[Kelly Briggs]

I have an Ibanez Fujigen RG7420 on the way and some where along the line have acquired a Blaze Custom to swap into the bridge. What does everyone like in the neck of a 7 string? I've largely settled on a Blaze neck or PAF7, but I'm open to other suggestions.
 I'm not a djent guy and not really a metal guy, so I don't need tight and aggressive. I'm more of a "classic rock 7 stringer," if that is such a thing.

[HarlowTheFish]

Honestly my favorite 7-string pickups for not-the-chugs is the Pegasus/Sentient set from Duncan - really even voicing, balanced, not too much of any frequency, and the right blend of clarity and glue to the notes that makes the low B mesh well with the rest of them. If you're going Blaze Custom in the bridge, I'd probably do either the PAF7 for something more classic or the Ionizer 7 for something a bit more modern and sparkly.

[greenlion]

The Blaze neck is great and matches the Blaze Custom well. If you want something more like a traditional PAF go for the PAF7. I haven't tried the Ionizer.

[sveto]

Honestly my favorite 7-string pickups for not-the-chugs is the Pegasus/Sentient set from Duncan - really even voicing, balanced, not too much of any frequency...

You guys need to specify the tone wood of the guitar in such statements. I've tried the Pegasus in an alder body Ibanez RG7 (the Apex model), and the notes in the high register were quite thin. Not a pickup for lead players!

It could very well be that a basswood body gives a more even voicing, IDK.

I'm currently very happy with my CL7 / Liquifire7 combo in that alder guitar.

[greenlion]

My Blaze set, Paf7's and D-Activator 7's have all been in Basswood Ibanez guitars.

[HarlowTheFish]

You guys need to specify the tone wood of the guitar in such statements. I've tried the Pegasus in an alder body Ibanez RG7 (the Apex model), and the notes in the high register were quite thin. Not a pickup for lead players!

It could very well be that a basswood body gives a more even voicing, IDK.

I'm currently very happy with my CL7 / Liquifire7 combo in that alder guitar.

I've played it in mahogany, alder, and swamp ash. The thing with it is that because it's not thin on the low end, you can cut bass and treble while keeping the meat and clarity and boost the mids to get some push to the higher notes. The PAF7 set I've played in swamp ash and basswood, and it does a similar thing but with more of that Dimarzio mid flavor (which is cool, but not necessarily my vibe for 7-strings and lower tunings - I prefer a more even voicing when you have more range).
The CL/Liquifire set I'm not super keen on (like most of the JP pickups to be honest, in 6 and 7 string versions), because IMO unless you're running them in basically his same setup they sound kinda bland to my ears - JP's tone is all Mesa, and I think it really shows.

[sveto]

boost the mids to get some push to the higher notes.

Do you boost pre or post-distortion?

[HarlowTheFish]

boost the mids to get some push to the higher notes.

Do you boost pre or post-distortion?

I always boost mids pre- and cut post-distortion, cut bass pre- and boost post- (because you cut mud but keep the thickness), and for treble it's more of a balancing act for cutting and boosting on either side of the gain.
Toss a TS-type pedal in front of your amp, get the tone to like 5% brighter than you'd want, then cut mids and treble as needed at the amp for a start. Then if you really need to toss an EQ in the loop to fine-tune.

[sveto]

Interesting workflow. I need to try it like that. I usually like less mids pre-distortion because it makes for a cleaner, less buzzy sound.

BTW, i disagree about the Crunch Lab 7 - it's one of the most lively humbuckers i've played (in alder). Harmonics jump out of the strings really easy and the sound has a smoky sizzle that makes for a lovely lead sound. Then again, i use it with a plexi type amp (jcm800) and it's a Helix model, no real amp (i don't care about real amps, i use what sounds good to me, it can be a washing machine - if it sounds and feels good, it's good...