Trying to salvage a Damien 7.

[lastczarnian]

Acquired a Damien 7 and the EMG's suck. Looking to make it at least sound decent what are the best bang for the buck pickups to install? Been eyeballing Crunch Lab will it fit without modifications? I'm not looking to invest too much in this thing.

 

[Captastic]

First thing...have you tried swapping the neck PuP into the bridge slot? Lotsa popel prefer that to begin with...

Next option would be to try a Seymour Duncan BO model...

If you want to go passive...you'll need to change the pots and output jack...and the
neck PuP will also need to be swapped out for a passive model...

 

[The Reverend]

If you got the just the plain jane Damien 7, those busted-ass EMG Hz's have to go. As far as passives go, those are about the worst I've ever heard. The Damien 7, in fact all Schecter 7's, have EMG-sized routes, so if you're going to go with legit passives, you'll probably need pickup rings.

 

[Kamikaze7]

If you got the just the plain jane Damien 7, those busted-ass EMG Hz's have to go. As far as passives go, those are about the worst I've ever heard. The Damien 7, in fact all Schecter 7's, have EMG-sized routes, so if you're going to go with legit passives, you'll probably need pickup rings.

^ He's right. If you were to replace the pickups, I'd swap out those bunk-ass HZ's for a REAL set of EMG's and then re-form your opinion. If not the EMG's then the Blackouts would be your only other direct fit replacement option. You'd need a set of pickup rings if your not planning to direct mount them to the body like the EMG's do first off. There ARE EMG covers for passive pickups, but you'd need to shave the ears of the pickups down to make them fit into the cavity correctly. The screw holes for the pickup ears will have to be re-drilled if you do this.

 

[lastczarnian]

^ He's right. If you were to replace the pickups, I'd swap out those bunk-ass HZ's for a REAL set of EMG's and then re-form your opinion. If not the EMG's then the Blackouts would be your only other direct fit replacement option. You'd need a set of pickup rings if your not planning to direct mount them to the body like the EMG's do first off. There ARE EMG covers for passive pickups, but you'd need to shave the ears of the pickups down to make them fit into the cavity correctly. The screw holes for the pickup ears will have to be re-drilled if you do this.

Which EMG's do you suggest?

 

[The Reverend]

What kind of tone are you going for? I'd start off with the EMG 707s, as IMO they give the best EMG-style metal tone. I put them in my Damien 7, and it was like heaven. Such an amazing difference, as well as making me a firm believer in EMGs.

If you install the new EMGs yourself like I've done, make sure to leave enough room for the battery. It'll fit, you just have to be smart about it (unlike I was). The actual installation is easy as pie, and the only thing you'll have to solder is the three-way switch. Don't just rip it out like I did!

 

[lastczarnian]

I am tempted to put 707's in but damn they are expensive. I would be out $200 on a set of 707's and I really hate to invest that much in this guitar.

 

[The Reverend]

Are you planning on a buying a new set? I bought a pair from a guy on here for about $125, and it took my Damien from mediocre/bad to good. It's a worthy investment, as it'll make your guitar sound a lot better. If not, keep the 707s around for another guitar.

 

[lastczarnian]

Are you planning on a buying a new set? I bought a pair from a guy on here for about $125, and it took my Damien from mediocre/bad to good. It's a worthy investment, as it'll make your guitar sound a lot better. If not, keep the 707s around for another guitar.

I would prefer to buy a used set.

I need to find something to fix this thing the stock pickups are pretty bad. I keep trying to convince myself they are OK but no good they really suck.

Makes you wonder what the hell Schecter was thinking when they chose the HZ's.

 

[Animus]

Putting shitty cheap pups stock in guitars makes sense in a way because most likely people will replace them anyway with their preferences, and if they put good higher dollar ones in you basically paid more for pups you weren't going to use anyway and then have to buy your own brand pup.

 

[The Reverend]

I would prefer to buy a used set.

I need to find something to fix this thing the stock pickups are pretty bad. I keep trying to convince myself they are OK but no good they really suck.

Makes you wonder what the hell Schecter was thinking when they chose the HZ's.

Yeah, a used set shouldn't be going for $200. That's what they cost new.

The Hz's are really, really, really bad. You can coax good tones out of them, but at best you'll get good, and not great tones, and you'll need do to a lot tweaking with EQs and shit. Scour Ebay and forums for 707s or maybe even an 85-7 and 81-7 set. Pop those suckers in, and you'll really wonder what Schecter was thinking.

EDIT: Most other Schecter 7-strings don't have as shitty of pickups. I think there's a Duncan designed pair in some models, and in my experience those are just as bad as the EMG Hz.

 

[lastczarnian]

Been looking on ebay and some forums for a set and noticed there are three different versions of the 707. Standard 707, TW and X. What is the difference between them?

 

[stevo1]

The Tw is a 707 that is splittable so you can get single coil tones from it with a push/pull pot they provide. The X's are essentially a different pickup. The have a new preamp, that has lower gain, more head room, and sound a lot more passivey. They have a lot of added clarity to them, As I found the regular 707 to sound slightly muddy.

 

[Kamikaze7]

I would say go with the 707's to start with. It's gonna make such a huge difference in your sound. If you want something a little more versatile, go with the X's if you want more headroom and dynamics, or the TW's if you want coil splits and more tonal diversity. The newer push/pulls can be wired as a master volume or tone, as well as individual pickup volume or tone. And you can also set whether you want the humbucker or single coil to be in the up or down position on the switch. If you go with the TW's, you can get up to 8 different tones out of your guitar with the 3-way toggle in it.

But If you like the guitar and plan on keeping it, it'd be worth the $200 for a new set of pickups. Even if you buy them used, it's still gonna be something that you'll be surprised with and wonder why you hadn't done it sooner.