most suitable highgain bridge pickup for a Jackson AlderRR1?

[octavio_amzer]

Thats more helpfull for us trying to help you, thanks.

First off, I never found mesas of any sort that I've tried to be particularly tight. MkIvs are about the best for it, but still its not a defining characteristic of any of their 198450918475081 tones.

Then theres the EQ thing. Bassy, middy amp + Bassy, low middy pickup = bass and mid overload, so its possibly working against you.

What pickup did you change to miracle man from?

Anyway, so far my suggestions are these:

1: Use thicker strings. Always great for tightening things up, and a cheap experiment, and cheap solution if it works.

2: try an EQ in line with the guitar and amp. A bit more expensive, but they tend to be one of those things you eiter rely on all the time, or dont use most of the time and every now and then they're invaluable. Great investment however you cut it.

3: Get to a guitar shop with the pretense of buying an amp or to a mates house that you know has a quite different, but still similar enough amp and try the guitar through that...though I doubt you'll be buying a new amp unless this experiment reveals to you a flaw in your amps tone (its not particularly to my taste because I like the tighter, more open end of the metal spectrum (I use an engl screamer as my main amp, for the time being), but it'll let you figure out what the pickup sounds like outside your setup, if you see what I mean, and at the very least that can help you understand what you want to be different more clearly)

4: try a rebel yell, crawler, cold sweat or nailbomb. All have lower output than a miracle man and very different voicings, but I havent tried any, so I cant advise you any further on that: if you've heard the clips and spent some time on or searched the boards you know as much as me about those.

thankyou for your reply  :)

ok... now I think I'm getting closer to my answer.

the other bridge pickups I've used really don't matter, the Miracle Man is the best bridge pickup I have used! but as I say... I want the best for my needs  8).

1) yes and yes... I was thinking about the strings also... I use 9-42 and maybe I could use a little bit of a thicker gauge (not getting to 10)... something like a 9-42+ if you know what I mean.

2) what if instead of an EQ I could use a pedal to tighten it up? I think using EQs in mark amps is overkill considering you already are using an EQ onboard the amp... but I shall consider it.

3) the thing is I love my amps and guitars and they are "my sound" and I won't change it just because of a bridge pickup =P

4) nailbomb sounds nice and I'm also thinking of Painkiller. Anything lower wouldn't give me enough power in my playing...

 :D

[MDV]

Ok, then. Thats boils down to a resounding 'string change' from where I'm sitting.

Its the easiest thing to do, financially and practically. You're going to anyway, after all! may I at least recommend, whole heartedly no less, that you try 10s in E? I never once got a satisfactorily tight sound out of anything less in E: 10s are the lightest guage I use, an I use them exclusively in E. I often use 10-52 in E, and it goes up from there as I detune accross my guitars to 13-70 for B standard.

Tell me if this is telling gran to suck eggs, but of all the things you can change on your guitar if you take a difference/cost relationship then strings are THE best thing to change first, guage and brand. Massive difference, negligable cost. Win.

[octavio_amzer]

Ok, then. Thats boils down to a resounding 'string change' from where I'm sitting.

Its the easiest thing to do, financially and practically. You're going to anyway, after all! may I at least recommend, whole heartedly no less, that you try 10s in E? I never once got a satisfactorily tight sound out of anything less in E: 10s are the lightest guage I use, an I use them exclusively in E. I often use 10-52 in E, and it goes up from there as I detune accross my guitars to 13-70 for B standard.

Tell me if this is telling gran to suck eggs, but of all the things you can change on your guitar if you take a difference/cost relationship then strings are THE best thing to change first, guage and brand. Massive difference, negligable cost. Win.

would that be wise considering I use the Floyd Tremolo?... I have never used thicker strings  :oops:


(.010, .013, .017, .026, .036, .046) would be ok???

[MDV]

Ok, then. Thats boils down to a resounding 'string change' from where I'm sitting.

Its the easiest thing to do, financially and practically. You're going to anyway, after all! may I at least recommend, whole heartedly no less, that you try 10s in E? I never once got a satisfactorily tight sound out of anything less in E: 10s are the lightest guage I use, an I use them exclusively in E. I often use 10-52 in E, and it goes up from there as I detune accross my guitars to 13-70 for B standard.

Tell me if this is telling gran to suck eggs, but of all the things you can change on your guitar if you take a difference/cost relationship then strings are THE best thing to change first, guage and brand. Massive difference, negligable cost. Win.

would that be wise considering I use the Floyd Tremolo?... I have never used thicker strings  :oops:


(.010, .013, .017, .026, .036, .046) would be ok???

you'll need to do a little setup work but I currently have 2 FR guitars, one strung 10-56 and one 11-60, so yes, it will be absolutely fine

Start with 10s, and if that takes you in the right direction, experiment as the wind carries you.

Edit: And keep us posted! (no pun intended!)

[OD-Black_Fire]

I'd recomend 10-52.  The low gauge at the high end is easy to bend, tap, and just easy to play with but the .52 low E gives a good thump and structure to the sound without being over the top, so you can solo + have a good chugga chugga sound.

I use .11-.54's on my ESP EC-1000, LP scale length. Chunky, but its a little hard to bend more than 1/2 step. I like tight bottom strings because I palm mute really hard so it sound really tight and focused.

I've found that if your 6th string is lower than 50 you just get some pansy ass muddy chatter for palm mutes. 52 is minimum for CHUNK. 54 in E and D definitely gives you a big pounding. 56 is too tight for E and D for me (even on a LP type guitar). I'd probably use that for Drop C.  I used this spread sheet that calculates what string gauges and tension you get for notes and it helps a lot.  I don't remember where I got it from.  I need a place to upload spread sheets. I think something is wrong with it, I don't think it knows that B is only 1/2 step below C.

[MDV]

I'd recomend 10-52.  The low gauge at the high end is easy to bend, tap, and just easy to play with but the .52 low E gives a good thump and structure to the sound without being over the top, so you can solo + have a good chugga chugga sound.

I use .11-.54's on my ESP EC-1000, LP scale length. Chunky, but its a little hard to bend more than 1/2 step. I like tight bottom strings because I palm mute really hard so it sound really tight and focused.

I've found that if your 6th string is lower than 50 you just get some pansy ass muddy chatter for palm mutes. 52 is minimum for CHUNK. 54 in E and D definitely gives you a big pounding. 56 is too tight for E and D for me (even on a LP type guitar). I'd probably use that for Drop C.  I used this spread sheet that calculates what string gauges and tension you get for notes and it helps a lot.  I don't remember where I got it from.  I need a place to upload spread sheets. I think something is wrong with it, I don't think it knows that B is only 1/2 step below C.

I think we're on a similar page string guage wise, but for Octavio, whose never used anything but 9-42, 10-52 or 12-54 (both guages I use, BTW) are going to be a bit of a step! It'll likely rip his fingertips off or at least give his forearms a serious workout.

I started in 9-42, but havent used that for...oh, 7 years now (one year of it). I went to 10s and the difference was more than enough to make think "Well, thats great, but what if I use MORE?".

Now I use 10-46 for janglier chord stuff and 10-52 for metal in E/ drop D.
Standard D/drop C: 10-56, 12-54
C#/drop B: 11-60
B/ drop A: 13-70 (though the 11-60s can handle it if I play lightly compared to my normal metal playing picking aggression level of 'strings are evil and must be punnished')

So, again, I recommend 10-46 and see if it does you any good (and it will, or I'll pay for the strings!) and then up from there!

[octavio_amzer]

then I'll be inbetween you guys :


(.010, .013, .017, .028, .038, .048) they shall be  :)



so I will give the Miracle Man another chance!! I hope this will solve my problem  


thanks guys   8)


but more opinions wouldn't hurt  :lol:

[MDV]

Any time  8)

Change ASAP and tell us how it goes.

[blue]

i think it's a myth that heavier string guages give better sounds,

evidence wise, jeff beck and jimmy page always used very light strings, in fact beck favoured 8's, and they sounded alright!!!

steve vai uses 9's, Diamond (dimebag) Darrel used a set of 9's, do either of them sound soft???

i must admit, i  generally use 10'a myself, but i have 9's on a couple of guitars and they sound just fine.  i use 10's on gibson scale lengths, and 9's on 25,5", but on 25", PRS etc. scale, i have a mix of 10's and 9's

it's all personal taste, isn't it?

[MDV]

i think it's a myth that heavier string guages give better sounds,

evidence wise, jeff beck and jimmy page always used very light strings, in fact beck favoured 8's, and they sounded alright!!!

steve vai uses 9's, Diamond (dimebag) Darrel used a set of 9's, do either of them sound soft???

i must admit, i  generally use 10'a myself, but i have 9's on a couple of guitars and they sound just fine.  i use 10's on gibson scale lengths, and 9's on 25,5", but on 25", PRS etc. scale, i have a mix of 10's and 9's

it's all personal taste, isn't it?

How do you know?

I mean, you mention guys that use *blah* guage, but how would you know what they sound like with a different guage? I'm sure they tried em and made their minds up, but you've only heard them using what they use, in amongst all the other stuff they use.

Sorry, but thats not evidence. Evidence would be showing that they make no difference while keeping everything else the same in a setup.

I mean, in Eb slayer use 9-42, and it sounds heavy because they use modded silly-power marshalls...but how would it sound if they played reign in blood with 10-52? Kerry and Jeff probably know, but not you or I.

I've tried many string guages. Almost all that there are (8-38 (didnt last long!), 9-42, 9-46, 10-46, 9.5-48, 10-52, 11-50, 12-54, 11-53, 10-60, 11-60, 10-70, 13-70 adn a couple of wound 4th sets that I gave a chance for 10 minutes that werent that different at the extremities but have forgotten have all passed through my electrics. Some stayed), and it makes a HUGE difference.

HUGE.

And yes, its all prefference. But please dont try to tell us that string guage makes little difference. It doesnt change the character of your tone (though string brand will!) but it will change your tone a lot!

[CJ]

i personally think their is a HUGE difference in string guages, especially on the low end. i don't see too big a difference with the high end, that's why i use the ZW boomers. man the low end just sound so much better.

[octavio_amzer]

so this thread went from pickups to strings  :lol:

so if I applied these 10s gauge strings and used a Painkiller... mmmm...

woudn't that be tightness paradise?  8)

some more thoughts on the painkiler please  :D !!!

gotta compare them with the Miracle Man

[MDV]

I havent tried the painkiller, but all things being equal the MM is the last word in tightness in my experience, including an 81 (I have an MM in a guitar that has also had an 81 in, and while the 81 is still, as always, incredibly tight, the MM just about takes it).

Edi: though that is with my overwound MM, which seems, strangely, tighter than the stock model (I think it was compensated for in the wid: it was treblier too, contrary to expectation).

[Eric]

Here's a good site for calculating string tension.  It uses D'Addario numbers but it should be close enough for government work.

Just some FYI here, Tim uses TNT Boomers(.010 - .052) so if you want to use what Tim uses. :D

[Philly Q]

i think it's a myth that heavier string guages give better sounds,

evidence wise, jeff beck and jimmy page always used very light strings, in fact beck favoured 8's, and they sounded alright!!!

But that's partly because light strings were a new phenomenon in the late 60s - those guys grew up struggling with wound thirds!  Guitarists as a breed are very conservative, once we settle on something we're reluctant to change (although I think Beck now uses a 9-46 set).  And there are examples in both directions - Tony Iommi uses 8s (but he has a physical reason for doing so), SRV used 13-58 or something!

I sort of agree with you though - there was certainly an obsession 10-15 years ago with getting the heaviest strings you possibly could, to the extent that it was physically painful to play.  I know Neville Marten at Guitarist always used to bang on about string gauges but eventually went back to 9s.  Personally I've always used 10s on everything, I bend strings all the time and I like to feel I don't have to fight them.  I've also found that with some guitars, anything less than 10s doesn't seem to have the "power"(?) to get the unplugged guitar resonating.

BUT the guys we're talking about were playing mainstream(ish) music in standard tuning (I know Dimebag was playing some very heavy music, but he was a guy my age (almost!) who grew up on classic 70s rock, so again I think he stuck to the same basic setup he had early on).  

I don't know much about extreme metal and I wouldn't have a clue how to play it, but it seems to be all about low tunings and precision rhythm playing on the low strings.  I've tried drop-D a little, and even then the 6th string feels a bit flabby and unresponsive.  Heavy strings MUST make a difference because they literally don't flap around as much, they snap back into place ready for the next chord.  It's not like bending strings when you're fighting the string tension, in this case tension is your friend!