Ibanez JEM Forum banner

S5570 pup swap?

1K views 5 replies 5 participants last post by  HowardWow1997 
#1 ·
So right now my S5570 has Liquifire in the neck and a Steve’s special in the bridge with a red velvet in between JB the two. I like the red velvet, and the Liquifire is pretty good too, but if there’s a thicker sounding choice I’m all ears.

Here’s the crux of the matter. I’m currently running the Steve’s Special flipped in order to get rid of a LITTLE of the scoop. Unfortunately I’m still wanting a bit more mids and am considering a swap. When I turn up the kids on the amp it’s more of a high mids it seems so I need to work on it somewhere else in the chain. I don’t need tons of power so a medium output would probably work. I know the tone zone is popular in Ibanez guitars, but this isn’t a RG...AND I went with the SS specifically because the stock “Grinder” Bridge pickup was ultra mid heavy. I’ve thought about a Mo’Joe and even a Super D. I thought that perhaps an Air Zone might be far enough removed from a tone zone, but I’ve never heard one in person.

Anyhow, thanks for the input.

Luke
 
#2 ·
I had a set of Black Winter pickups in my 5570 when I bought it and was hugely relieved to replace them with a Humbucker from Hell and Tone Zone but reading your post makes me really curious about the Grinder bridge pickup, since more fatness is what I've always liked in the bridge position.
 
#3 ·
If you want something thicker with mids, the d-sonic with bar toward the bridge is great. it doesn't have as much abrasive mid range and shares some characteristics of the SS. I'd almost be willing to bet that the one coil of the d-sonic is also one coil of the SS.

you probably won't like the air zone if you if you didn't like the tone zone. I'd also recommend the gravity storm bridge. It has a lot of mids but still remains a pretty even balanced pickup. it is a little on the brighter side but not excessively so. It has good clarity and fullness but doesn't have a flubby bass or thin highs.
 
#4 ·
So right now my S5570 has Liquifire in the neck and a Steve's special in the bridge with a red velvet in between JB the two. I like the red velvet, and the Liquifire is pretty good too, but if there's a thicker sounding choice I'm all ears.

Here's the crux of the matter. I'm currently running the Steve's Special flipped in order to get rid of a LITTLE of the scoop. Unfortunately I'm still wanting a bit more mids and am considering a swap. When I turn up the kids on the amp it's more of a high mids it seems so I need to work on it somewhere else in the chain. I don't need tons of power so a medium output would probably work. I know the tone zone is popular in Ibanez guitars, but this isn't a RG...AND I went with the SS specifically because the stock "Grinder" Bridge pickup was ultra mid heavy. I've thought about a Mo'Joe and even a Super D. I thought that perhaps an Air Zone might be far enough removed from a tone zone, but I've never heard one in person.

Anyhow, thanks for the input.

Luke
Most Dimarzio humbuckers have more "Mids" than the Steve's Special, so if you want "a bit more mids" your options have substantially increased. In addition to "a bit more mids," what else would like from the bridge pickup? Or, what would you not like from the bridge pickup?
Since you have a Liquifire in the neck position it might be worth trying a CrunchLab in the bridge position. They do work well together. The Tone Zone has never made me want to play the guitar, but some people love it. The Mo'Joe has a vowel-like "aw" sound to it that you would hear from a wah pedal. The Dimarzio marketing literature describes the PAF Pro this way and the Mo'Joe features some of the same tonal characteristics.

Sometimes going with your gut is also not a bad way to pick pickups. :)

Good luck!
 
#5 ·
Thanks for the tips guys!

The SS issue is that it’s just a little too clinical sounding for me, I don’t wanna use the word sterile because that invokes some bad ideas and thoughts. It’s amazing to me how there’s so much output with so little compression in that guitar.

The thoughts on the air zone came from liking the EQ curve but not the output with THAT specific EQ. I played a 3550 that sounded really great with the TZ.
 
#6 ·
Thanks for the tips guys!

The SS issue is that it's just a little too clinical sounding for me, I don't wanna use the word sterile because that invokes some bad ideas and thoughts. It's amazing to me how there's so much output with so little compression in that guitar.

The thoughts on the air zone came from liking the EQ curve but not the output with THAT specific EQ. I played a 3550 that sounded really great with the TZ.
Will need to listen too
 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top