Pickups from custom shop guitars

[gerryl98]

Does anyone know if a JB pickup that came of a custom shop guitar is any different than one out of a retail packaging? My luthier sold me a JB and I call him a week later asking him why this JB sounded so much better than my two other Jacksons with JBs. He said it was pulled out of a custom shop guitar. I know that Dimarzio gives their custom shop pickups a different product code and are wound slightly different from their retail offerings. Just wondering if SD does the same.

[toejam]

No, it should be exactly the same. Though, through the years, some people have stated some JBs do sound a little different from others. Then again, if you order one directly from Duncan's custom shop, you can have it tweaked more to your liking.

[Matt_B]

FYI - Dimarzio doesn't really have a "custom shop" like Duncan does. They make OEM pickups for various guitar manufacturers (and those pickups are not available for sale through Dimarzio) and they pickups for artists/endorsees.

That said, TJ is right. Unless the Duncan was made in the Duncan Custom Shop (e.g. the DeMartini RTM is a custom shop pickup) it's a production line pickup.

[Nightbat]

This is just an example and I do not know if it applies to P'ups:
Ohlin's suspension equips certain bikemanufacturers with 'their' gear
in tests made it became clear that stuff that was OEM on said bikes was of lower quality than anything bought aftermarket from Ohlin's
2 things are the reason for this:
Ohlin's isn't a big company, so whenever a manufacturer wants a run of "Ohlin's equipped-" bikes they have to outsource to deliver in time, in quantity - Quality, although still good, is the last thing to worry about
Large volume usually goes at lower turnover, so to still maximize profit, lower/cheaper standards are used

But in truth I guess with the numbers p'up manufacturers put out, they don't have separate production lines

[DonP]

Try swapping the JB's around. I think you may find it is the guitar, not the pickup, making the difference. Measure the pickups to see if some are wound hotter or colder.

I have a JB in a stock MIJ arch top (the Sam Ash SL2H) that sounds fantastic, and the same JB's in a couple of USA soloist that are meh. And a JB2 (with Alnico 2 magnet) in a ProMod, and a regular JB in an Aqua ProMod that both sound great. By reading this it looks like I'm saying JB's work better for me in MIJ guitars than USA's.

[Chad]

Try swapping the JB's around. I think you may find it is the guitar, not the pickup, making the difference. Measure the pickups to see if some are wound hotter or colder.

I have a JB in a stock MIJ arch top (the Sam Ash SL2H) that sounds fantastic, and the same JB's in a couple of USA soloist that are meh. And a JB2 (with Alnico 2 magnet) in a ProMod, and a regular JB in an Aqua ProMod that both sound great. By reading this it looks like I'm saying JB's work better for me in MIJ guitars than USA's.

Right on. I have harped on this before.....the same pickup can sound very different in different guitars especially with clean & lower gain sounds. It's actually quite amazing how much difference there can be. Guitars are like snowflakes.....no two are the same and that's part of what makes guitars so cool.

With that said, there is also some variance among pickups of the same model, but it's generally small enough to not matter.

[xenophobe]

Try putting something else in. The JB sounds like ass. lol

[dvscool]

Try swapping the JB's around. I think you may find it is the guitar, not the pickup, making the difference. Measure the pickups to see if some are wound hotter or colder.

I have a JB in a stock MIJ arch top (the Sam Ash SL2H) that sounds fantastic, and the same JB's in a couple of USA soloist that are meh. And a JB2 (with Alnico 2 magnet) in a ProMod, and a regular JB in an Aqua ProMod that both sound great. By reading this it looks like I'm saying JB's work better for me in MIJ guitars than USA's.

+1 - I have Vai's latest pick up (gravity storm) in an RG570 and I absolutely love everything about it. So, I bought one for a Jackson fusion I have and I absolutely hate it....I never figured out why. It just didn't work in the guitar. I don't think its really that uncommon. Some pickups just don't work in some guitars.....it is what it is.

[Matt_B]

Eh, to me a good ol' PAF sounds good in everything.

[Nightbat]

+1 - I have Vai's latest pick up (gravity storm) in an RG570 and I absolutely love everything about it. So, I bought one for a Jackson fusion I have and I absolutely hate it....I never figured out why. It just didn't work in the guitar. I don't think its really that uncommon. Some pickups just don't work in some guitars.....it is what it is.

Something like that I have with a Duncan Custom Custom, though not in a negative way
In my Mahogany Ibanez it sounded great, not so High gain and somewhat creamy
Later I put it in my Ash Charvel Fusion, and in there it slams hard and screams with the best of them
So it works beautifully in 2 guitars, though with very different character