[RayBarbeeMusic]

DiMarzio intended this is a special use middle in the case that it's much lower than the neck and bridge. 

But if you look at the specs, it's a little monster for a mini.  Similar output to a '59 bridge or Air Classic Bridge.  Still has the standard mini bite and snarl due to the Neo mag, in spite of the high (for a mini) output and DCR.  Sounds like a great mini, plenty meaty in on low note chords and plenty bitey on the high notes, and with far more output than other minis. 

I've been going through options for mini and P90 routed guitars, been through 20 pickups or so for that position, this one is by far the best I've found for a bridge.  Still sounds like a mini (if you want a sound like a full sized bucker, use a full sized bucker...), but has plenty of output which most minis lack.

[RayBarbeeMusic]

PSA Bump.  This is still by far the best mini for bridge position I've ever come across.  KILLS through marshall style amps.

[Ampli_Fuzz]

Hi Ray, I'm thinking about pickups for my SG. Do you think that the PG-13 Middle would go well with the older DP240 Vintage Minibucker in the neck? I remember you raving about it.

[darkbluemurder]

I am not Ray but I have used the DP-240 in several guitars and still do. It is not wimpy by any means and holds up well with any medium output humbucker in the bridge.

Cheers Stephan

[Ampli_Fuzz]

Thanks, DBM 

Yes, in theory it would work. But as you know some pickup pairings just click, and some just don't, and it's hard to tell until one tries. The PG-13 Neck would seem the most obvious choice, but it looks somewhat dark from the chart and from the Gilbert demo videos (which isn't saying a lot, and I've found another video where it sounds pretty great in fact).

It's rare to see Ray so pumped about a pickup, and if they also happen to work great together (both when switching from one to another and used together in the middle position) it could be a pretty killer combo.

[darkbluemurder]

But as you know some pickup pairings just click, and some just don't,

That is true, and it is also guitar dependent.

and it's hard to tell until one tries. 

Indeed. You can read as much as you want about a certain pickup and hear any youtube-demo you come across but at some point you have to take a leap of faith and put the pickup in your guitar, play it through your rig and see whether you like it or not. If you don't then at least you have a baseline.

Cheers Stephan

[gregr]

I generally find well-produced YouTube videos quite helpful. Even some in-the-room recordings with a cell phone can be good since they can give you an idea about the midrange and top-end. However, demos of a pickup in a mix are vitally important to me, and as such some videos haven’t been very helpful, so it’s been a mixed bag.

The specs on the DP240 looked pretty good so I tried one. I thought I had it sounding pretty good, but after only one rehearsal I pulled it. More on this later.

Apparently Paul Gilbert lowers the pickup in order to clear the way for picking. So in order to boost its output to make up for it, the pickup uses neodymium. With this in mind I don’t think demos will translate well into the bridge position with the pickup higher. My guess is that it might sound sharp in some situations. This can certainly be a good thing as I’m betting it will cut really well. Of course I could be completely off the mark and will defer on the matter.

This leads me back to my anecdotal experience with the DP240. I found the clarity and top end woefully lacking. I found it to be murky in general. I like hearing my pick attack, and as a lead player in a hard rock band I need a neck pickup to be able to cut through. The DP240 could deliver neither, though I only use a mid-gain amp which I boost with an overdrive for solos. The guitar I had it in isn’t particularly dark, though it is full-bodied. I was using it against an Area Hot T which may go to the pairing argument.

It could simply be that minibuckers don’t work for me in general, I don’t know. I will say that the DP241 worked well in the neck with a Chopper T. Perhaps this is because the pickup has enough midrange to push through and may do well with high gain amplifiers. It certainly delivers a nice full clean tone as well as an excellent pushed clean tone. It also splits well, especially if you add in some of the second coil with a partial split in order to help fill the tone out.

Anyhow, I replaced the DP240 with an EJ Custom Neck and haven’t looked back. This might be totally irrelevant but I thought I’d share.

[darkbluemurder]

Not irrelevant at all because you gave the context in which you used the pickup. That is always helpful. Many thanks for sharing.