Cleaning up muddy 7 strings!

[Given to Fly]

Hey guys. I have had my Universe for awhile now and love it. But I hadn't played it in a band situation until recently. And I now find that the sound isn't really all that good. It seems really muddy and undefined on the low end. I'm playing through a Carvin Legacy Combo. What would you suggest to clean up the sound?

[BCShredder]

PAF 7's or Air Norton/Tone Zone.

[sam669]

no, evo7!

[BCShredder]

Evo is so high output it will make the guitar even more muddy that's been the point of many forum postings on here.

[sam669]

oh really... well if you put it so high that it touches the strings of course...
I have no problem at all with the one in my 2027, and I really cant imagine that the tone zone with the very few high end it has will do any good to my sound. For my case that is.
But anyways, when you start from a blaze, its like almost any other dimarzio seven pickup will be tighter.

[BCShredder]

That's cause a 2027 is MAHOGANY. You can doubt the tone zone air norton all you want but explain why Vai and his other guitarist both use that setup in theirs. @ U.

[Rich]

Steve uses a TZ/AN combination in something?! What?

[HIS ROYAL DARKNESS]

BCShredder....I don't know of any guitar Vai has equipped with a TZ/AN combo...

as for the question...Blazes are BLAH! Evos are HIGH output, but won't muddy your sound...some people think they are TOO harsh

wouldn't a 7 string FRED be NIIIIICE!

[Given to Fly]

Cool! Well I suppose I should have asked if maybe my amp was to blame and seen if I should get a bigger amp. But it seems I shouldn't need to which saves me money. I may try new pickups. Thanks.

[frankfalbo]

I don't talk about them much here but when I see you guys talking about clarity and definition, I have to suggest Bartolinis. They are the only pickups that I know of that can actually add clarity and definition to a muddy instrument. I'm not calling the UV muddy, but that's your experience right now. It could be the amp, processors, or anything in the mix, including the guitar. (And I never liked my Blaze when I had it either) But I'm telling you how to fix it at the guitar. And it's not an EQ curve issue.

Bartolinis are in a different league when it comes to string-to-string separation and individual note clarity, and it's the way they're made. This is bad if you are trying to do Zeppelin or something where the mushiness is part of the overall vibe you're going for. But I see them as a must have for 7-stringers who are in that constant love-hate relationship with their B string. (or whatever else its drop tuned to) They especially improve note-to-note separation and clarity in those bottom three strings, where it's crucial. There's enough 7's to choose from that you'll get your sound. If you want a tutorial, like "I like the TZ, or Fred etc. so which model should I get?" I can probably tell you.

[The_Grindfiend]

Frank, SHHHHH!!! Don't give away our secret!

[The Dark Wolf]

Are you talkin' about passive or active Bartolini's?

[sam669]

Originally Posted by BCShredder

That's cause a 2027 is MAHOGANY. You can doubt the tone zone air norton all you want but explain why Vai and his other guitarist both use that setup in theirs. @ U.

if I didnt know what my guitar was made of, I would be too ashamed to post here, no seriously. But your last sentence makes you loose all your credibility vai using TZ/AN? vai using a seven string at all? are we still in 1990?

[frankfalbo]

Originally Posted by Wordwolf

Are you talkin' about passive or active Bartolini's?

First, sorry Grindfiend. I should've thought about your feelings
Active or passive, the clarity and separation is the same. The preamp just offers sound tailoring, controllable output boost, and selectable mid boosting. It's not really the same use of "active" as EMG, Duncan Livewires, or the rest of them, because it's a valid passive pickup design first. And all the 7-string pickups can be active or passive, whether the preamp is built in, or you put one in the electronics cavity.

[Jim Soloway]

I know most of you have heard this one from me enough times to be sick of it, but I'm absolutely convinced that the right answer to this question is a longer scale length. There's no pickup that can make up for a string being either too loose or two big and at 25.5 inches and below, those are the only two choices you get.