Looking for a hot, aggressive, fat/dark-sounding passive pickup

[eveningninja]

I've got an Alexi-600 (alder body, maple neck-thru, ebony fretboard, 25.5" scale, Floyd Rose... essentially a very bright guitar) that needs a hot aggressive passive pickup that will beef/chunk up its lower end...

I'm considering...

-Seymour Duncan Alternative 8
-Dimarzio Tone Zone
-Dimarzio Breed

--->> (by the way, I'm not really looking to go Bareknuckle at the moment, I feel like I should first try the arsenal of more standard-priced ones before I decide BKP is for me, because who knows I might not even like it)

My amp is currently a Marshall JCM2000 TSL100 with an Orange PPC212 cab, running through an Ibanez TS7 as boost.

Any recommendations or general input? Or a pickup that fits the bill that I haven't considered?

Thanks!

-edit: general question: If you want a slightly warmer/darker-voiced pickup, is it necessary that the magnet be Alnico? Or can it be Ceramic and still be a quite beefy-sounding (and not too treble-y) pickup?

Will a ceramic pickup always sound like an ceramic and an alnico always sound like an alnico, regardless? Or are they simply voiced differently to begin with and can eventually be EQ'd?

 

[JamesM]

If you do decide to go BKP, an Alnico Warpig is perfectttt.

 

[Gryphon]

have you considered Dimarzio's Crunch Lab?

 

[eveningninja]

If you do decide to go BKP, an Alnico Warpig is perfectttt.

Thanks I'll keep that in mind

have you considered Dimarzio's Crunch Lab?

Isn't Crunch Lab a more bright pickup? I'm looking for something to beef up the lows/low-mids.



Btw, kind of a more general question: If you want a slightly warmer/darker-voiced pickup, is it necessary that the magnet be Alnico? Or can it be Ceramic and still be a quite beefy-sounding (and not too treble-y) pickup?

Will a ceramic pickup always sound like an ceramic and an alnico always sound like an alnico, regardless? Or are they simply voiced differently to begin with and can eventually be EQ'd?

 

[Rook]

Think you want a Crunch Lab. Bassiness is less to do with magnet and more to do with the windings and impedance/capacitance/inductance of the pickup and how they interact. A dark ceramic pickup will be hotter and generally a little tighter and clearer than the AlNiCo (5 presumably) equivalent. I recommend going for ceramic for darker pickups because the bass is less likely to turn to mud. The Tone Zone is great for adding fatness to a bright guitar but it's 'loose' and it's definitely not an aggressive pickup because it's so warm and smooth. The Crunch Lab is by no standards a bright pickup and it has more depth than a Tone Zone. It also has the power to pull off more aggressive styles and lower tunings where the Tone Zone just flubs out a bit.

I love the Tone Zone, but having extensive experience with both pickups, I'm sure you're describing a Crunch Lab and not the Tone Zone.

I you want beef ditch the TS7, buy a TS808, or better yet a T Rex Alberta, Toadworks 'The Flood' or Maxon OD808, the latter three all do the tubes reamer thing but suck less bass and mid.

 

[eveningninja]

Think you want a Crunch Lab. Bassiness is less to do with magnet and more to do with the windings and impedance/capacitance/inductance of the pickup and how they interact. A dark ceramic pickup will be hotter and generally a little tighter and clearer than the AlNiCo (5 presumably) equivalent. I recommend going for ceramic for darker pickups because the bass is less likely to turn to mud. The Tone Zone is great for adding fatness to a bright guitar but it's 'loose' and it's definitely not an aggressive pickup because it's so warm and smooth. The Crunch Lab is by no standards a bright pickup and it has more depth than a Tone Zone. It also has the power to pull off more aggressive styles and lower tunings where the Tone Zone just flubs out a bit.

I love the Tone Zone, but having extensive experience with both pickups, I'm sure you're describing a Crunch Lab and not the Tone Zone.

I you want beef ditch the TS7, buy a TS808, or better yet a T Rex Alberta, Toadworks 'The Flood' or Maxon OD808, the latter three all do the tubes reamer thing but suck less bass and mid.

Really? So, is the Crunch Lab a measurably high output pickup like the Alt8 and Tone Zone? Right now I have a Seymour Duncan SH-5 Custom in my Alexi and it feels a little weak or something, I want more balls/power. I may be wrong, but I'm convinced the sound I'm after will be achieved with a high output passive pickup, specifically one that can balance out the extreme brightness of my Alexi-600 guitar.

Also, will the Maxon OD808 really make for a noticeable difference comparing it to the TS7? Even when only used as a boost? I've never actually turned the Overdrive on my TS7 to anything past 0, I've always just used it as a boost. Maybe I should try the OD though, but just wondering what you think about that.

Thanks.

 

[Dead Undead]

Really? So, is the Crunch Lab a measurably high output pickup like the Alt8 and Tone Zone? Right now I have a Seymour Duncan SH-5 Custom in my Alexi and it feels a little weak or something, I want more balls/power. I may be wrong, but I'm convinced the sound I'm after will be achieved with a high output passive pickup, specifically one that can balance out the extreme brightness of my Alexi-600 guitar.

Also, will the Maxon OD808 really make for a noticeable difference comparing it to the TS7? Even when only used as a boost? I've never actually turned the Overdrive on my TS7 to anything past 0, I've always just used it as a boost. Maybe I should try the OD though, but just wondering what you think about that.

Thanks.

Yes, the OD808 is more transparent. It has much less effect on your tone, whereas a TS-9 or TS-7 will cut bass and boost mids. This will occur even when used as a boost.
I would take a look at the Way Huge Green Rhino Mk. II pedal. I have one and it's one of my favorite OD's. I use it as a boost most of the time but it sound fantastic on its own as well. It has a 100hz cut/boost control which basically cuts or boosts bass up to 12dB. It also costs little more than a TS-9.

The Crunch Lab is higher output than the Tone Zone.
I love the Tone Zone to death, but the Crunch Lab will probably work better for you.

 

[eveningninja]

Thanks.

Another question:
So, I just tried actually turning up and maxing out the Drive on my TS7, and it seems to give me enough power/output and I am actually liking the sound I'm getting (with the SD SH-5 Custom). That being said, would I achieve a better tone if I got a Crunch Lab (higher output) and turned down the drive on the pedal (whether it be TS7 or OD808)? Which route (using pedal overdrive boosting a medium-high output pickup, or just using really high output pickup) achieves better tone/clarity in general? I just don't like to turn the amp's gain too high because then it just seems to turn mushy/undesirable. One way or the other I just want that high gain.


If it makes any difference, this is one of my favorite passive sounds that I'd like to achieve: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pstmzp5WRA8

 

[Racerdeth]

Yes, the OD808 is more transparent. It has much less effect on your tone, whereas a TS-9 or TS-7 will cut bass and boost mids. This will occur even when used as a boost.

Sorry to drag the thread off topic, but is that not the reason a tubescreamer is great?

 

[Rook]

^The 'great' tubescreamer is generally regarded to be the 808 which doesn't do this anywhere near as much.

OP The Duncan Custom is a pretty decent pickup, but there's a really blatant difference between how Duncans and DiMarzios feel. Duncan also dot wire their humbuckers in different ways, the only thing that changes from pickup to pickup is how many windings there are, that's it. DiMarzio use two coils wound differently and different materials for each pickup depending on whAt they're going for meaning to get something hot it doesn't have to be bright.

The Crunch Lab definitely ads a lot of lows and mid to a guitar, using a decent TS will be able to manipulate that in way that boosts and tightens your sound but not by stripping all the guts out of it.

I can say it'll be different, I'd prefer the CL and a decent boost (it's what I use) but can't say you will for sure because I'm not you!

 

[Strobe]

One thing: I would avoid the Alternative 8. I happen to really like Alnico 8 magnets in pickups, but they have a tendency to be a bit bright, and even more so in an alder guitar. Good pickup, but probably a bad fit for your axe and tone preferences. I second the suggestion of a Warpig. That is one I have heard in person rather than just from clips - and it is a nice sounding pickup that seems to fit your description perfectly. That said, BKP may be more than you wish to pay. Otherwise, I second the Dimarzio Crunch Lab. I very much liked it in the JP models I have played.

On the subject of boosters, I recommend the BBE green screamer. I also happen to play a TSL100, and my main metal axe is a Jackson RR24 (very similar to your Alexi). It sounds good with that - and while I have a blackout in the bridge - it also pairs well with my SG with an ebony fretboard and passive pickups. It's more of a transparent booster like the 808 as compared to the TS9.

 

[eveningninja]

Thanks guys.

^ Would a BBE Green Screamer be as good as the Maxon OD808 or should I still go for the latter?

 

[Strobe]

I actually like it better - but they are not a lot different. The green screamer tends to go for cheaper - and it is true bypass - which I am not sure is true of all the various pedals with the 808 circuit.

 

[pathos45]

well depending on how you eq your stuff a x2n will be probally the most aggressive pickup out there but it really is just a one trick pony. I had one in my 7 string did metal amazingly other stuff was okay i had to coil tap it though.

 

[Rook]

I don't know many 808 copies that are True Bypass, and the whole 'true bypass is best' thing is a common misconception. It's very often the case a well buffered pedal is more transparent than a true bypass one, using a buffered pedal also makes every pedal after it completely transparent.

 

[Infinite Recursion]

I second the recommendation of a Warpig. Honestly, disregarding the hype, they sound exactly like what you want. You could also consider a Duncan Invader, similar in design/concept to the Warpig, but it is ceramic (and everyone here irrationally hates it).

 

[Rook]

^I rationally hate the Invader. I'm all for hot ceramic pickups but the Invader doesn't come across to me as fat and dark, but bassy and muddy with a scratchy high end. Nasty pickup...

 

[floyo123]

+1 for bkp!

 

[eveningninja]

Well thanks for all the BKP recommendations guise, but I don't think I'm ready to go there yet

I am very interested in the Crunch Lab though, I might end up doing that. If for whatever reason though I don't want a pup as high output as the Crunch Lab, what would be a good choice in a similar category? Seymour Duncan SH-6 Distortion perhaps?

Thanks.

 

[Scar Symmetry]

I'm looking for the same thing, but in a woman.