New Jemsite poster, looking for RG reccomendation

kbh · #1 04-26-2005, 05:45 AM

Hello Jemsiters, whats happening? I'm pretty new to jemsite, but have been researching and decided on an RG guitar upgrade, and here she is:

she's an RG470 from '01 i think

now, I've been playing with it for a good month now, learning a couple "virtuoso" style songs (Steve Vai's K'm-Pee-Du-Wee and Glasgow Kiss from John Petrucci's new solo album) and i am throughly disappointed in the v7/v8 stock pickups and am looking to go for a Dimarzio upgrade.
Now i have no clue as to what i want, as Dimarzio seems to steel at least 30 different pickups altogether, and i really have no way of knowing what is right for me. i was thinking i would just go with a pair of Evolutions because Ibanez stocks jems with em so why not?
i Also know that the lo-trs trem on it is an accident waiting to happen, but I'm not having any trouble so far with it, and it seems to be biting into my string ends fairly well so far, but if it gives me any trouble I'll upgrade to an OFR in a snap

.
now, I'll probably get the option for the colored pickups, any nifty suggestions for colors? i was thinking either the light blue, purple, or green.

fettouhi · #2 04-26-2005, 06:40 AM

Your pickup choice should based on what kind of sound you are looking, a great combo IMHIO is the Tone Zone + the Air Norton.

Regards

André

moro · #3 04-26-2005, 11:08 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by kbh

Now i have no clue as to what i want, as Dimarzio seems to steel at least 30 different pickups altogether, and i really have no way of knowing what is right for me. i was thinking i would just go with a pair of Evolutions because Ibanez stocks jems with em so why not?

Some popular combinations are:

PAF Pro + PAF Pro
Evolution + Evolution
Tone Zone (bridge) + Air Norton (neck)

There are a ton of pickup recommendation threads. If you do a search on any of the pickup names, you should get some detailed info about the sort of sounds you'll get.

Quote:

now, I'll probably get the option for the colored pickups, any nifty suggestions for colors? i was thinking either the light blue, purple, or green.

Green would look great, imo. The only problem with purple and green is that it can look a little Eastery.

Pink would be another nice choice.

**jono** · #4 04-26-2005, 01:51 PM

There are loads of good combos available. I'd also say, don't neglect your middle single coil, as there are some great "in between sounds" that you can get from the RG.

Personally, I'd say go for whatever pickups your favourite player uses, even if it doesn't get you exactly the right tone, it's a step in the right direction.

Personally I'm a big fan of the Evolution bridge pickup, but wouldn't touch the Air Norton in the neck position with a 10 foot cattle prod!

lyconxero · #5 04-26-2005, 05:52 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jono

Personally I'm a big fan of the Evolution bridge pickup, but wouldn't touch the Air Norton in the neck position with a 10 foot cattle prod!

What do you have against the Air Norton in the neck?

I do agree with what everyone else has said for the most part. If you know nothing about Dimarzio pickups then just go for whatever your favorite guitarist(s) use in their guitars and go from there. Dimarzio has a pretty good return policy.

As for colors, since the guitar is already purple then you might want to go with a different color for the pickups just so that they stand out. I would personally suggest blue just because blue is the shiznight but pink would probably work as well.

megadeth · #6 04-26-2005, 08:49 PM

i had the same guitar...putan EVO in the bridge...it will indeeed kick ass !!

**jono** · #7 04-27-2005, 05:25 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by lyconxero

What do you have against the Air Norton in the neck?

It just sounds too muddy to me, maybe not enough treble/presence. I tend to go for a much "lighter" sound from a neck pickup, I'm a huge fan of the Humbucker from Hell and Paf Pro i the neck. I'm dying to try a Paf Joe as well which might suit me even better.

Quote:

Originally Posted by lyconxero

As for colors, since the guitar is already purple then you might want to go with a different color for the pickups just so that they stand out. I would personally suggest blue just because blue is the shiznight but pink would probably work as well.

Yeah blue would be good or green, or some sort of green/blue combo

Allen Garrow · #8 04-27-2005, 06:57 PM

Welcome to the site fellow Michigander! Couldn't help but notice that second toe of yours.... it's longer than your big toe. Must be a Michigan thing..... mine are the same way. LOL. That's a nice guitar.

~A

lyconxero · #9 04-28-2005, 04:19 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jono

It just sounds too muddy to me, maybe not enough treble/presence. I tend to go for a much "lighter" sound from a neck pickup, I'm a huge fan of the Humbucker from Hell and Paf Pro i the neck. I'm dying to try a Paf Joe as well which might suit me even better.

Hmm...I was actually looking into getting a Humbucker from Hell but I've yet to hear a clear sound sample of it. I've heard the PAF Pro and it sounds awesome in the neck and the Tone Zone and Air Zone both sound awesome in the bridge. I just wish I could hear a sound sample of the HFH which showed off the clean tone as well as the distorted tone without a lot of processing.

Cedric777 · #10 04-28-2005, 05:09 AM

Hi
For myself i prefer Evo bridge and Evo Neck but its only me...
You can also check this thread for example of sound :
http://www.jemsite.com/forums/showthread.php?t=35448
there's much more from JimmyJ but i cant find it ....

pedalinbob · #11 04-28-2005, 12:09 PM

I went through a similar thing with my RG. Realize my amp sucks, bu tthat will change soon.

I tried the PAF Pro in the bridge: nice, sweet, very musical. Nice nuance pickup. The bottom end was kinda weak.

ToneZone bridge: aggressive, loud, lead was nice...but the low end seemed just a bit muddy to my ear. Toyed with the pickup height and amp settings, but couldn't satisfy my ear. Sent it back to Dimarzio for an Evolution...

Evolution in bridge: WOW! Negatives: perhaps slightly "cold". Positives: powerful, clear, articulate, tight low end, interesting overtones, reacts nicely to subtlety (my biggest gripe against the EMG's). This one stays.
The PAF Pro is now in the neck (kinda boomy/bassy, but I think I can kick in some treble and get a really sweet lead tone).

Almost forgot to mention: I got a lot of great advice here.

Later,
Bob

Rudy · #12 04-29-2005, 01:26 PM

I put a Tone Zone in the bridge and Air Norton in the neck and a reverese wound Blue Velvet in my RG-570 and have been absolutley amazed.
There is a bit of lack of high end in the TZ and AN which I think is inherent in this type of high output pickup.
Alos don't forget breeds. They sound great in my DBK and have a bit more high end.

JiMoSiTY · #13 04-29-2005, 03:18 PM

I've got a Fred (bridge) and Paf Pro (neck) and LOVE IT.

lyconxero · #14 04-29-2005, 09:23 PM

You really can't go wrong with a PAF Pro in the neck. It should definitely be the starting point for your new neck pickup. To me, I prefer the Air Zone in the bridge over both the Tone Zone and the Evolution. Like previously mentioned, the Evolution has a great sound to it but it does leave you a little cold and the Tone Zone is really awesome for heavier stuff but it's clean tone leaves me wanting and it does tend to get a little muddy at times. The Air Zone is cool because it has the same basic tone of the TZ but with the "air" technology so that you can actually put it closer to your strings without your sound getting muddy and thus you'll be able to hear nuances in your playing more.

kbh · #15 04-29-2005, 09:30 PM

wow, thanks alot for the help, i'm thinking i'm going to go with the blue bobbins, because theyre a light blue. as for the pickups themselves, i think i'm going to go with an evo bridge and maybe a paf pro neck, seems to me that that would cover alot of bases while still being able to perform well alone - no need to have "compatable" humbuckers because i have my LP special for doublehum sound.

About the single coil, I actually like the s1 quite a bit, but the consencus seems to lean towards the blue velvet, does it mix well with evo / paf pro? i would assume so, hah.