46

The Pickup Place / Re: Air Zone...Anyone?

« on: March 10, 2021, 10:53:03 PM »

I still like it a lot. I have it in a Basswood Ibanez RG with a Paf Pro neck, and also in a Mahogany PRS SE with a 36th Anniversary neck. Good all-round pickup with a lot of sustain, and a good balance of highs/lows/mids.

47

The Pickup Place / Re: The best Combo for Sustain, Harmonics (Rock and Metal)

« on: February 26, 2021, 06:49:28 PM »

Air Zone bridge & 36th Anniversary neck.

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The Pickup Place / Re: PAF 36th Bridge (DP223) vs ToneZone to accompany a PAF 36th Neck (DP103)?

« on: February 05, 2021, 03:31:57 PM »

I have the 36th Anniversary bridge/neck in a Les Paul and they are fantastic together. I have a 36th Anniversary neck in a PRS with an Air Zone bridge, and that is also a great combo. I have a Tone Zone in another guitar with a PAF Pro neck, and I'm guessing it would be OK with the 36th neck, but I think the Air Zone would be a better match.

It really depends on what the guitar you are putting them in is made out of. I think the Tone Zone sounds great in a Basswood Ibanez RG, but I have hated it in some other guitars. I also had the 36th anniversary set in another guitar which made the bridge sound way too bright. What guitar are you putting it in?

49

The Pickup Place / Re: Humbucker from Hell help- faulty or weak?

« on: January 25, 2021, 10:36:13 PM »

Your notes are dying off quickly and you are hearing note warble because you have the pickup too close to the strings. If you get a pickup too close to the strings the magnetic field begins to interfere with the free vibration of the string.
The Humbucker from Hell is underpowered compared to most other modern neck Humbuckers. Looks like yours is underwound on top of that, so it may be even weaker than most. It should not be underpowered compared to an HS-3 single coil though. What wires do you have going to hot, ground, etc? Have you turned the amp on, switched to the neck pickup, and tapped both rows of polepieces to make sure it is running in full humbucker mode?

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The Pickup Place / Re: Dimarzio HSS suggestions

« on: January 23, 2021, 09:12:45 PM »

Mo Joe bridge, Area 61 middle, Cruiser neck will do what you described.

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The Pickup Place / Re: Super Distortion vs 36th Anniversary bridge

« on: January 11, 2021, 05:31:23 PM »

I'd be willing to be that the "ceramic top end" you are hearing is just the 1meg pot letting too much high end through. Most humbuckers are designed to run best with 500k pots. Change that out first and see how you like the Super D.

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The Pickup Place / Re: Should I swap my Seymour Duncan Pearly Gates neck pup for a DiMarzio Liquifire?

« on: December 12, 2020, 07:59:04 PM »

I did not think I was going to like the Liquifire since people often compare it to the Air Norton, and I thought the Air Norton was a mud puddle. I found the liquifire & Crunch Lab set used really cheap and tried it in an older basswood RG. The Liquifire is a fantastic neck pickup. Perfect for high gain solos. Where the PAF Pro can have sort of ice-picky highs and flubby bass, the Liquifire is more balanced.

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The Pickup Place / Re: my experience with two Dimarzios and maybe advice

« on: November 26, 2020, 08:57:08 PM »

I agree with darkbluemurder. Sounds like you need the Norton.. or a Fred.

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The Pickup Place / Re: One thread finally makes it past the first page and gets locked down.... Figures

« on: October 30, 2020, 04:25:47 PM »

I don't really care who requested that it be shut down. It wasn't my thread. I just hate to see active discussions shut down. No one had said anything offensive or contentious or against the rules in that thread. It was simply a topic that SOMEONE here thought had been covered too many times.... but it was encouraging a NEW discussion that people were participating in. I get it, some of us have heard the same question asked a million times, but to new players, this is the first time they have had the opportunity to discuss these ideas.

Thanks for responding to my post, even if it is a zombie thread from 5 months ago.

55

The Pickup Place / Re: Dimarzio Air Classics vs PAF 36th anniversary sets

« on: June 25, 2020, 10:18:31 AM »

I held off commenting because it has been a long time since I had the Air Classics. From my recollection, I found the Air Classics fairly underpowered and boring. They did not have much bite and seemed too rounded off. I love the 36th Set in a Les Paul or PRS type guitar. Great set that covers a wide range of tones.

56

The Pickup Place / Re: Starting points for Super D and PAF ?

« on: June 23, 2020, 08:03:41 PM »

With the bridge pickup, I always start out at about 5/64" (2mm) from the fretted string and adjust to taste from there. The SuperD is pretty powerful, so you don't want to get it too close to the strings. With the PAF in the neck, I would start at 5/64ths on the treble side but set the bass side a bit further down at 8/64ths (3mm). You can also play with the pole pieces heights. Having them down flush with the pickup top often creates a firmer/harder/more present tone, where raising them up out of the bobbin creates a softer/rounder/airier tone. Playing around with the heights can really have a huge impact on the balance of tone the guitar has.

57

The Pickup Place / Pickups you have changed your mind about...

« on: June 20, 2020, 12:01:40 AM »

Over the years, my opinion of certain pickups has changed quite a bit. Some pickups like the Air Zone, I have always gotten along with in many guitars. Some that I initially disliked in one guitar, like the Norton bridge, became a favorite when I installed it in a PRS Singlecut. The 36th Anniversary went from bland to amazing when I put them in a Les Paul where they belong. I also found the Breed bridge boring until I put it in a Jackson DK2M. Some that I began playing years ago like the Duncan JB and Jazz are my least favorites now. Every time I retry them, I like them for a few days and then they start getting on my nerves again. Some like the Cruiser single coil I had to learn how to use, and now I love it. I left some, like the Duncan 59, behind long ago thinking I could find something better for an SG Standard only to return full circle and wonder why I wanted anything else.

What pickups have you liked or disliked only to change your mind later?

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The Pickup Place / Re: One thread finally makes it past the first page and gets locked down.... Figures

« on: June 19, 2020, 11:44:39 PM »

Agreed. It is actually helpful for people to revisit threads later. It provides a chance to see how opinions change, or how the music scene thinks about certain tones/pickups at given times. I know that I have re-found replies that I have written from a decade ago that I completely disagree with myself about now.

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The Pickup Place / One thread finally makes it past the first page and gets locked down.... Figures

« on: June 18, 2020, 09:45:23 AM »

One page comparing pickups finally made it past the first page of comments and gets locked down for no apparent reason, other than some moderator got bored with it. There is a reason this forum has been dead for a LONG time....

60

The Pickup Place / Re: Pots For Area 58, 61 Pro Track (2 Single, 1 Hum)?

« on: May 16, 2020, 05:45:33 PM »

Best way I have found to do it...
https://youtu.be/SJZ2Do7Ywx0