[mesa0131]

Curious what pickups some of you are using in your hss style guitars. What works well together for the two singles? Looking for ideas for my Ibanez SAS36FM
 

[RayBarbeeMusic]

I have a lot of guitars with that setup and a lot of combinations of pickups in them. 

The one that never fails to bring a smile to my face and make me really not want to put it down is AT-1 bridge with Injector neck in middle and neck, 500k pots, .0022uf tone cap, 20 pole 5 way so the AT-1 goes into parallel mode when in combination with the middle pup.  Fantastic sounds in every position, and the strat "quack" is all there in 2/4.  Very Texas except on the bridge only setting, when it is super fat/articulate.  Sort of like Scott Henderson's tone in the Face First/Reality Check Tribal Tech era. 

[LPBII]

I have that combination on two of my guitars. My number one is two vintage spec true single coils in the neck and middle. The Bridge pickup is an Air Classic that auto splits to the slug coil in position 2.  The Air Classic balances well with the true singles. I have the second tone on the the bridge humbucker and its 500k. I have found that the True Velvet neck is really good in the neck of such a set up  because it sounds good both clean and dirty. Many true singles don't sound so good dirty but the TV does. I'm a blues player mostly and when I do rock its more of the classic rock/blues rock genre. The Air Classic is perfect for classic bridge humbucker tone balancing true singles in the neck and middle, and an HSS strat is perfect for live playing.

On edit: Corrected an error. It splits to the slug coil, not the screw coil.

[headcrash]

AT-1 de-aired in bridge, Cruiser neck for middle and Pro Track for neck position.

I am using a 4p5t switch with the following combinations
1 - Neck series
2 - Neck split parallel to Bridge split
3 - Neck series parallel to bridge series
4 - Middle series parallel to bridge series
5 - Bridge series

The AT-1 alone gives you a fat rock-to-metal sound both for crunchy to not-too-higainy sounds. Even sounds pretty good clean.
Neck series really IS PAF like, but with subtle single coil flavor on the lower strings.
Position  2 is too thin, was expecting to get a Tele-like middle positon sound, but I guess it's got something to do with magnet polarity or so. Still thinking about just using one coil of the Pro Track to get a classic Single coil neck sound for this position.
Position 3 is really good, clean goes into classic Paula territory, crunchy it gets a little more snappy.
Position 4 is very good adaption of the classic position 4 quack, but louder and not as infinitely jangly. Perfect on semi-clean and crunchy sounds.

Just have come home from band practice and every time I play this guitar (EBMM Silhouette Special), it puts a smile on my face.

[greenlion]

I went through a bazillion different combinations in my HSS strat, and I have settled on 2 Fender Fat 50's single coils and a Duncan CustomCustom, all run with 300K pots. I get SRV/Hendrix out of the neck, Surf and clean chimey strat out of the Middle, Gilmour out of the notched position 2, and Van Halen out of the bridge. I'm happy with that.

[mesa0131]

Very interesting! Thanks for chiming in guys. I have an Ibanez SAS36 that is proving a burden to find the right voice for her. I love the Hendrix position 4 tone, never really use the middle alone, but want a bridge pickup that can do it all. Tried a pegasus but it sounded sterile and thin, more in an 80s hair metal vein on high gain. I am looking at a Norton for the bridge, to add some girth and output, open up the tone and make up for the thinness associated with the floating two point wilkinson-esque ibby trem. I also want to try an air norton S in the neck to allow coil splitting when used with a schaller E type mega switch. Perhaps a traditional single coil for the middle, which wont be used alone but only when paired. Anyone have any insight on these

[RayBarbeeMusic]

If you're looking at a Norton to add girth, look elsewhere.  Girth does not describe a Norton.

[darkbluemurder]

Have not played a Norton but when I think of girth in DiMarzio terms I think of Breed bridge, Tone Zone or AT-1, or Super Distortion.

Cheers Stephan

[tonejam]

My current combination is AirZone bridge, HS-2 (top Coil only) in middle, and Fast-Track 2 permanently in parallel, in neck.
Almost hum-bucking neck sound, but without the flab. Pristine single-coil in middle, and well, BIG humbucker in bridge. split Airzone+middle= quack for days.

[darkbluemurder]

I have a lot of guitars with that setup and a lot of combinations of pickups in them. 

The one that never fails to bring a smile to my face and make me really not want to put it down is AT-1 bridge with Injector neck in middle and neck, 500k pots, .0022uf tone cap, 20 pole 5 way so the AT-1 goes into parallel mode when in combination with the middle pup.  Fantastic sounds in every position, and the strat "quack" is all there in 2/4.  Very Texas except on the bridge only setting, when it is super fat/articulate.  Sort of like Scott Henderson's tone in the Face First/Reality Check Tribal Tech era.

That's a good one. I have a very similar one, except I use a Bare Knuckle Holydiver in the bridge (their take on the JB) and a VV Heavy Blues 2 in the neck. 500k pots, .0033uf tone cap. My favorite sounds are bridge only and neck only but all tones are highly useable. 

Cheers Stephan

[phrankenstrat]

I went old school on a Fernandes. 2 HS2's and a PAF Pro. It sounds killer.

I'd give my right arm to be ambidextrous.

[JohnnyRoxx]

I'm trying to find a good HSS setup for my Duncan Perpetrual Burn in the bridge. And so far I don't like the YJM fury's in the neck/middle, too dull sounding. Now I have an Area 67 in the neck, sound okej but too weak. Next step is a VV Blues in the neck and 67 in the middle. If that doesnt work I'm going Injector.


Skickat från min iPhone med Tapatalk

[darkbluemurder]

I'm trying to find a good HSS setup for my Duncan Perpetrual Burn in the bridge. And so far I don't like the YJM fury's in the neck/middle, too dull sounding. Now I have an Area 67 in the neck, sound okej but too weak. Next step is a VV Blues in the neck and 67 in the middle. If that doesnt work I'm going Injector.

In that case I would go straight to Injector. I doubt that the VV Blues is much hotter than the Area 67.

Cheers Stephan

[JohnnyRoxx]

Yeah, thats what I'm suspecting. But I got it cheap and thought, what the heck I can try it at least.


Skickat från min iPhone med Tapatalk

[darkbluemurder]

Of course. Please report your results.

Thanks, Stephan