Steve's Special, anyone?

[Mordor]

So,I would like to change the bridge PU of my DK1 (Bill Lawrence XL500) with something less bright and a bit more powerfull.What about a Steve's Special?Does the V shaped tone sounds too much scooped?My amp are already mid scooped voiced so I don't want to lose all the mids!! [img]/images/graemlins/nono.gif[/img]
Maybe a ToneZone? [img]/images/graemlins/help.gif[/img]

[Fragle]

Re: Steve\'s Special, anyone?

i'm using it in my model 3. it's definitely one of my alltime favourite passive pickups. i also like it much better than the emg81 i have in my jackson.
in comparison to the emg81, it has more bottom end, is way more organic (=less sterile), has a very good clarity all the way from top to bottom, and does not sound harsh at all - keep in mind, it's john petrucci's fav. pickup [img]/images/graemlins/laugh.gif[/img]

having that said, i'm not sure whether it would work with your fireball/single recto setup or not. as you already said, it has some of the mids scooped (although not much, really), and together with already mid scooped amps you might end up with a non-cutting sound. i can't help you here because i've yet to play through a really scooped amp like the fireball. together with a 5150 or marshall, it's a perfect match, though.

the tonezone might have too much bottom end for you btw.
i'd suggest a dimarzio super distortion, or maybe a duncan custom (sd5 iirc)

[Mordor]

Re: Steve\'s Special, anyone?

Thanks a lot bro,I should consider a duncan custom too as you mentioned!

[jgcable]

Re: Steve\'s Special, anyone?

I too am a huge fan of the Steve's Special.

[bluebullet]

Re: Steve\'s Special, anyone?

its hard to beat a duncan custom

[Mordor]

Re: Steve\'s Special, anyone?

Hell,I'd like to listen to these pups but unfortunatly noone of the guys I know use them.I'm serarching for a warm fat tone,clear enough for complex stuff and singin lead...

[Dreamland_Rebel]

Re: Steve\'s Special, anyone?

its all about matching the right pickup to your body wood.

[Fragle]

Re: Steve\'s Special, anyone?

".I'm serarching for a warm fat tone,clear enough for complex stuff and singin lead"

well, you're pretty much describing the steve's special, except maybe for the warm and fat part...i mean it's warm and fat, just not tone zone fat. i'd rather call the SS warm and cutting.

i'm worried about your mids, though....if your amp was more midrangey voiced i'd say go for it, but with a recto or even worse the FB you might very well end up in scoopy-land.

[Inazone]

Re: Steve\'s Special, anyone?

The SS will definitely cut through, and it's got amazing tone for soloing, very clear where other pickups sometimes get muddy. I can't really say how it would sound with scooped mids, because I'm running through old Peavey amps and cabs with a lot of inherent midrange.

I'm actually getting my SS potted as we speak, because it was prone to squealing. It's hotter than I expected, and I tend to use pretty mellow pickups.

[Mordor]

Re: Steve\'s Special, anyone?

[ QUOTE ]
i'm worried about your mids, though....if your amp was more midrangey voiced i'd say go for it, but with a recto or even worse the FB you might very well end up in scoopy-land.

[/ QUOTE ]

That's the only reason I've not bought it yet!I could buy a tonezone,the other guitarist in my band use it and it sounds great,but as Dreamland said,I don't know how it will sound in my DK1,since the wood is different.I guess the full shred has the V shape tone as the SS?

[jim777]

Re: Steve\'s Special, anyone?

If you're familiar with the DiMarzio Blaze 7 string pickup, the SS is a 6 string version of that.

[Chrisb]

Re: Steve\'s Special, anyone?

I think a Steve's Special would work fine for you, I have one in my Kelly. A Duncan Custom would also be a good choice, but thats a little more of a ballsy metal pickup IMO.

[Inazone]

Re: Steve\'s Special, anyone?

The Full Shred has a more pronounced mid scoop than the Steve's Special. The low end on the Full Shred is a little tighter and more percussive. The SS has a sound all its own that's a bit hard to describe, and I'd be more inclined to use it than the Full Shred in a lead role.

[toejam]

Re: Steve\'s Special, anyone?

[ QUOTE ]
i'm worried about your mids, though....if your amp was more midrangey voiced i'd say go for it, but with a recto or even worse the FB you might very well end up in scoopy-land.

[/ QUOTE ]
+1. I'd go for a Tone Zone.

[Robotechnology]

Re: Steve\'s Special, anyone?

Go for a TZ. SS is bright. My PGM90th is loaded with an SS in the bridge and it's so bright it'll take your head off. TZ is warm and still cuts thru. I have TZ's in 3 guitars.