Chapman ML1 HSS set up

[AnAbidingDude94]

Hey all, first time posting, long time lurker :)

So I have recently gotten a Chapman ML1 (Mahogany body, maple neck, ebony fretboard) and I installed a few seymour duncans (Classic stack plus and 59/custom hybrid) in them, but they aren't doing much for me and am longing for some bareknuckles. At the moment I think the irish tours or the mother's milks might be up my alley for the single coils, but I'm not sure what bridge humbucker to get. I'd need something that can get me those 80's hard rock/metal tones (think Randy Rhoads, Scorpions, Van Halen, Iron Maiden etc) but still be able to clean up nicely for classic rock (think Led Zeppelin, Rainbow, Deep purple or Cream). Something tight enough to get a good "chug" sound, for lack of a better word, and has plenty of bite for power chords, a sweet and thick lead tone and great harmonics. All this will be running into an orange TH30.

The Mule, Rebel Yell and Nailbomb all stand out to me at this point, but I have no experience with them and thus would love to hear feedback on them or other suggestions. I have a holy diver in my Les paul and love them, so it's not a pickup i'm opposed to but I'd rather try something else for the sake of variety.

Any suggestions? Thanks in advance for any replies

[Telerocker]

I would look at the Holy Diver and the Irish Tours. If you want a more woody (and compared to the IT) and a little more glassy vintage single coil, check the Mother's Milk and the Pat Pend Veneer Board 63.

[Dave Sloven]

If the guitar has a lot of bottom end either a Rebel Yell or an Emerald might work nicely in the bridge.

[Telerocker]

Diver has not so much bottom end, by example compared to the Crawler.

[Slartibartfarst42]

Wow, that's a range of tones you're after!

'80's hard rock/metal tones' would generally suggest Holydiver or maybe Miracle Man, though if your guitar is dark and you were after an earlier 80's sound, the Rebel Yell could work well.

'Randy Rhoads' would suggest to me a Mule as Time used to use a Mule in an Ozzy tribute band

'Scorpions' depends on the era you're talking about but I'm inclined to think that a Rebel Yell would work well here or a Holydiver.

'Van Halen' obviously suggests a VHII

'Iron Maiden' is a tricky one as there is no Bare Knuckle equivalent to a Super Distortion but I'm inclined to think a Holydiver might be the best option.

'Led Zeppelin' is going to be the Black Dog

'Rainbow' is obviously problematic because Ritchie used singlecoils but I'm inclined to think possibly VHII for a reason I'm struggling to explain.

'Deep purple' also depends on the era but I think you could use any from Mule, VHII, Abraxas, Black Dog, Rebel Yell or Holydiver!

'Cream' might suit a Mule.

I have no idea where that leaves you but I'm inclined to think that something offering versatility would be a good option so to that end I think the Abraxas or Black Dog would be where I'd be looking for the bridge and that would point you in the right direction for singles.

[Dave Sloven]

Scorpions I would have said Cold Sweat but I don't think it is the best pickup for the other sounds.

Randy Rhoads I would say Rebel Yell.

[AnAbidingDude94]

Thanks for all the replies guys, I appreciate it.

@Telerocker, those single coils sound fantastic. I might consider putting them in my ash bodied strat at some point.

@Dave Sloven and Slartibartfarst42, I feel maybe I need to narrow down the kind of sounds I'm after. I do have other guitars that already cover classic rock, so I might aim for something more aggressive, tight and heavier for this guitar. From the suggestions given, the rebel yell sounds like a good fit, as I already have a holy diver and not keen on having the same pickup in multiple guitars. With the rebel yell though, BKP only pair it with slowhands in their HSS sets? Not keen on the slowhands, would I still be able to get it with the irish tours?

Any thoughts on the alnico nailbomb? I saw some of Sam Coulson's clips with it and that's the kind of aggressive sound I'd want, so yeah, any intel?

Thanks again guys.

[Dave Sloven]

If you think you will want to play leads on the bridge pickup I would choose a Rebel Yell over a Nailbomb.

They are both very tight for alnico pickups

[AnAbidingDude94]

If you think you will want to play leads on the bridge pickup I would choose a Rebel Yell over a Nailbomb.

They are both very tight for alnico pickups

I'm game for a tight alnico pickup. I love the raw, tight sound of ceramics, but don't want one purely because I play a lot of lead stuff and they never hit the spot for me, never quite as sweet as alnicos. On that note, what makes the rebel yell preferable for lead stuff? :)

[Dave Sloven]

The Nailbomb just doesn't seem to have a fluid enough feel when needed for leads.  I don't think it's 'hairiness' does it any favours for leads

Here's a video comparing the Rebel Yell set to a SD JB/59 set.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QrlEPGBTvOQ

As you are familiar with Duncans it might be a useful reference even though the sound on the clip is a bit average.  By comparison the Duncan guitar sounds a bit like someone put a sock over the mic

Here's another RY/SD comparison:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XFth4SYc3TE&t=35s

And here's the same dude comparing EMGs with a Nailbomb set in a 7 string:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DD-it43_ABo


Here's another clip of the RY bridge, in a brighter guitar:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=20zSjw98Gvg

[AnAbidingDude94]

Thanks for all the clips Dave, came in handy. The rebel yell has a beautiful lead tone, one that I'd be pretty happy with in this guitar. It seems to cover all the bases pretty well, it'd just be a matter of ordering it with the IT's rather than the slowhands. It handled the gain quite well. Nailbomb still sounded great, but I see what you mean about the lead tone. The rebel yell seems more than ideal.

[Telerocker]

You can order any HSS-set you want, so Rebel Yell with IT's is no problem. I ordered mixed sets, like VHII with Mother's Milk.

Btw, the RY is a fantastic pickup that bridges the gap between vintage and modern. The height is important, since the RY is the most sensitive BKP when it comes to the right height.