Muddy Soloist

[FunkyMunky71]

Hi All,
I was trying out my new Soloist SL1 today and it just sounded pretty muddy. It's got a usual TB4 JB in the bridge and a couple of Hot Rails in the SC positions. There's the usual alder body, maple neck but it does have a quilt top. When I A/B tested it against a swamp ash guitar with Bare Knuckle pickups it got blown into the weeds for clarity and tone across the board. My ESP Horizon with 2 year old strings even sounded better! Neither played as nicely though. I'm sure it'll sound better through my gigging amp which is brighter.

Have any of you used BKPs and if so what with what results?

[slayer]

That suprises me that a JB sounds that muddy. I have never heard a muddy JB. Hi Mids yes, but never muddy. I have had many guitars with JB`s including many Soloists and they have never sounded muddy in any configuration of woods and tops. Sounds weird. Maybe it`s defective somehow or wound wrong or maybe the pots or wiring?

[neilli]

Yeah, if anything, I'd say the JB is too bright, never muddy.

[shreddermon]

In my experience, the JB is very sensitive to height changes. Too low, and it can sound muddy and weak. Too high, and it's bright and shrill.

[Mossezhoffen]

It could have a 250k volume pot. Seymour Duncan recommends using that with JB to reduce highs. It definitely makes
it more muddy.

[FunkyMunky71]

Well I'm never going to live this down! I took the ESP and Soloist back for another test as they're most similar, through neck, JB, alder body, ebony board etc. They now both sounded really muddy! Bear in mind I'm playing in a dimly lighted kitchen with a counter standing out over my amp... I decided 'this can't be right' and take a closer look at my amp.

The tone knob had been knocked from about 2 o'clock to 11 o'clock!!!
My girlfriend did some cleaning and dusting today and must have moved the tone knob. Switched it to normal and all is good in guitar world again. Doh!

Thanks for the input and please don't mock me too much. The BKPs on my MacPherson still sound better

[neilli]

At least you admitted it LOL

How's the MacPherson?

[FunkyMunky71]

At least you admitted it LOL

How's the MacPherson?

The MacPherson is really good.

It's my Swiss Army Knife gigging guitar. It's based on a Pagan with a reverse headstock but in HSH form with coil splitting and a bypass switch to bridge hum bucker. It's similar to a Guthrie spec Suhr Modern but with a swamp ash body and a bolt on neck based on an ESP Horizon type profile. I love it as it sounds amazing with BKP Emerald (neck), Irish Tour (middle) and Holy Diver (bridge). The only thing about it I don't like is the only thing I didn't spec and hadn't really thought about, and that's the truss rod is only accessible by taking the neck off. I just expected to have access through a headstock cover and didn't think to ask. It's got Hipshot locking tuners and trem too which have proved very stable although I barely use the term gigging these days.

Overall it's awesome. And Dan's moved out your way now so Canada has gained an excellent luthier. If you want a great guitar built I'd give him a try.

[neilli]

Cool, thanks for the review! He's in a town about 4 hours from me, which is halfway across the UK, but virtually next door here LOL (I'm from Somerset, so it's been a process getting used to the sheer scale of distances here)..

[FunkyMunky71]

He was in Essex and me in the Lakes so i didn't get to visit his workshop, 6 hour drive lol!
This config on mine will cover just about anything so is great in a cover band situation. We don't do much really heavy stuff or light pop but with different pickups it'd do whatever you want (mine are selected for middle of the spectrum versitility).

[H8Red442]

JB is junk. Toss it and throw a Distortion in there.

[slayer]

JB is junk. Toss it and throw a Distortion in there.

I like both. It depends on the guitar and amp and speakers. I am definitely throwing a Distortion in something soon again!!

[Black Shadow]

JB is junk. Toss it and throw a Distortion in there.

I wouldn't say the JB is junk, but I'd take a Distortion over it every time.