NEW to BKP - PRS Modern Eagle II set ?

[Slartibartfarst42]

There are four pickups in the BKP range that can be said to be closely related, ranging from vintage to modern. The most vintage option is the Mule, which is really justr a classic PAF pickup. Next up is the Abraxas, which is essentially a hot-rodded Mule so it has more compression and will go that bit further into Rock territories. After that comes the Crawler, which is a hotter, fatter and more compressed Abraxas. Finally comes the Holydiver, which is the most modern voicing. Based on your description, I'd say you can probably discount the Mule and Holydiver and look at the two middle options.

I had the Crawler in a PRS SE Custom 24 and to date it is my favourite Bare Knuckle pickup. It had a beautiful growl to it and gave some wonderfully thick tone that made my PRS that bit more reminiscent of a Les Paul as well as having the best split tones of any pickup in the BKP range. It's awesome! The Crawler's natural home is Blues Rock but it's VERY versatile and can run all the way from Blues to 80's Metal. Cleans are excellent. The Abraxas would be a little less hot, a bit less compressed, a bit less growl and a bit more vintage in character. Both will do what you're after with slightly different flavours.

For the neck, the Mule, Abraxas and Crawler are almost identical with the Mule being the brightest and the Crawler the darkest, as you might expect as the hotter the pickup, the darker it tends to be as a rough rule of thumb. All three are PAF pickups. While the Crawler is the best overall pickup I've ever used for the bridge, I wasn't struck on the neck version. It was just a bit too dark, rounded and soft in the bass. Personally I preferred the Holydiver neck because it's much brighter, still very PAF and the AV magnet makes it far more articulate. After chopping and changing with the Emerald neck (also superb) I eventually settled with the Holydiver neck paired with a Crawler bridge and an Emerald neck paired with a Holydiver bridge. I loved both but if I could only have one guitar to do everything, it would be the Crawler/Holydiver set I'd choose in a PRS. To this day I regret selling that guitar.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PSghgh-nEtY

[matthewmsp]

Thank you to everyone that chipped in to help. I know it's age old tedius question but not knowing BKP and taking a risk at the price point was not something I wanted to do.

So I think I'm gonna buy a pair of Abraxas and see how I get on.

Thanks again
Matthew

[matthewmsp]

Hi Slartibartfarst42 i posted my last response before i saw your post. You've got me really thinking now about the Crawler.....I think your bob on when you say not Mule and not as contemporary as Holy diver. I think it is the Abraxas and the Crawler I am now looking at it, either as a set or as a combination of both.

Split tones are important to me as is the middle position on my 3 way switch so from what you say the Crawler is good at these two, would that be safe to say.

from what you saying would this be true:

Bridge: Abraxas  Neck: Abraxas   would be: Balanced - Medium Gain & voicing between vintage and modern 

Bridge: Crawler  Neck: Crawler  would be: Balanced - Higher Gain more towards modern than Abraxas in volume and voice

Bridge: Crawler  Neck: Abraxas   would be: Balanced - and maybe the Abraxas would be less muddy in the neck than the Crawler

This is tough !!!! I keep going round in circles !!!

Can i just ask you one question about the bridge pickup choice i.e Crawler over Abraxas. Your description of it said that it was hotter, fatter and more compressed......from that would you say it is just a Abraxas at heat with more ummpphhhh in there. I don't want a pickup to weak, i would rather have it hotter than i need rather than weaker as there's nowhere to go if its weaker....if its hot i can use my guitars controls to get what i need and of course i could set the pickup a little lower on the guitar i guess.

Right, i started off this journey with all 19 hum buckers to go at and no knowledge of any of them. With you help and indeed everyone on here I think i have it down to 2 which when you write it down sounds like good going except i can't make that last leap now.

Abraxas or Crawler

I keep reading so many great reviews of both of these in PRS guitars which in one way is comforting.....its almost like I can't go wrong. But i don't have the budget to keep experimenting so whatever i chose now i will play through for a long time and I so want to get it right.

Any last nuggets of info on these tow would be HUGELY appreciated from anyone.

Thank you again to a very friendly forum indeed.
Matthew

[Kiichi]

In my mind the Crawler is not just an Abraxas with less output. They are related, but the line is not as simple as that. The Axbraxas is a PAF+ while the Crawler is a PAF++ almost being a modern---. Weird stuff I know and I am not sure how to phrase it. The Crawler does have all the things you listed, but along the way it also picked up a certain growl, best described in Slarits reviews (in the sticky thread) and the quality of the splits, which is just one up from everything.

In the end I think you would be really bloody happy with either, but I think the crawler does deserve more love than it often gets. So if you are tempted by it read Slarti´s  reviews. They really do convey the feel I get with them.

[Telerocker]

Ok, let me state this:

The Crawler is imo not really modern voiced, compared to the Holy Diver. It's to my ears a sort of uber-PAF, which has medium-output, but I guess people think it's actually hotter because of it's huge soundspectrum. What I like about the Crawler that it's reacts very well to the volumeknob and has also very appealing cleans. On every of my amp the Crawler performs very good with strongs mids, thick solonotes and growling when pushed.

Also the splits are very pleasing. Some people say it doesn't cut enough, but you have to set it to the right height and it really cuts well thanks to the AV-magnet. Yes, compared to a Mule it's more compressed, but it still has a lot of dynamics and good pickattack. Fusion, blues, pop, rock or hardrock, some metal, the Crawler delivers on all of my amps. A singing PAF on steroids that is not fatigueing in any way. The pickup has been my workhorse for many years and it's a keeper.

As Slarti and I mentioned, the Abraxas is more or less of a crossover between the Mule and the Crawler. Different magnet than the Crawler though: AIV vs AV.
The Abraxas is in this respect more related to the Mule: yet more bass, mids, less highs, a little more compressed than a Mule. You can see the Crawler as a thicker and a tad more powerful version of the slightly more open Abraxas.

For the neck I would definitely skip the Crawler-neck and look at something like the Abraxas- or Diver-neck. Or even the Emerald-neck might do.
 

[matthewmsp]

Thank you TeleRocker this is all good info. I have spent about 5 hours reading reviews and watching clips etc and of course with help of you guys on here too. I think i have decided to go Crawler in the bridge.

Yippeeeeeeeeeee, thats one choice made.

Now i have to decide the neck pickup. Can i ask one last time what folks would recommend for my PRS with a Crawler in the bridge ??

Here is the guitar that its going in:
Matthew

[Telerocker]

In terms of ''matching characters'' I would go for the Abraxas-neck, but the HD-neck might be a good choice too. It has enough vintagecharacter to complement the Crawler-bridge. You might want to throw an email at the BKP-team on this one.

[Slartibartfarst42]

Honestly, the Crawler is an excellent choice and will happily cover most styles. I'd honestly seriously consider pairing it with a Holydiver neck. I know it sounds like a crazy choice but the Holydiver neck model is really only vintage output but the AV magnet gives it a little extra cut that pairs well with the bite you have from the Crawler. I always think of it as a very articulate PAF. I found that it could do great Blues tones and a killer Dave Murray lead tone. I think when I matched a Crawler bridge with a Holydiver neck, it was certainly the first time I'd read about it on the forum and it certainly isn't an obvious pairing but it honestly works superbly. The Crawler also worked very well with the Emerald but despite the AIV magnet, which gives it a beautifully sweet tone, the Emerald has a more modern feel to it than the Holydiver and on balance, I felt the more vintage feel of the Holydiver worked slightly better. It was a very close call.

[Telerocker]

Honestly, the Crawler is an excellent choice and will happily cover most styles. I'd honestly seriously consider pairing it with a Holydiver neck. I know it sounds like a crazy choice but the Holydiver neck model is really only vintage output but the AV magnet gives it a little extra cut that pairs well with the bite you have from the Crawler. I always think of it as a very articulate PAF. I found that it could do great Blues tones and a killer Dave Murray lead tone. I think when I matched a Crawler bridge with a Holydiver neck, it was certainly the first time I'd read about it on the forum and it certainly isn't an obvious pairing but it honestly works superbly. The Crawler also worked very well with the Emerald but despite the AIV magnet, which gives it a beautifully sweet tone, the Emerald has a more modern feel to it than the Holydiver and on balance, I felt the more vintage feel of the Holydiver worked slightly better. It was a very close call.

Bravo, I thought you would comment on the HD-neck.

[bshirley2]

I have an MEII . I like the 5708 pups .

[matthewmsp]

Yeah the 57/08 never really did it for me I'm afraid, not sure exactly why to be honest.....just found them a bit thin and lacking some magic....a bit plain and lifeless would be the best way to describe my thoughts of them. Gonna order a Crawler for my bridge but still not decided on the neck.

Slartibartfast, you seem struck on this combo of the HD in the neck, I'm gonna give that some thought too. Any more advice would be welcome.

Matthew

[Telerocker]

Review HD-neck:

https://bareknucklepickups.co.uk/forum/index.php?topic=27164.msg392977#msg392977

See the recent thread about the Emerald-neck.

[PhilKing]

I've been away so just saw this.  I have VHII's in my MEII 25th anniversary, but it is a wrap around model, and so will be a bit thicker than the trem version.  I have an Abraxas set in my single cut, mules in my Artist, RR's in my Standard and a Crawler/BKP90/BKP90 in my EG.  So I've got some experience of BK's in PRS's.  My ME was back at the PDC and has signature switching (which I use for series/parallel on the VHII's).  I also got brushed nickel with gold screws, which really goes with the other hardware on the guitar.

I have had RY's in my Standard and Crawlers in the SC.  I play mainly classic rock and blues, so I tend to lean towards the lower output pickups.  If you are after a Bonamssa tone, then I would be looking at a lower output pickup and using more of the amp to push things.  However, the Abraxas will definitely get you there, as will the Crawlers.  I find the Crawlers a little flat (in that there isn't as much top end on them as I like), and prefer the Abraxas sound, but that could be a lot of combinations, as I also only use pure nickel strings, which are a bit more mellow too.

For a neck pickup, you could look at the Mule too.

[darrenw5094]

I've been away so just saw this.  I have VHII's in my MEII 25th anniversary, but it is a wrap around model, and so will be a bit thicker than the trem version.  I have an Abraxas set in my single cut, mules in my Artist, RR's in my Standard and a Crawler/BKP90/BKP90 in my EG.  So I've got some experience of BK's in PRS's.  My ME was back at the PDC and has signature switching (which I use for series/parallel on the VHII's).  I also got brushed nickel with gold screws, which really goes with the other hardware on the guitar.

I have had RY's in my Standard and Crawlers in the SC. I play mainly classic rock and blues, so I tend to lean towards the lower output pickups.  If you are after a Bonamssa tone, then I would be looking at a lower output pickup and using more of the amp to push things.  However, the Abraxas will definitely get you there, as will the Crawlers.  I find the Crawlers a little flat (in that there isn't as much top end on them as I like), and prefer the Abraxas sound, but that could be a lot of combinations, as I also only use pure nickel strings, which are a bit more mellow too.

For a neck pickup, you could look at the Mule too.

You should post those BKP in your signature.....

[Kiichi]

Only post some of the BKPs he has? Won´t work. Our dear PhilKing has more than two signatures can fit...the lucky man.^^