looking for a low or medium output neck pickup for my bkp miracle man bridge

[shalev98732]

so im looking for a neck pickup to match my bkp miracle man bridge the reason i dont get a mm in the neck too is because i want a medium or low output neck.
for the neck im looking for it do cleans, shred, blues, blues rock and more importnatly southern rock, also want ti be able to handle metal but thats less important.
id like the neck to be a bkp too but idc ifs made by another brand

 

[TheWarAgainstTime]

The VH-II would be my first pick if you stick with BKP. I have one paired with a C-Pig and it'll do everything you listed. It's one of my favorite pickups for cleans especially, but it does lead work and crunchy tones no problem. There are more ideal/purpose-built pickups for the shredding stuff like the Cold Sweat or Liquifire, but they're probably hotter than you want and are underwhelming for cleans IMO.

For other brands, I also like the Duncan 59 to cover a similar ground as what the VH-II does. I haven't tried any lower-powered Dimarzio neck pickups like the 36th Anniversary or PAF Master, but the Air Norton is medium-hot and is crazy versatile as well.

 

[Necky379]

For other brands, Duncan Pearly Gates or Dimarzio Anniversary PAF would be worth considering.

 

[shalev98732]

The VH-II would be my first pick if you stick with BKP. I have one paired with a C-Pig and it'll do everything you listed. It's one of my favorite pickups for cleans especially, but it does lead work and crunchy tones no problem. There are more ideal/purpose-built pickups for the shredding stuff like the Cold Sweat or Liquifire, but they're probably hotter than you want and are underwhelming for cleans IMO.

For other brands, I also like the Duncan 59 to cover a similar ground as what the VH-II does. I haven't tried any lower-powered Dimarzio neck pickups like the 36th Anniversary or PAF Master, but the Air Norton is medium-hot and is crazy versatile as well.

i tried vhii with a miracle man in a guitar at a store as tim suggested to me, i havnt tried the vhii with blues style yet, but it does metal well.

also i do prefer paf pickups so thank for mostly pafish recommendations

 

[shalev98732]

so got another email from tim he suggested the vhii and the emerald, can anyone give info on both of those pickups

 

[BabUShka]

I have really good experience paring BKP with Seymour Duncans in several guitars . I have a Miracle Man set in my Gibson V, I would pair them with a Seymour Duncan Jazz or 59. Some might say boring, but they are solid pickups - great match for the MM and half the price than BKP.

I also had a Pearly Gates matched with a Black Dog, really loved the combo.

 

[BabUShka]

so got another email from tim he suggested the vhii and the emerald, can anyone give info on both of those pickups

I have an Emerald in my Les Paul Classic bridge. Paired with Seymour Duncan 59. Very versatile combo.

Its a little bit smoother and rounder than other BKP I've had. Maybe the least bright BKP ive tried. They sound very clear and punchy both clean and distorted. Great pickup! But I prefer my MM set.

 

[shalev98732]

I have an Emerald in my Les Paul Classic bridge. Paired with Seymour Duncan 59. Very versatile combo.

Its a little bit smoother and rounder than other BKP I've had. Maybe the least bright BKP ive tried. They sound very clear and punchy both clean and distorted. Great pickup! But I prefer my MM set.

yeah well the mm neck aint really verstaile, and i dont like the cleans on it, i am keeping an mm in the bridge

 

[Neon_Knight_]

How would you define "medium or low output"? That's pretty subjective, so a steer would help us to give you good recommendations.

As someone who routinely uses high output ceramic pickups, my idea of a medium output neck pickup is probably much hotter than someone who uses vintage PAFs. Also, some people are content to mitigate volume drop-off when switching to their neck pickup, using significantly lower their bridge pickup (impacting the tone and harmonics), and/or have to use a boost with their neck pickup. Others (very much including me) like to set a bridge pickup to an optimal height for tone and then select a neck pickup that provides balanced volume.

DiMarzio categorises anything <290mV as 'low output' (including the Air Norton, as well as lower output PAFs etc.), and anything 290-360mV as 'medium output' (so PAF Pro and most Vai / Satch / Petrucci signature neck models are at the lower end of 'medium'). This fits in with my perception of pickup outputs.

 

[Bloody_Inferno]

I've got a BKP Supermassive neck paired with a Miracle Man bridge on one of my guitars. Fun combo, and I chose those for similar reasons as OP.

That said, honestly, there's plenty of options that'll do the job. It's worth to go and try out some and decide which suits your playing, since pickups are more on the preferential side of things. What's good for me many not suit your tastes, and vice versa.

But if I'm going to pick some BKP excluives, either a Mule, Old Guard, Mississippi Queen or Nantucket should serve you well. Or any variant of a low output, PAF or HSP90s really.

EDIT: Since you were recommended a VHII or Emerald, those are a little hotter from my choices, but they'll work well with the pairing so you won't get too much dynamic discrepancies when switching between them.

 

[BabUShka]

yeah well the mm neck aint really verstaile, and i dont like the cleans on it, i am keeping an mm in the bridge

Fair point. I really think the MM neck is a nice pickup with nice cleans, but its a matter of preferanse and we Just have different taste.

If you want a rounder and smoother sound then the Emerald would do it for you.