend shielding the guitar and placing a Boss NS-2 early in the signal chain to control hum, which can cause feedback through a high-gain amp.

[Telerocker]

Thanks guys for the replies.

Regarding the brightness/warmth of the guitar, there seems to be conflicting information. Some people say that the combination of woods above would result in a bright-leaning instrument. Depending on which tonewood site you use as reference, I've seen koa, cocobolo as bright, ebony classified as very bright, and black limba (korina) as warm, but not as warm as mahogony.

Other sites classify koa, cocobolo, and limba as warm (although none of them as warm as mahogony) and ebony as very bright.

So I'm not sure which pair would be a safer bet?

My amp is a Mesa Mark V.

That's difficult to predict. I heard alder CS strats which were warm and some, with the same specs, with more edge. With koa and ebony in the mix I would getting a pickup that is on the warmer side, with a good midrange. You're right about korina, in general mahogany is warmer with less topend.

[Yellowjacket]

My amp is a Mesa Mark V.

That is an amazing amp and honestly, it will get you most of the way there tonewise.  You seriously can't go wrong with that thing.

Is it possible to have the guitar completed and play it unplugged to hear the tonality of the finished instrument before choosing pickups for it.  My philosophy with pickup choices is that they should highlight the best qualities of an axe while simultaneously mitigating the problem points of the instrument. 
Honestly, JP uses the DiMarzio Crunch Lab / Liquifier combination in his older stuff and now he's using his artist 'Illuminator' Dimarzio set so his signature gear will get you the closest to his tone, well except for stealing his hands.  (So much tone is created by the guitarist)

IMHO, BKP are superior in terms of dynamics, colour, clarity, and they are fantastic sounding pickups, something I actually prefer over other pickup manufacturers.  The Mark V will nail any sort of a hard rock or prog rock tone with aplomb, so if you want a bit of a unique voice, BKP are an awesome option for contributing this to your playing.   So I go back to my original point, get the best pickup for the guitar and for the style you play and your fingers / the Mark V will do the rest.

[ericsabbath]

c-bomb or miracle man

[MrBump]

Welcome to the BKP forum - a dozen different suggestions, all of them right!

[fdesalvo]

I have nothing to add to this discussion in terms of pickup selection, so I'll try to be brief.  In my experience (..and take this with a grain of salt), all of my guitars with lightweight bodies have proven to be very resonant and warm, whereas the heavier ones tend to be brighter instruments and a bit more dull in terms of resonance.  All of my really "alive" feeling guitars have been very balanced tone wise.  I've had 2 LPs that were very bright, weighing a ton.  As always, your mileage may vary, there are no rules or exceptions, lasagna tastes better the second day, and beer served in frosty mugs is best.

[Inceptic]

Thanks again for all the help. I've made up my mind and am going for the HD/Emerald combo!

[Inceptic]

So I see that BKP has quite a bit of cover options! I was originally thinking of uncovered zebra, but covered could be interesting too.

What would you guys recommend for a koa top and black hardware? Any covers more resistant to wear and tear than others?

I tried looking at pictures in the gallery too, but they all seem to say "attachment unavailable".