# DiMarzio Illuminators?



## edonmelon

So I was taking a look at the JPXIII page in the EBMM website:

JP13

And I noticed that the custom DiMarzio's that this model includes actually had a name. DiMarzio Illuminator, neck and bridge.

I haven't read anything about them on this forum (or anywhere else) so I thought I'd share. 

Has anybody got info on them?


----------



## Rook

Tr00ch described them as a modified Crunch Lab and Liquifire set to work with the active boost he has built in.

So I think they're supposed to be lower output and cleaner and the boost adds the meat when he wants it.

EDIT: I was aware of the version without a bar coil, but it's now showing a picture of one _with_ a bar (like the CL). What's going oooooooooon.


----------



## edonmelon

Rook said:


> Tr00ch described them as a modified Crunch Lab and Liquifire set to work with the active boost he has built in.
> 
> So I think they're supposed to be lower output and cleaner and the boost adds the meat when he wants it.



I am most intrigued. Source, please?



Rook said:


> EDIT: I was aware of the version without a bar coil, but it's now showing a picture of one _with_ a bar (like the CL). What's going oooooooooon.



AFAIK the JPXIII was originally advertised as having the CL/LF combo in it; that's just the Crunch Lab. I guess that the Illuminators are your classic slug/screw coil config, so I'd love to see a covered version of both pickups if they ever go into production!


----------



## Rook

It was a video from NAMM, I'll dig around later if I have time.


----------



## Given To Fly

I was about to start a thread asking the same question. Good thing we avoided disaster! Dimarzio does not have the Illuminator's on their website and its been a month since the last post in this thread so I thought maybe somebody might know something now...besides John Petrucci.


----------



## MetalBuddah

All I see is that there is one pic of the JP13 with what looks like the CL in the bridge and then the other 3 have the "Illuminators"

I really want to know what the fvck is going on


----------



## SKoG

I'd been looking for info about the Illuminators and yesterday the name caught my eye in the new Guitar World (Sept issue). The buyers guide is mostly 7/8 string guitars, strings and pickups and the Illuminators are mentioned along with Ionizers in the pickup section.

"The new Illuminator 7 was created in conjunction with Dream Theater guitarist John Petrucci and delivers the clarity and presence that a seven string pickup needs. Illuminator 7, $139 dimarzio.com" 

Not much, but maybe with this we'll hear more soon from Dimarzio.


----------



## Given To Fly

SKoG said:


> I'd been looking for info about the Illuminators and yesterday the name caught my eye in the new Guitar World (Sept issue). The buyers guide is mostly 7/8 string guitars, strings and pickups and the Illuminators are mentioned along with Ionizers in the pickup section.
> 
> "The new Illuminator 7 was created in conjunction with Dream Theater guitarist John Petrucci and delivers the clarity and presence that a seven string pickup needs. Illuminator 7, $139 dimarzio.com"
> 
> Not much, but maybe with this we'll hear more soon from Dimarzio.



Thanks for passing on the information! 

To me that description says "We have a cool name for pickup but haven't even begun to design it yet." But at least know we will finally have a 7 string pickup with "clarity and presence" rather than all the muddy, absent pickups Dimarzio has been designing.


----------



## TheOrangeChannel

Given To Fly said:


> Thanks for passing on the information!
> 
> To me that description says "We have a cool name for pickup but haven't even begun to design it yet." But at least know we will finally have a 7 string pickup with "clarity and presence" rather than all the muddy, absent pickups Dimarzio has been designing.



Waiting for info on these. Until then it's all Duncan Pegasus/ Sentient ha!


----------



## HeHasTheJazzHands




----------



## edonmelon

They sound gnarly! Really looking forward to trying these out. I wonder how they would work in a guitar without an active preamp thing though.
Also Trooch kinda needs to put some work on his improv skillz IMO, dat intro solo... Although I wouldn't do better, of course D:
Thanks for the info, HeHasTheJazzHands!


----------



## SKoG

I know we'll get more tone demos as more JP13s and the Illuminators get out there, but that was kinda disappointing. I love John and DT and I know it's just a Youtube promo clip, but that type of playing and sound just doesn't show off a pickup too well. Also worries me a little about the new album, but I'll digress and just wait for it.


----------



## RagtimeDandy

Sounds like an Aftermath set in a basswood guitar - completely sterile.


----------



## Alberto7

I just saw this on JP's Facebook. Even though I don't dislike them, I really am not impressed in the least. Quite generic. Then again, as has been mentioned, that kind of sound with those effects aren't ideal conditions to demo a pickup anyway.


----------



## Necris

I'd much rather judge the sound from a clean di track, and maybe some distorted chords near the end to judge the note definition of the pickup.


----------



## narad

RagtimeDandy said:


> Sounds like an Aftermath set in a basswood guitar - completely sterile.



While the pickups do not impress, I'm totally sold on that finish! It looks extremely boring in photos, not the liquid metal it seems to be in the video.


----------



## Stealthtastic

Was relatively unimpressed by the video, although the neck sounds like it could be really awesome. The bridge on the other hand sounded relatively lame IMHO.


----------



## JP7

Stealthtastic said:


> Was relatively unimpressed by the video, although the neck sounds like it could be really awesome. The bridge on the other hand sounded relatively lame IMHO.



I though exactly the same thing when I watched and listened to this video


----------



## Xiphos68

A really neat video of John Petrucci talking and playing his new "Dimarzio Illuminator" pickups. I have had the chance to play the new JP13 Six String with these new pickups and it is quite possibly the best sounding JP I have heard. 

Check the video out! Though I am not sure if I like John's new tone with the guitar as much as the JP BFR tone. 

Compared to this...


----------



## Blasphemer

DUDE. THE DAY I get a CL/LF setup, he comes out with new PUPs. What the hell, Man?!


----------



## Dawn of the Shred

JP is always going to have good tone.


----------



## ShawnFjellstad

His tone is shit in that first video.


----------



## MrPepperoniNipples

Am I the only one that thought his playing in the first video was garbage?
At least during those scale runs


----------



## kamello

MrPepperoniNipples said:


> Am I the only one that thought his playing in the first video was garbage?
> At least during those scale runs



you are a brave man my friend, I thought the same


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Way too much delay/reverb on that demo vid. And I'm assuming the pre-amp is engaged so that doesn't help either. 

Agreed that I'd love to hear these clean dry or just distortion (no pre-amp) to get a better judge of the sound. Then again, pickups are best judge when you try them yourself. 

Maybe I just want a 7 string equivalent to the Breed. The Crunchlab/Liquifire are close (as per Steve Blutcher) so I'm curious how these go in 7 string form.


----------



## November5th

There's nothing like drenching your tone with a wah pedal, in order to give everyone an idea on how your new pickups sound. Not one of Petrucci's finer moments.


----------



## Najka

New signature Petrucci signature Pickup


----------



## TheWarAgainstTime

http://www.sevenstring.org/forum/pickups-electronics-general-tech/240859-dimarzio-illuminators.html

I'm interested to hear more about these as they hit the market and more demos pop up though


----------



## ShawnFjellstad

This probably the fourth of fifth thread on the exact same subject. Search button, boys! Search button!


----------



## Pav

They were actually added to the DiMarzio page last night/this morning though, so it looks like we'll be getting more info soon.


----------



## 5150time

They sound like money leaving my account...although I'm in agreement with some of the folks here that the demo doesn't wow me, but the neck could be great. Either way, I'll pick a set up to see what the next genesis of JP is.

And, they also have an option for rosewood covers. That's new!


----------



## SKoG

5150time said:


> And, they also have an option for rosewood covers. That's new!



The Illuminator 7 page shows metal covers as well. I wonder if it's a cross-post mix-up with the 6's page or if metal and rosewood models are really coming for 7s.


----------



## Legion

The neck Illuminator and the Liquifire (7 string versions) have nearly IDENTICAL specs, with a slightly lower DCR for the Illuminator...couldn't help but noticing


----------



## Jzbass25

Legion said:


> The neck Illuminator and the Liquifire (7 string versions) have nearly IDENTICAL specs, with a slightly lower DCR for the Illuminator...couldn't help but noticing



Looking at the DCR it makes sense that petrucci would say it has a bit more clarity and presence, the 7 version I guess is a rewound liquifire. Also the 6 string version might be a bigger difference since one is ceramic and the other is alnico.


----------



## Petie

Hey guys, I've just posted my interview with JP where we talk about the Illuminators and a bunch of stuff about the new album. Mods, please let me know if it's not okay to post this kind of stuff here: 
http://iheartguitarblog.com/2013/09/petrucci.html

*EDIT: Oops, originally posted a link to a news story instead of the interview. Fixed.*


----------



## Jzbass25

Any info on the preamp? Is it custom for the EBMM's or will someone be able to find it to use with the illuminators?


----------



## Captain Butterscotch

I'm excited for these. The Liquifire is my all time favorite neck pickup, and if this is based off of that then I absolutely have to try it out.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Petie said:


> Hey guys, I've just posted my interview with JP where we talk about the Illuminators and a bunch of stuff about the new album. Mods, please let me know if it's not okay to post this kind of stuff here: John Petrucci Demonstrates New DiMarzio Illuminators | I Heart Guitar


 


Didn't even realise that these were already up on the Dimarzio web page. Cheers Pete!

6 Strings:

Neck: Illuminator
Bridge: Illuminator

7 Strings:

Neck: Illuminator 7
Bridge: Illuminator 7

Looks like I may replace that Crunchlab...


----------



## Mordacain

Looking at the specs on these, I see the Bridge has a lot more of a balanced sound that Petrucci has usually gone for. 

He usually has favored a bit of a mild mid-scoop in his bridge pickup to take some of the honk out of the Mark series amps. The Illuminator bridge appears to have a much more uniform EQ...I wonder if this is because he started using the Royal Atlantic during the recording of the new album, which has a more British style midrange character.


----------



## UltraParanoia

ShawnFjellstad said:


> His tone is shit in that first video.


 
I thought it was just me, but it was terrible.
Definitely didnt make me want the pups


----------



## Jonathan20022

His tone sounds alright to me, a lot of people would kill for that kind of a sound lol. Same with his playing, definitely not his best but it's still fine.

I've also found most pickup demos to hard to actually get a defined idea of how the pickup actually feels and sounds like. It'll give you a general idea, but it'll never actually express how it actually feels like to play on a set of the demo'd pickups. Going through this with a set of BKP Blackhawks I just received. They're good but they sounded extremely different from what I was expecting and dynamically also feel radically different.

His overall tone in the older Crunchlab video sounds absolutely perfect though, I would love to play through his rig on that day. Sounded massive, there's also a difference in tuning, he was playing in C Standard in the older Crunchlab Video I believe.

I don't honestly feel like laying down the cash for a set of these, I played a JP13-7 in store recently and there wasn't a radical difference from the other JP's featuring the Crunchlab/Liquifire Combo. They seem to sound a bit more hollow and dry if that makes sense, I should also mention I tried it and the JP12 to compare. So minimal difference in tone overall save for the fretboard wood.


----------



## AkiraSpectrum

Definitely interesting to see that the neck Illuminator has a ceramic where the Liquifire had an Alnico 5. GASing so hard for a bridge Illuminator... MUST HAVE.


----------



## ghost2II2

F**k that. I'll stick with my SS/AN or CL/LF combos. I wasn't impressed at all by this.


----------



## VonKebbels

UltraParanoia said:


> I thought it was just me, but it was terrible.
> Definitely didnt make me want the pups



+1


----------



## redstone

So JP has new signature pickups, again ? So many pickups, always looking for the same tones, never being satisfied .. hmm.


----------



## HeHasTheJazzHands

Hoping we can have some CL/LF and Illuminator comparisons once these come out.


----------



## ShawnFjellstad

HeHasTheJazzHands said:


> Hoping we can have some CL/LF and Illuminator comparisons once these come out.



The specs for the Liquifire 7 and Illuminator 7 are apparently exactly the same. Check the Dimarzio site.


----------



## Addison90

Jonathan20022 said:


> His tone sounds alright to me, a lot of people would kill for that kind of a sound lol. Same with his playing, definitely not his best but it's still fine.



me too, the rhythm tone is fine, i think people were expecting some modern-metal or chuggy type of tone , although i must admit that his solos in the beginning sounds like something kirk hammet would play


----------



## thedonal

It's actually hard to judge the pickup sounds, as it sounds like a lot of top end has been taken off the sound anyways...

I like his playing at the start of the vid- seems a touch looser, which is not necessarily a bad thing!


----------



## Matt_D_

looks like he's lost a lot of weight too, that guitar looks fricking lovely in that finish, pickups sounded a fair bit like my blackhawks.


----------



## Zalbu

It sounds off to me, kinda muddy and fizzy. His tone on A Dramatic Turn of Events is perfection.


----------



## Alex C

ShawnFjellstad said:


> The specs for the Liquifire 7 and Illuminator 7 are apparently exactly the same. Check the Dimarzio site.



Interesting. The DiMarzio "Tone Guide" profile is exactly the same for the Liquifire 7 and Illuminator 7 Neck, but the DC resistances are a little different.

Liquifire: 11.48 K
Illuminator: 10.42k


----------



## Given To Fly

I may be wrong but I think he's playing through a Road King 2 in the 2nd video. While pickups matter, the difference between a Mark V and a Road King 2 probably matters a lot more.  I agree that the tone is better in the 2nd video but some of that may have been because there wasn't a cheesy backing track playing the whole time.


----------



## Dan2

Blasphemer said:


> DUDE. THE DAY I get a CL/LF setup, he comes out with new PUPs. What the hell, Man?!



Ha, snap - my CL7 just arrived - but having heard the videos, so far I'm prefering the woodier, deeper tone of his older setups anyway, so full speed ahead - just as soon as I can be bothered with the soldering...

Reserving judgement on the new pickups til we hear more clips.


----------



## jfrey

cl/lf set is still a go-to set for me


----------



## lobotom

redstone said:


> So JP has new signature pickups, again ? So many pickups, always looking for the same tones, never being satisfied .. hmm.


 
Even though I'm a little interested I feel the same way. Is like sports teams making special edition jerseys every year. Looks different but is essentially the same thing.

Alex


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

^ Also add that Steve Vai has a ton of sig Dimarzio pickups: Evo set, Evo2, Breed set, Gravity Storm set. While the Evo and Evo2 are voiced different, the Breed and Gravity Storm are very different. I guess the Blazes count as well, as does the Evo7 (though I don't ever recall Vai using it).


----------



## whatupitsjoe

so i grabbed a JP13 at guitar center today and plugged into a 5150III 50 watt, here's a little clip of the Illuminators

Mind you I'm not a lead play so spare me the ridicule..just figured i'd throw some higher register notes in there so you could hear.

https://soundcloud.com/joe-cox-5/illuminator-test

Pre gain on 6, Bass on 6, Treb on 7, Mids on 9, Post just below 1. iPhone microphone... Presence i think on 5 or 6

My take- very tight for staccato riffing. Clearest chording i've personally ever heard from a pickup (i've never played a BKP, so cannot personally compare). I think i'm going to buy a set to replace my D-Activators. IMO, the Illuminators slay the CL/LF


----------



## HeHasTheJazzHands

whatupitsjoe said:


> https://soundcloud.com/joe-cox-5/illuminator-test



I like them there. Sound a bit tighter compared to the Crunch Lab.

...But good god that guitar needs to be tuned.


----------



## whatupitsjoe

HeHasTheJazzHands said:


> I like them there. Sound a bit tighter compared to the Crunch Lab.
> 
> ...But good god that guitar needs to be tuned.



yea sorry, was pretty quick. my meter was running out and the salesperson kept asking me if i was buying the guitar today and just plain bothering me...so when they walked away i just threw the phone down and hit record. They are MUCH tighter than the CL, and crisper than the DA.

Also action was about 2mm on the treble side, which doesnt help my lead attempts haha. E string kept slipping off the board


----------



## HeHasTheJazzHands

I'm liking the sound of that.  Was considering getting dual PAF Pros, but I may go with the Illuminator bridge instead, or I might throw it into a PRS Mushok sig I plan on getting.


----------



## 5150time

Strange - the rosewood option that used to be on the Dimarzio Illuminator 6 page has disappeared. I guess the world wasn't ready.


----------



## lobotom

whatupitsjoe said:


> so i grabbed a JP13 at guitar center today and plugged into a 5150III 50 watt, here's a little clip of the Illuminators
> 
> Mind you I'm not a lead play so spare me the ridicule..just figured i'd throw some higher register notes in there so you could hear.
> 
> https://soundcloud.com/joe-cox-5/illuminator-test
> 
> Pre gain on 6, Bass on 6, Treb on 7, Mids on 9, Post just below 1. iPhone microphone... Presence i think on 5 or 6
> 
> My take- very tight for staccato riffing. Clearest chording i've personally ever heard from a pickup (i've never played a BKP, so cannot personally compare). I think i'm going to buy a set to replace my D-Activators. IMO, the Illuminators slay the CL/LF


 
Thanks for the clip bro.

Alex


----------



## FantasyMetal

Hey everyone,
I've had my JP13 for a couple weeks now, and I have to say that compared to the CL/LF in my JPXI, I much prefer the Illuminators (at least bridge position). While I've never been much to believe the hype on "clarity" of pickups, I finally get it. I've felt for a long time that the Crunch Lab is not my cup of tea and the Illuminator bridge just destroys it. Much clearer and more pleasing to the ear. Seriously considering buying an Illuminator 7 for my JP12-7 now. However, I don't really hear too much of a difference between the Illuminator Neck and the LiquiFire. Probably roughly equivalent, though I notice that my JPXI has a more "tubey" sound than my JP13. Anywho, just thought I would share my observations.


----------



## Legion

Dude, is that unboosted? No Tubescreamer/clean boost or anything?


----------



## SKoG

5150time said:


> Strange - the rosewood option that used to be on the Dimarzio Illuminator 6 page has disappeared. I guess the world wasn't ready.



Also the metal covers option is gone on the 7's page. That got my hopes up.


----------



## onefingersweep

MrPepperoniNipples said:


> Am I the only one that thought his playing in the first video was garbage?
> At least during those scale runs



No you're not the only one. John Petrucci and his band is garbage now days.

Regarding the pickups. I'm very interested. I've wanted to try some high output low DC resistance pickups in my all Mahogany guitar for quite a while now. Dimarzio almost always deliver IMO, and they're reasonably priced. Can't wait to try these puppies.


----------



## whatupitsjoe

Legion said:


> Dude, is that unboosted? No Tubescreamer/clean boost or anything?



if it's me you're taking to, no boost. that's a 5150 III at low volume. amp and pups are tight as hell. not sure how much tightness the amp would retain if the post was turned up, but I don't think tube screamers are as vital to the EVH as they are to most other amps...it really does cover a lot of ground. (mind you I use tube screamers on my own 6505+)


----------



## teamSKDM

You know, if you look at the specs of both the illuminators and bulbs new pickup, theyre almost eq'd the exact same, and have almost the same output and also have just about the same description and objective. if you put both ceramic and alnico magnets in the illuminators, i bet theyd be the same pup! haha,jk but they are very very identical. and misha did say one of his favorite pickups ever were the original jp7 pickups.


----------



## Legion

whatupitsjoe said:


> if it's me you're taking to, no boost. that's a 5150 III at low volume. amp and pups are tight as hell. not sure how much tightness the amp would retain if the post was turned up, but I don't think tube screamers are as vital to the EVH as they are to most other amps...it really does cover a lot of ground. (mind you I use tube screamers on my own 6505+)



I see. That's GREAT to know, thanks dude!

I am waiting to see some full length/full mix clips of this one.


----------



## Given To Fly

There is a new video with Jake Bowen jamming with Petrucci (apparently Petrucci is Jake's Uncle...) and I guess I needed to hear the Illuminators played against another pickup because now I love them. As I said in another thread, they sound "like a punch to face!" 

Having said that, the CrunchLab 7 is one of the best bridge pickups I've ever played. I think its really strange some people hear clarity while others hear muddiness but all I know is a JPX7 with the CL/LF combo through a Roadster or Mark IV is a very very very good thing. 

Of course, I would be happy to take a donation of a JPXIII-7 to compare the two pickups combinations. Heck! I'll even pay half of the shipping costs.


----------



## Heroin

would the pups need the active eq thing like on the JP13?


----------



## Rook

Just a couple of objective cues with regards getting an idea about pickups based upon the over-simplified information you're often supplied on the web.

First: You can't break the frequency response of something as complex as a pickup down to 'bass, middle and treble', 2kHz is treble but so is 10kHz, lots of 2 will sound bitey but lots of 10 will sound very scratchy and bright. point being two pickups can approximate to the same BMT shape but be totally different.

Second: DC Resistance is one of three factors that allow you to construct a 'transfer function' (the effect of a pickup on an input signal measured from the output), and on it's own it's pretty meaningless. It _can_ tell you how tall the peak of a pickup's response is (in terms of q factor) but without knowing L or C you don't know where that peak is, and if each pickup is made different and from different materials, the R value will have a different effect on every pickup. Higher DC value, can roughly be taken to mean tall peak somewhere, no idea where though. Point being two pickups can have identical DC Resistance and be completely different.

Third: When listening to clips of a pickup on the internet try to think about what impact the pickup itself might be having. I did a whole bunch of pickup tests and demos with seemingly vastly different pickups but using the same Axe preset and to me playing, each one was very different, they felt different, on the recordings one could possibly hear that one is subtly different to the next when played alongside one another, but if someone went away then came back and I played them a clip and said 'which pickup is that', they'd never get it. Pickups are felt more than heard, and the differences you hear, you need 100% consistensy from clip to clip in terms of the setup and even the playing the hear them.

Annoyingly the words are usually the thing you need to read, more usefully from your piers than a piece of marketing copy. I'm gunna try and get hold of some of these soon, I'll post a review if I manage, I encourage others to do the same beforehand to help me decide if I'll be wasting my money! Sounds like something I'd be interested in though, I love me some attack.


----------



## Given To Fly

Rook said:


> Just a couple of objective cues with regards getting an idea about pickups based upon the over-simplified information you're often supplied on the web.
> 
> First: You can't break the frequency response of something as complex as a pickup down to 'bass, middle and treble', 2kHz is treble but so is 10kHz, lots of 2 will sound bitey but lots of 10 will sound very scratchy and bright. point being two pickups can approximate to the same BMT shape but be totally different.
> 
> Second: DC Resistance is one of three factors that allow you to construct a 'transfer function' (the effect of a pickup on an input signal measured from the output), and on it's own it's pretty meaningless. It _can_ tell you how tall the peak of a pickup's response is (in terms of q factor) but without knowing L or C you don't know where that peak is, and if each pickup is made different and from different materials, the R value will have a different effect on every pickup. Higher DC value, can roughly be taken to mean tall peak somewhere, no idea where though. Point being two pickups can have identical DC Resistance and be completely different.
> 
> Third: When listening to clips of a pickup on the internet try to think about what impact the pickup itself might be having. I did a whole bunch of pickup tests and demos with seemingly vastly different pickups but using the same Axe preset and to me playing, each one was very different, they felt different, on the recordings one could possibly hear that one is subtly different to the next when played alongside one another, but if someone went away then came back and I played them a clip and said 'which pickup is that', they'd never get it. Pickups are felt more than heard, and the differences you hear, you need 100% consistensy from clip to clip in terms of the setup and even the playing the hear them.
> 
> Annoyingly the words are usually the thing you need to read, more usefully from your piers than a piece of marketing copy. I'm gunna try and get hold of some of these soon, I'll post a review if I manage, I encourage others to do the same beforehand to help me decide if I'll be wasting my money! Sounds like something I'd be interested in though, I love me some attack.



There are many wise words in your post, but I stand by my observation that the difference in tone was not subtle. However, I don't think you are wrong about the "marketing" aspect of the video's; Dimarzio made sure we heard JP sound really good.


----------



## HeHasTheJazzHands

They didn't do a good job in that. 

It wasn't his video that sold me on the pickups, it was some dude on this forum that did.


----------



## MikeSap

just installed an illuminator in the bridge of my MIJ Rg7421 and i could not be more disappointed. i'm definitely going to contact dimarzio on monday and try to get to the bottom of it. all i keep reading about is clarity and whatnot, but it just sounds so bassy. almost like a neck pickup or the stock pickups on my rg7320z. really not impressed so far. although, i have bought dimarzio pickups before that were labeled and packaged in the bridge pickup packaging and ended up being a neck pickup. on several occasions actually. hopefully that is the case here and i'm given a bridge pickup that sounds like all of the good things i've heard so far. otherwise, he's a seriously disappointed illuminator player right here.


----------



## Rook

Are you 100% sure it's wired right? Otherwise I'm a little disappointed to hear that, these sound like my kinda thing in many ways by DiMarzio's description, your brief review would be off-putting if it were to turn out your pickup is legit.


----------



## Jonathan20022

That is quite disappointing to hear, hope you get it worked out and hopefully it's a mislabeled neck pickup in that sense.


----------



## Legion

Rook said:


> When listening to clips of a pickup on the internet try to think about what impact the pickup itself might be having. I did a whole bunch of pickup tests and demos with seemingly vastly different pickups but using the same Axe preset and to me playing, each one was very different, they felt different, on the recordings one could possibly hear that one is subtly different to the next when played alongside one another, but if someone went away then came back and I played them a clip and said 'which pickup is that', they'd never get it. Pickups are felt more than heard, and the differences you hear, you need 100% consistency from clip to clip in terms of the setup and even the playing the hear them.



Holy shit, nailed it.

Sucks about the (possible) pickup mislabeling, Mikey. Hopefully it'll get sorted, good luck.


----------



## TheShreddinHand

MikeyENGL said:


> just installed an illuminator in the bridge of my MIJ Rg7421 and i could not be more disappointed. i'm definitely going to contact dimarzio on monday and try to get to the bottom of it. all i keep reading about is clarity and whatnot, but it just sounds so bassy. almost like a neck pickup or the stock pickups on my rg7320z. really not impressed so far. although, i have bought dimarzio pickups before that were labeled and packaged in the bridge pickup packaging and ended up being a neck pickup. on several occasions actually. hopefully that is the case here and i'm given a bridge pickup that sounds like all of the good things i've heard so far. otherwise, he's a seriously disappointed illuminator player right here.



Was there ever any resolution on this? Kinda scared to order these!


----------



## codycarter

MikeyENGL said:


> just installed an illuminator in the bridge of my MIJ Rg7421 and i could not be more disappointed. i'm definitely going to contact dimarzio on monday and try to get to the bottom of it. all i keep reading about is clarity and whatnot, but it just sounds so bassy. almost like a neck pickup or the stock pickups on my rg7320z. really not impressed so far. although, i have bought dimarzio pickups before that were labeled and packaged in the bridge pickup packaging and ended up being a neck pickup. on several occasions actually. hopefully that is the case here and i'm given a bridge pickup that sounds like all of the good things i've heard so far. otherwise, he's a seriously disappointed illuminator player right here.



Actually had the same experience playing a JP13 today, I mean not the whole buying and what not, but it sounded like neck pup in the bridge pos. Um the neck was okay, nothing to throw my cash at, and as for the "clarity" I could clearly hear mud coming out of this amp 

Maybe I just suck that bad or it was a lemon


----------



## Rook

What was the amp? Different pickups affect different amps in different ways. Different.


----------



## whatupitsjoe

played a JP13-7 through a 6505+/Mesa cab the other day, and bassy is absolutely NOT how I'd describe this pickup. I plugged a crunch lab equipped jp11 after, and found it bassier/muddy.

The 7 string Illuminator pumped out all mids, I loved it. Just enough bass for heaveyness, but it was tight as hell. Possibly could be my new favorite 7 string pup, just want to try it in some other guitars 

on a side note, the 7 string version is does not have the same intense clarity as the 6, but it's still clear and clean


----------



## codycarter

I was playing through a 5150+ 1x12 combo, I can't blame the amp because I was just previously playing a esp h-338 through it and it sounded great

Maybe it was the onboard eq, who knows. No matter what I did it just sounded muddy and bad


----------



## technomancer

Sounds like either the pickup height is off, the wiring isn't right, or you just got a bad pickup


----------



## MikeSap

update, got a replacement pickup, installed it, and i'm in love. it was a bad pickup. i'm really digging the illuminator in my rg7320. very pronounced and punchy. i put together a clip testing it out in a mix.

https://soundcloud.com/yoitsmikesap/death


----------



## Legion

MikeyENGL said:


> update, got a replacement pickup, installed it, and i'm in love. it was a bad pickup. i'm really digging the illuminator in my rg7320. very pronounced and punchy. i put together a clip testing it out in a mix.
> 
> https://soundcloud.com/yoitsmikesap/death



Dude. I'm sold, at least based on that clip.

What's your signal chain like on that clip? Also, how do they respond to picking?


----------



## MikeSap

Legion said:


> Dude. I'm sold, at least based on that clip.
> 
> What's your signal chain like on that clip? Also, how do they respond to picking?



that signal chain was made by going right through pod farm. 

noise gate > boost + EQ > tubescreamer > Bomber Uber > 4x12 treadplate w/67 condenser > compressor > 4 band EQ

the pickups are very responsive to picking and technique. i'm ordering another set asap!


----------



## Legion

Holy crap. I'd NEVER have guessed that was a Line 6.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Art Rodriguez just did a short demo on the Illuminator 7 set:



Well that's it, I'm sold. Time to get myself a slice of this chocolate cake.


----------



## itsallinmyh3ad

I saw Born Of Osiris last night and the guitar player was using a JP13 with the illuminators. Sounded ....ing awesome.


----------



## HeHasTheJazzHands

Still wanna hear some Crunch Lab VS Illuminator comparisons.


----------



## donray1527

HeHasTheJazzHands said:


> Still wanna hear some Crunch Lab VS Illuminator comparisons.



This.


----------



## Hyacinth

donray1527 said:


> This.



I'll be getting Illuminators in one of my 7s soon and my Carvin has CL/LF so I may be able to put that together so people can check it out.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

HeHasTheJazzHands said:


> Still wanna hear some Crunch Lab VS Illuminator comparisons.


 
There's always the other Art Rodriguez clips to compare to...





Both use the Liquifire/Crunchlab 7 set.

Yeah, it's no side by side comparisons, but his playing is awesome.


----------



## Art

Bloody_Inferno said:


> There's always the other Art Rodriguez clips to compare to...
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Both use the Liquifire/Crunchlab 7 set.
> 
> Yeah, it's no side by side comparisons, but his playing is awesome.




Thanks man 

I'll try to record a comparisson as soon as possible, but I have a lot of work now


----------



## psycle_1

Tasty playing on that Illuminator video, Art. Well done! Got me interested in these pickups to say the least.

Wonder how these would sound in a mahogany RG...


----------



## Art

psycle_1 said:


> Tasty playing on that Illuminator video, Art. Well done! Got me interested in these pickups to say the least.
> 
> Wonder how these would sound in a mahogany RG...



Thanks dude!

They work well in basswood but I think they are too dark for mahogany. However this is only a supposition.


----------



## Riley

Considering Petrucci has mahogany "tone blocks" where the pickups are mounted in the JP models I think they would be just fine.


I think dimarzio has really gotten the clarity/note definition thing figured out. Between these and the Titans(love my titans) I am really impressed...don't think I'll be dropping tons of cash on bareknuckles anymore.


----------



## Art

Riley said:


> Considering Petrucci has mahogany "tone blocks" where the pickups are mounted in the JP models I think they would be just fine



Maybe, but these pickups seem a little bit bassy to me. I'll try them in my RG2027x to shed light on this issue


----------



## guitarplayerone

Art said:


> Maybe, but these pickups seem a little bit bassy to me. I'll try them in my RG2027x to shed light on this issue



Please do. What are your thoughts on d sonic vs crunch lab vs illuminator for a mahogany rg7 (bear in mind this one has a maple top)


----------



## Art

guitarplayerone said:


> Please do. What are your thoughts on d sonic vs crunch lab vs illuminator for a mahogany rg7 (bear in mind this one has a maple top)



I think that all of them would work well in that guitar but I prefer CL or Illuminator over the DS. The CL has a punchier sound than the Illuminator. It's more aggressive, but more compressed too. The Illuminator sounds more open and a little bit darker. For rhythm guitar I would choose the CL. For lead and clean sounds, the Illuminator would be my pickup.


----------



## serch777

Would people recommend these pickups for bands with only one guitar? Petrucci said they help his tone sound fatter in the mix.


----------



## Rook

^I'd expect pickups would be the last thing I'd consider in filling out the guitar part of the EQ in a one guitar setup. Cabs and live sound management are infinitely more important, along with the music your band are actually playing.

To answer your question on your terms, JP is a lonely guitarist in his band. Further to that he's used 4 very different pickups over the years and hasn't had trouble yet, so you can at least say any of those four won't at least be detrimental to your cause.


----------



## 3074326

Just got a set of these for a Jackson I own.. I'm curious to get them in. It's a mahogany body, so I'm a little skeptical. Didn't care for the CF/LF nearly as much in an Ibanez I have with a mahogany body compared to my JPX. 

Either way, I'm sure I'll like them, but I'm really digging the EMGs in the Jackson at the moment. I usually don't care for EMGs..


----------



## guitarplayerone

Art said:


> I think that all of them would work well in that guitar but I prefer CL or Illuminator over the DS. The CL has a punchier sound than the Illuminator. It's more aggressive, but more compressed too. The Illuminator sounds more open and a little bit darker. For rhythm guitar I would choose the CL. For lead and clean sounds, the Illuminator would be my pickup.



Art, thank you so much. So let's say in your K7, you find the illuminators darker than the crunchlab? Because I'm looking for the brightest of the family so to speak. By the way, your playing and writing were great a few years ago but now are on a totally different level


----------



## Santuzzo

sorry to bump an old thread, but has anybody found a direct comparisons clip of the Illuminators vs the CL/LF?


----------



## psycle_1

Santuzzo said:


> sorry to bump an old thread, but has anybody found a direct comparisons clip of the Illuminators vs the CL/LF?


----------



## Quiet Coil

Bumptastic. Anybody have any new post-honeymoon thoughts on these? I've yet to try even the Crunch Lab and I'm going to be throwing one or the other in my RGD eventually. The videos are helpful, but I've been spoiled by Mr. Merrow's excellent comparisons.


----------



## 5150time

I am really into them - I put them in a BFR JP that had the old D-Sonic/JP Custom combo, and I've also played them against the Crunch Lab/LiquiFire. So far, the Illuminators are definitely my favourite of his signature sets. To my ears, the bridge is rounder than the Crunch Lab was, and the neck isn't nearly as brittle as I found the LiquiFire to be. 

Overall, I'd say they're darker and have less cut than his other sets, and a little more of a classic rock vibe - which corresponds I suppose a little to the direction Dream Theater is going. I'd definitely recommend giving them a go.


----------



## Quiet Coil

The SD Hot Rails is still one of my favorite passives, it just had SO much "character" that it wasn't terribly versatile. The Illuminators seem like they'd have a good bit in common with the 'Rails and since I won't have a tone on the RGD I'm a little worried about getting into a similar situation. Still on the fence between the Crunch Lab and these.


----------



## lukeshallperish

sorry for a bit of a necrobump, but I just ordered an illuminator for my 1527. should be here sometime this week and I'll throw up a clip if anyone is interested.


----------



## PBGas

Enjoy! Should sound very good in a basswood guitar! I swapped out the crunch lab for an illuminator in my JP12 7 and it sounds beautiful in there. Good luck with the swap!


----------



## Purelojik

here's my clip. I bought these on a whim just because i've tried the Dominions and Titans and loved them each in their own right. These are pretty great too. Super responsive and just fat enough. 

its in a mahog chambered LP with maple cap. 25.5 scale length, ebony fb and maple neck. 

[SC]https://soundcloud.com/shehatesmytie/dimarzio-illuminator-test-1[/SC]

first is full mix, then just drums and guitar then just guitar
No eq except high and low pass


----------



## AkiraSpectrum

Purelojik said:


> here's my clip. I bought these on a whim just because i've tried the Dominions and Titans and loved them each in their own right. These are pretty great too. Super responsive and just fat enough.
> 
> its in a mahog chambered LP with maple cap. 25.5 scale length, ebony fb and maple neck.
> 
> [SC]https://soundcloud.com/shehatesmytie/dimarzio-illuminator-test-1[/SC]
> 
> first is full mix, then just drums and guitar then just guitar
> No eq except high and low pass



that was sick  what amp were you using? OD/boost?
would you be able to post a review of your experiences with each pickup (Dominon, Titan, Illuminator)?


----------



## Purelojik

AkiraSpectrum said:


> that was sick  what amp were you using? OD/boost?
> would you be able to post a review of your experiences with each pickup (Dominon, Titan, Illuminator)?



I use a POD HD PRO using the Fball with a screamer and noise gate before. screamer is set with output at 100 and drive 0. i deactivated the EQ blocks after the amp stage. i have the bias on the amp set low around 20-30. if you'd like the patch lemme know, but good chance its gonna sound different for everyone. no comp or anything. 

glad you liked it. Im waiting for the Guitar i just built with Titans to be set up and for a new set of dominions because my best friend bought my last guitar with them in it because he really loved that guitar. Made me really happy. 

i'll do similar clips once those guitars are done.


----------

