Does anyone use a Duncan Distortion?

[wyldefan]

Hello everyone. I am trying to decide on a new pickup for one of my new guitars. The guitar has a swamp ash body and came with a Duncan JB. The JB is a nice pickup but I want something with more output along with great harmonics and plenty of warmth. I really like the Duncan Custom but it lacks in the lead area in my opinion. Great for rythem though! Would the Duncan Distortion be a good pickup to go with. I am playing through a Lee Jackson head which sounds like a Modded JCM 800. I play a lot of 80's metal and some new rock. To simplify everything I want a pickup with great rythem and lead tones. Any suggestions?

[thetruthguy]

Re: Does anyone use a Duncan Distortion?

I'm using one. It's a really bright pickup and is excellent for leads. Very clear and sustained lead tones. It's got a good clean sound, too. A couple of steps up is the Invader, which might also work well for you.

[wyldefan]

Re: Does anyone use a Duncan Distortion?

I have heard it is really bright. But in your opinion is that a good or bad thing? How is for rythem playing?

[StuTDavis]

Re: Does anyone use a Duncan Distortion?

Yep, third the bright thing. The Distortion is pretty darn top-end leaded hehe. Great harmonics, just fly out easily. I'd worry about the too-bright issue with a swamp ash guitar, unless you just really really want brightness. You can dial out a little of that extreme top end with EQing, though. One possibility to get what you want that might work would be an EQ pedal between the guitar and amp...maybe even sucking out a little super-high tone, but boosting mids, and maybe boosting lows just a tiny pinch. You'd have to fool with it. But more mids would help it overall, feeling more beefy, probably give you better response overall, and help your leads, too.

[JACKSONFREAK]

Re: Does anyone use a Duncan Distortion?

I've got two Duncan Distortios one in a Dean with a Alder body and one in my Soloist STD Which is poplar and maple. Both have great tone and tons of gain. I don't find them to be too bright at all. They have enough brightness to retain their clearity with a great focused midrange. It's my other favorite pickup next to the JB.
Gil

[Newc]

Re: Does anyone use a Duncan Distortion?

I've got two Rhoads models with Duncan Distortions in the bridge and find them great for rhythm - nice and crunchy with some beefyness. The harmonics do jump out, and leads scream. If anything, I find them quite balanced.
Then again, my assessment of a Duncan Custom is different than yours (great for leads IMO) so individual amp settings and player's tone does have a factor in it.
I use an ADA MP-1 and external EQing, and I haven't compared it to a Marshall.

Newc

[Black Mariah]

Re: Does anyone use a Duncan Distortion?

Maybe it's just my guitar doing it, but my impression of the Duncan Distortion is low-end devastation with little high end to speak of. I love it. Nice low-midrange tone. Maybe I'm just going deaf. [img]images/icons/wink.gif[/img]

[StuTDavis]

Re: Does anyone use a Duncan Distortion?

The best way to get an idea of how any pickup might sound in your guitar is to become familiar with the different properties and characteristics of pickups. Duncan, especially, has a great resource for explaining the various properties and how they relate to one another, as well as general tone charts, which will all help you better get a general idea of just how each pickup might alter the sound of your guitar.

Of course, different guitars, woods, different setups, settings in the setup, playing area, player expectations and interpretations are going to make a big difference on someone's opinion of a pickup. The actual properties and tone charts will help cut through that for what I would consider more reliable information overall on tone. Things like how easily a pickup expresses harmonics aren't something that's so obvious through those means, but you can get a general idea of the tone at least.

[Newc]

Re: Does anyone use a Duncan Distortion?

B.M. - That's where personal tone comes in - I've got a "natural high" tone (more high end because of my attack and phrasing - that's why I use a Tone knob [img]images/icons/tongue.gif[/img] ) whereas someone else might have a naturally bassy tone (my ex-singer/guitarist had that - he made my Les Paul growl, I make it scream [img]graemlins/laugh.gif[/img] )

As for Duncan's downloadable sound samples for each pickup, it'd be great if it wasn't the same amp settings for each pickup. Maybe if they used optimum amp settings or even had Rock/Country (Fender/Peavey), Blues (Fender), Hard Rock/Heavy Metal (Marshall/VHT/Mesa), and Thrash/Speed/Death/Gnu Metal (Mesa) clips, each player could get an accurate representation of how each pickup would sound through amps they really use (as opposed to using a Fish or CAE).

Newc

[rodrigo_echeverri]

Re: Does anyone use a Duncan Distortion?

Also I find that ebony makes you sound a lot brigher than rosewood...

[StuTDavis]

Re: Does anyone use a Duncan Distortion?

Yeah, I would never go off of recorded samples to try to get an idea of what different pickups sound like. Seems like a good idea on the outset, but a pickup can make a wide variety of difference in varied setups, and what you perceive in difference between them in recordings might not end up being the actual case in your own situation. A positive difference from a pickup in Duncan's recording setup might turn out to be a negative differnce in your own, and vice versa could be true, leading you to disregard a pickup that might be great for you. Always best to go with the specs, tone charts, and descriptions.

[Black Mariah]

Re: Does anyone use a Duncan Distortion?

Stu: The "personal tone" thing is true to a point, but definitely not in this case. [img]images/icons/wink.gif[/img] My Soloist and Iceman both sound worlds better than any of my other guitars, to me anyway. They both have a very warm tone. Almost all of my other guitars have a very shrill sound to them. It's one of the reasons I'm selling my Model 1 (don't ask, it's already spoken for. [img]images/icons/wink.gif[/img] ).

[diablomozart]

Re: Does anyone use a Duncan Distortion?

i,ve got one in my granite soloist...lots of mids and highs but still very clear...i prefer the duncan custom (a little smoother) but the distortion is a good pickup as well...d.m.

[parntz145]

Re: Does anyone use a Duncan Distortion?

Hey tim,I heard a bill lawerence 500xl works really well in a swampash body.I know someone selling one cheap if you are interested.

[wyldefan]

Re: Does anyone use a Duncan Distortion?

OK Paul only serious comments please..lol You are going to have to accept that I will never buy your pickup buddy. Have a good week.