16

The Pickup Place / Re: SSS Strat Pickup Combinations

« on: January 28, 2025, 12:28:41 PM »

I don’t like having the tone up high when playing single coils with much gain, so hum from running the Injector with a compromised dummy coil will never be an issue for me.

I’ve used the Injector Neck in all three positions in various guitars. While it is warmer than a traditional vintage single coil, I have never found it to be lifeless. Of course there are many factors involved that will influence how a pickup sounds, not the least of which being the materials used for the bridge and how you set your amp.

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The Pickup Place / Re: SSS Strat Pickup Combinations

« on: January 27, 2025, 12:36:53 PM »

You’re absolutely right about using a linear taper for the volume control. I don’t like the large initial drop in volume you get with an audio taper, especially on a Strat pickguard where it sits so close to where my hand is. Because of the treble bleed, I treat the volume control as another tone control and the linear taper gives me a more precision. My rhythm tone is medium gain and I’m still able to clean up by rolling the volume back and by lightening up my touch.

The Injector definitely benefits from a lighter load, though the 250k total load from a pair of 500k pots is not enough. If I were only using two controls one would be a 500k and the other would be 250k, which is essentially what I am getting with three 500k controls (167k). The problem with reducing the load too much is that a spike begins to develop in the top end. The real key to getting an extension in frequency response with the Injector Neck lies in shunting the dummy coil. Configuring the second tone control the way I did I am able to do both. Again, the linear taper allows for more precision at the upper end of the control. I also use a series resistor with tone controls in order to prevent the cocked-wah sound.

The Fast Track 1 excels in all three positions. It’s a very versatile pickup. I first tried it in the bridge many years ago and liked the tone but it wasn’t what I wanted at the time. It’s reminiscent of the FS1, perhaps more-so than the Injector Neck which is closer to the FS1 in terms of specifications. The Injector Neck also makes an excellent bridge pickup, though I prefer the Virtual Vintage Blues for the extra sparkle.

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The Pickup Place / Re: SSS Strat Pickup Combinations

« on: January 26, 2025, 05:04:43 PM »

I’m finishing up another pickguard which I think is noteworthy. This time it was built around the Fast Track 1 in the bridge.

As you may already know the Fast Track 1 sounds like a single coil with humbucker tendencies. It is dynamic with a lot of output. It’s lean with a healthy amount of treble, though it lacks the pure bell sound and top end chime of a single coil, though additional presence can be had with larger value pots without sounding brittle. It can get strident with 500k controls, however.

An Injector Neck was fitted in the neck position which I believe is an excellent match, both in terms of output as well as frequency response. Like with the Fast Track 1 it can benefit from larger pots and can produce some really nice chime in split mode.

The middle position was fitted with an Area 61 which compliments the other two pickups nicely, both in terms of frequency response as well as dynamics. It’s a tad lean but well worth it since it’s able to deliver nice quack with the Injector when both are split. I reversed the polarity of the Area 61 with neodymium rod magnets so that hum is cancelled in positions 2 & 4.

The volume control is a B500k with a treble bleed that is 220pF in series with 20k. The middle control is currently an A500k with a 22nF cap acting as a master tone control. The outer control is a B500k with an 820pF cap acting as a presence control. It is only active in position 5 (neck only), where it is combined with the master tone control. I’ve configured the other end of the control so that it begins shunting the noise cancelling coil of the Injector around 8, fully shorting it when on 10. The active coil of the Area 61 is currently hard-wired with a 240k shunt resistor and the Fast Track 1 is currently shunted with a 510k resistor in position 1 (bridge only).

EDIT: The master tone control will later change as will the loading.

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The Pickup Place / Re: PAF pickups that are close in brightness to singles?

« on: November 22, 2024, 02:10:54 PM »

Are PAF Masters fairly dark, or just in comparison to single coil Start pickups?

I've read that they actually are fairly bright, but maybe when compared/contrasted with other humbuckers?

There isn’t enough wire to make the PAF Masters particularly dark, though a dense wind can make a bit of a difference. Rather, it is primarily a function of the magnet. The A4 has a flatter, more acoustic type of sound that doesn’t emphasize treble like an A5. I imagine the PAF Masters would work well with single coils, particularly those on the warmer side.

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The Pickup Place / Re: My EVO2 Review

« on: October 22, 2024, 07:32:38 PM »

Nice review.

Have you ever considered demoing the EVO Neck in the bridge position, possibly in an HSS configuration?

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The Pickup Place / Re: Pickups for dark guitar

« on: July 14, 2024, 06:37:36 PM »

Full shred set, most definitely.

[…]

You'll not be happy with them until you boost the bass at your amp a bit.  Doing this makes them thump and be super tight as the same time.

Like the JB and other “bright” higher output pickups, the Full Shed doesn’t present as all that bright until the tone starts to saturate. It isn’t particularly bright at the cleaner end of the spectrum compared to a pickup with less wire which appears more in line with the original poster’s needs.

Good cleans and overdrives, some distortion tones.

The Full Shred is nothing more than a Seymour Duncan Custom with an A5 magnet and two screw coils populated with Allen bolts. Between the two, the Custom is the brighter pickup; much brighter than the Full Shred when played clean or crunchy.

Now if the aim is a hotter-than-vintage Seymour Duncan with an aggressive top end, the Perpetual Burn is a better choice for the amount of gain the OP is describing, though I will still point to the leaner, lower-output Screamin’ Demon. The Custom (and its variants), the Perpetual Burn, and the Screamin’ Demon are all 43AWG.

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The Pickup Place / Re: Pickups for dark guitar

« on: July 06, 2024, 05:47:33 PM »

Good luck making an educated purchasing decision based on DiMarzio’s DCR specifications. Thankfully they provide really good and reliable product information. Seymour Duncan should take notice. 

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The Pickup Place / Re: Pickups for dark guitar

« on: July 05, 2024, 11:50:53 AM »

I remember that chart and all of the Nazgûls being 666 mV. I also remember questioning the Full Shred Neck at 709 mV. I don’t have much confidence in any of it, to be honest. I’m not confident about SD’s published resonant frequency specifications either.

With that in mind I’m willing to believe that the PATB-3 is warmer than the SH-1 (and the TB-59 as well). I can’t believe it is less suitable than a Full Shred, however, especially considering the OP is interested in the cleaner end of the spectrum.

The magnet, wire, and wind are far more critical than DCR. DCR needs to die a slow painful death.

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The Pickup Place / Re: Pickups for dark guitar

« on: July 04, 2024, 01:12:05 PM »

Just to be clear, the PATB-3 is the lowest output version of the three bridge models. The published specs show 9.8k DCR (42AWG) and 6kHz resonant frequency (same Fr as the SH-1 59B).

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The Pickup Place / Re: PAF pickups that are close in brightness to singles?

« on: July 01, 2024, 07:34:57 PM »

Bridge EJ seems to be nearly identical specs and EQ of neck AC according to Dimarzio website, aside from being brighter, so was wondering how both would work together, but neck EJ probably does sound like a natural fit.

The EJs were designed to sound like Filtertrons but in a humbucker route. The neck and bridge are the same basic recipe, just calibrated for each respective position. Personally, I would not look to the EJ Custom if I wanted the sound of a full-size humbucker, at least not in the bridge position. If you’re happy with the Air Classic Neck in the bridge I would stick with that.

It was mentioned that a 1M tone pot can be useful in getting more brightness out of a pickup. Choosing a smaller tone cap can also make a marked difference, even with a 500k pot turned all the way up, I would try 15nF or 10nF.

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The Pickup Place / Re: PAF pickups that are close in brightness to singles?

« on: July 01, 2024, 01:19:59 PM »

The voicing and output of the EJ Custom Neck allows it to work very well with single coils. I use one in my Tele with an Area Hot T in the bridge. I play another guitar with a Heavy Blues 2 in the neck which I keep next to the Tele. The EJ is a lot fatter of course but it’s also tight and delivers plenty of treble and presence. The HFH, by comparison is a much bigger sounding with a lot more bottom end and scooped midrange, whereas the EJ is more focused.

I haven’t used the EJ Custom Bridge but I imagine it would excel in the neck position with a somewhat hotter pickup in the bridge. Pairing one with a HFH in the bridge would be interesting, though I can’t see myself ever doing that. With the lower resonant frequency I bet the EJ Bridge would provide a lot of cut in the neck position. But with an Air Classic Neck in the bridge I would recomnend the EJ Classic Neck in the neck.

EDIT: In keeping with the topic title, I should mention that the EJ Customs don’t sound like PAFs; neither does the HFH, but the EJs even less so. That said, in terms of tone I find the usage of PAF (as in Patent Applied For) to be quite nebulous. My choice for a PAF-style pickup that plays nice with singles* is a Seymour Duncan 59 Neck with an Alnico 3.

EDIT:
(*) when swapping between guitars without changing settings.

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The Pickup Place / Re: Wiring Diagram required - HSS with 1 Vol with push/pull and 1 tone

« on: June 27, 2024, 09:26:00 PM »

It looks like a standard Asian 5-way, so you shouldn’t have any problems with it.

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The Pickup Place / Re: Wiring Diagram required - HSS with 1 Vol with push/pull and 1 tone

« on: June 22, 2024, 10:12:56 PM »

You’ll want to buy a new 5-way selector since the stock one is specialized.

I’d use the push-pull to split both Tone Zones and would auto-split the Transition and middle Tone Zone in position 2.

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The Pickup Place / Re: Pickups for dark guitar

« on: June 05, 2024, 01:47:53 AM »

The Humbucker from Hell is similar to a Jazz in that it is very clear sounding. It is quite bright but also has some prominent bass, so in that sense it sounds bigger than a Jazz. It is also very clean sounding. It requires a fair amount of gain if you want a saturated tone.

In the bridge, the PAF Pro sounds sterile to me. That said it is very versatile.

I haven’t played a PATB-3 but I have no doubt that I would really enjoy one. The Custom 5 is a great pickup but I don’t know if it will give you what you want for that guitar, though it would be a marked improvement over a JB.

The Screamin’ Demon is bright pickup and is my go-to bridge humbucker. I had paired one with a Humbucker from Hell for a while but the HFH was replaced with a 59 Neck loaded with an A3 magnet. I tend to swap out neck pickups regularly, but I think the 59N with an A3 is a keeper. The Screamin’ Demon also pairs extremely well with a Full Shred Neck but that pickup doesn’t provide enough low end to suit my taste for cleans.

The 59 Bridge is a very bright pickup as are any of the other vintage output Seymour Duncans, including the Screamin’ Demon (which is also a vintage output pickup). I think the Perpetual Burn may also be a good candidate if you want something a tad hotter than vintage, perhaps on par with the PAF Pro, but I haven’t done any proper comparison. Between the two I prefer the sound of the Perpetual Burn over the PAF Pro in the bridge position.

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The Pickup Place / Re: Pickups for dark guitar

« on: June 04, 2024, 10:37:44 AM »

Duncans tend to run brighter than DiMarzio. Which ones did you try?