Time to switch to Blaze custom or evo 7?

[Drache713]

right now I got a blaze bridge (dp702) in my rg7421xl, and it's nice but i'm thinking I might be able to do better. I play mainly hard rock and metal (more like the "new wave" of american metal or whatever they call it than nu-metal, but I still play the latter occassionally) but i still play a lot of other styles of music too so i also need it to be somewhat versatile. tone wise i'm looking for a pickup that has enough bass to be warm and have some thump but not so much that it sounds dark, and i want enough treble so that it sounds bright and clear, but not too edgy or harsh (probably doesn't help i play through a solid state amp). The tricky part is the midrange: i want enough midrange to not have it sound drowned out and to make it sound meaty and "present" so you can actually hear the guitar but not to have so much midrange as to make it sound "airy" or thin. I was thinking maybe a blaze custom or evo 7 would do the trick, but what do you guys think? Also, any suggestions about a good neck pickup possibly?

[Societysucks]

The blaze custom is a great choice for something with screaming tone and lots of midrange meat.

My biggest issue with the blaze was always the heavily scooped midrange (I prefer to do that at the amp,) and the blaze cutsom solves this problem, throwing in more output to boot.

As for the EVO I guess it sounds okay on the older stuff, but I don't think it takes well to the 7 string

[Drew]

depends on the body wood- an Evo7 in the bridge of my old mahogany 2027 was one of the best lead tones I've ever heard.

-D

[Drache713]

Originally Posted by Drew

depends on the body wood- an Evo7 in the bridge of my old mahogany 2027 was one of the best lead tones I've ever heard.

-D

my rg7421xl is basswood, what do you think would fit well with basswood?

[analogcreature]

sure, but the blaze custom would definately suit your guitar better than the EVO would as far as giving a meaty sound

[kennydoe]

Originally Posted by analogcreature

sure, but the blaze custom would definately suit your guitar better than the EVO would as far as giving a meaty sound

I don't know what the diff is between blaze and blaze custom, but the Evo7 in my basswood UV is plenty meaty. the tone is very well reounded and nicely EQ'd.

~K

[Drache713]

so what pickup would you guys specificlly recommend considering the guitar I have ,the tone i'm after and the style of music i play???

[analogcreature]

the blaze custom pickup isnt scooped like a Blaze, and it has higher output than a Blaze.
i would recommend the Blaze Custom for what you are saying, because that type of music generally has alot of scooped amp settings, and the mid heavy BC would make sure your guitar doesnt sound transparent and Cazeres-ish when being played thru those settings. it also has alot of output

[Jem7RB MK]

Originally Posted by kennydoe

I don't know what the diff is between blaze and blaze custom, but the Evo7 in my basswood UV is plenty meaty. the tone is very well reounded and nicely EQ'd.

~K

Have to second that, The EVO sounds awesome in my UV, Thick and plenty of "meat" more so than an evo6 imho

Rob

p.s. Blaze Customs are very nice, My guess, Get both :-)

[fazehans]

get a emg 707 :P

[Drache713]

Originally Posted by fazehans

get a emg 707 :P

thanks, but no thanks. went that route with an old rg7621 of mine, ended up not liking them and selling the whole guitar. too sterile, not enough character. plus routing, yeesh... :P

[steve]

My suggestion would be to go with the Blaze Custom - the midrange you mention is that pickup's specialty... and the reason I went with it.
(I have Blaze customs in the bridge position of all 3 Ibanez 7s I own).

=]

[Drache713]

I e-mailed Dimarzio and they said that a Tone Zone would work best in the bridge and to pair it with an air norton of PAF in the neck. Hmmmm.... I'd never even thought of a tone zone before. what do you guys think?

[The Dark Wolf]

Sometimes Dimarzio doesn't know what they're talking about.

I have alot of experience with this same thing, so I hereby nominate myself as the Final Authority on this issue.

Ok, in all seriousness. The Tone Zone 7 is a nice pickup, and DOES sound good in basswood (I have one in basswood). But, it's not the modern metal type sound really (I play the same type of music. You're probably meaning stuff along the lines of Killswitch Engage, Chimaira, Godsmack, etc.... right?) I had the TZ7 in my (mahogany) RG2027 7-string, and while it sounded nice, it wasn't cutting it. Dimarzio told me use a PAF7... eh, I don't think so. I went with my own advice and got a Blaze Bridge. For mahogany, with inherently more of a midrangey character than basswood, it was perfect! Filled out the bass, made the mids even, added much needed treble.

But basswood's a different story. Stronger fundamental, less mids, more top-end. A Blaze Custom has great bass (sometimes, despite the way it's name sounds, some say basswood can be a tad lacking in bass), more present mids, and a slightly smoother top end. Plus, more output. Sounds the like the PERFECT passive pickup for modern metal.

For the neck, the Air Norton 7 rocks. I've also heard good things about the Blaze Neck.

[Drew]

Originally Posted by Drache713

my rg7421xl is basswood, what do you think would fit well with basswood?

Um... *looks sheepish* that was stupid of me, wasn't it?

-D