Crawler is too polite: alternative to regain some aggression?

[Pierre]

I have a Tom Anderson Angel which came with the TA pickups; I really dislike them, mostly, and so the Bridge pickup was soon replaced by a spare Crawler I had lying about. Body is Basswood + Maple top, with a Maple neck.

While it's a great pickup and one of my favorites for more, let's say, subdued instruments (it's powerful, but by no means a mean-sounding pickup), I want something with a bit more bite here.

What would give me a similar output level, or even a little less if thee's aggression to make-up for it, and add some bite on the high-end and ever-so-slightly aggressive mids?
I'm mostly familiar with BK's contemporary/high-ouput pickups... not so much their low and medium-output ranges.
(it'd need to pair well with the HF1 in he neck and SC2 single-coil in the middle)

Cheers!

[Telerocker]

You can set it a little higher, the high mids will come out a bit more. But again, the Crawler and basswood are not the most happy marriage. I would look at the Diver or the Rebel Yell here: less bass, but more prominent highs a bit more modern sound than the Crawler.

[darkandrew]

When I emailed BKP with the exact same question (albeit with quite a different guitar), I was recommended the Holy Diver. Having followed their advice and opted for a set of HDs, I can confirm that the HDs keep the thickness of the Crawlers but add a lot more aggression - a LOT more! To be honest, they were a bit too aggressive and I've ended up going back to the Crawlers and using a set of A-bombs in another guitar when I want something a bit more aggressive.

[Dave Sloven]

Maybe a VHII would work well?

[darkandrew]

There's another thread currently going about pickups for punk and the Mules are getting lots of recommendations which might surprise a few people but to be  honest there's not a lot that Mules can't do and comparing Mules to Crawlers, the neck is still A4 but is a lot clearer and chimey, and the bridge is a little lower in output but is a bit more gravelly and quite a bit crisper in the top end, which going through the right amp or other processing could give you the edge and aggression that the Crawler is missing. I think the general feeling is that it's very hard to go wrong with Mules whatever genre of music you play. I've also always wanted to give Juggernauts a go - maybe it would be worth you looking at those too?

[Nolly]

+1 to the Rebel Yell or VHII recommendations

[stratguy23]

I own both a Crawler and a Holy Diver and have both in Super Strats. The Holy Diver will absolutely do what you want. To me, it basically is a more modern, more aggressive Crawler.

[Telerocker]

I think you can chime in now, Pierre 

[Pierre]

Thanks all! I'll put a Holy Diver on the list. I like the HD's vibe, but the very, very good clarity occasionally makes me feel like I'm missing a bit of gain. I also really like it in overly-bright guitars which need taming down. I've not tried one in in something a bit more balanced.

I ended-up with... a Black Dog. Mostly because this guitar is a good canvas and because I'd been wanting to try one for a long time.
And WOW it's raw. I love it. It's actually very mean! I find it more aggressive (not more powerful, just more aggressive) than the Nailbomb for example. Very clear, and with VERY rich and easy harmonics.
It would make a great pickup for those getting their gain from the preamp or digital rigs (such as my AX8): the lower output contributes to great clarity, the pickup has an in-control bass and it's just CRUSHING.

Time to big-up my BKP reserve by keeping a HD around too then ;) Thanks all!

[Yellowjacket]

More aggressive than an A-Bomb?  LOL!  That sounds amazing!

[Telerocker]

Interesting choice. By the way, pickups don't provide gain, higher output pickups just slam the preamp harder. Personally I don't see the need of high output pickups > highgain amps. A lot of goodtube amps have tons of gain. To keep clarity and definition low- to mediumoutput into a highgain amp is ideal imho.

[Pierre]

Interesting choice. By the way, pickups don't provide gain, higher output pickups just slam the preamp harder. Personally I don't see the need of high output pickups > highgain amps. A lot of goodtube amps have tons of gain. To keep clarity and definition low- to mediumoutput into a highgain amp is ideal imho.

Yep; I meant exactly that. If I have enough gain on my preamp, I go towards lower-output pickups to preserve clarity. Guess I didn't word it very... clearly.