I've gotten a chance to acquire a set of Ibanez V1s and V2s, which I researched online, they supposedly sound decent for stock pickups. Way better than the new Ibanez V7s and V8s. However, after trying them out on one of my guitars, I find them excessively bright and glass like. Not my cup of tea.
Previously, I wrote about how changing the magnets in the pickup can actually change the tone of the pickup. My friend happened to have a set of ESP LH-150 pickups, which are honestly pretty crap stock pick ups. However, the good part about the pickups are, they are fitted with Ceramic magnets. Just exactly what i need. Ibanez V1s and V2s are fitted with Alnico 5s originally.
For the benefit of readers, above is a picture of both a Ceramic and Alnico magnet. The one of the left is an Alnico magnet while the one of the right is a Ceramic Magnet. So after swapping the magnets over, The immediate difference I noticed was the change in the pick up output. The pick up sounds way hotter than before with a boost in mid range, less treble and the pick up loses that top end harshness which I hated originally.
Due to the higher output, the pick up also picks up string attack pretty well. allowing better articulation and string dynamics. The pick up also responds well to cleaning up when rolling down the volume knob. Summary the magnet made the pick up sounded more modern, suited for high gain. Took away the glassy and harshness of which the Alnico 5s provided for the pickups. Guess I will probably be keeping it that way for the time being.
No comments:
Post a Comment