Swapping out active Ibanez RGA32 pickups for something new...

[janvan]

Hi guys,

Since I got my first paycheck, I've been thinking about how to spend it wisely. I have an Ibanez RGA32 with the active stock pickups lying around which doesn't get as much attention as it deserves due to the extremely muddy and undefined tone it produces. I am thinking about replacing the pickups with something more dynamic with a large range of applications (from blues and jazz up to (post-)metal (think Cult Of Luna, Mastodon). Currently, I use a Mexican Fender '72 Telecaster Deluxe with the stock Wide Range pickups as my main guitar. I really like the tone this guitar produces, even though I've heard that the current Wide Ranges are just PAF-like clones. Therefore I was thinking about putting some The Mule or Black Dog humbuckers into the Ibanez to get a more defined tone with some extra character. What do you guys think?

Cheers,

Jan

[darrenw5094]

Being a bolt on neck, the Mule and Black Dog might or might not work. They would be a gamble. The Holy Diver would be a safer bet and a good all rounder. You are asking for a pup that does a lot of work, probably too much.

[Dave Sloven]

This might also be a good candidate for Emerald or Rebel Yell pickups.

You could definitely get jazz and blues tones from the Emerald neck.  Either Em/Em or RY/Em would be good options.

[Telerocker]

From jazz to post metal, hmm, that's quite a stretch. Maybe Warpigs, as their are not only used by metalplayers, but also modern jazzguitarists. The Warpigs can produce very nice jazztones with the volumeknob turned back a bit.

[Slartibartfarst42]

The Emerald neck would be an excellent choice but the bridge version will be very bright in that guitar I think. Great if you like a really bright tone but it is a lot brighter than the neck version. A Holydiver in the neck would also be an excellent choice as it has loads of articulation and a real PAF feel to it. I love both of these neck pickups so you can't go wrong with either but for me, the Holydiver might just shade it.

A Holydiver in the bridge would be an excellent option and another really good option would be a Crawler. I used a Crawler in the bridge of a PRS SE Custom 24 and it remains my biggest regret selling that guitar. You get beautiful thick growly tones out of it and it's so versatile there honestly isn't much it won't do and it has the best split tones I've ever come across by a considerable margin.

[janvan]

Ok, thanks for the advice! I think I'll go for a set of Holydivers then.

[Slartibartfarst42]

That's an awesome set of pickups so I'd be surprised if you're disappointed.

[darrenw5094]

Ok, thanks for the advice! I think I'll go for a set of Holydivers then.

Contact BKP directly for their opinion first. The options given here are pretty different though, so interested in BKP thoughts on this one.

[janvan]

Okay, I got some feedback from BKP:

"Hi Jan,

I would narrow it down to the alnico Nailbombs and Holydivers. The Nailbombs have a flatter EQ and a more organic feel making them a versatile set. The Holydivers are thicker and tighter but still warm and clean. Both sets would do it - the Nailbombs might be a little better for blues and classic styles, but Bill from Mastodon loves his Holydivers!

https://www.bareknucklepickups.co.uk/shop/index.php?main_page=index&cPath=1_28_178&zenid=5ac0a529557406f091b026ca8cd05f54

https://www.bareknucklepickups.co.uk/shop/index.php?main_page=index&cPath=1_29_181&zenid=5ac0a529557406f091b026ca8cd05f54 "

I'll let the choice settle for a while and make a decision tomorrow. :D

[darrenw5094]

Suprised that he said the NB is more suited for blues and classic styles.

[Slartibartfarst42]

In my experience the Holydiver is nothing like as tight as the A-Bomb. The Holydiver is smooth while the A-Bomb is hairy and aggressive and the Holydiver is more saturated while the A-Bomb is more open. In fairness, for Blues and Classic Rock, I can see why they suggested the A-Bomb and it's easily tight enough to go to modern styles so in that respect it is also very versatile but you'd have like its distinct characteristics.

[ericsabbath]

I'm almost sure Bill Kelliher already swapped his holy diver for his signature lace pickup

I think he did have the diver in his cream les paul custom for some time after the last record but in the last video I've seen, he had a lace pickup in it

I like the diver better, but the ceramic nailbomb sounds more "mastodonic" to my ears, specially through my jcm 800 2203
it has a flatish and raw tone, but a nice compression that most bkps don't have
the thing about both alnico and ceramic nailbombs is that they are "love me or leave me" pickups

the alnico nailbomb does blues rock pretty well, in my opinion
search for the older Sam Coulson and Chris George videos on youtube
they were both long time nailbomb users

[Dave Sloven]

I'm almost sure Bill Kelliher already swapped his holy diver for his signature lace pickup

I think he did have the diver in his cream les paul custom for some time after the last record but in the last video I've seen, he had a lace pickup in it

I met Bill when Primate toured here early last year but I didn't ask him about his guitar.  I just gave him (and Kev and Shayne) directions to the best local kebab shop.

I had a look at my photos from that gig and he had an uncovered pickup of some kind in the neck and what looks like a Lace pickup in the bridge but it is very hard to tell.