My KE-3 (pic) Needs New Pickups

[DCZX]

This is my US made Jackson Professional KE-3. I've never been happy with the "duncan designed" pickups on this thing. They sound very weak, even when I adjust them to be closer to the strings. I would like to have chunky rhythm + great lead tone.

I was thinking about a Dimebucker... would it be best in the bridge or neck position? Would there be a good combination of pickups? Any suggestions? Thanks!

thanks [img]/images/graemlins/headbang.gif[/img]

[Newc]

Re: My KE-3 (pic) Needs New Pickups

Not USA made. All Professional models were/are made in Japan.

As for pickups, a Gibson 498T, 500T, or Duncan Distortion in the bridge should give you great happiness.
A Custom or JB in the neck would sound good as well, or a Jazz.

[DCZX]

Re: My KE-3 (pic) Needs New Pickups

Oops. I always thought is was U.S. made!

[Inearthed]

Re: My KE-3 (pic) Needs New Pickups

What sort of amp do you use?

I'm partial to the JB / Jazz setup as far as Duncans go. DiMarzio X2N in the bridge is excellent for the completely over the top sounds. EMG 81 / 85 is also a popular pickup configuration (and you can switch 'em to be either way too).

[PallarAndersVisa]

Re: My KE-3 (pic) Needs New Pickups

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Oops. I always thought is was U.S. made!

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that sucks

[DonP]

Re: My KE-3 (pic) Needs New Pickups

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What sort of amp do you use?

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Ditto. I still have the duncan designed in mine, and they don't sound thin at all in my rig. They are fatter (muddier?) than an EMG81.

[shredmonster]

Re: My KE-3 (pic) Needs New Pickups

My friend has a similar guitar. He has Bill Lawrence 500XL in there and it sounds fantastic.

Seymour Duncan Custom 5 is another good one for the bridge.

I would stay away from the SD JB - yeah it gets a lot of harmonics but it has a real simple harmonic content - that is the harmonics always sound the same and don't have a lot of complex overtones like you can get out of the Custom.

Dimarzios are thin sounding to me - I have tried a lot of them.

[DCZX]

Re: My KE-3 (pic) Needs New Pickups

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What sort of amp do you use?


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I have a Carvin SX200D. I also have a Gibson SG-X that does not at all sound thin. The DD pickups just seem weak. What about Duncan "Invader" pickups?

What kind of pickup in general do you want for the bridge and neck?

[Fragle]

Re: My KE-3 (pic) Needs New Pickups

"Dimarzios are thin sounding to me - I have tried a lot of them. "
different strokes for different folks, obviously. i'm running a dimarzio steves special (john petrucci's pickup of choice) in the bridge of my model 3, and it sounds sooooo much better than my emg loaded jackson it's not even funny. much fatter and even more brutal than the emg - even though the charvel is set up with 10-46 strings tuned to d, whereas the jackson has a 11-52 set on it.

having that said, the best sounding guitar i've ever heared was a gibson les paul with a duncan custom 5 (iirc) in the bridge, so go figure.

[DonP]

Re: My KE-3 (pic) Needs New Pickups

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What sort of amp do you use?


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I have a Carvin SX200D. I also have a Gibson SG-X that does not at all sound thin. The DD pickups just seem weak. What about Duncan "Invader" pickups?

What kind of pickup in general do you want for the bridge and neck?

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Your SG-X (if it hasn't been modified) has the Gibson 500T in it. An Invader would be darker than the 500T.

Why not get the Gibson 496R/500T ceramic set for the KE3? Since you like these already, it makes sense. They won't sound exactly the same because of the different wood used in the guitars and bolt-on vs. set neck.

[DCZX]

Re: My KE-3 (pic) Needs New Pickups

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Your SG-X (if it hasn't been modified) has the Gibson 500T in it. An Invader would be darker than the 500T.

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What does darker mean?

[DonP]

Re: My KE-3 (pic) Needs New Pickups

Bassier. More low end, not as harsh or bright.

[DCZX]

Re: My KE-3 (pic) Needs New Pickups

I saw some Duncan Distortion 2 packs they have. Would a distortion in the bridge do okay? I like to do shred runs so I'm thinking the jazz in the neck might be clearer, or the "full shred"...

p.s. thanks for the suggestions, this has been very helpful

[DonP]

Re: My KE-3 (pic) Needs New Pickups

I have the two pack. The neck pickup of the Distortion Mayhem set is called the "Seymourizer" and has an "SEY" sticker on the back. I haven't hooked them up yet. What you and I have in the KE3 is what this set is - only ours are made in Korea. I bought this "real" set to replace the Korea set, but 1) I've been too busy, and 2) my Duncan Distortion isn't F spaced like the Duncan Designed pickup.

If you put a push/pull pot in for the volume, you can either turn the neck pickup into a single, or run it parallel instead of in series. Parallel it is still humbucking, but lower in output than series (cleaner).

[DCZX]

Re: My KE-3 (pic) Needs New Pickups

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2) my Duncan Distortion isn't F spaced like the Duncan Designed pickup.

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Does this mean I'll have trouble installing S. Duncan pickups?