Seymour Duncan Passives in Basswood???

[ThrustTony]

I've heard Seymour Duncan sound bad in Basswood guitars, is that the case with all of them or are there any that work well with basswood?

I want to swap a set of Active EMG's for some passive pickups in my Ibanez RG7321. The passives would have to be active 707 size hence looking towards Seymour Duncan.

I've got Dimarzio Blaze in my other RG7321 and they sound great but I can't get them in mega active size

 

[TheWarAgainstTime]

Tone is completely subjective, so only you can really decide if Duncans sound good or bad in your guitar. I had a Distortion and '59 in an RG and they were killer, just not what I was going for.

Fretsonthenet has plastic EMG/soapbar style covers that you can put over passive pickups to take up the space left by active pickups. If you decide you don't want to try Duncans for their active-size covered pickups, you could just throw a pair of the plasic covers over something else.

 

[ThrustTony]

Thanks for the reply.

I'm open to different sounds now as I've come away from active. as long as they don't sound horrible I'll give them a go.

Just checking out covers as well. That could mean I could try some d activators.

Thanks again

 

[Zhysick]

I think the best pickups of Duncan for Basswood are the Distortion, Custom (or Custom 5) and the Invader.

What do you want?
Super aggressive and bright with tight bass -> Distortion
Aggressive but a bit more "full" sounding in the middle -> Custom (a bit more rounder Custom %)
Super thick but defined and pretty aggressive -> Invader

Those are the best that sounds in Basswood FOR ME. I don't like the invader but I have to recognize it sounds pretty pretty good. The Custom (or Custom 5) just don't do the thing for what I want so my favorite is the Distortion but the Full Shred or Screaming Demon sounds great in basswood also

But as it is a 7 string guitar I would se "go for the safest" and buy a Pegasus or the Nazgul.

I have the Nazgul for my 8 string RG8 (basswood also) and it is a BEAST. Tight, powerfull, defined, aggressive... if you want something a little bit more "complex" and a little bit less aggressive buy the Pegasus instead.

For sure the Nazgul/Pegasus + Sentient combo are the best for 7/8 string guitars in the Duncan catalogue.

 

[robski92]

I have a set of black winters in my rg and they sound fantastic!

 

[TheStig1214]

I like my Full Shreds in my RG7321....

 

[gclef]

I have a set of full shreds in my rg921.
Seriously great pickups in that guitar

 

[K3V1N SHR3DZ]

I 2nd the idea of covers.

MojoTone's 3.5" soapbar covers will enable you to use any(?) passive pickup while retaining the look of actives.

I personally swear by the Dimarzio Evolution/AirNorton in basswood. D Activator/Liquifire is also fantastic.

 

[ThrustTony]

Thanks for all the replies.

I'm liking the idea of the Seymour Duncan distortion bridge position and a 59 in the neck position.

I'm looking for a well rounded tone and something that will bring some life to the basswood body.

Do you think this set up would be right for me.

The basswood body on the RG7321 I want the passives in is pretty heavy and dense compared to my other RG7321.

I've found there is not much sustain to it.

Something well rounded which would bring a bit more sustain and life would be perfect.

 

[TheStig1214]

Thanks for all the replies.

I'm liking the idea of the Seymour Duncan distortion bridge position and a 59 in the neck position.

I'm looking for a well rounded tone and something that will bring some life to the basswood body.

Do you think this set up would be right for me.

The basswood body on the RG7321 I want the passives in is pretty heavy and dense compared to my other RG7321.

I've found there is not much sustain to it.

Something well rounded which would bring a bit more sustain and life would be perfect.

Lace Deathbar/X-Bar 3.5 bro.

 

[Petie]

I'm rocking the Perpetual Burn and '59 in my RG550 and I bloody love it.

 

[ThrustTony]

I've decided to play safe and go for the Nazgul and Sentient as they are designed for 7 strings and should bring life to my old 7321 lol

Thanks for all your posts and help guys. Your posts have been a massive help.

Thanks again

 

[Les]

Nazgul in my Basswood RGIR28FE sounds great you wont be disappointed.

 

[Lorcan Ward]

The Nazgul is the best pickup I've tried in basswood. It really tightens up the bass and compliments the bright middy sound of basswood.

 

[Progbusters]

I've tried distortion, alnico2pro, custom5, and screaming demon. The distortion was okay. The decent one was Pearly Gates. Pearly gates bridge in the neck actually. But I settled on dimarzios

 

[Hyacinth]

I just put a Nazgul/Sentient set in my Basswood Ibanez RG7620 and it sounds fantastic.

 

[ThrustTony]

I have Dimarzio Blaze in my other RG7321 and they sound amazing!

I had them in one of my first ever 7 strings which was an RG7620 but ended up going the active route and coming back to them.

Really looking forward to getting a Nazgul in my other 7321 and seeing what it sounds like through my Engl Powerball.

 

[Lorcan Ward]

I'm not sure how it would sound through a Powerball but through my old E530 it sounded very tight and aggressive. I will have a video demo up next week of how the Nazgul sounds on neutral settings.

 

[Ericjutsu]

I have an Ibanez Prestige RG852 8 string which is a basswood body and I swapped out the 808's for Seymour Duncan Nazgul/Sentient pair and I think it sounds great. Very tight. The tech who installed them complimented on the sound of them as well.
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[Thanatopsis]

I loved a Duncan Custom SH-5 in basswood.