[LuredMaul]

Take a deep breath ....clips to follow.

Might just be the answer to this whole forums issues.....clips by tomorrow

[Whitmore]

I take it you dig this pickup.



Or am I way off? 

[LuredMaul]

Picture everything you like about every Petrucci sound and roll it into a big 'ol tall pickup and you got the the cool smooth CrunchLab and this pup for me is more Lynch than Lynch and what I always thought the Scream'in Demon should've been.( god I hate that PUP)

[LuredMaul]

Ladies and Gentlemen

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[LuredMaul]

and the top end

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[bzzdog]

tease! just a little more! penguin! penguin!!! sorry if you dont know that joke.
sounds icy hot! dig it!

[acetrouble]

What do you run this through? Guitar Rig or a miced amp?

The lead clip is nice, but the rhythm riff sounds too mid-heavy for my tastes. Kinda like you put a fuzz pedal in front it.
I'd be interested on how it sounds on speed riffs if you multi-tracked the guitars.

EDIT: What guitar do you have the Crunch Lab in and what is it in particular that you hated about the Screamin' Demon?

[LuredMaul]

POD-UX2     Custom Alder Jem

The solo clip is the same patch as the rythmn clip.

The cleans where double tracked and panned 60/60

[acetrouble]

POD-UX2     Custom Alder Jem

The solo clip is the same patch as the rythmn clip.

The cleans where double tracked and panned 60/60

You mean the Line 6 Toneport UX2? Dual guitar inputs (low & high output), double mic inputs? I've got the same.

By the way, what is it that you didn't like about the Duncan Screamin' Demon? I actually considered buying it a while ago, but then decided for the Evolution and D Sonic to go in my guitars.

[LuredMaul]

It doesn't Scream and doesn't sound like a Demon.........it's a soft mushy and not very lively P.A.F which may work in a solid maple guitar but not in Basswood or Alder. Try a JB/Duncan Distortion for the "Back For the Attack" tones   or this crunchLab is pretty awesome actually.

[LuredMaul]

Send me one of your dual tone patches ( anything that doesn't require the PowerPack that is) and I'll do you up a clip with that if ya want.

[email protected]

[slugworth]

Links to helpful info about the Crunch Lab:

Couple of interesting threads (with reviews) at SD forums:
http://www.seymourduncan.com/forum/showthread.php?t=190617
http://www.seymourduncan.com/forum/showthread.php?t=201996

Blogger compares Crunch Lab to other Dimarzios:
http://diy-fever.com/reviews/crunchlab-liquifire/

Guitar World video review:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0RTEYvI9Xco

Now for my review!

I've been hunting the perfect set of pickups for my latest guitar, a Dean Cadillac.  It's a huge chunk of mahogany, arched maple top, sonically spot on to a Les Paul.  I don't really care anything about John Petrucci, but the thing that really swayed me to want to try the Crunch Lab was the Guitar World video (link above).  At first I thought the Crunch Lab might not be good in mahogany due to stuff I've read on other boards, and the fact that I *thought* Reverend guitars (used in that video demo) are strictly made out of Korina, but then I found something saying that some of those single-cut Reverends were also made from mahogany/maple, so I decided to take the chance.  I figured if I never tried the Crunch Lab I'd always be wondering "what if".

I got it installed (bar towards neck) and the Crunch Lab is a home run in this guitar!  I totally get now why they named it "Crunch Lab".  When palm muted, the consonant of this pickup is not really a "thunk" or a "chunk" but actually kind of a crispy crunch sound.  After getting to know this pickup for a little while I'm kinda scratching my head wondering HOW they did this, as the pickup has a lot of killer qualities that seem in conflict with one another.  Clear but full.  Warm but crisp.  Agressive but refined.  I understand why LuredMaul said the CL "might just be the answer to this whole forums issues".

Bring your biggest chord under the most gain, and the Crunch Lab can handle it like you wouldn't believe.  Insanely awesome.  Dynamics it's got.  Very sensitive to attack, yet not an unforgiving pickup.  Some sensitive, high output pickups can magnify a mistake and make it uglier... total lack of mercy.  Not so with the Crunch Lab.  Compared to a lot of other pickups In the mercy department, the Crunch Lab is a savior.  Maybe it's the whole "crunch" thing.  Every sound out of this magnet is a thing of beauty.

Maybe it's this guitar, but I don't really get why Dimarzio's site says this pickup is "not a screamer, and it's not about thundering lows".  The low end on this thing is pretty devastating.  Not in a Tone Zone massive sort of way, but kind of like a two-headed dragon.  The crunch sound seems to cut through a mix like crazy.  And maybe it's just my cab, but I'm hearing some really LOW accentuated frequencies, like sub-5 0k.  Together they make the low end extremely dangerous.  And about screaming... here's where we get back to the head scratching.  When you go up the neck, this pickup sings tenderly and sweetly up high.  But I'm ripping out nasty, sick, in-your-face harmonics all over the place with ease like it's a Norton.

The CL cleans up nicely by rolling back the volume.  It really sounds great putting tubes just past the point of breakup then using the volume control on the guitar to find exactly the right spot.  And it's got some great sexy tones by rolling back both the tone and volume on a high gain sound.  I do want to point out that while the CL is definitely a metal pickup, it is not just a metal monster.  It sounds fabulous with cleans or, like I said, just past the breakup point.

All in all, the Crunch Lab is TOTALLY living up to the hype for me.  A definite keeper.

[soundgardener75]

I'm buying two sets of the Crunch Lab/LiquiFire for two guitars that are just idle here.

I've tried these on a EBMM Petrucci guitar and was rather on the fence about it, partly because of the strings and amp they had on GC.

I'm curious how it's gonna hold up, tone-wise, on D Standard. I figured on the maple body (and Wilkinson trem equipped) of the Washburn TB-200, I'd have the bar face the bridge to balance the sound it'll have on the lower tuning. I'm gonna have a coil tap on it too (just on the Crunch Lab) for tonal variety.

I'd welcome any comments on what I'm planning, and of course I'll give a more detailed review once it's installed.   

[slugworth]

Awhile back I found a guy on Youtube who did a very unscientific comparison between the Crunch Lab with its bar orientation towards the neck, and flipped with the bar towards the bridge.  He concluded that there was little to no difference.  Unfortunately I can't seem to find the video, but I have to adamantly disagree with bro's findings.

In my Dean Caddy I flipped the Crunch Lab.  Have always had it with the bar facing the neck, but today flipped it to face the bar towards the bridge.  The pickup has the same timbre and voicing, but to me it sounds like there is a definite EQ shift.  Where the focus before (bar neck) was on lower mids, the focus now (bar bridge) is on upper mids.  Less low range chunk, more high end brightness.  It's a clear difference.  For the record, I was careful to raise the pickup to exactly the same height as I had it before.

About that Youtube video, I don't know if the problem was the guy's ears, guitar, recording equipment, pickup height, or what, but I completely disagree that flipping the CL has little to no effect.  I definitely like it better with the bar towards the neck, but flipping it is another option which of course some people may prefer depending on their guitars, amps, hands, ears, and playing styles.

[slugworth]

Found the video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CiPwGH_jQ3M

"Very very slight difference," he says.  Listening again, I think his conclusion may be due to a severe mid-scoop with his amp/rig/whatever.  You can't hear any difference in mids if they're already cut down to zero.

So perhaps if you're a mid junkie like I am, the difference will be more distinct.  And if you're a mid scooper, not so much.