31

Everything you wanted to know about .... / Re: The AT-1

« on: October 27, 2013, 07:28:42 AM »

My guess is warmer and smoother.

Would you say it's so smooth that it wouldn't do typical Joe Walsh classic crunchy/bright tones (think the intro of "Life's been good") ?

32

Everything you wanted to know about .... / Re: The AT-1

« on: October 26, 2013, 02:25:19 PM »

Interesting! I just installed a Norton in the bridge of a Burny Les Paul, where previously sat an Air Norton.
I was looking for something more bright-ish than standard PAF's, and the Air Norton already did that, but it does seem to have that tone to it, that says "please put me in the neck position. I'll be way better there". Still, all in all not a bad tone. Now, the Norton is a bit more crunchy/focussed, but not extremely aggressive, which I like and installed a coil-split push/pull volume pot.
Split, the Norton sounds brighter and more jangly than my G&L ASAT Classic Tribute, but those G&L MFD have more output and sound beefier than standard Tele pups (like Tele on 'roids), so I figure that the Norton split may come close to a regular Tele.
Still, I am still interested in how the AT-1 compares to the Norton.

33

The Pickup Place / Re: Finally Tried a Super Distortion...

« on: June 24, 2013, 11:15:47 AM »

I put the 12.8k one in the neck and to be honest, I quite like the Super D there too. I'm not big on neck pickups in the first place, but I do like em hot if I'm going to use them. My only other favourite neck is the PAF Pro.

Yep, the brother of that Hamer Flying V in my avatar had a late 70's double-cream Super D (actually a Dual Sound) in the neck AND a (2 wire regular old) Super D in the bridge position. (The actual Hamer from my avatar has an Air Norton neck and Super D bridge; both modern and double cream).
I really liked the Super D in the neck, even though I worried that it might be too much. Still, the Air Norton has more nuances and complexity as a neck pickup, hence the change for my 2nd Hamer.

34

The Pickup Place / Re: Finally Tried a Super Distortion...

« on: May 03, 2013, 04:09:18 PM »

Super Distortions are perfect in Les Pauls.  By comparison I think a Tone Zone is too much pickup in a Les Paul, if that tells you anything.

I mentioned the Norton because the AT-1 can do crazy harmonics like the Norton.  But when I say the AT-1 under high gain is piercing in comparison, I mean it will ice pick your eardrums if you don't roll something back, at least in comparison with the usual suspects from Dimarzio's lineup.  Of course it all depends how your rig is set up, etc.

I understand what you're saying, but do you think that the Norton would have a similar 'ice-pickyness' as the AT-1, or is it closer to the Super Distortion in that respect, with a slightly better performance in low/med gain situations (but maybe not as good as the AT-1 excels there?)

Since I have a Telecaster (well, actually a G&L ASAT Classic Tribute) since 2 weeks, I'm noticing more that bright(er)/twangy pickups add that extra magic for low-gain sounds. The cool part about the ASAT is, that its MFD pickups (singlecoils) are really quiet and behave extremely well for high gain (I'm talking Metallica's MOP, Slayer, Primal Fear...) applications too! Brighter than buckers, sure, but not ice-picky by a long stretch, yet still they can twang when used clean. Perhaps other pups can twang more, so I got a Dimarzio Twang King neck pup, to try in that guitar, but I digress... 

35

The Pickup Place / Re: Finally Tried a Super Distortion...

« on: May 02, 2013, 03:51:35 PM »

@Slugworth; where would you place the Norton in your description? Especially in a Les Paul?
On one hand I think a Super Distortion might be too much in an LP, otherwise, Ace Frehley & co. can't be wrong, when they defined the 70's/80's (hard) rock tone, right?

36

Everything you wanted to know about .... / Re: The Norton

« on: January 12, 2013, 10:25:00 AM »

It seems this is a much loved pickup on here - I'm looking to get one for the bridge of a mahogany HH Telecaster to replace an old Dual Sound - just too much output and warmth for what I need - I'm completely in love with the sound of PAF Pros in mahogany but have been keen to try this one out for some time now, for something a little more punchy and powerful, yet still dynamic, responsive and articulate. So far, I've read all the stuff about it I wanted to read; tight low end, powerful upper mids, clear top end, awesome harmonics, etc. How do you think it compares to a PAF Pro, for reference, in the bridge in mahogany, for just that little bit 'more'? The guitar has a single 500k volume pot, no tone.

Jack

It will do just what you asked.
I had a PAF Pro in a mahogany/maple top'd Ibanez bridge a long time ago and I remember it being a bit wimpy and too neutral for my taste. The Norton definitely has more power and oomph going on, but not as much as the Super D/Dual Sound. Also, to me the Norton seems to have more character to its tone than a PAF Pro.

37

Everything you wanted to know about .... / Re: The Breed

« on: September 22, 2012, 09:33:10 AM »

so the Breed would be very good for Rock/Hard Rock.

Yeah, if you don't need much highs, or your guitar is excessively bright. The breed is very warm with lots of midrange cut, not a whole lot of treble.

What he said, and it can't be said enough!

38

Everything you wanted to know about .... / Re: The Norton

« on: September 04, 2011, 05:11:26 AM »

does anyone use it on an alder guitar? how does it sound on clean tones?

Yep, in an alder bodied (maple neck) Charvel So-Cal Pro Mod.
like this one.


So far, mine has 2 mods to it; (3 if you count the pickup change) a push-pull volume knob, to split the Air Norton (neck) and a D-Tuna. Planned mods are a Floyd Upgrades big brass trem block and a brass trem-stopper.

Anyway, I like its clean tones as far as humbuckers go. It's quite balanced and definitely not muddy/choked. I think, clean, it comes quite close to the clean tone of a Duncan JB.
But because of the higher treble content of a JB I wouldn't go for it in an alder/maple guitar. I have tried a Duncan Distortion in that guitar once; super tight and punchy. Ultimate tone, were I to play late 80's/early 90's thrash only (think Kreator meets Dark Angel).
The Norton does metal well too, but just less 'extreme' than the DD. I like a more 80's hard rock/heavy metal tone for this guitar, since it's my Adrian Smith-axe for a Maiden tribute, so nice match. (yes, I'm aware that AS used Super D's)

39

Guitar Lounge / Re: Charvel Pro Mod SO-CAL: How to block tremolo?

« on: February 25, 2011, 04:10:53 AM »

Thank you for the info! I'll tell my local luthier about that trem stopper, in case he doesn't know about it. If I bought the SO-CAL he'd have to set it up for me either way, cause I play in Eb and use 11-50 gauge strings.

How do you like the SO-CAL Style 1? Do you have the Tone Zone / Evolution combo as well or did you swap it for something different?

Edit: I've just read in your thread that you installed a Norton...

Yeah, so far I'm happy.
I rehearsed 2 days ago with it, but it made me think about the Breed Neck (that's in it now), vs. the Air Norton (that was in before....after the Evo neck ofcourse).
The Breed neck, while fat sounding, has a lot of treble content as well. It actually sounds jangly when hitting the thinner strings hard. I think I'm looking more for a PAF-ish roundness/smoothness, with clarity though. So I'll probably re-install the Air Norton.

So, so far in the bridge there has been:
Tone Zone. Duncan Distortion. Super Distortion. Breed Bridge. Norton

neck:
Evo Neck. Air Norton. Breed Neck.

IMHO, the ToneZone was too loose in the low-end, and the Evo neck is too tight/bright and direct.

40

Guitar Lounge / Re: Charvel Pro Mod SO-CAL: How to block tremolo?

« on: February 23, 2011, 06:39:02 PM »

I haven't installed mine yet, but this is what you want:


A Floyd Upgrades Trem Stopper.
I actually got the same guitar in white, and bought their 37mm brass block (for more sustain) and that brass trem stopper. Still need to install them though. Right now the trem is stopped by a glued piece of wood on the original trem block. I installed a D-Tuna on it, which requires a dive-only trem stop. It makes tuning way quicker! Not as quick as a real solid bridge guitar, but a lot better than with a full floating trem.

41

Everything you wanted to know about .... / Re: The Breed

« on: December 30, 2010, 04:58:40 AM »

I liked the Super distortion in my Strat, but felt it needed a little more treble, and be a little brighter. The Breed sounds like it might work out.

I'm afraid you won't get more treble and brightness when replacing a Super Distortion with a Breed bridge in a Strat.
I did this in my Charvel So-Cal Pro Mod (basically a really good Strat, H-H pups) and the Breed sounded fuller, but rounder and mellower than the Super D. Not to say that the Breed is a dull pickup, but for me, I need more highs. I'm about to replace it back with the Super D, or I'm gonna put a Norton in there.