Recommend me an alternative to P-Rails

[Axewielder]

I've got a P-Rails in my Green Spidey Strat, and it's not a good pup for that guitar. The P-90 sound is pretty killer. The strat sound is decent, but not the best I've heard. The real issue is the humbucker mode....pure mud! It's way too dark and lacks any kind of clarity in that guitar. I love the idea of a pup with three completely different tones via a 3-way switch in a 1-H guitar. Are there any decent alternatives which are brighter sounding? This is a heavy alder body (I think...) with an ebony board.

[Axewielder]

I see there is a "Hot" version of the P-Rails out there that has a punchier, more aggressive tone. Hmm...

[sully]

There aren't too many folks that I'm aware of here that have P-Rails in stuff. I've got a set in an LP, and I like it, but the LP isn't my go-to guitar, so I'm not as well versed in its character just yet. I will say that I haven't noticed any muddiness, but the two guitars in question have different body woods. I think DiMarzio has some sort of equivalent, but I'm not 100% certain.

sully

[Axewielder]

Yeah I might be off in the weeds a bit doing the P90 thing in a Jackson. My current thinking is to go with a Dimarzio X2N and do the hum/split/parallel wiring thing with that on-on-on switch that I put in there. The X2N should hopefully have the right amount of brightness for this guitar.

[mjtripper]

I have p-rails in the neck and bridge of my sl2h-mah and absolutely love them, I don't notice any muddiness. I did replace the stock 250k volume and tone pots with 500k and also added a treble bleed to the volume.

[Axewielder]

I have p-rails in the neck and bridge of my sl2h-mah and absolutely love them, I don't notice any muddiness. I did replace the stock 250k volume and tone pots with 500k and also added a treble bleed to the volume.

I believe you. I really experimented with the pickup height, and it's just not happening in this guitar though. There is no tone knob either, so the treble is widey-ass open. Still muddy!

[6string40]

Larry, unless you have an X2N laying around already, I would recommend the Crunch Lab instead. Similar type of pup, but one has a bar and one has poles. Depending upon the way you mount it, you'll get different tones with the bar near the bridge vs toward the neck. The tones will be much different in split/parallel as well due to the different sides of the pup. It's not an overly bright pup per say, but it has more clarity which should help from keeping the mud out. If you're looking for a lot of versatility in one pickup, which it appears you are with a one-hummer, I think this will work out for you.

[Axewielder]

Larry, unless you have an X2N laying around already, I would recommend the Crunch Lab instead. Similar type of pup, but one has a bar and one has poles. Depending upon the way you mount it, you'll get different tones with the bar near the bridge vs toward the neck. The tones will be much different in split/parallel as well due to the different sides of the pup. It's not an overly bright pup per say, but it has more clarity which should help from keeping the mud out. If you're looking for a lot of versatility in one pickup, which it appears you are with a one-hummer, I think this will work out for you.

Interesting, thanks. I checked it out on Dimarzio's site. It definitely is in the vein of what I'm looking for, but I'm a bit skittish about the tone curve on it. It's big on bass and has the highs cut a bit. Hmm...that would seem to be going in the wrong direction as far as this guitar is concerned...

[6string40]

Interesting, thanks. I checked it out on Dimarzio's site. It definitely is in the vein of what I'm looking for, but I'm a bit skittish about the tone curve on it. It's big on bass and has the highs cut a bit. Hmm...that would seem to be going in the wrong direction as far as this guitar is concerned...

I'm certainly no expert, but I've tried a lot of Dimarzio pups over the past few years. And, it's your axe, so do with it what you please, as I'm sure you will. But, just a few responses to your concerns...
(1) Petrucci's guitars are alder based upon the MM specs...listen to clips from their latest album as he used the Crunch Lab exclusively from what I understand. (2) I used this pickup in what I would believe to be a much warmer guitar (mahogany w/ maple cap) and I didn't find it muddy or too bassy. (3) If you don't like it, it's a Dimarzio...send it back within 30 days and they'll give you something else!

Again, just my opinion, but I do hope no matter what you do, it works out for you. It's a killer axe and we wouldn't want it to be relegated to storage!

[Axewielder]

Thx for the info. I have much to think about. This is prolly the most important decision I've ever made.

[6string40]

This is prolly the most important decision I've ever made.

life or death man!

[Newc]

I've got a set of P-Rails in a Morton and they rock. Although this is where all the personal player characteristics come into it - your tone, your amp's tone, etc.

Some folks at the SD forum have suggested turning the pickup around so the Rail is to the outisde for better results from that part, but if both together are muddy, you might want a TripleShot ring to play around with Parallel.

[Hellbat]

I absolutely love the P-Rails Hot that I have in the death kitty in humbucker mode. Lots of output but really clear and balanced. It's kind of like a full shred but without the scooped mids. In P-90 mode the output is pretty good still, really warm. The blade single is a little shrill and icepick-ey with some distortions but it's great on clean tones.