wad pup should i get for my s470??

[spiritedflame]

hi guys,

i've got a ibanez s470 and dimarzio evos in the neck and bridge position..

and the stock pickup in the middle

i was wondering what pickups would be good, to compliment the 2 evos, but not get overpowered by them..

anyone got any recommendations?

 

[Jumpin'Jellybean]

So wait, what sounds you looking to get? Huge distorted sounds, or something you can go clean/slightly overdriven with? Since your Evos pretty much take care of the high output stuff. Or you want a totally high gain, siao metal distort guitar? The Evo bridge is high output, the neck is medium. Any particular brands?

 

[spiritedflame]

So wait, what sounds you looking to get? Huge distorted sounds, or something you can go clean/slightly overdriven with? Since your Evos pretty much take care of the high output stuff. Or you want a totally high gain, siao metal distort guitar? The Evo bridge is high output, the neck is medium. Any particular brands?

im probably looking more towards dimarzio, but im open to other brands..
for the sound, i would like something more clean and probably towards the vintage side? slightly overdriven is also another option.. but looking more at clean, bright and clear..

hahah are there even such pups which can go well with my evos? hahah

 

[Jumpin'Jellybean]

Idk, i don't have that much experience with DiMarzio pickups... I prefer to buy pickups as a set. However you might want to check out the DiMarzio website for Vintage or Medium output single coils. True Velvet is good though.

 

[spiritedflame]

i was thinking of fs-1.. u heard of it? its from dimarzio and read some pretty good reviews on it..

 

[Jumpin'Jellybean]

I haven't, actually. I'm not such a big fan of DiMarzios. I prefer TA and Suhr pups, but expensive sh!t that is. If you read the reviews and liked it, heard demos and liked it, last step would be to go and try it out.

 

[subversion]

i have a Duncan Hot Stack in the middle position of my S540. i wanted a complementary single coil (for my PATB Distortion/ Jazz) that doesn't wimp out in dostortion mode & some good spanking cleans. the HS surprised me with some of the most appealing single coil voicings this side of Fender. it has some magic there when the guitar's voleme gets rolled off to clean it up. no regrets. but then again you might not be a Duncan fan...

 

[spiritedflame]

i have a Duncan Hot Stack in the middle position of my S540. i wanted a complementary single coil (for my PATB Distortion/ Jazz) that doesn't wimp out in dostortion mode & some good spanking cleans. the HS surprised me with some of the most appealing single coil voicings this side of Fender. it has some magic there when the guitar's voleme gets rolled off to clean it up. no regrets. but then again you might not be a Duncan fan...

hmmm.. i dont mind giving the duncans a try but i wonder if they go well with my evos..

anyway nice paint job.. always wanted something like that man... o'wells

 

[subversion]

if you are a DiMarzio fan, you might find the Duncan tone unagreeable. the average Duncan has that protrusive voicing especially with drive. this gives the pickup a commanding presence. the DiMarzio unit in general, gives off this smooth response with effects which is why it's popular.

anyway, there's no paint on the S540 body, it's a natural, bare finish which Ibanez calls 'stained oil'.

 

[spiritedflame]

hmmm i thought so.. any idea how much is it to strip the paint down and finish it like yours?

 

[boyl]

sub: could you elaborate more on the inherent difference between duncan and dimarzio?

i am also considering very much of changing my bridge pickup out of my ibanez sa260. i find it to be too bright and does not have enough 'meat' and i read in some forums that people generally find it the same way i do.

i am considering between duncan's alnico 59 and dimarzio paf...

it would be great if you can point out the pros and cons of duncan's and dimarzio's pickups.

thanks!

 

[subversion]

as mentioned before, Duncans possess this presence which makes the guitar heard. if you trim the protrusive nature down via EQ settings, the pickup will still pull though. however, this is applicable if you employ a straight-through plug in. pedals & other tone inducing elements would re-mould the pickup's voicing for sure.

my experiences with DiMarzios is that these pickups adapt to signal processing very well, meaning, if you are pedal/ effects-intensive, DiMarzio is a rewarding investment. as i am a guitar+amp inclined, i find Duncans more preferable pertaining to my tonal needs. i do have DiMarzios in some of my guitars, one of which is this RG560:

the DiMarzio PAF bridge pickup complements the Duncan Lil' '59 in the neck so these pickups stay put in my guitar despite the different brand names.

SA260- if your guitar is the latter model featuring the True-Duo switching system, you'd find the split voicing of the default pickup to be more appealing than the humbucking mode. Ibanez in-house pickups give off excessive high end, much to the dislike of many owners. majority of my Ibanez guitars do not retain their default pickups, i always replace them for some other brand names which would serve my needs.

 

[boyl]

Thank you very much for your reply!

my SA260 features true-duo switching system which indeed has excessive high end and not much definition.

i am a pedal person and would probably then pick DiMarzio as it probably be more suitable for the things that i do.
(i use TS-9 and Toadworks Mr. Ed as my drive pedals).

probably i will be getting the PAF as i would want it to be driven but still retain the warmness of the guitar..

 

[subversion]

that's a good assessment of your needs. the PAF i got (in that blue RG560) really surprised me- it's spec'd to give off some warm, classic-type tones but it interacts with a whole range of distortion very well, from pedals to multi-FX units & amps. i didn't put that pickup in there for cleans. definitely not.

 

[boyl]

interesting. i don't use humbuckers for clean, definitely. very much prefer a single coil's clean sound.

is the PAF that you are using a DP151 PAF pro?

and by the way, i just stumbled upon VR-60 classic from Tesla's line of humbucker products.

by any chance you have any experience in this? because if it is almost as good, it is a much cheaper alternative to the diMarzio, yeap.

 

[boyl]

has anyone used VR-60 classic pickup from Tesla? any opinion on this particular pickup?

thank you for the feedback : ]

 

[boyl]

Eventually settled on Plasma III by Tesla.

A very very very very good pickup, at least for what i do.

Changed my pickup today in SV, personally handled by Mike.

He is an awesome guy, with great advice and customer service. Totally stoked with the Plasma III and experience in SV. Definitely a return customer.

If you're looking for a budget pickup, Tesla is a great option.

 

[loldude333]

Amen to that, i've got another friend who uses Plasma IIIs and he's never regretted his decision. He was originally considering DiMarzios but decided on Teslas when he heard them.