Holy Diver versus Cold Sweat neck pickups with Miracle Man bridge?

[Dave Sloven]

I've never been 100% happy with the Cold Sweat neck pickup in my 2011 Gibson SG Standard.  I know it is a great pickup in Les Pauls etc but I've never really felt it worked that well in the SG, and I've been thinking recently that it might be easier to sell my Cold Sweat bridge as part of a set with my Cold Sweat neck and get a different neck pickup for the SG.

So I am thinking maybe a Holy Diver neck pickup with a chrome cover and short legs, which should be good in the pickguard mounting of the batwing SG?  Or would I need long legs again?

I've also considered the Miracle Man neck but I fear it maybe to be too high output with the SG, which tends to suffer a bit from a boomy neck pickup syndrome.

Any thoughts on how the Holy Diver neck compares to the Cold Sweat neck, and whether the Holy Diver neck matches well with the Miracle Man bridge?  I'm happy with the Miracle Man but this is a fussy guitar, having tried an alnico Nailbomb and a Cold Sweat bridge in it before getting it right with the MM.

[darkbluemurder]

Any thoughts on how the Holy Diver neck compares to the Cold Sweat neck, and whether the Holy Diver neck matches well with the Miracle Man bridge?  I'm happy with the Miracle Man but this is a fussy guitar, having tried an alnico Nailbomb and a Cold Sweat bridge in it before getting it right with the MM.

I had both in the same guitar. HD neck has less bass and is a bit brighter than the CS neck, even though it may only appear to be brighter because it has less low end. Of those two I clearly prefer the HD neck, even though I had excellent results with the CS neck in two different guitars (a PRS Custom with 24 frets and a very bright guitar with 22 frets). So if you want the CS neck tone but with more clarity, HD neck is a fine choice. Abraxas neck would be an alternative for a more vintage type tone.

As the strings vibrate less in the bridge and more in the neck position, the neck pickup can be weaker in raw output and still match well with a hotter bridge pickup.

Cheers Stephan

[Dave Sloven]

Cool, thanks.  I've been curious about the Holy Diver set but mainly the neck as a possible match for my MM in the SG.

I know that the CS bridge would be easier to sell as a set with the CS neck - or I could possibly put them in another guitar as a set - so I was wondering if the MM / HD combo might be nice in the SG.  I have found that once you move the neck pickup up to balance better with the MM the characteristics of the CS neck that I found a bit strident for the SG are more so, and thought the HD might be more mellow at a similar height

[ericsabbath]

that made me wonder...
SG + neck cold sweat in the bridge + neck holy diver in the neck should sound really good

[Nolly]

I know that the CS bridge would be easier to sell as a set with the CS neck - or I could possibly put them in another guitar as a set - so I was wondering if the MM / HD combo might be nice in the SG.  I have found that once you move the neck pickup up to balance better with the MM the characteristics of the CS neck that I found a bit strident for the SG are more so, and thought the HD might be more mellow at a similar height

Without knowing exactly what those characteristics you aren't enjoying in the CS are, it's tough to say. The Holy Diver neck isn't as hot a wind as the Cold Sweat neck so you can expect it to be a bit more open, less midrangey and to have a bit less drive when set at the same height as the CS. You should find it's a bit brighter, clearer and more defined as a result, so if "mellow" to you means "darker", I think you might want to look at the Emerald neck - the AIV magnet and fairly hot wind gives it a really rich and smooth sound.

[Dave Sloven]

Thanks Nolly.  I do like the Emerald neck.  I installed it into a friend's Les Paul.  I was wondering through how it would match with the Miracle Man bridge in an SG.

[Nolly]

I think you'll be fine, outputwise - the Miracle Man may be a hot pickup but the bridge pickup placement on an SG is closer to the bridge than most guitars, which means you get less output and low end. Conversely the 24.75" scale and 22 fret layout means the neck pickup should see lots of string movement, more than enough to generate a powerful signal from the Emerald without needing to raise it too high and suffering from uncontrolled low end in the process.
That said, I'd only go for the Emerald if you specifically want a darker tone than you currently have.