Which ceramic 7-string BareKnuckle for metal?

[bigswifty]

This thread is gnarly, and great input!

A question for (Zimbloth ) anybody, I'm looking to swap my stock pups for some BKPs in my Ibby RG7620 - basswood body with maple neck and rosewood board.

Right now my interests are in the Coldsweats and Holydivers, but I'm looking for a recommendation based on what I'm after:

In the bridge I wan't lots of balls with that growl/snarl in chord voicings under high gain. I love hearing every note clear and equal in a large 7 string chord. Thus I particularily want immence clarity and dynamic. Articulation is key.
In the neck I'm after a pup that will produce incredible leads whether they are geared toward fusion or hi-gain applications. Fluidity, clarity and articulation must be prime, and the cleans must be exceptional as well. I'm really swayed towards the Coldsweat for the neck so far.

I play Progressive metal/rock primarily, as well as fusion, heavier stuff and the odd reggae jam here and there. I want to be able to get nice jazz cleans and blues crunch if needed too.

A little sum of sounds I like are Planet X, Guthrie Govan, Periphery, Porcupine Tree, Meshuggah, Sikth, AaL, Chimp Spanner, and oldschool prog like Yes!

Cheers

 

[zimbloth]

This thread is gnarly, and great input!

A question for (Zimbloth ) anybody, I'm looking to swap my stock pups for some BKPs in my Ibby RG7620 - basswood body with maple neck and rosewood board.

Right now my interests are in the Coldsweats and Holydivers, but I'm looking for a recommendation based on what I'm after:

In the bridge I wan't lots of balls with that growl/snarl in chord voicings under high gain. I love hearing every note clear and equal in a large 7 string chord. Thus I particularily want immence clarity and dynamic. Articulation is key.
In the neck I'm after a pup that will produce incredible leads whether they are geared toward fusion or hi-gain applications. Fluidity, clarity and articulation must be prime, and the cleans must be exceptional as well. I'm really swayed towards the Coldsweat for the neck so far.

I play Progressive metal/rock primarily, as well as fusion, heavier stuff and the odd reggae jam here and there. I want to be able to get nice jazz cleans and blues crunch if needed too.

A little sum of sounds I like are Planet X, Guthrie Govan, Periphery, Porcupine Tree, Meshuggah, Sikth, AaL, Chimp Spanner, and oldschool prog like Yes!

Cheers

Taking into account the makeup of your guitar as well as the sounds you're after, I would not recommend the Cold Sweat or Holydivers. Those pickups in theory are great, but this is a basswood Ibanez RG7 and is very picky with pickups. I would recommend one of the following two sets:

1) Nailbomb set (ceramic bridge, alnico neck)

2) Miracle Man set

The Miracle Man is very well-voiced for basswood, is exceptionally tight/clear, and the neck model is super fluid/smooth. Very powerful. The ceramic Nailbomb bridge is somewhat similar but with more midrange grind and a bit more versatile. The alnico Nailbomb bridge would also be good, albeit not quite as tight it would have a richer, deeper tone. The NB neck is also quite juicy but is a bit more articulate and organic. The Cold Sweat neck would also work great with the Nailbomb.

 

[bigswifty]

Taking into account the makeup of your guitar as well as the sounds you're after, I would not recommend the Cold Sweat or Holydivers. Those pickups in theory are great, but this is a basswood Ibanez RG7 and is very picky with pickups. I would recommend one of the following two sets:

1) Nailbomb set (ceramic bridge, alnico neck)

2) Miracle Man set

The Miracle Man is very well-voiced for basswood, is exceptionally tight/clear, and the neck model is super fluid/smooth. Very powerful. The ceramic Nailbomb bridge is somewhat similar but with more midrange grind and a bit more versatile. The alnico Nailbomb bridge would also be good, albeit not quite as tight it would have a richer, deeper tone. The NB neck is also quite juicy but is a bit more articulate and organic. The Cold Sweat neck would also work great with the Nailbomb.

Well that is unfortunate

Regardless though, you still think a Coldsweat neck pup would be great?
Nailbomb bridge ceramic in a basswood body.. I'll give it some thought.
I'm still waiting on a reply from Tim at BKP, its been about a week now

If the Coldsweat neck would still sound fantastic in the RG7, that will probibly be my choice. The bridge is a little more troublesome, I'm not a big fan of EMG's, which is why I'm sort of shying away from the MM.

I haven't heard great things about Nailbombs, but I haven't heard bad either. Hell I haven't heard much about them at all. I know Acle used to have a pair in his Ibby though. What about a Painkiller bridge with a Coldsweat neck in an RG7620? Would the Painkiller be too overkill when lowering the gain for more progressive rock tones? Say, some good old dirty crunchy Porcupine Tree style chords - how does that beast handle those? Even stuff like Yes too. If so, Painkiller (br)/Coldsweat (neck) sounds like a pretty killer combo right now.

Aftermaths are very interesting, but I've gathered that it might be a good idea to stay away from those until I have another guitar that isn't basswood aha.

Also if you don't mind me asking, why do you lean against the Coldsweats in Basswood? A couple posters in this same thread posted saying great things about them in RG7620's. Saw the posts so thought I'd ask!

And of all the mentioned above, if you had to choose a pair, what would id be?

Cheers!

 

[zimbloth]

Well that is unfortunate

Regardless though, you still think a Coldsweat neck pup would be great?
Nailbomb bridge ceramic in a basswood body.. I'll give it some thought.
I'm still waiting on a reply from Tim at BKP, its been about a week now

If the Coldsweat neck would still sound fantastic in the RG7, that will probibly be my choice. The bridge is a little more troublesome, I'm not a big fan of EMG's, which is why I'm sort of shying away from the MM.

I haven't heard great things about Nailbombs, but I haven't heard bad either. Hell I haven't heard much about them at all. I know Acle used to have a pair in his Ibby though. What about a Painkiller bridge with a Coldsweat neck in an RG7620? Would the Painkiller be too overkill when lowering the gain for more progressive rock tones? Say, some good old dirty crunchy Porcupine Tree style chords - how does that beast handle those? Even stuff like Yes too. If so, Painkiller (br)/Coldsweat (neck) sounds like a pretty killer combo right now.

Aftermaths are very interesting, but I've gathered that it might be a good idea to stay away from those until I have another guitar that isn't basswood aha.

Also if you don't mind me asking, why do you lean against the Coldsweats in Basswood? A couple posters in this same thread posted saying great things about them in RG7620's. Saw the posts so thought I'd ask!

And of all the mentioned above, if you had to choose a pair, what would id be?

Cheers!

The Cold Sweat works in basswood, I just find that pickup to be extremely bright and lacking some of the growl and punch of their other high-output models.

PS: You could always just contact me about it if you're not hearing back from BKP. We're the #1 BKP dealer in the world and can hook you up

 

[bigswifty]

Just a quick question, and Zimbloth I heard from the guys at BKP, I'm thinking of just ordering direct -unless we talk before tonight and figure something.


I'm wondering what option to specify in order to get just one row of bolts on each pickup, similar to this


Does this option change the pickup in any way? Or is it strictly cosmetic, in which case I will be doing this

 

[zimbloth]

Just a quick question, and Zimbloth I heard from the guys at BKP, I'm thinking of just ordering direct -unless we talk before tonight and figure something.


I'm wondering what option to specify in order to get just one row of bolts on each pickup, similar to this


Does this option change the pickup in any way? Or is it strictly cosmetic, in which case I will be doing this

Ordering direct from BKP is fine, you'll just always pay a bunch more doing that vs ordering from us. That's really your business though, not mine.

As for the picture you're referencing, the only models that come with bolts are the Aftermath and Warpig. They don't recommend bolts on other models because the tone suffer (typically on the bottom-end).

 

[guy in latvia]

Hey zimbloth, since you seem to know everything there is to know about BKPs I’ve got quite a question for you.

Want new pickups in my Caparison Dellinger II (mahogany with maple bolton). Currently I have a PK bridge and a CS neck. I HATE (cannot stress this enough) the CS in the neck, it sounds super trebly with absolutely no substance to it. It was recommended as having a fluid smooth sound, and it is nothing like that. Also, I am quite discouraged with how low output it is, terrible match for the PK in the bridge.

The PK is a really solid and great sounding pickup, but sometimes the high end snarl is a bit too much and as opposed to common belief, I find that the bass end is a little overpowering, kind of fighting the low mids and pushing them back (wouldn't have realized this until I started mixing it in recordings). I used to have an alnico NB in the bridge before, but that just felt like there was too much going on all the time, kind of like frequency overload.

I like a very midrange oriented sound. I like the bridge to be tight, aggressive, clear and bright while keeping a bit more of an organic vintage sound and the neck to be very warm, smooth and fluid (think duncan hotrails).

I am totally clueless about what to get, I've considered the MM set, I feel like the neck could be right for me, but I’m concerned with the lack of midrange, especially in the bridge. A huge added bonus would be a good clean sound with coil split/parallel wiring.

I play a broad range of tunings (from standard to B) and mostly metal, but some rock and fusion stuff too.

Your advice will be highly appreciated! Thanks!

 

[zimbloth]

Hey zimbloth, since you seem to know everything there is to know about BKPs I’ve got quite a question for you.

Want new pickups in my Caparison Dellinger II (mahogany with maple bolton). Currently I have a PK bridge and a CS neck. I HATE (cannot stress this enough) the CS in the neck, it sounds super trebly with absolutely no substance to it. It was recommended as having a fluid smooth sound, and it is nothing like that. Also, I am quite discouraged with how low output it is, terrible match for the PK in the bridge.

The PK is a really solid and great sounding pickup, but sometimes the high end snarl is a bit too much and as opposed to common belief, I find that the bass end is a little overpowering, kind of fighting the low mids and pushing them back (wouldn't have realized this until I started mixing it in recordings). I used to have an alnico NB in the bridge before, but that just felt like there was too much going on all the time, kind of like frequency overload.

I like a very midrange oriented sound. I like the bridge to be tight, aggressive, clear and bright while keeping a bit more of an organic vintage sound and the neck to be very warm, smooth and fluid (think duncan hotrails).

I am totally clueless about what to get, I've considered the MM set, I feel like the neck could be right for me, but I’m concerned with the lack of midrange, especially in the bridge. A huge added bonus would be a good clean sound with coil split/parallel wiring.

I play a broad range of tunings (from standard to B) and mostly metal, but some rock and fusion stuff too.

Your advice will be highly appreciated! Thanks!

Sorry to hear someone else gave you poor advice. The Cold Sweats are quite bright, definitely not the way to go for a warm, smooth lead tone. I can hook you up with some proper advice, no worries!

You might want to look into the Black Dog set. It has the kind of meaty midrange you're looking for, yet is super tight, crunchy and clear. Not nasally or harsh, rather has a warm top end. The neck model is fantastic. Juicy, articulate, and rich. The bridge, despite being an alnico, handles low tunings extremely well with remarkable low-end definition. Very mahogany friendly.

The only possible downside is its lower output. However I find this to be nothing but a positive attribute as long as you have a high-gain rig. If you wanted something hotter, but still with the characteristics you seem to be after, I would recommend the Aftermaths. Not as organic or warm as the Black Dog, but ultra tight with warmer highs than the PK/CS and still a healthy portion of midrange growl.

The Miracle Man isnt a bad choice. As a Caparison dealer who has installed many BKP sets in Dellingers first hand, I can attest that the MM sounds quite good in those. However yes, it does have a fairly scooped vibe to it. That said, the Dellingers are inherently midrangey so this isnt always a bad thing. It's still got some balls to it. The neck MM is supremely fluid and warm. Not as articulate as the BD neck however, but good enough.

If you're looking for ultra versatility, I'd go with the Black Dogs. If you want something that is killer for metal and cleans up pretty well also, shoot for the Aftermaths. If you want an all-out metal pickup that is well voiced for your guitar, I think the Miracle Man or ceramic Warpig would be a good way to go.

If you were tuning not so low, I'd say the Nailbombs would be great too. I find those to fine for low tunings also but it depends on your rig. Not all amps/cabs/setups are as forgiving in that regard as others.

As always, if you have any further questions you're welcome to contact me directly via PM or email. If you're interested in ordering, we can ship anywhere. Our order form can be found here.

 

[Xifter]

Just a quick question, and Zimbloth I heard from the guys at BKP, I'm thinking of just ordering direct -unless we talk before tonight and figure something.


I'm wondering what option to specify in order to get just one row of bolts on each pickup, similar to this
http://i253.photobucket.com/albums/hh76/Nollythegreat/IMG_1411.jpg

Does this option change the pickup in any way? Or is it strictly cosmetic, in which case I will be doing this

First - You should definitely order through Nick. He is awesome and his customer service as I am sure you already figured out, is top notch. You'll also save money going through him.

Lastly, my friend has your guitar with Nailbombs in it and it sounds killer! I could go into specifics, but I totally agree with Nick's recommendation of the Nailbombs. I was surprised at how articulate and tight they were.

 

[bigswifty]

Ah man, these replies came too late

I ordered a AM bridge and CS neck in Tyger finish with one row of black bolts on each to match aesthetically.

I would have ordered from you Zimbloth had I heard back earlier! (Though I know this thread shouldn't have been where I relied on your reply.)

 

[zimbloth]

Ah man, these replies came too late

I ordered a AM bridge and CS neck in Tyger finish with one row of black bolts on each to match aesthetically.

I would have ordered from you Zimbloth had I heard back earlier! (Though I know this thread shouldn't have been where I relied on your reply.)

It's cool man! I don't mind if people order elsewhere, was just letting you know you'd get them a lot cheaper from us. Regardless hope you love 'em

 

[dead_scott]

Since I only want to use them separate (bridge or neck), I would go for the 2 braided option. A 3 way blade switch is no problem, I guess, right? Btw, I'm in Italy. If I bought the set from you would it still be as cheap? Greets!

 

[zimbloth]

Since I only want to use them separate (bridge or neck), I would go for the 2 braided option. A 3 way blade switch is no problem, I guess, right? Btw, I'm in Italy. If I bought the set from you would it still be as cheap? Greets!

Yes you need the braided 2 conductor ones. Yes it would be cheaper from us. However you may get it a little faster since you live so close to the UK. I can go over how everything works if you contact me privately

 

[dead_scott]

Will do! And, umm sorry for being such an ignorant fool, but if you got some info on what electronics would work better, that'd be perfect =) My guitar has got no electronics at all, so I'll have to buy and install everything by myself. From wire to jack.

 

[dead_scott]

I'm so excited! I've already ordered the black battleworn aftermaths =) =)

 

[zimbloth]

I'm so excited! I've already ordered the black battleworn aftermaths =) =)

Sweet dude \m/

 

[Jzbass25]

I just ordered a C-Bomb from the axe palace for my 1527. Can't wait, I'll post about it once I get it.

 

[zimbloth]

I just ordered a C-Bomb from the axe palace for my 1527. Can't wait, I'll post about it once I get it.

Burnt chrome looks so good, you'll love it

 

[benatat]

I have an Ibanez RG7321fm (essentially an rg7321 with a flame maple top) and the pickups just don't quite cut it. I'm looking for something that has good, well defined, cleans for the neck pup and articulate, yet high output, for the bridge. The tone I'm looking for is BMTH's Count Your Blessings era, august burns red, etc. Thanks for any advice!

 

[zimbloth]

I have an Ibanez RG7321fm (essentially an rg7321 with a flame maple top) and the pickups just don't quite cut it. I'm looking for something that has good, well defined, cleans for the neck pup and articulate, yet high output, for the bridge. The tone I'm looking for is BMTH's Count Your Blessings era, august burns red, etc. Thanks for any advice!

I would recommend the Miracle Man or Aftermaths. If you have any questions feel free to get in touch