[mmmguitar]

Keep in mind that DiMarzio's F-spacing is only 51mm

Fascinating, if true. It seems to be 53mm according to retailer and OEM specs. I'm not saying a bobbin you measured isn't 51mm, or that the 53mm spec'd bobbins don't actually measure 51mm - I'm just stating that this is news to me. If this happens to be true across the board, a lot of folks should update their info.

Edit: I see the official Dimarzio spacing template specifies 51.05mm measured from the center of the outside polepieces. I wonder whether the 53mm figure comes from people measuring end-to-end, or if everyone just parrots 53mm as being F-spacing across all brands, despite it not being one-size-fits-all?

[gregr]

Vintage output pickups are quite bright, especially the weaker neck pickups.

Remember, the neck position is much louder and more bassy than the bridge position. If you want a thick tone from the bridge position you will need to do something to manage the amount of low end coming from the neck position in order to keep it from sounding wooly or flubby. This is normally done by way of your choice of pickup, equalization or both and becomes more necessary as you increase the amount of gain.

[phrankenstrat]

Have you thought about the Humbucker From Hell? That is a great neck pickup especially paired with the SD. I think the Air Norton would be good as well as a 36th Anniversary bridge. I just think the HFH is a good fit in your scenario. It will retain some highs so it doesn't sound muddy at all but still gives decent PAFish tones.