BKP Holy Diver 7 concerns - Am I over reacting?

MackieFX

Experienced
I recently got this to replace my Blaze Custom in my 1527 and immediately I noticed the output loss, as well as the difference going from Ceramic -> Alnico V
I can compensate for the output (using an AxeIII) but I feel like I should have gone with a different bridge pickup option. As its not AS tight as it once was.

The fact I have to turn the gain up a bit really annoys me. Presets I get online lose a lot of punch to my ears. I feel like I should have gone with a different bridge pickup option. I guess I'm looking for some way of getting these to sound more focused on the low tuned stuff. I feel like they just weren't made for 7 string.
Ive put them up For Sale - but if I cant find a buyer Im stuck with em.
 
Height is fine, It has gain sure, just not as much as the blaze custom. I'm probably over-reacting tbh. They were just very expensive so maybe my expectations were too high.
 
Not the first person to regret buying high prices snake oil stuff for guitar.
Before all the fan boys come in here and slag me, I’m not bashing bkp or anyone else, they make a fine product. But they in no way produce a better sound than a pickup costing half as much.
 
Not the first person to regret buying high prices snake oil stuff for guitar.
Before all the fan boys come in here and slag me, I’m not bashing bkp or anyone else, they make a fine product. But they in no way produce a better sound than a pickup costing half as much.
I got some BKP's and they sound great, I got some Guitar Fetish pickups and they sound great too. As long as they give signal at the required output level most pickups sound fine.

As for the OP, sometimes you can have the weirdest issues with pickups. I once had an issue with a guitar build where I barely had any output until I discovered that a part of the signal was being shunted to ground via a LP toggle switch to the shielding paint.
 
I have some Holydivers as bridge pickups. In comparison to other pickups I find them much more sensitive regarding the string distance. I like them best much closer to the strings than I would set other pickups. If you haven't written them off yet I would try to play a bit with the string distance.
 
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Check the pup height for sure but also why not just turn the gain up? Then decide if you like the overall tone and feel better.
 
If everything is wired correctly, sounds like you prefer the blaze's over the new ones.. what's wrong sticking with what you like?
 
If everything is wired correctly, sounds like you prefer the blaze's over the new ones.. what's wrong sticking with what you like?
Nothing at all, I figured I would look for the next step up - I just very much regret wasting the money now as they're gona be impossible to sell.
 
I have an arsenal of RG752s and the PAFs were terrible, I dropped in BKP Painkillers, Nailbombs, and Aftermaths into them. Huge improvements, and better than any Di/SD I ever played (Which is most of them).
 
I mean, just because it's a BKP doesn't mean it's going to sound "better" to you. It's just a different sound. Pickup tones are highly subjective and each pickup will interact very differently with every amp so you probably also need to tweak your settings there too. IMO unless a pickup is just not working for you at all (eg: you find it very difficult to dial in sounds you like on a variety of amps) I've found that swapping pickups is rarely a huge improvement, it's just a different sound.
 
Update: I put the pickups even closer to the strings, like MEGA close. And some gain appeared out of nowhere. So I guess I might be ok now :eyes:
 
It's not about gain, you can get gain in a million better ways. The question is do you like the tone after you alter your settings to compensate. IME BK pickups are great because they have complexity and dynamics that are generally missing in high output pickups.
 
Update: I put the pickups even closer to the strings, like MEGA close. And some gain appeared out of nowhere. So I guess I might be ok now :eyes:
That's also my experience. Holydivers have to be very close to the strings. Don't know how close "MEGA" is, but much closer that you would set other pickups.
 
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