# Bareknuckle Painkiller v Bareknuckle Aftermath for djent



## 7 strings of wonder

I've heard that both of these pickups are good for djent but which one is djentier? Does it have something to do with the type of wood the guitar is made out of?


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## onefingersweep

I think Aftermath but I'm not sure. Bareknuckle is marketing the PK with the term "djent"  The AM doesn't have an annoying upper mid at least, that I know.

No guitar has nothing to do with it since you wanted to compare the pickups to each other and not in different guitars?

But yes some pickups sounds better with certain woods and certain constructions. But that still has nothing to do with how the pickups compare to each other...


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## maliciousteve

It's more to do with your technique than what expensive pickup you have.

But anyway, The Aftermath is geared toward that sound, so I'd go with that.


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## FrancescoFiligoi

Given that you could make ANY pickup sound djenty woth the right technique, I think the Painkiller is more suited to that kind of sound. The Aftermath is a really good metal pickup with extreme clarity, I just think it fits a broader range of metal styles than the PK.


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## onefingersweep

It's starting to get a little bit annoying with all the comments about the "djent" being the technique every time someone wants to know more about gear. Yes we know that "djent" is a way of playing but that is not what people asks about. 

If someone asks "which amp is more suitable for djent?" or "which pickup is more suitable for djent?" he wants to know which product that enhances that sound most.

If I compare a Dimarzio ToneZone to a Bareknuckle Aftermath there's night and day difference in how they enhance the sound of the technique. Get it?


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## Greatoliver

That's the thing tho, if you have the right technique and put in the right EQ (i.e. boost the mids) you are able to get a djent sound. It is true however that some equipment is better suited to it...

Tbh, I like my ceramic WP for djent. It's more djunty tho, and you have to really roll off the bass to compensate for the wind. I think there is a video of bulb using a WP, and it obviously worked well enough for him to use it for some time.


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## myampslouder

7 strings of wonder said:


> I've heard that both of these pickups are good for djent but which one is djentier? Does it have something to do with the type of wood the guitar is made out of?



What is your guitar made out of? That will have a huge impact on the sound. I have an aftermath in my mahogany S7420 and its super clear and I can get a djenty tone but the djenty characteristics are more emphasized in basswood. Whereas the painkiller has an upper mid spike that works well with mahogany's strong low mid based tone


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## mhickman2

I would personally go with the Aftermath. The painkiller is definitely the best pickup for that "djent" tone but I prefer the versatility of the Aftermath. The Painkiller is definitely a one trick pony.


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## CooleyJr

Talk to Nick (Zimbloth) on here about it. He's the Czar of Bareknuckles. Tell him exactly what you're looking for and let him know what you're using. Body wood, amp... He's the guy to talk to and you can even order some from him.


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## Greatoliver

mhickman2 said:


> The Painkiller is definitely a one trick pony.



I'd have to disagree with this... While the upper-mid peak is very distinguished, BKPs are all versatile pickups.


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## 7 strings of wonder

myampslouder said:


> What is your guitar made out of? That will have a huge impact on the sound. I have an aftermath in my mahogany S7420 and its super clear and I can get a djenty tone but the djenty characteristics are more emphasized in basswood. Whereas the painkiller has an upper mid spike that works well with mahogany's strong low mid based tone


 
Im getting a carvin dc727 with a swamp ash body and a 5 piece mahogy neck with 2 maple stripes. Right now i have a neck through mahogony schecter and I love it, its just not djenty enough...and its a 6 sting


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## onefingersweep

7 strings of wonder said:


> Im getting a carvin dc727 with a swamp ash body and a 5 piece mahogy neck with 2 maple stripes. Right now i have a neck through mahogony schecter and I love it, its just not djenty enough...and its a 6 sting



Go with the Aftermath and you will have a great sounding guitar and not a guitar with too much high mid. PK is a pickup you either hate or love. Aftermath is a better/safer choice IMO.


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## buffa d

I for one hated the painkiller in my rga121. Sounded really ice-picky and shrill. 
Though, I do believe that it was just the wrong choice for that guitar, since it's already super bright sounding. 

It's gonna get a nailbomb treatment soon.


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## daos_27

7 strings of wonder said:


> Im getting a carvin dc727 with a swamp ash body and a 5 piece mahogy neck with 2 maple stripes. Right now i have a neck through mahogony schecter and I love it, its just not djenty enough...and its a 6 sting


 
I just ordered a Carvin DC727 with the exact same woods - Ash body with 5 piece maple and mahogany neck but mine has a maple top on the body as well (maybe yours does too) and I am tossing between BK Painkillers, BK Aftermaths, or Blackouts (phase 1).

I normally much prefer EMG over blackouts but EMG only do a soap box size 7 stirng and I would never ruin such a guitar by routing the pickup holes so you can never go back to passives!

Also with such a great quality neck through instrument that is going to have lots of natural sustain and sweet thickness from the woods I don't know if I wanna ruin the natural guitars tone by putting in pickups with an active preamp which bypasses a lot of the natural sustain and thickness..? Though I do much prefer actives in most guitars...


Let me know what you go with and how it sounds. I would also consider maybe a Painkiller and the Bridge and Aftermath or something else in the neck ...But I will probably end up going Blackouts but I will certainly not route a battery box into the wood it will be going in the cavity plate 

I wish Lundgrens had closed covered pickups options as they might be a good option too they go well in thicker more bassy sounding woods such Ash and Basswood. 

Also I would love to put a Hipshot US countour floating bridge in it but don't wanna route the rear out for the claw and springs etc. I really wish carvin were more flexible on pickup and bridge options cause it sucks to spend so much on a guitar to have to go and modify it ...but these things must be done


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## AngstRiddenDreams

My god i would kill for a Carvin with blackouts. That would be metal heaven.


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## Zugster

It just so happens that I have both pickups. A set of PKs in my Les Paul, and a set of Aftermaths in my RG7621. Makes it hard to compare because the construction of those guitars are so different.

I love the way the PKs cure the darker tendencies of the heavy LP. One trick pony? No way! ...and the neck pup is amazing for fluid leads as well as clean jazz.

I don't think you can go wrong either way. Just a question of taste.


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## ZEBOV

Buy both, install a set, try them out, switch them with the other set, try them out, stick with the ones you like better, and return the other set. Or if you preferred PK for bridge and AM for the neck or vice versa, then return what you didn't prefer.


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## MF_Kitten

the painkiller has a very smooth top end. definitely go with Aftermath!


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## Camer138

necrobumpage


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## trickae

you can get djent out of any gear and pup combination. Its more of a technique of hard pick attack with EQ'ed overdrive/distortion. 

Both are decent pups - but they come wtih a high price tag.


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## mountainjam

I own both sets. I prefer the aftermaths, but I think the painkillers are more suited for djent, they are very mid dominant.


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## Divinehippie

ZEBOV said:


> Or if you preferred PK for bridge and AM for the neck or vice versa.


 
anyone have some experience with this? im thinking of getting one of each and trying to figure out what the best result/placement would be for a good djent sound? i guess what im asking is what would be the best placement (PK in neck AM in bridge or vice versa) to get a great djent sound but also remain as versatile as possible?

-B


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## ridealot100

I have a PK 6 in the bridge of my Swamp Ash Custom Ibanez and I love it. I am tuned to standard and it has a really balanced and clean sound. I roll the gain back a bit and really just let my playing shine through.

I went from a D activator-X to the PK and it really made me aware of my technique. The D-activator really lets you hide, while the BKP offers little forgiveness. But you get clarity as the trade off, so who can complain.

As far as the whole "ice picky" or "mid packed" sound that everyone freaks out about, I would disagree in my case at least. Bulb really did a great job of selling the Aftermaths so they are getting a whole lot of love lately, so I would form your own opinion. There are a TON of people that have that love to toss info in without nothing but youtube videos on their side (not everyone), and everything sounds good through an axe-fx. I would honestly just try both if possible. 

In the neck I have a Air Norton S and it's a nice balance overall. I play more lead than anything and both pickups offer an excellent sound.


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## LeviathanKiller

onefingersweep said:


> It's starting to get a little bit annoying with all the comments about the "djent" being the technique every time someone wants to know more about gear. Yes we know that "djent" is a way of playing but that is not what people asks about.
> 
> If someone asks "which amp is more suitable for djent?" or "which pickup is more suitable for djent?" he wants to know which product that enhances that sound most.
> 
> If I compare a Dimarzio ToneZone to a Bareknuckle Aftermath there's night and day difference in how they enhance the sound of the technique. Get it?



Exactly, JUST like if someone was to ask "Is this amp or pickup good for shred?" people don't go and say, well, really it's your technique. Come on people, we know what they really mean. Why get technical about the onomatopoeia?


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## orakle

Fuck, stop saying it's about technique... the gear has a fuckload to do, get over it...

I'd recommend you the Aftermath, but if you want a little more output go with the Miracle Man


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## Zugster

orakle said:


> Fuck, stop saying it's about technique... the gear has a fuckload to do, get over it...
> 
> I'd recommend you the Aftermath, but if you want a little more output go with the Miracle Man


 
I've had both sets in the same RG7621 and preferred and stayed with the aftermaths. It has all the outpuit I could ever need and then some.


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## xeonblade

PAINKILLER

The ultimate high output 'Djent' humbucker with raw and focused grinding crunch, extremely fast bass response and aggressive upper mid impact.


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## Zugster

The painkillers is my Les Paul are the shit. Its the most no-regrets mod I ever made to a guitar.


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## Rayan22

I actually spoke to BKP themselves the other day about this, as Ive just ordered a number of sets myself. this is what they told me...

The painkiller bridge and neck are both ceramic, so you dont get alot of versatility when switching between them. They give you loads of high-mids, which make its awesome for djenting.... however, most djent bands go with the aftermaths purely because they have quite a neutral/ balanced EQ response, but are much tighter on the "machine-gun" playing riffs. This means that you get a much clearer and consistent tone throughout your playing.

The aftermaths also come with a ceramic bridge, but an alnico neck which means the djent bands using them can get some rlly "petrucci" type cleans on the alnico as its far warmer and subdued. 

Basically, if you're style of playing is purely only with riffing that requires high-mid boost, than go with the painkillers. But if your playing and music consists of a wide range of styles and riffs, then go with the aftermaths and EQ the tone to your liking. Either way you wont be dissapointed!


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## dundee-steve

Wish i knew how much trouble fitting these pups would be before buying them but its just about rerady . Cant wit to hear it through my dual rec.


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## spilla

I love the PK neck but didnt really enjoy the bridge, the highs were to hard to tame. I havnt yet tried the AM but ive sold the PK bridge and will be getting an AM shortly.


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## stratjacket

I have both. I love both. I think you can't go wrong with either on, they'll both get the job done. It does depend on your wood combination and how it will help accent what you what though.

I had a PK bridge and Nailbomb neck set in my Carvin. It was a Mahogany body and neck. It worked really well together.

I had an Aftermath set in my Caparison that was also mahogany body and maple/ebony neck. But it was much lighter and brighter sounding than the Carvin. But the aftermaths made it sizzle, gave it a hard edge.

So my opinion is if you have a heavy dark sounding wood body, then go with the PKs. If you have something lighter/brighter sounding woods, then go with the aftermaths. But to me you're talking the difference between a Ferrari and Lamborghini, both are awesome.


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## Jormal1ty

stratjacket said:


> I have both. I love both. I think you can't go wrong with either on, they'll both get the job done. It does depend on your wood combination and how it will help accent what you what though.
> 
> I had a PK bridge and Nailbomb neck set in my Carvin. It was a Mahogany body and neck. It worked really well together.
> 
> I had an Aftermath set in my Caparison that was also mahogany body and maple/ebony neck. But it was much lighter and brighter sounding than the Carvin. But the aftermaths made it sizzle, gave it a hard edge.
> 
> So my opinion is if you have a heavy dark sounding wood body, then go with the PKs. If you have something lighter/brighter sounding woods, then go with the aftermaths. But to me you're talking the difference between a Ferrari and Lamborghini, both are awesome.



Which one you would prefer on basswood body? Im thinking about trying one of them on my rg2228a.


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## stratjacket

I tried the PK on my Ibanez PGM301 which is a fixed bridge basswood body. To me it sounded too trebley, sometimes shrill sounding. I had to make presets on my AxeFx specifically for that guitar because it was so much brighter sounding than anything else i had. So IMHO I'd say the Aftermaths for that.


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## Jormal1ty

Ok im gonna try see if i can try aftermaths or maybe Lundgren m8 some time. I was going to try PKs because aftermaths are too mainstream.


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## stratjacket

Jormal1ty said:


> Ok im gonna try see if i can try aftermaths or maybe Lundgren m8 some time. I was going to try PKs because aftermaths are too mainstream.



BKP make a lot of good pickups. Food for thought. For the PGM301 I ended up (on the recommendation from BKP support) getting a calibrated set of Holy Divers. It matches the basswood body perfect, no more shrill sounds. It sounded full, rounded and tough. I still have those in there and love them.


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## Saidincontext

Get a Dbx 266xl in your chain and set the downward expander correctly and I won't matter  I love my aftermath, the painkiller has more midrange for the specific tone, but it won't matter if you pick/mute sloppy, gotta have the technique


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## Jormal1ty

I heard that bkp are very unforgiving for your technique especially painkiller thats what i like about them but im not still sure if i even want to change pups thou the D activators are pretty good.


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## dundee-steve

Well its now been 3 months since i got the pups . Are they fitted ? NO!! have been waiting on custom rings coming from the states . Been waiting on them best part of 2 months . Thanks to all you guys for advice thats been given .


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## guidothepimmp

Have you asked on the bareknuckle forum?

There you will actually get an answer from the bareknuckle folks who will probably be a bit better informed on the subject.

I think the guys name on the bk forum is Tim.

No disrespect to the knowledgeable folk here.

Edit, sorry dude, didn't read all the posts and hadn't seen you bought already. Let us know your thoughts once they're in


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## dundee-steve

guidothepimmp said:


> Have you asked on the bareknuckle forum?
> 
> There you will actually get an answer from the bareknuckle folks who will probably be a bit better informed on the subject.
> 
> I think the guys name on the bk forum is Tim.
> 
> No disrespect to the knowledgeable folk here.


 


Yeah have been e mailing them direct not much help at all . Basically said we tell you the specs of the pups so if they dont fit that ur problem . Not best pleased with there service . dont care how amazing these pups will be wont give them my buisness again.


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## ConstantSea

It has a LOT to do with the wood of the guitar. Swamp Ash and Basswood are generally considered "djentier" woods but yeah, probably better off with the Aftermath as it can do a lot of different sounds


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## gh0Zt

I have the same question... I have a basswood body and am currently using a vox amplug metal (it does the job!)
Which would suit best??
Or if theres another pickup you know of!??


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## Francis978

What guitar is it? The D activators are a great pickup, but if it was between the aftermath and painkiller only, I might say the aftermath (never tried them on an 8, but I have in a 7 and loved it!) Great clarity and tight sound! Can accomplish quite a few metal styles.


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