Best passive bridge PU for a tight and aggressive low end?

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Smashedguitaris⸸ said:
To second a few others, wicked 8 by scottosan is best way to go. I had a wagner iron man. It is a bad ass pickup. But tone nerds are better
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Yeah I have that too as well as the Roxy, Sunset and Psykes. I’ve had them all in several examples of the same guitars to compare. I found the Wicked and other TN’s to be tighter, faster, punchier with better feel on them, but the Iron Man (and other Wagner’s) more tonally complex/rich, but still nowhere near as much so as my vintage pickups (IM is sterile/bland vs those). I did have more fun with the TN’s from the extra tightness and feel, but I wouldn’t say one is better, just depends what you like. Wagner’s are also more expensive, and you can get much better, more inspiring vintage pickups for those prices, which is the route I went. Hard for me to be without the extra nuances in the notes, liveliness and rawness. I’ve been spoiled by them lol. Some are very expensive, some are noisy, some guys may find them only to be a little better, but for me it’s a crucial difference between “nice” and damn I need more of these lol
 
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braintheory said:
Yeah I have that too as well as the Roxy, Sunset and Psykes. I’ve had them all in several examples of the same guitars to compare. I found the Wicked and other TN’s to be tighter, faster, punchier with better feel on them, but the Iron Man (and other Wagner’s) more tonally complex/rich, but still nowhere near as much so as my vintage pickups (IM is sterile/bland vs those). I did have more fun with the TN’s from the extra tightness and feel, but I wouldn’t say one is better, just depends what you like. Wagner’s are also more expensive, and you can get much better, more inspiring vintage pickups for those prices, which is the route I went. Hard for me to be without the extra nuances in the notes, liveliness and rawness. I’ve been spoiled by them lol. Some are very expensive, some are noisy, some guys may find them only to be a little better, but for me it’s a crucial difference between “nice” and damn I need more of these lol
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I agree. Enter the Whiskey, completely different vein than the Roxy, Sunset, and.W8.which were intended.to be tight and articulate options. The Whiskey is meant to be fuller, juicier, more dynamic, better harmonics and better feel under the fingers.
 
I haven’t tried lots of vintage pickups if that’s where this thread is going. However it doesn’t sound like that’s what the OP is going for. I have tried lots of modern pickups though including most of the Bare Knuckles and also various others like Motor City, Arcane , Lundgren, Wagner and a bunch of others I forget at the moment. Bare Knuckle will do what you want , there are also several models that would be good for you but it depends on how the particular guitar it would go in sounds. For example if it’s a bright guitar I would recommend one or two over the others and if it’s dark or fat sounding vice versa.

The models that I prefer for what you mention are. Ceramic Nailbomb, Alnico Black Hawk, Ceramic Warpig, Painkiller, Miracle Man. I just recently tried the new Unity pickup and it’s very good , that would also do what you want. There are other models I didn’t like as much and there are some that do a less aggressive type tone that are good such as the Crawler, Holy Diver , Mule and Abraxas but those are not as modern aggressive and tight.

Another option is to go active and try some of the fishman pickups IMO they are great also.
 
the4thlast1 said:
I haven’t tried lots of vintage pickups if that’s where this thread is going. However it doesn’t sound like that’s what the OP is going for. I have tried lots of modern pickups though including most of the Bare Knuckles and also various others like Motor City, Arcane , Lundgren, Wagner and a bunch of others I forget at the moment. Bare Knuckle will do what you want , there are also several models that would be good for you but it depends on how the particular guitar it would go in sounds. For example if it’s a bright guitar I would recommend one or two over the others and if it’s dark or fat sounding vice versa.

The models that I prefer for what you mention are. Ceramic Nailbomb, Alnico Black Hawk, Ceramic Warpig, Painkiller, Miracle Man. I just recently tried the new Unity pickup and it’s very good , that would also do what you want. There are other models I didn’t like as much and there are some that do a less aggressive type tone that are good such as the Crawler, Holy Diver , Mule and Abraxas but those are not as modern aggressive and tight.

Another option is to go active and try some of the fishman pickups IMO they are great also.
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Very helpful...Thank you.
 
I love these threads but then I hate these threads :lol:

Makes me gas over pickups again :D

I seek the same shit TS and I have a Custom Custom TB11 in my metal guitar and always wonder if I can get 'tighter' :yes:
 
RaceU4her said:
im not sure, using a lot of low end isnt what i would usually do going for tight and percussive, but assuming youre tuning in E i would say my duncan 78' would be best for that out of my guitars, its not super compressed and chugs really pop out of that thing, i can definitely use more bass and gain with that pickup than my other guitars and still be tight and popping.
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Yep wanting tight and lots of low end simply doesn’t work.
 
the4thlast1 said:
I haven’t tried lots of vintage pickups if that’s where this thread is going. However it doesn’t sound like that’s what the OP is going for. I have tried lots of modern pickups though including most of the Bare Knuckles and also various others like Motor City, Arcane , Lundgren, Wagner and a bunch of others I forget at the moment. Bare Knuckle will do what you want , there are also several models that would be good for you but it depends on how the particular guitar it would go in sounds. For example if it’s a bright guitar I would recommend one or two over the others and if it’s dark or fat sounding vice versa.

The models that I prefer for what you mention are. Ceramic Nailbomb, Alnico Black Hawk, Ceramic Warpig, Painkiller, Miracle Man. I just recently tried the new Unity pickup and it’s very good , that would also do what you want. There are other models I didn’t like as much and there are some that do a less aggressive type tone that are good such as the Crawler, Holy Diver , Mule and Abraxas but those are not as modern aggressive and tight.

Another option is to go active and try some of the fishman pickups IMO they are great also.
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The vintage pickups I would start with recommending him like the old Bill Lawrence’s, Dirty Finger’s, Mighty Mites and a few others, while technically vintage, don’t imo sound dated or anything like that, just imho plain better in tone, feel, nuance and sounding raw and organic. I figured why beat around the bush and not just recommend the best sounding stuff I’ve tried. Not that current made pickups can’t be good too, but compared in the same of many of my guitars, they were just for my needs rendered obsolete and comparatively uninspiring for me to play now, but others may feel differently. The one exception are the Tone Specific pickups, but none of the current models are suited for metal really. If the op wants to just stick to current made stuff then I guess the good ones have been mentioned already. I find them a bit tonally bland for my taste, but all subjective of course
 
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japetus said:
That's what she s-....nevermind.
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Here you go:

BKP Juggernaut

Dinarzio Jake Bowen (very similar to the juggernaut)

Here is a surprise, the Duncan Steckel model which is a clone of a PAF from a 60 burst is also tight, like really tight, but not nearly as hot as the juggernaut and Bowen.

If you can find one, the Lynch Duncan custom shop super V is also really tight.
 
I
'63-Strat said:
Yep wanting tight and lots of low end simply doesn’t work
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I can, and does...particularly with an active pickup. Which is how this thread started as a friend recommended the BK Miracle Man. I wanted a passive that has a similar low end response but was bit more organic and "pushy" sounds and feeling.
 
D'activator is another good option. The x-version is thicker with more lows, but it's not as tight as the standards.
 
angelspade said:
I

I can, and does...particularly with an active pickup. Which is how this thread started as a friend recommended the BK Miracle Man. I wanted a passive that has a similar low end response but was bit more organic and "pushy" sounds and feeling.
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The Miracle Man has a big and tight low end, and while it would be more organic than those actives and even over some of the other BK models, I find vs most other high quality pickups they’re for my taste still a bit sterile and 2D tonally. For bottom end that’s big and tight the vintage Dirty Fingers and Bill Lawrence 500L/XL’s are some of the best examples I’ve tried of that for hotter pickups. For none-vintage options I’d say Tone Nerd W8, Psykes or Wagner Iron Man. To me they are superior to BK’s
 
angelspade said:
Interesting...Is it correct that the Miracle Man essentially mimics the EMG 81 in a passive flavor?
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Sort of, They are similar but the MM has its own voicing.
I feel like the 81 is leaner, more clinical, more compressed.
 
braintheory said:
The vintage pickups I would start with recommending him like the old Bill Lawrence’s, Dirty Finger’s, Mighty Mites and a few others, while technically vintage, don’t imo sound dated or anything like that, just imho plain better in tone, feel, nuance and sounding raw and organic. I figured why beat around the bush and not just recommend the best sounding stuff I’ve tried. Not that current made pickups can’t be good too, but compared in the same of many of my guitars, they were just for my needs rendered obsolete and comparatively uninspiring for me to play now, but others may feel differently. The one exception are the Tone Specific pickups, but none of the current models are suited for metal really. If the op wants to just stick to current made stuff then I guess the good ones have been mentioned already. I find them a bit tonally bland for my taste, but all subjective of course
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I would be interested in trying some vintage pickups that are on the medium to high output side. Seems like they might be hard to find though. What would be your suggestion for something that is somewhat easy to find. The Bill Lawerence stuff ? I don’t know much about them , I hear guys mention “Bill and Becky” are those the newer ones ?
 
the4thlast1 said:
I would be interested in trying some vintage pickups that are on the medium to high output side. Seems like they might be hard to find though. What would be your suggestion for something that is somewhat easy to find. The Bill Lawerence stuff ? I don’t know much about them , I hear guys mention “Bill and Becky” are those the newer ones ?
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If you don't wanna hunt for too long, maybe the '80's 500L Bill Lawrence's (with silver casing) or Dirty Fingers would be the most common good ones, but all these pickups have their own flavors, so I wouldn't necessarily give up on vintage pickups if you don't bond with those 2 in particular. Unfortunately my favorite models by BL like the L100 & L90 are rarer, but there are some vintage L90's on eBay now. The creme L90XL's (which are more rare) are a bit hotter than the regular black L90, which is cool, but the regular black L90's have imo more clarity, detail and bite to them. The L90's in general are more articulate and nuanced than the 500's, but not as saturated, thick or over the top. The 510L is cool too. Sorta like a lower output 500L with a bit more upper mid presence and clarity

The BL 500's, Mighty Mites and Dirty Finger's to me come off hotter and a lot more saturated than the recent made hot pickups by BKP, MCP, Wagner, etc, (regardless of what the DC rating says lol) so it may or may not be an adjustment, but I think it just makes them more fun lol. The L100 & 90's are more similar to those ones you've had in hotness and saturation, maybe a bit less. Definitions of medium output can vary, but some of the '60's Gretsch Supertron or Hofner humbucker's can be (to me at least) medium-ish output (they vary though) and the quality of tone/rawness/feel of those '50's and '60's pickups is imo in another level or 2 to the post-'60's pickups I've had including BL, DF, etc. (but very different flavors). I don't think I've tried the newer made BL's like the Bill and Becky and others. You can often get the real vintage ones for not much more, so I didn't bother trying those, but they might be good too. It's all just my opinions, but it's hard for me to go back to these recent made pickups now. They just come off too sterile and uninspiring/less enjoyable for me to play now. I've been ruined lol. Especially for leadwork with expressive nuances, these recent made pickups, besides just Tone Specific or Virgil Arlo, just are so bleh for me to play now. It may not be a coincidence that a lot of players today tend to have great technique, but often not the most expressive/heartfelt playing
 
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PK, DD, JW Ironman are the best I've tried yet for what you described. Depends highly on the amp and guitar though too...Sum of all parts. Rebel yell is cool too for tight, crunchy, percussive. I haven't gone near as deep down the pickup rabbit hole like many here though.
 
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