Blaze combo vs Nailbomb bridge

[MerlinTKD]

God, yes, I know, there are a thousand threads about which pickup to choose, about the pros and cons of Blazes, and the pros (are there any cons? ) of BKP...

Having said that... I am getting really tired of doing this: (sore too!)


I'm going to have, when my Economic Stimulus Package Check (also known as "BushBucks") finally arrives, roughly just enough to get either a Blaze bridge/neck combo OR a single Bare Knuckle pickup(most likely a Nailbomb bridge).

My guitar is the basswood/maple/rosewood ESP/LTD M-207; I lucked out and got a nice one, though the hardware is exactly what you'd expect in this line. Currently it still has the Duncan Designed JB/Jazz combo. The Jazz sounds fantastic, the JB... less so. The JB does indeed make the B string sound like a tuba, and I can't get any tightness without making the higher strings sound painful.

So I'm looking for definitely tightening up the bass in the bridge pickup, but maintaining versatility. About half of what I write is metal-ish, the other half roots rock-like, so I would like to be able to simple choose or tweak settings in the Toneport/Gearbox software, and be able to do both.

I know the Nailbomb will give me what I need in the bridge, no question (thanks to Zimbloth patiently entertaining me ). Going that way, though, means keeping the DD Jazz and trying to work with both. OR... I could go for a pair of Blazes and replace both at the same time... but will the Blazes give me the versatility in the bridge and neck that I'm looking for/used to?


So, which it? The Blaze combo or the Nailbomb bridge?

 

[ibznorange]

Id normally say dual dimarzios, but if you like the neck pickup just fine, id say get a ridiculous bridge pickup

 

[Edroz]

Id normally say dual dimarzios, but if you like the neck pickup just fine, id say get a ridiculous bridge pickup

+1

 

[7 Dying Trees]

Nailbomb. Then save up. If you like the neck as it is, then why change it? Then if you want to, get another BKP for the neck (cold sweat is awesome)

 

[MerlinTKD]

Yeah, I'm leaning that way indeed...

So, for future knowledge... if I love the Duncan Jazz, what BKP is closest?

 

[Ishan]

Ask Tim from BKP directly, telling your style and what's the guitar, he'll name you what pickups you need

 

[7 Dying Trees]

No idea what is closest, but I absolutely love the Cold Sweat. The Nailbomb neck is like a hotter version of the cold sweat.

SoundClick artist: James' Clips - page with MP3 music downloads

Is a short-ish clip of the bareknuckles, in a 1077xl, nailbomb bridge and cold sweat neck. All the leads are on the cold sweat, all the rythm on the nailbomb. Both are alcino5

If you want to do a patch comparison, i uploaded my patches on here a while back (for the pod-xt) with the "bomber OD" one being the lead, and the other (big bottom model one) being the rythm tone.

 

[7 Dying Trees]

Ask Tim from BKP directly, telling your style and what's the guitar, he'll name you what pickups you need

Also, do this. Tell him what you like, what you don't like about what you like (ie, what you'd prefer it could do) and then watch the recommendation come back at you!

 

[MerlinTKD]

Thanks Yoann, James... you're right, I just need to do that.

I spent an hour tonight trying to dial in a rhythm tone that was halfway decent, and came up with NOTHING. Granted, I don't have any of the add-ons for Gearbox, but I'm just more and more unhappy as time goes on. If the B string (actually A, but whatever) starts to sound okay, the rest of the strings sound painful... if 6 strings sound okay, the B sounds either muffled or boomy. :cry:

I'll be emailing Tim shortly... hopefully there's hope for this guitar!


By the way James, awesome clip! Your 1077 is mahogany, right?

 

[zimbloth]

Thanks Yoann, James... you're right, I just need to do that.

I spent an hour tonight trying to dial in a rhythm tone that was halfway decent, and came up with NOTHING. Granted, I don't have any of the add-ons for Gearbox, but I'm just more and more unhappy as time goes on. If the B string (actually A, but whatever) starts to sound okay, the rest of the strings sound painful... if 6 strings sound okay, the B sounds either muffled or boomy. :cry:

I'll be emailing Tim shortly... hopefully there's hope for this guitar!


By the way James, awesome clip! Your 1077 is mahogany, right?

The 1077 is basswood.

I forget exactly what I said when you PM'd me about this, but several different models would suit your style and excel in basswood. I think the Nailbomb, Holydiver, Cold Sweat, or Painkiler (A8) would be good matches. The Miracle Man or Warpig could sound cool too but those aren't really what you're looking for I gather.

As for the DiMarzios, I think the Blaze set is a better match for your guitar than the Duncans. Blazes are cool, I've been using them off and on for about 10 years now. Personally, to my ears they are fairly average compared to most other aftermarket pickups. I think there are better sounding DiMarzios out there. I'm a big fan of the DiMarzio Evolution 7, PAF 7, and in some cases the D Activator. The D-Sonic and Blaze Custom are okay but not my thing.

I like/use DiMarzios and Seymour Duncans. I'm going to be selling those as well. With that said, honestly I hold the opinion that BKPs in general are a superior product and worth every penny. As many others have said, they sound incredible and go that extra mile - like going from a production guitar to a handmade custom shop one, you know?

That said, if you like the Jazz neck but not the JB bridge, you could always send the JB off to get rewound like the Division folk suggest. However, I'm still not sure even they would think the JB is the best fit in a basswood 7 (even the rewound one).

 

[Mattmc74]

I have the Blaze combo in my 7421 and they made it sound 1000 times better! I have never tried the BKPs so I really can't say much about them. I will be trying them out on my next 7 build.

 

[zimbloth]

I have the Blaze combo in my 7421 and they made it sound 1000 times better! I have never tried the BKPs so I really can't say much about them. I will be trying them out on my next 7 build.

Oh yeah they're definitely good pickups, a zillion times better than ibanez stockers.

 

[7 Dying Trees]

Thanks Yoann, James... you're right, I just need to do that.

I spent an hour tonight trying to dial in a rhythm tone that was halfway decent, and came up with NOTHING. Granted, I don't have any of the add-ons for Gearbox, but I'm just more and more unhappy as time goes on. If the B string (actually A, but whatever) starts to sound okay, the rest of the strings sound painful... if 6 strings sound okay, the B sounds either muffled or boomy. :cry:

Ah, here's a trick, if you're recording, often a low gain sound will suit you better, brings out the low strings more, the big bottom model is awesome for this. THe you double track, and the double tracking makes it sound like there's way more gain than there actually is. Tightness of low gain + perception of lots. Try it. You'll have to have a heavier rythm hand, and push the amp/model that way, but it's worth it.

I'll be emailing Tim shortly... hopefully there's hope for this guitar!

Tim knows his shit man , when he rewound my middle single to go with the nailbomb/cold sweat i wanted the magnet to be alcino5, as it's a shitty stock single (1077xl, don't think it's a blaze single, but i really doubt it), but as the magnet was "a weird shape" he couldn't do it, but did say that ceramic single + alcino5 split sounds would be gorgeous, and they are He knows what he's talking about, he really does.

By the way James, awesome clip! Your 1077 is mahogany, right?

Cheers man, and the 1077, it's basswood