Author Topic: '80s HSS Pickup Recommendation (Read 4443 times)

Holzar88 · « **on:** July 10, 2006, 09:29:33 PM »

I've been lurking for a while, but finally decided to join the board today and get some feedback from you.

I just purchased a Kramer F-3000 HSS superstrat (overseas version of the Pacer Deluxe), and I'm considering a pickup upgrade. It's got an alder body, ORF, rosewood neck.

I don't want to replicate any one artist's sound precisely, but here are a few of the tones (and specific songs they're in) that I love. Recommendations on which HSS set to get the job done would be greatly appreciated.

I'm a huge Bon Jovi fan, and for me, Richie hit his tone high mark on New Jersey. Specifically, I LOVE his rhthym sound on "Stick to Your Guns" and "Wild Is the Wind." I'm most interested in landing somewhere in that neighborhood, tone-wise. Other '80s tones I like a lot include those on Skid Row's "I Remember You" and pretty much everything on Extreme's first two albums. Amp-wise, I've got an ADA MP-1 running through a solid state Rocktron into an Avatar 2X12 with Celestion G12T-75s. (Hope to upgrade to a tube power amp soon).

For clean, singlecoil tones, I love Phil Collen's arpeggiated work on the song "Hysteria." Most of my singlecoil playing is clean, but I want something output wise that's in a similar (if not exactly the same) neighborhood as the humbucker.

Another long post on the board recommended the Mule to nail Sambora's tone. I also wondered about the Rebel Yell. Been leaning more in that direction, actually.

Any recommendations to get that quintessential '80s hair-rock tone (even though my hair's been gone a long time)?

Thanks for your input.

TwilightOdyssey · « **Reply #1 on:** July 10, 2006, 09:31:33 PM »

I would go with a Crawler and two Irish Tours for that kinda sound!

Holzar88 · « **Reply #2 on:** July 10, 2006, 09:38:07 PM »

Thanks for the quick feedback. Crawlers were another one I had thought about.

deg0ey · « **Reply #3 on:** July 10, 2006, 10:09:17 PM »

I love richie's tone also :)

I was lucky enough to catch bin jovi when they played milton keynes about a month ago and it was immense lol...

I don't think you can go wrong with any BKP's tbh, but the Crawler does look like it's gonna do the best job for you...I'm looking at the HolyDiver set myself, to get into sorta generic Whitesnakey territory (i think i picked the right pickup :P) and I'm hoping it can do a decent Sambora tone also - I've been led to believe it can, but if that's your sole goal then summat else may be the way forward for you

Wow, that was a bit rambley - hope it was maybe of some use

steve · « **Reply #4 on:** July 10, 2006, 10:45:42 PM »

I have a Sambora US strat with a Mule and 2 Mothers Milk. I have tried the nailbomb, Crawler in the strat also but i really do believe that the Mule is the nearest to his tone. He always uses fairly low powered pickups(pafs, paf pro) but drives them hard through high gain amps etc. I have some recordings where my tone is very similiar to his (i wish the playing was the same!).

Holzar88 · « **Reply #5 on:** July 10, 2006, 10:59:52 PM »

Hey guys,

Thanks for the responses.

I'll definitely take all that under consideration. I appreciate it! Now if I just had a Marshall JCM 800 . . . 8)

TwilightOdyssey · « **Reply #6 on:** July 11, 2006, 12:54:08 AM »

Steve, I agree with the Mule on the Sambora tone, but to cover all that territory (Skid Row, Extreme, Bon Jovi and "80s hair rock"), I think that a pickup with the ability to "shovel it" a bit more is needed. Just my personal opinion, of course, being a lifelong Skid Row and Extreme fan. Nuno's tone was totally face-melting on the Extreme material.

steve · « **Reply #7 on:** July 11, 2006, 07:55:19 AM »

Quote from: TwilightOdyssey

Steve, I agree with the Mule on the Sambora tone, but to cover all that territory (Skid Row, Extreme, Bon Jovi and "80s hair rock"), I think that a pickup with the ability to "shovel it" a bit more is needed. Just my personal opinion, of course, being a lifelong Skid Row and Extreme fan. Nuno's tone was totally face-melting on the Extreme material.

Sure i agree, i was just saying to nail the Sambora tone a Mule would suit. The crawler gets near as well and would nail the other tones as well.

Ced777 · « **Reply #8 on:** July 11, 2006, 10:36:41 AM »

Very interesting. I always saw the Crawler as a blues-rock "on steroid" machine, more than a 80's-hairy- pickup. But never tried one.

carlaz · « **Reply #9 on:** July 11, 2006, 11:14:45 AM »

Some of those 80s tones seem pretty bluesy-rocky, to me -- just covered in slick 80s production gloss ;)