Ordering a JB with less output from Duncan Custom Shop

  • Thread starter Thread starter gruggmanny
  • Start date Start date
harddriver said:
Did MJ finally retire?

She answered the phone back in 2009 when she wound my Allan Holdsworth pickup. She was very nice I asked if she knew the spec of the Jake E Lee Allan holdsworth p/u and she flipped open her little book and said "Yep I got it right here, rattled off the specs and I placed my order. She also wound my 78 model. Both are great pickups.
Click to expand...
No she is there. I recently sent in one of my JB’s from the 80’s that quit working. It was originally wound by her and she rewound it.
 
harddriver said:
I don't care for Dimarzio's either. I've tried the Tone Zone, Steve's Special, 36th anniversary's and no bueno...... My EBMM axis pickups were about he only ones that were decent.
Click to expand...
Have you ever tried the Dimarzio Dominion? It's the only Dimarzio I've been able to get along with.
 
Cordoba said:
Have you ever tried the Dimarzio Dominion? It's the only Dimarzio I've been able to get along with.
Click to expand...
Nah, I am quite happy with the Duncan's I have and know what I am getting with them... it's not like I didn't give them a fair trial, in the end I just prefer my Duncan's.
 
I get it, but changing it is just no longer a JB though, right? How would it be capable of sounding the same?
 
gruggmanny said:
Been thinking about this possibility. Don't really like output of JB but that upper midrange honk just sounds so cool and I can't let it go.

I wonder if they could keep that mid honk while creating a pickup with let's say around 12 DC resistance? This would allow more dynamics and harmonics to pop out and I think the pickup would also sound more open and clear.

Anyone got any experience with ordering from Duncan Custom Shop?
Click to expand...
It’s a combination of the wire tension and coil shape. At 12k, it’s not even a JB. 12k of 44awg wire your going to sound like a low budget PAF with about 5100 winds
 
EyesOfTheSouth! said:
I have a Duncan Custom Shop Frankenstein that I put a degaussed A5 in. It sounds exactly like you described. I recommend trying A3 or a degaussed A5 in your JB first.
Click to expand...
I’d try an unoriented A5. Same alloy composition as a normal A5, so resonant peak and inductance don’t change but because it’s unoriented it’s weaker like an A2/3
 
Last edited:
Damn, idk how often it gets repeated that DC resistance does not mean pickup output, but people still don’t get it. Dimarzio Super Distortion for example measures only 11k but has more output than a JB at the same distance from the strings.

Taking a JB and just winding it to only 12k will not preserve the JB tone, simple as that. The best way to accomplish what you want is to move it further away from the strings. Or, find an alternative pickup of course, in which case you just need to trust someone - either the Duncan custom shop or elsewhere - to get where you want to go if you’re having something custom made.

The way I went about it was picking up various pickups for $40-60 used, trying them out, then selling them for $40-60 used. Cost me almost nothing but a little time with the soldering iron and I’ve had the chance to play every production line Duncan, dimarzio, and a few others. Nothing beats first hand experience no matter how many clips or people on the internet who give advice. Playing the pickups through your guitar and amps and room is the way to do it.

Also to the people who don’t like Dimarzios, no offense, but trying 2-3 of them doesn’t mean they are all bad. They make a wide range of stuff just like Duncan does. In particular Dimarzio makes some pickups with the “Dual Resonance” which some might love and others won’t. Essentially the two coils are wound mismatched on purpose in a humbucker, it retains hum cancelling but makes the pickup sort of sound in between a regular same-coils humbucker in parallel and one in series. Like the tiniest hint of a single coil brightness in there. Some describe it as “fizzy” (I’ve heard the Tone Zone described this way) while others describe it as “high clarity for its output.” Both descriptions are true. Also worth mentioning that dual resonance pickups sound different depending on which coil is closest to the bridge so that’s a factor as well. In short, if you’re not after that type of sound, which is a bit of a dimarzio specific tone, they do make same-coil humbuckers as well like the Super D, Breed or Double Whammy. I know I named two out of production models but they will still make them if you ask (and remember I said “buy used”).
 
harddriver said:
I have three more JB options for you. The Thrash Factor pickup is cloned after a 80's JB pickup that Dave Mustaine kept in his favorite guitar I guess for recording.

The other JB option would be a custom shop Allan Holdsworth pickup that Jake E Lee used in his Whitey Charvel. It has all screws for the polepieces. I had MJ wind me one for the Jake E Lee Whitey guitar, if you like Jake tone then it might be for you.

The Jalen FW pickup is cloned after very early JB's that read in the 15K ohms range and they have a misamatched coils which has an affect on the tone as well, alot of people seem to like them. Jim Gaustad used on in his FW video I think. There were some old threads talking about the early JB specs if you want to go down that rabbit hole.
Click to expand...
The Thrash factor was a JB That Dave had in one of his touring guitars.....That sounded a little tighter than the other JB's. they recreated it based off that one guitar he used all the time & came up with a tighter pickup, that is also slightly scooped but the highs are more aggressive.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top