Pickup with similar voicing and clarity to True Grit?

[Kotsos81]

I installed a few months ago a TG set in a single-cut and it has quickly grown to my favourite humbuckers set! I love the balanced EQ, the grit in the mids, the growl in palm mutted power chords, the fact that it has a healthy amount of mids and low mids/bass without the huge bass of some pickups that I am not a fan of, the rounded (but present enough) highs, the AMAZING clarity, the medium output which suits my style and makes for a very nice feeling when playing, and overall this mixing of hot PAF with modern voicing that allows me to cover a lot of ground. It is fantastic for progressive metal but it can also work well for heavy metal and even for thrash metal - although there are of course better options for the latter.

My question is, which pickups would share the most similarities with the TG bridge? I don't mind if it has a little more mids, output, or compression - actually these features might be welcome in certain situations. I want to avoid, however, overly bassy or trembly pickups or low output ones - the focus is on metal, although not extreme or detuned.

[timmy_pix]

I answered your post on the Facebook group, but it's worth reiterating for anyone who stumbles on this - more mids, compression, controlled bass and decent output without being extreme = Holydiver to a T.

[ericsabbath]

My question is, which pickups would share the most similarities with the TG bridge? I don't mind if it has a little more mids, output, or compression - actually these features might be welcome in certain situations. I want to avoid, however, overly bassy or trembly pickups or low output ones - the focus is on metal, although not extreme or detuned.

holy diver and silo

[RobAbrams84]

I was told in an email by the man himself (Tim, the founder of BKP) that the True Grit bridge is closest to an overwound Emerald.  I think that he meant that they are basically an overwound Emerald with respect to construction, not necessarily that they are the absolute closest in tone, etc., but I would think that they would be close.  I haven't tried the Emerald bridge but I would probably call the True Grit closer to a Nailbomb than a Holydiver?  Or maybe halfway between the two tone-wise but lower output than both?

[ericsabbath]

I was told in an email by the man himself (Tim, the founder of BKP) that the True Grit bridge is closest to an overwound Emerald.  I think that he meant that they are basically an overwound Emerald with respect to construction, not necessarily that they are the absolute closest in tone, etc., but I would think that they would be close.  I haven't tried the Emerald bridge but I would probably call the True Grit closer to a Nailbomb than a Holydiver?  Or maybe halfway between the two tone-wise but lower output than both?

the answers I got from Tim:

"So, my questions are both technical and subjective:
- Is the True Grit wound with enamel or poly? Long or short magnet?

43AWG SPN and uses a polished short Alnico V


- How does it compare tone wise to pickups like the Emerald, Rebel Yell, Holy Diver and Alnico Nailbomb?

Medium output, balanced mids and bottom end with a clear, sweet cut in the highs. Have a listen to Rabea’s video on the site, it shows the tone off really well.
It’s not as hot as the HD and NB but hotter than the Emerald. It has become a favourite of a lot of progressive players for it’s ability to handle gain and also clean up really well.


- Is it among the brighter voiced models or more rounded like the Crawler? Is it brighter than a stock Gibson 498T?

It’s not as fat in the highs as the Crawler but a touch brighter than a 498."

[Kotsos81]

Thank you all for your comments!

Nolly replied to me, I leave the reply here for future reference:

Roughly speaking the True Grit bridge sits somewhere between the Emerald and Rebel Yell in the main range, all three have 43 gauge winds and oriented A5 magnets. If you want to step up beyond those while keeping the same wire gauge you’d be looking at the Crawler then Nailbomb, which will give incrementally more output/compression, low end and less high end extension. The Polymath bridge also uses 43 gauge wound a touch hotter than the True Grit but with the unoriented A5 magnet which gives the pickup less output but a broad midrange push with softer highs and a distinct tight but squishy low end, all of which you’d usually expect to relate to a hotter wind.

If you move up to the 44AWG wound alnico 5s, the Holy Diver and Silo, you’ll get a bump in output and compression, noticeably less top end with lots of midrange and more bass too. How much you notice the extra low end will depend on how much your guitar is producing - string gauge and bridge type will be the key factors here.

[rcuthriell]

I had the same question! I love the feel of the True Grit bridge humbucker and want something similar but leveled up a notch or two for another Les Paul. I was told to look at the Cold Sweat or even the Nailbomb for a similar feel but more output.

After doing some research, it also looks like the Black Hawks would have a nice feel to them.

Did you end up going with anything?