[greenlion]

Over the years, my opinion of certain pickups has changed quite a bit. Some pickups like the Air Zone, I have always gotten along with in many guitars. Some that I initially disliked in one guitar, like the Norton bridge, became a favorite when I installed it in a PRS Singlecut. The 36th Anniversary went from bland to amazing when I put them in a Les Paul where they belong. I also found the Breed bridge boring until I put it in a Jackson DK2M. Some that I began playing years ago like the Duncan JB and Jazz are my least favorites now. Every time I retry them, I like them for a few days and then they start getting on my nerves again. Some like the Cruiser single coil I had to learn how to use, and now I love it. I left some, like the Duncan 59, behind long ago thinking I could find something better for an SG Standard only to return full circle and wonder why I wanted anything else.

What pickups have you liked or disliked only to change your mind later?

[BluesJam]

DiMarzio HS4.  Kinda weak and there is a slight blanket over the sound which annoyed me over time.  Nothing beats a true single coil.  FS1 and Super Distortions work for me.

[Guitar74]

I used to love the hs-3 until I FINALLY tried a VVHB2. That one is my go to neck pickup for a single coil tone. I too got really annoyed with the JB until I finally, at the behest of one of the members here, tried it with a 250k pot. I is back in my top 10. The '59 is STILL my favorite neck pickup. It just sings for solos. Almost a kind of single coil vibe to it with gain.

[BluesJam]

HS4...I loved the note separation and it sounded better in split mode and had a nice quiet single coil sound.  I did not like the “blanket” that series tone held and the weakness of the pickup output annoyed me.   Sometimes I miss that single coil tone in split mode, but my FS1 is a better pickup overall.

[darkbluemurder]

Duncan JB - never understood what the hype was about until I put one in a guitar that was a really good match for it.

DiMarzio Super Distortion - never really liked it until I put it in my MIK Brian Moore which is a very bright guitar and lowered the load to about 375k. Loud, no mud, and all the buzz in the upper end is gone, and what remains is a powerful yet clear articulate tone.

[DonP]

X2N. Never thought I'd like such a hot pickup but got one in a used Charvel ProMod.

[HarlowTheFish]

The MFB/Suhr neck and mid singles in my Strandy Classic 6. I liked them well enough, they were fine, but kinda bland -- the bridge humbucker in that same guitar was stellar, so they always landed a bit flat for me. I pulled them to go in my Mustang, and it's now easily the best-sounding guitar I have as well as my favorite player. Punchy and muscular in the midrange, grunty and tight in the low end, and just enough snarl in the treble while staying sweet even with the tone all the way up (first guitar I've ever actively used the tone knob on too, and these pickups are super versatile if you play with the controls). Honestly if I see a set of these up for sale ever I'm probably gonna get them because they're really damn good.

[Guitar74]

"X2N. Never thought I'd like such a hot pickup but got one in a used Charvel ProMod."

That pickup is probably my favorite super high output pickup of all time. Used one in a Maple Top super strat back in the 90s. It SCREAMED!!! It had none of the things I hate about most pickups with that kind of output (Lack of Articulation, Mushy Sounding, Dark). Actually one of my favorite DiMarzios. I just don't have anything right now that needs that much.

[darkbluemurder]

At the moment I am a bit on the fence with the AT-1. I have that pickup in the third guitar now. In the first one (a tele partscaster) I first really liked it but over the time I found that it lacked a certain amount of edge or bite and replaced it with a Breed neck and preferred that one.

Then it was in a strat partscaster - exact same thing. Replaced it with a Norton and preferred that as well. Later I changed that guitar to SSS and like it even more than when it was HSS.

The third guitar is a dual hum tele-type guitar. It sounds good but again I kinda miss that tele bite on top. Maybe I will change my mind once I have set it up for series/parallel switching.

Cheers Stephan

[sveto]

The Airbucker tech in the AT-1 softens the pick attack. Might be the reason you miss "bite". I tried an Airbucker once and couldn't stand the lack of response, felt kinda dead to me. But since everything is relative, it could be the ticket in a very articulated, hard sounding guitar.