Dimarzio Gravity Storm & True Velvet: Charvel Model 5FX?

[Charvel1975]

So from what I've been researching on the Charvel Model 5fx and the model series in general, it's hard to pick passive pickups for them, right now mine has EMG's in it.

I wonder what a Dimarzio Gravity Storm in the bridge & a True Velvet in the neck would sound? I want to improve the sound and I'm looking for a bridge humbucker and neck single coil that can cover hard rock / classic rock / glam / heavy metal tones and be defined and clear, yet having plenty of beef. I also want good split coil tones.

I'm not the greatest lead guitar player but me & the other guitarist both do rhythm/leads and trade off leads. As far as lead guitar styles, I like Jake E. Lee/Warren DeMartini style and classic rock/hard rock leads so I do like those types of lead guitar attacks but also like a mellow and fat sound when the song calls for it.

[metalhobo]

I've never played the gravity storm but when you say this:

hard rock / classic rock / glam / heavy metal tones and be defined and clear, yet having plenty of beef

it makes me think "PAF" to a tee. something like a paf 36th anniversary which is pretty hot as far as paf's go. or a j-50b/j-50bc for that classic jackson stuff. those pair well with a true velvet which is good sounding strat pickup. though, it is a "true" strat pickup so in the wrong guitar or with the wrong electronics it can sound ice picky if played by itself. in parallel with another pickup it's sweet. if you score an old pickup it will probably have mellowed a bit. if you're using 500k pots and with a trebley amp you'd probably want to keep the tone knob down a smidge. I recently also started playing an area 67 (or maybe 61? not sure...) strat pickup (stacked/noiseless) and they're real nice, too.

since the 5fx has the small neck pickup route you'll have to be careful about which neck pickup you buy. specifically you'll need a strat pickup "without flange." I think dimarzio may build any of their strat pickups without a flange if you special order them but I'm not sure.

[Charvel1975]

I've never played the gravity storm but when you say this:



it makes me think "PAF" to a tee. something like a paf 36th anniversary which is pretty hot as far as paf's go. or a j-50b/j-50bc for that classic jackson stuff. those pair well with a true velvet which is good sounding strat pickup. though, it is a "true" strat pickup so in the wrong guitar or with the wrong electronics it can sound ice picky if played by itself. in parallel with another pickup it's sweet. if you score an old pickup it will probably have mellowed a bit. if you're using 500k pots and with a trebley amp you'd probably want to keep the tone knob down a smidge. I recently also started playing an area 67 (or maybe 61? not sure...) strat pickup (stacked/noiseless) and they're real nice, too.

since the 5fx has the small neck pickup route you'll have to be careful about which neck pickup you buy. specifically you'll need a strat pickup "without flange." I think dimarzio may build any of their strat pickups without a flange if you special order them but I'm not sure.

metalhobo thank you very much for your input! ? I'm trying to keep an open mind when it comes to pickups for my Charvel, I've been researching quite a bit!

[Razor]

So from what I've been researching on the Charvel Model 5fx and the model series in general, it's hard to pick passive pickups for them, right now mine has EMG's in it.

I wonder what a Dimarzio Gravity Storm in the bridge & a True Velvet in the neck would sound? I want to improve the sound and I'm looking for a bridge humbucker and neck single coil that can cover hard rock / classic rock / glam / heavy metal tones and be defined and clear, yet having plenty of beef. I also want good split coil tones.

I'm not the greatest lead guitar player but me & the other guitarist both do rhythm/leads and trade off leads. As far as lead guitar styles, I like Jake E. Lee/Warren DeMartini style and classic rock/hard rock leads so I do like those types of lead guitar attacks but also like a mellow and fat sound when the song calls for it.

For what it's worth it's hard to beat the old Jackson J-80C and J-90C in the bridge position. Other than that an old Dimarzio Super Distortion, Duncan Distortion, Duncan JB, or an old EMG 81 would fill the bill for me. Again, speaking strictly for the bridge position. I don't play lead, and I never use the neck pickup.

[diablomozart]

the gravity storms are hot yet very clear...i have 3 sets of them in basswood ibanezes which makes even basswood sound beefy and a set in a mahogany body that, to me, makes it sound almost like a les paul...they are almost impossible to describe...that being said, you will have to re-eq your amp as the bass output of them is very different from other pickups (the bass on my amp is between 2 and 4 depending on the tone i'm after)...i love them, your mileage may vary...d.m.

[Charvel1975]

the gravity storms are hot yet very clear...i have 3 sets of them in basswood ibanezes which makes even basswood sound beefy and a set in a mahogany body that, to me, makes it sound almost like a les paul...they are almost impossible to describe...that being said, you will have to re-eq your amp as the bass output of them is very different from other pickups (the bass on my amp is between 2 and 4 depending on the tone i'm after)...i love them, your mileage may vary...d.m.

Good info! I've only heard the Gravity Storm pickups in my Ibanez JEM77P-BFP so interesting how you said they sound in your guitars. My Charvel Model 5FX has neck-through construction with a maple neck and poplar body and I played it last night through a Marshall DSL20CR combo with a Marshall 1x12 closed back extension cab and also tried it through my Line 6 Toneport UX1 USB recording interface and Line 6 POD Farm Amp Sim software and through the Marshall rig sounded all thin and brittle and not clear at all and through the Line 6 setup, sounded tge same except there was this exaggerated boomy low end and just sounded horrible through both rigs ?

That just reaffirms why I want to go to passive pickups on my Charvel.

[diablomozart]

ihave a set of emgs in an ibanez 760...i like the single coils ok but i'm not a fan of emg humbuckers...they just don't sound right to me...thin and brittle are the same description i use for them...the gravity storms? they have a lot of bass which is why i said to re-eq the amp...overall i prefer passives to actives as i grew up playing seymour duncan customs...that being said, the eq on your amp is, by far, the most powerful effect in your arsenal...you can spend literal years tweaking your eq lol...d.m.

[Charvel1975]

ihave a set of emgs in an ibanez 760...i like the single coils ok but i'm not a fan of emg humbuckers...they just don't sound right to me...thin and brittle are the same description i use for them...the gravity storms? they have a lot of bass which is why i said to re-eq the amp...overall i prefer passives to actives as i grew up playing seymour duncan customs...that being said, the eq on your amp is, by far, the most powerful effect in your arsenal...you can spend literal years tweaking your eq lol...d.m.

I know what you mean, I have 2 guitars that have Seymour Duncan's in them; an older Epiphone Les Paul Custom Korean SD Hot Rod Set (JB/Jazz) and a Partscaster with single SD JB Trembucker wired to a push pull volume pot 500k. All my other electric guitars have the stock passive pickups.