Sound clips - Blackjack/JB vs Hellraiser/707 vs Universe/Blaze

[darren]

Really interesting to hear the differences! I dropped the samples into GarageBand so i could easily loop, mute and solo them. My observations:

The Blackjack with the JB sounds the fattest and warmest to me... thick and chunky.

The Hellraiser's longer scale length and the 707 give it a more compressed sound and the attack is WAY more articulate than the JB. There's a bit of "twang" in there... very clear and "stringy". It seems to cut through better, But it seems to lack some of the depth and sonic complexity of the JB in the Blackjack.

The Universe with the Blaze in basswood seems to land right between the two. It has some of the attack of the 707, but isn't as flat-sounding in the middle of the spectrum. I'd be interested to hear what this sounds like with fresher strings on it. The tuning and/or intonation also seems slightly off on the UV.

The combination of the Blackjack panned hard left and the Hellraiser panned hard right sounds monstrous. You get the best of both worlds.

 

[Chris]

[action=Chris]prefers the 707[/action]

The combination of the Blackjack panned hard left and the Hellraiser panned hard right sounds monstrous. You get the best of both worlds.

Oh my goodness, yes.

 

[Shawn]

JB > Blaze > 707

normally, being a DiMarzio guy, i'd have thought that i'd like the Blaze the most.

Exactly what I think. Nice clips, Drew, pretty cool riff. I love the Blaze alot too, it is my favorite pickup and the same goes for the blaze neck but the JB seems to sound better.....wow.

 

[Drew]

Yeah, I do dig the JB... I'm not sure how it'd sound in basswood so don't go switching just yet or anything, but I'll keep my fingers crossed for Schecter doing a white C7 for ya, bro.

I didn't try layering the two against each other, though with two such radically different sounding pickups I could see interesting things happening. My only concern would be a tone that expansive not leaving enough space for a lead track...

 

[eaeolian]

Yeah, I do dig the JB... I'm not sure how it'd sound in basswood so don't go switching just yet or anything, but I'll keep my fingers crossed for Schecter doing a white C7 for ya, bro.

I didn't try layering the two against each other, though with two such radically different sounding pickups I could see interesting things happening. My only concern would be a tone that expansive not leaving enough space for a lead track...

Nah, just listen to "Hunt" from our MySpace site - that's an 81 and a JB-7, and they blend pretty nicely, although it's very "thick". Actually, all of the MySpace songs are JB/EMG 81, now that I think about it...

 

[Drew]

Myspace's blocked at work, but I'll listen tonight.

What'd you do for the lead guitar, then - what was the guitar, and what sort of changes in amp settings did you make?

 

[darren]

Well, presumably you'd be playing your leads in a different note range than the rhythm, so i don't think you'd have an issue with getting a lead to cut through the mix. The 707 would definitely slice right through from the sounds of it.

 

[Chris]

Myspace's blocked at work, but I'll listen tonight.

What'd you do for the lead guitar, then - what was the guitar, and what sort of changes in amp settings did you make?

Dude, it's Division. They just turned the leads up to eleven, mate.

 

[eaeolian]

Myspace's blocked at work, but I'll listen tonight.

What'd you do for the lead guitar, then - what was the guitar, and what sort of changes in amp settings did you make?

Different channels in the amp - the "orange" channel of the Rectos. Usually set with a tad more mids, and a lot less presence, to round the notes off more. We did leads on a lot of different guitars, and I can't remember any of them but "Hunt", which is definitely my Soloist 7...

Dude, it's Division. They just turned the leads up to eleven, mate.

We turn EVERYTHING up to 11.

 

[Chris]

Different channels in the amp - the "orange" channel of the Rectos. Usually set with a tad more mids, and a lot less presence, to round the notes off more. We did leads on a lot of different guitars, and I can't remember any of them but "Hunt", which is definitely my Soloist 7...



We turn EVERYTHING up to 11.

Including the height adjustment on Dave's booster seat, I reckon.

 

[eaeolian]

Including the height adjustment on Dave's booster seat, I reckon.

That goes to 20...

 

[Drew]

Either way, I'll be using the UV for the majority of the leads - I just love how responsive the Blaze bridge is to semi-harmonics at moderate-to-low gain levels.

 

[noodles]

Only if the booster seat is metal.

 

[zimbloth]

I'd say JB-->Blaze-->707. The 707 was tight and clear sounding, but it still has something about it that seems artificial. The Blaze was a bit muddy but it still had a cool fundamental tone to it. The JB i think had the best overall sound.

It's a cool comparison, but of course theres a million other factors to be considered. I hope no one uses these clips as a basis for getting their own pickups.

 

[Drew]

It's a cool comparison, but of course theres a million other factors to be considered. I hope no one uses these clips as a basis for getting their own pickups.

Someone get me the "Thank You, Captain Obvious" picture ASAP.

Of course not, dude. But, if you want a rough comparison between how a Schecter C7 Hellraiser and Blackjack sound, compared against a basswood bodied RG7 with a Blaze, which most people here have tried at least once before, it certainly gives you an interesting picture...

 

[EdgeCrusher]

Cool clips man

I also like the JB best, then the blaze.

 

[right_to_rage]

Are all those tracks doubled, what happened to your hand, and got anyother clips? Mabey clean, or more dirt? My new Hellraiser should be coming in the next 2 days but the 707 sounds like a bone crusher.

 

[Ancestor]

... what happened to your hand... ?

Yeah, what do you mean that you have to grow your finger back?

I think I like the Blackjack the best.

*edit*

Forgot to add that it's a cool riff.

 

[Drew]

The saga of my poor finger

It's actually healing up way faster than I thought, and I was able to start playing again last night as long as I was careful.

The tracks were all multitracked, one track each with the same settings hard left and right. I figured I was sloppy enough that it was obvious.

And thanks, Shawn and Ancestor - it's bone-simple, but if the drums behind it were slightly more interesting it could be cool, maybe...

 

[Pith777]

Someone get me the "Thank You, Captain Obvious" picture ASAP.

Of course not, dude. But, if you want a rough comparison between how a Schecter C7 Hellraiser and Blackjack sound, compared against a basswood bodied RG7 with a Blaze, which most people here have tried at least once before, it certainly gives you an interesting picture...

Yes ... I agree ... This is very good idea to give others some trials of different sounds of pick-ups. I think in recording like someone said before, JB will be better than Blaze & 707. But on live will be differences. Perhaps i like much more sound of DiMarzio Evolution in my basswood Ibanez than JB in Schecter Blackjack. But for the recording much more Schecter with JB - JB has much more wider sound ... I had to buy The Blaze pick-up but I think I will not ... I interest in D Sonic ... How this pick-up sound ... Sick Greetz to all !