Good pickup choice for Mark IV?

[holdsworth]

Over the past few months I have been searching for a bridge humbucker for my Ibanez prestige (slim body, mahogony w/piezo) that will compliment my Mark IV combo. I recently changed my Dimarzio Evo for a Duncan JB, but I found the trebles too piercing for my Mark IV (which I set to about 7 in the treble). The reason I changed the Evo was to get a sweet tone, yet I still wanted to retain a certain amount of high level output.

Can anybody recommend a pickup (preferably a Dimarzio or Duncan) that will compliment the Mark IVs characteristics? I am currently looking at the Duncan custom 5s and the Dimarzio Tone Zones and Steve's Specials.

Cheers.

 

[PRSKILLER]

I have a JB in my McNaught but I'm waiting on slapping in a Wolfetone Marshallhead pickup. The '59 would be a good match for the Mark IV being that there is so much gain available from the head. I'm going the other way, looking for a more mellow, clear pickup rather than a hot pickup for a hot amp.

 

[trem]

I have a DiMarzio Air Zone in my RG565. It's clear sounding and has a complex mid range - the kind of sound I after. The output is higher than FRED and PAF Pro, but lower than Tone Zone (of which this pickup is based). My guitar is bright sounding so the fatness of the pickup balances it nicely.

I'm actually looking for a pickup that would do the same thing in my Les Paul, because the Air Zone is too fat sounding for an LP.

 

[Antoine]

My Tone Zone on my American Deluxe Stratocaster HSS is very good through the MarkIV.
As Trem has said, the complex mid range of this pickups is awesome, it gives it a true Rock sound, plus his Fatness help a lot to achieve a big sound, very impressive pickup !

 

[holdsworth]

I have a DiMarzio Air Zone in my RG565. It's clear sounding and has a complex mid range - the kind of sound I after. The output is higher than FRED and PAF Pro, but lower than Tone Zone (of which this pickup is based). My guitar is bright sounding so the fatness of the pickup balances it nicely.

At the moment I'm set on getting the Air Zone, but its very hard to get any sort of sound comparison since very few professional guitarists play with them nowadays (which is another bonus in my eyes, giving you the element of uniqueness). Does the Air Zone have a sort of sweet-ish tone and singing sustain? I'm after a pup with character.

Cheers.

 

[trem]

Hi there. To give you an idea on how it sounds like, imagine Tone Zone with less aggressiveness and in-your-face attitude. It's a bit looser sounding, which balances out well with the tight sound of a Mark IV. I think both Tone Zone and Air Zone is sweet, but this baby is tamer and has more dynamics. Good luck.

 

[Soulcrusher_X]

I use Gibson/Tony Iommi signature pickups in my Les Paul. They are pretty balanced pups. They are thick sounding, big bass, but not flubby, fat mids and cutting treble. They can sound bright with some amps, but they cut like crazy with my MKIV and V30s. They apparently have two magnet types in them, Alnico2 and Ceramic.

 

[overwater]

i use a seymour duncan custom custom in my overwater guitar
and it gives a nice thick sound and it will clean up nicely
with the volume backed off as well

 

[holdsworth]

I know the Anderson H3 pickup is reputed to be the pickup used to test Boogies, but its so hard to obtain them in the UK. Does anyone know who sells them in, or to, the UK? Also, what are the specs of H3, and which non-Anderson pickup is closest in tone to the H3?

i use a seymour duncan custom custom in my overwater guitar
and it gives a nice thick sound and it will clean up nicely
with the volume backed off as well

I've heard alot of good things about the custom custom. Don't you find the Duncans a little too piercing in the highs for the Mark IV though?

 

[overwater]

no i find them ok but i had a seymour duncan j/b pickup in before that and i didnt like it at all. the guitar is all mahogany body with a maple top
so that maybe mellows the sound out a bit

 

[willrock]

go for dimarzio's steve's special/air norton combo to compensate the amp's mid soundness

 

[JAZZGEAR]

You should take a look at the Humbuckers from Tom Anderson guitars.

Their H3 pickup is the one chosen by Mesa Boogie to evaluate and test the the tone of their amps per the info below...plus I own several of their humbuckers, the H3 included, and it is a FAT sounding p/u

"H3 Our original super hot pickup. This is the pickup used for developing, testing and insuring the great tonal quality of Mesa Boogie amplifiers. The sound is open, not muddy, but with rich, full mid and bottom end tone."

Here's the link:

http://www.andersonguitars.com/toneLibInfo.html

 

[trem]

Hi Jazzgear,

Tom Anderson recommended H2+ to be used with my Les Paul + Mark IV. I've read in the reviews that they're fat sounding, but I'm worried that'll make my LP sound muddy. Have you ever tried the H2+? What do you think about it? Thanks!

To Holdsworth, sorry to hijack your thread. :wink:

 

[holdsworth]

You should take a look at the Humbuckers from Tom Anderson guitars.

Their H3 pickup is the one chosen by Mesa Boogie to evaluate and test the the tone of their amps per the info below...plus I own several of their humbuckers, the H3 included, and it is a FAT sounding p/u

"H3 Our original super hot pickup. This is the pickup used for developing, testing and insuring the great tonal quality of Mesa Boogie amplifiers. The sound is open, not muddy, but with rich, full mid and bottom end tone."

Here's the link:

http://www.andersonguitars.com/toneLibInfo.html

Yeah, I'm aware of that. Does anyone know of anywhere that sells Anderson pickups to the UK? I've tried searching everywhere but it seems impossible to find anywhere that stocks them in the UK.