[NGD] Kiesel...But Pickups Sound Terrible! Help!

For those who have replaced their pickups in a Kiesel, Did you have any issues with routing or going to a pickup with only one mounting screw per side? I want to replace the pickups in my Kiesel, but I am worried that the base of the pickup won't fit in the direct mounting rout.
Didn't even think about this. Could someone with experience please answer this. Hopefully, it's just a direct replacement.
 
I feel ya! It sure would be nice to know what we're dealing with. Hopefully this will help you out. I EQ matched the DI of the Lithium with a Dimarzio EJ Custom in my DAW using Ozone EQ match. These two bridge pups are very similar. The EJ is a little brighter in the presence region, but surprisingly had slightly more bass. Overall though, if you want a baseline, the EJ Custom bridge is pretty close.

This is very helpful! Thanks!

How did the output level compare?
 
Didn't even think about this. Could someone with experience please answer this. Hopefully, it's just a direct replacement.

I was looking at Bare Knuckle pickups, and it looks like the base of the pickup where the mounting screw attaches is square, and the Kiesel pickups are rounded and look smaller. it would pretty easy to modify the pickup, but then I if I didn't like it, it would be non-returnable...
 
Another thing you could try is soldering a .001 cap between the hot and ground lead from each pickup. That will make the pickup sound darker without making it sound dull.
 
You talking about a treble bleed circuit?
No, a treble bleed allows highs (or treble) to "bleed" past the volume pot as you turn it down, more so than the rest of the frequencies.

What lwknives is talking about is putting a capacitor directly across each pup, which will act like a short circuit to the highs, thereby attenuating them. The larger the capacitor value, the lower the frequencies that will be effected, and vice versa. Basically it's like permanently turning the tone knob down, except the cutoff frequency is probably higher than most tone knob circuits.
 
No, a treble bleed allows highs (or treble) to "bleed" past the volume pot as you turn it down, more so than the rest of the frequencies.

What lwknives is talking about is putting a capacitor directly across each pup, which will act like a short circuit to the highs, thereby attenuating them. The larger the capacitor value, the lower the frequencies that will be effected, and vice versa. Basically it's like permanently turning the tone knob down, except the cutoff frequency is probably higher than most tone knob circuits.

Exactly! It gives you the EQ of a hotter pickup but is much easier and cheaper to install.
Another cool thing you could do is ad a switch to turn it on and off!
 
Dimarzios are direct replacements with no routing required. Even though kiesel pickups use 3 mounting screws, underneath of them is still a centered hole. So they already drill an extra hole for you if you use pickups that mount with only 2 screws.

The pickup swap was pretty easy and straight forward. Just measure the length of the screws and make sure they're not too long. It didn't happen to me, but I've heard of people using screws that were too long and went through the entire body and poked out the back side of the guitar.
 
Dimarzios are direct replacements with no routing required. Even though kiesel pickups use 3 mounting screws, underneath of them is still a centered hole. So they already drill an extra hole for you if you use pickups that mount with only 2 screws.

The pickup swap was pretty easy and straight forward. Just measure the length of the screws and make sure they're not too long. It didn't happen to me, but I've heard of people using screws that were too long and went through the entire body and poked out the back side of the guitar.

Thanks for the info. Dimarzio, here I come!
 
Thanks for the info. Dimarzio, here I come!
Agreed!!!

I've been playing this guitar for almost two weeks now and because these pickups sound so terrible, it makes me hate the guitar. I have tried EQ before the amp, EQ after the amp, EQ in the amp, different IR's, so on and so on. No matter what I do, this thing still sounds like utter garbage!

So, I ordered some Illuminators from Banjo Mike. I cannot wait for these pups to get here.

I'll post a SoundCloud clip of the Lithiums and Illuminators through the same patch, once everything is done.
 
I have a Kiesel DC727 with what my sales guy called late-stage prototypes of the Lithium pickups; I think the design was finalized and named just a month or two after my purchase. There has always been a bit of a nasal or honky quality that I've never been thrilled with, especially on the bridge pickup.

I ordered some Illuminators from Banjo Mike. I cannot wait for these pups to get here.

Just this week I bought a Crunch Lab 7 from Banjo Mike on Ebay to replace my current bridge pickup.
The 6 string I'm playing these days is an Ibanez PGMM31 Paul Gilbert Mikro, and I put a Crunch Lab in the bridge that I'm really pleased with. My previous 7-string was a Japanese RG7421 with a Crunch Lab in the bridge, so I'm hoping to get back into familiar territory.
 
Just this week I bought a Crunch Lab 7 from Banjo Mike on Ebay to replace my current bridge pickup.
I had a Carvin DC727 that I put a Crunch Lab in. Mine was swamp ash with maple neck and rosewood fretboard. It sounded great. I think it'll put you in familiar territory. Those Lithium pickups are just awful. Almost anything would be an upgrade. :D
 
I’ve been digging DiMarzio PAF Master lately. Lower output than I usually play, but not so low that I’d need to adapt much. Good dynamics and tonal balance with my existing patches. I didn’t like ToneZone. I do acknowledge that it might work well with extremely bright amps/speakers, but none of mine are extremely bright. Suhr SSH works great in one of my Suhrs and not so well in another (too much output, and height is not really adjustable there). Suhr SSV is like a PAF but costs twice as much. I also have some original Bill Lawrence rail pickups, and those sound great, but they can’t be installed in all but one of my guitars without re-routing the pickup cavities.
 
Oh man... It looks like, that i am alone saying, that I like the Lithium pickups. :eek:

I have a Kiesel Vader V8:
Top: Racing orange with white Logo
Body: Alder
Finish: Clear satin
Fretboard: Zebrawood
Neck: 5-Piece Mahogany Neck w/ 2 Maple Stripes
Scale: 27”
Pickups: Kiesel Lithium Cream

I agree, that Lithiums are bright and lag bass... But for modern rock/metal, that I play it is exactly what I look for.

Here is one song I just finished using my Kiesel for all the guitar tracks:


And I'm not here to argue. :) If the pickups don't work. Then it is best to replace them quickly. It was just shocking for me to see, that everyone in this thread hates them. :D:D
 
Oh man... It looks like, that i am alone saying, that I like the Lithium pickups. :eek:

I have a Kiesel Vader V8:
Top: Racing orange with white Logo
Body: Alder
Finish: Clear satin
Fretboard: Zebrawood
Neck: 5-Piece Mahogany Neck w/ 2 Maple Stripes
Scale: 27”
Pickups: Kiesel Lithium Cream

I agree, that Lithiums are bright and lag bass... But for modern rock/metal, that I play it is exactly what I look for.

Here is one song I just finished using my Kiesel for all the guitar tracks:


And I'm not here to argue. :) If the pickups don't work. Then it is best to replace them quickly. It was just shocking for me to see, that everyone in this thread hates them. :D:D


Cool tune.
 
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But for modern rock/metal, that I play it is exactly what I look for.
Everyone has different tastes, so if they work for you that's great. For me, they were just horrible. In 20+ years of playing, I've had the opportunity to try out a lot of pickups in several guitars. I've never run into one where I absolutely hated it. They were just different flavors, but still sounded good. The Lithium are the first pickups for me to run into that had no redeeming qualities and sounded like pure trash.

I got the Illuminators installed and am extremely happy with the change. So much better to my ears. I'm having a blast playing this guitar, now. :)
 
I love my Keisel, but I changed the pickups to Bare Knuckles. I told them my issues (similar to yours) and they made a recommendation that really hit it out of the part.

I did have to Dremel the corners of the mounting tabs.
 
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