Nazgul to quacky in my KM7 MkII, replacements?

[Mechigurh]

Hey guys,

As the title suggests, I am findining my KM7 MKII overly quacky/nasal no matter how I EQ it, especially when playing lead on anything other than the low B. It currently has the standard Nazgul/sentient combo.

Will swapping out the pickups help manage this problem?

Vogg from decapitated has one of the nicest tones I have heard recently, would a DiMarzio D sonic 7 (that is what Vogg uses, aye?) help me move in that direction?

Thanks.

 

[KailM]

The D Sonic definitely has softer mids than the Nazgul, which is I think what you want.

That said, the Nazgul is a pickup that I find requires a different approach to EQing. Namely, you should plan on running more bass and less mids than normal. I can't stand that "quacky" sound you're describing, but I'm able to avoid it even running a Nazgul in the bridge. An EQ pedal in the loop certainly helps.

To sound like Vogg though, you would need Vogg's hands.

 

[Mechigurh]

To sound like Vogg though, you would need Vogg's hands.

Do you know where I can get a set?

 

[Mechigurh]

Silly replies aside, I play through the fortin nameless suite via reaper. I feel like I am already getting pretty heavy handed with the eq in the mids for this guitar.

Do you have any experience with this guitar? How much of the quackyness would be attributable to the guitar and how much to the nazgul?

 

[KailM]

Silly replies aside, I play through the fortin nameless suite via reaper. I feel like I am already getting pretty heavy handed with the eq in the mids for this guitar.

Do you have any experience with this guitar? How much of the quackyness would be attributable to the guitar and how much to the nazgul?

No, I've never played anything in the KM series, but my two main guitars are mahogany bodied Schecters with ebony fretboards, and I've got a Nazgul in one and a Black Winter in the other. What is the build spec on the KM7?

It's hard to say where the excessive quackiness is coming from. Some of it is inherent in the Nazgul, but in my guitar it's not too bad.

I have an LTD Explorer guitar and it definitely sounds different from my Schecter; both have Black Winters in the bridge. For some reason, the LTD, which supposedly has a mahogany body (looks like very light mahogany to me, or something else entirely), has a much brighter attack, more snarl in the mids, and yet a deeper low-end chug than my Schecter with the same pickup. I even tried swapping the two Black Winters between those two guitars and they retained their same characteristics. The Schecter is smoother sounding and a little more balanced in the EQ.

You might really like a Black Winter in the bridge. The mids are less spikey than the Nazgul w/ less quack, but more grind. Low-end is fuller as well.

 

[Bearitone]

i hated my Nazgul for the same reason. Try a black winter and i bet you’ll love it

 

[KnightBrolaire]

nazgul is kind of picky about the guitar it's in ime. It works far better in darker sounding guitars than brighter ones imo. I had one in an all mahogany guitar and it sounded great. Conversely I hated it in some of the KM7s that I've tried because it gets a bit nasally/croaky in the mids.

 

[Mechigurh]

Thanks for all the great replies. I ordered a DiMarzio D sonic 7 ealier this aftertoon as it was going fairly cheap on ebay. Now having seen the other replies and if I don't like the Dimarzio ill get a black winter set.

 

[elkoki]

Guarantee it's your guitar more than the pickup. Swap it out and itll still have that certain quality

 

[LeviathanKiller]

Will swapping out the pickups help manage this problem?

Yep

Do you have any experience with this guitar? How much of the quackyness would be attributable to the guitar and how much to the nazgul?

It's all due to the pickup set (how it interacts with that particular wood). The Nazgul simply doesn't do that well in swamp ash. It's better in mahogany I've found. I've had 3 KM-7 guitars with that set and I pulled them out of each one.

Let us know how the D-Sonic works for you

 

[Kovah]

I have no experience with the D-sonic but I can vouch for the Black Winter in a swamp ash guitar, sounds massive!

 

[terran236]

Hey guys,

As the title suggests, I am findining my KM7 MKII overly quacky/nasal no matter how I EQ it, especially when playing lead on anything other than the low B. It currently has the standard Nazgul/sentient combo.

Will swapping out the pickups help manage this problem?

Vogg from decapitated has one of the nicest tones I have heard recently, would a DiMarzio D sonic 7 (that is what Vogg uses, aye?) help me move in that direction?

Thanks.

You are not alone in saying that.

I found nazguls really weak. I'm used to playing mid output pickups ... But there's something missing about these pickups they feel hollow using the same settings I use for my DiMarzio dominions. That's said I recommend DiMarzio Dominion because they have fat low mids. Without being too quacky. But if you want something with less mids but similar specs the DiMarzio Titans are also very good.

As for tonewood I don't believe in any of that malarkey. Just get some good electronics a good setup and some good strings. And practice, you'll sound good in any guitar.

 

[MAJ Meadows SF]

Everyone is right, Nazgul fairs better in Mahogany. That said, I do like the BW better in my KM-7 MkII, and especially the Alnico V version (A8 was a bit wild and brighter, and it also sounded better in Mahogany and Alder). If the D-Sonic doesn't deliver what you want, try swapping the Nazgul magnet to an Alnico V. Have you considered the D Activator X? He has that listed too, but I've never heard it in his guitars. He had a Lundgren in his Iceman 7 the last time I saw Decapitated. He gave me big metal horns up for wearing a Death "Human" album all-over print shirt. He definitely has ALWAYS had great tone, be it EMG, Lundgren, or DiMarzio.