Can someone help explain this to me? Losing my mind again here.

[laxu]

The pickup I used to compare with, the Seymour Duncan Pegasus, is similar in output, and has been versatile and fun to use with the AFX, but after analyzing it a bit more I've also realized it's extremely boring in character and has a very "small" tone to it. No, I'm not referring to string gauge or fingers yet again - look up Seymour Duncan comparison videos and you'll see what I mean. While it sounds good on its own and can get some great tones through the AFX, the moment I compare it to others (like this video), I realize how boring it really is to me. But as others have mentioned, some people prefer the tone of my clip more, so this is strictly subjective.

That all being said, I'm pulling the trigger on some more exciting pickups to replace it with because I realize I don't have a guitar that really screams enough for me. Probably either the Suhr SSH+ or Duncan Black Winter.

In defense of "boring" pickups, sometimes it's better to have a pickup that does its job and doesn't get in the way rather than something that has a very specific character to it. For example I feel that the SD '59 and Jazz tend to be pretty "boring" pickups but they do the job really well as neck pickups regardless of the rig used.

But if you want to change, I highly recommend the SD Custom 5 for anything. Love the Suhr Doug Aldrich as well.

 

[RifferMcDuck]

In defense of "boring" pickups, sometimes it's better to have a pickup that does its job and doesn't get in the way rather than something that has a very specific character to it. For example I feel that the SD '59 and Jazz tend to be pretty "boring" pickups but they do the job really well as neck pickups regardless of the rig used.

But if you want to change, I highly recommend the SD Custom 5 for anything. Love the Suhr Doug Aldrich as well.

I've been in a bit of a back and forth with this lately. "Boring" pickups tend to be more versatile, and don't have a specific "trait" you constantly have to work around or adjust for, so I've tended to gravitate towards them. But I'm realizing that the trade off is often losing character. The same issue goes for alnico vs. ceramics and their respective warmth vs. bite. But with the Pegasus specifically, the "smallness" of the tone is really starting to stand out to me along with its lack of character. The difference is akin to going from the tone of 56 gauges down to 46, but not actually changing gauges, if that makes sense. So when I hear other pickups, the first thing I'm noticing is how big and in your face they are compared to the Pegasus. It's a real bummer, because I do like their versatility otherwise, but they might not be exciting enough for me to stick with.

And thanks for the recs, I did just have a guitar with the Custom 5 and thought it was great, but ended up replacing it with a Suhr SSH+ which I liked even more but recently sold like an idiot. I've heard really good things about the Aldrich though, so it's always an option as well. Suhr makes terrific pickups.

 

[la szum]

It could also be because you're the listener in this situation. I have had people come over to try gear I was selling and often would end up with a "Wait, why am I selling this? It sounds great" experience because it's not me doing the playing. And it's not like the people trying the gear were any better guitarists than I am and I was the one turning the knobs on the gear too!

Yes. Being the listener and being a harsher critic sometimes also goes hand in hand. We often hear the best playing
in others and the worst in our own playing.

 

[RifferMcDuck]

Yes. Being the listener and being a harsher critic sometimes also goes hand in hand. We often hear the best playing
in others and the worst in our own playing.

This hits too deep lol

 

[squealie]

In defense of "boring" pickups, sometimes it's better to have a pickup that does its job and doesn't get in the way rather than something that has a very specific character to it. For example I feel that the SD '59 and Jazz tend to be pretty "boring" pickups but they do the job really well as neck pickups regardless of the rig used.

59 and Jazz are the classic neck pickups, no? These are tried and true and 'go to' pickups for the neck position. So I'd agree that they are boring but supremely useful neck pickups.

I would almost always go with one of these in the neck.

 

[laxu]

59 and Jazz are the classic neck pickups, no? These are tried and true and 'go to' pickups for the neck position. So I'd agree that they are boring but supremely useful neck pickups.

I would almost always go with one of these in the neck.

Yes that's kind of what I was going for. They are staple tools that aren't going to blow you away but just keep doing their thing night after night.

 

[Joe Bfstplk]

Yes that's kind of what I was going for. They are staple tools that aren't going to blow you away but just keep doing their thing night after night.

I really like the Jazz in the neck spot in my Tele. In parallel, it gets into single-coil range of output and tone. In series, it is a warm but clear humbucker and the tone makes you want to play Poem 58 when plugged into a dirty amp. Split, it combines well with the bridge pickup and is hum cancelling....

 

[Unboxed]

FWIW, it looks like @Cooper Carter has the Majesty and I'm guessing it's the same as mine. Active pickups, pull pot for 15db boost.

There's really big difference in how chugging sounds with the bridge pickup pot pulled out for the 15db boost that you get with that guitar. Night and day. I can't tell from the video if the pot is pulled out or not on his guitar. I setup my Axe FX 3 with the pot set normal pushed in and a lot of times presets can sound kind of dull and I have to pull the pot for the 15db boost to get a really mean, percussive sound for something like the Pull Me Under riff. It's a blessing and a curse because when I plug in my PRS, I don't have that option and a lot of the high gain sounds just sound wrong. I'd probably have to put a boost in front without the Majesty.

So, yes. Pickups matter a lot.

 

[rossipedia]

I'd argue that in your example it's not pickups that make the difference, it's the preamp (boost).

 

[RifferMcDuck]

FWIW, it looks like @Cooper Carter has the Majesty and I'm guessing it's the same as mine. Active pickups, pull pot for 15db boost.

There's really big difference in how chugging sounds with the bridge pickup pot pulled out for the 15db boost that you get with that guitar. Night and day. I can't tell from the video if the pot is pulled out or not on his guitar. I setup my Axe FX 3 with the pot set normal pushed in and a lot of times presets can sound kind of dull and I have to pull the pot for the 15db boost to get a really mean, percussive sound for something like the Pull Me Under riff. It's a blessing and a curse because when I plug in my PRS, I don't have that option and a lot of the high gain sounds just sound wrong. I'd probably have to put a boost in front without the Majesty.

So, yes. Pickups matter a lot.

That sounds like a really neat feature, but to be honest, I'm not sure how I feel about something like that being used to accurately showcase a stock preset, if few other guitars have that capability. That confused the heck out of me for a bit, and the response from many others was just that my playing style was different. Feels just a tad uncool.

 

[Cooper Carter]

That sounds like a really neat feature, but to be honest, I'm not sure how I feel about something like that being used to accurately showcase a stock preset, if few other guitars have that capability. That confused the heck out of me for a bit, and the response from many others was just that my playing style was different. Feels just a tad uncool.

"A tad uncool" seems a tad harsh, my friend. I am not using the boost on the Majesty.

These are the stock DiMarzio presets that ship with the guitar. But unless you have those exact pickups (which you've mentioned you don't) there's no reason the preset will sound the same. Pickups vary ENORMOUSLY in output and EQ. That's why there's a whole industry around pickups alone.....

I recommend spending some time just tweaking the preset to your liking. There's no conspiracy here that it doesn't sound exactly the same as me when you play through it.

No preset is going to sound exactly the same between two players, even if they have the same guitar and pickups (which again, we don't).

There are no rules against changing the presets to suit you! That's encouraged!

 

[RifferMcDuck]

"A tad uncool" seems a tad harsh, my friend. I am not using the boost on the Majesty.

These are the stock DiMarzio presets that ship with the guitar. But unless you have those exact pickups (which you've mentioned you don't) there's no reason the preset will sound the same. Pickups vary ENORMOUSLY in output and EQ. That's why there's a whole industry around pickups alone.....

I recommend spending some time just tweaking the preset to your liking. There's no conspiracy here that it doesn't sound exactly the same as me when you play through it.

No preset is going to sound exactly the same between two players, even if they have the same guitar and pickups (which again, we don't).

There are no rules against changing the presets to suit you! That's encouraged!

Nothing harsh was meant! Uncool was probably the wrong word to use there, and I'll admit I wrote that pre-coffee this morning.

Either way, I already determined far above that it was my own pickups that I just really don't like. I've tended to move towards versatility in all of my sets, and I've found that's sacrificed some excitement in the tone all around, so a lot of other guitars were starting to sound more exciting to me in stock settings. Even though I make most of my presets from scratch, this still bothered me greatly.

This was a learning experience for me and what kind of gear works best for me and the AFX, so thank you for dropping in and clarifying despite me implying there was some grand conspiracy afoot.