Wood/pickup suggestions.

[Mikernaut2]

I'm considering another customshop guitar and want to go for something different. Right now I'm trying to decide what wood to use. (never can remember what woods have what tonal properties) I prefer Mahogany but have 2 already, and am unsure if EMG's would sound good with it or maybe just stick with Alder.

Also this would be a 2 hum guitar with an ebony board. For the pickups I'm leaning toward trying out some EMGs since I have Duncans and Dimarzio's in my current guitars. So I'm thinking an 81 in the bridge, but not sure what for neck. 60, 60A,85?.

I would like something that I could actually get a decent clean tone with as I tend to use the neck for that aswell as some warmer lead tones, but maybe the EMG's arent the best choice for this.

Stylewise I like to play stuff from Eric Johnson to various Metal. This guitar is leaning toward being more of a Metal guitar but it still would be nice to get an ok clean tone for softer Opeth songs and whatnot.

So any opinions/suggestions would be greatly appreciated

[toejam]

EMGs rock! IMO, the 85 rules in the bridge with either a 60 or 81 in the neck.

[Sunbane]

+1 for the 85 in the bridge.

[busdriver]

That's also my opinion. 85 in the bridge and 60 in the neck

[TruckerDave]

Maybe a 60A would be a better match with an 85 because they are both loaded with alinco magnets

[Sunbane]

Maybe a 60A would be a better match with an 85 because they are both loaded with alinco magnets

Quite possibly. That thought hasn't struck me before, but I like medium bright pickups in the neck (bassy tone but with some high-end definition), so it may be good for that purpose.

So far I've used the 58 as the neck pickup in guitars with EMGs. It's very similar to the 85, but with more sparkly highs, a little looser low-end, and a bit of hum. It's also a little harder to purchase, since it's only available through custom order. GuitarPartsDepot used to have them in stock a while back though.

[jcmktgguy]

A Korina guitar with a thin lacquer finish would sound totally awesome!!

I believe there is a dealer with a CS Relic'd KV2T that I took to the 2005 Summer NAMM. That guitar had the MOJO!!

[Jack Napalm]

Do you mean this one?

http://www.fullersguitar.com/data/sh...hResult2.shtml

[j2379]

EMG85 sounded great in my warlock all mahogany rosewood board, not ebony like u want. if you like mah, KOA IMHO sounds great.

the KV i dont like it. something about relic'd king V just doesnt look right, could be the pickup covers or the inlays but not for me.

[Mikernaut2]

Well thanx for the replies. I currently have an Custom Mahogany Demon with Duncans on order and am considering ordering an 2nd Demon but thought I might try EMG's and different wood.

There seems to be soo much praise around here for Mahogany I'm starting to wonder if I should just go with it again. But I still have the urge to try something different so they both have their own uniqueness. This will be painted a solid color so it doesnt have to be some fancy looking wood.

Koa sounds tempting but thats an extra $250 and ordering 2 customs I will be poor enough, hahaha.

Sounds like an EMG 85 in the bridge is also very recommended. So I'll probably go with that.

[Chrisb]

Look at Korina then because Korina is a.) cheaper than Koa and b.) similar sound to Koa and Mahogany.

The drawback is that I think EMG's don't bring out the tonal characteristics of mahogany, maple, walnut. So if you go with a bright or warm wood I'd recommend passives maybe with a gain boost if you want some punch. If you really like the EMG's then Alder, Lacewood are good choices. Lacewood sounds alot like Alder to me but it has a nice look and the upcharge isn't to steap. A fun thing to do might be to get a solid color top and a clear gloss on the back so the lacewood shows through but you still have a solid color finish on the top. This works really nicely with binding IMO but its not a necessity.

Two other things play into this as well. String thru or Trem? Neck Wood? Neck thru or Bolt-On? Those three things are important factors too. If you are unsure about a body wood then consider the same wood for the neck instead, it will have less effect on the tone but still give its own sound.

A friend of a friend has a custom shop Schecter PT with Ebony board, Black top with white binding on the neck and body and a clear gloss neck and back of body made of lacewood and it looks absolutely stunning. I may have some pictures of it somewhere. It could be a neck-thru but I am fairly sure its a set neck. I've never seen a neck thru PT ever.