# Dimarzio Crunch Lab 7 Review



## whosdealin (Aug 8, 2009)

I picked up a CrunchLab7 from Nick (Zimbloth) and installed it in my KxK today.

The CL7 sounds really great in this axe. I've tried the D-sonic in this guitar also. I like it more than the D-sonic. It sounds warmer and thicker, clearer also. I have the bar set towards the neck, on the D-sonic I used the bar facing the bridge. The lows are tight, clear and thick on the CL. 
Whats great about this pickup is that it sings for leads while still being quick and tight for rhythm. I thought the D-sonic had a similar vibe in that respect but the CL just does it better IMO.

My KxK is a little brighter than some other axes I've owned and this pickup matches up great. It's warm and smooth tone really kills with it. The only other pickup that sounds as good in this guitar has been the BK Painkiller. The Painkiller sounds meaner on the low rhythms, probably the best sounding Metal rhythm pickup out there but for leads its a bit thin and bright in my Kxk. The CL is a better all around Metal pickup I would say.

If the PK and CL banged and gave birth to a Crunch Killer or Pain Lab it would be the end all pickup for me.

I've tried most of the BK pickups and they're all great. I prefer ceramic pickups over Alincos in general. Out of all the Ceramic BK's the PK worked best for me, the C-pig is great but a bit to hot for me, the MM didnt have enough mids for my liking and the Cold Sweat was to bright for my axe.

I know this isnt a BK thread but I wanted to point out that the Crunch Lab can hold it's own against the BK's. The D-sonic fell a little short because It wasnt as clear as the BK's but the CL is as clear or at least very close to the Bare Knuckles.
I have to mention though that it is a noisy pickup like the D-sonic but my noise gate gets the job done.

So its worth tryin out if you like the Dsonic vibe. Hit Zimbloth up for one if ya need, He'll hook ya up.


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## Lilarcor (Aug 9, 2009)

Great review. The Crunch Lab sounds like a real good pickup. I've heard nothing but great things about it. Since you can compare it to your BKPs, would you say the CL7 is much more compressed sounding than for instance the PK?



whosdealin said:


> If the PK and CL banged and gave birth to a Crunch Killer or Pain Lab it would be the end all pickup for me.







whosdealin said:


> I've tried most of the BK pickups and they're all great. I prefer ceramic pickups over Alincos in general. Out of all the Ceramic BK's the PK worked best for me, the C-pig is great but a bit to hot for me, the MM didnt have enough mids for my liking and the Cold Sweat was to bright for my axe.



You might wanna try a ceramic Nailbomb then. It's supposed to be much like a overwound / thicker sounding / less bright Coldsweat.


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## whosdealin (Aug 9, 2009)

Lilarcor said:


> Great review. The Crunch Lab sounds like a real good pickup. I've heard nothing but great things about it. Since you can compare it to your BKPs, would you say the CL7 is much more compressed sounding than for instance the PK?
> 
> 
> 
> ...



Yes the CL7 is more compressed than the PK. The PK is very open. I wouldn't say the CL is overly compressed though, I think it is a bit more open than the D-sonic.

I have tried the Ceramic Nailbomb, I think it would be great in a darker guitar. It wasn't bad in the KxK but not exactly what I was lookin for. 
I wouldnt say it sounds like the coldsweat though because the NB is smooth, the Coldsweat has crunch to it like the PK.


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## Lilarcor (Aug 9, 2009)

Ok alright. Tim from BKP once said that the c-bomb was a basically an overwound Coldsweat. I'm still trying to decide what to put into my RG. The CL is one of the more expensive Dimarzios over here in Germany and due to the exchange rates I could get a BKP for just a little more. Good to hear that the CS is not overly compressed unlike many other ceramic pickups.


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## jam3v (Aug 9, 2009)

Interesting review. I'm curious about the comparison you make with the DS and the CL. Did you ever try installing the DS with the blade toward the neck? And if so, how did that compare to installing the CL in that position?

I ordered a DS for my 1527 but only got to play with a short while. It was microphonic and I had to send it in. I still want to try some other pickups before settling on anything.


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## HumanFuseBen (Aug 10, 2009)

i am really interested in the Crunch Lab, too! i have the D Sonic (bar facing bridge) in my 7421, and i've never been any happier with a pickup. let me ask you a few questions, and maybe you can compare that to the d sonic!

one thing i love about the d sonic is the MASSIVE pick attack you get off of it when palm muting low notes and power chords. it almost has that same clarity and "click/chunk" that an active PUP has, which i adore. how does the attack on the CL sound?

i like how the D Sonic gets a little twangy when you roll the volume back. how is the CL in this regard?


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## leandroab (Aug 10, 2009)

whosdealin said:


> If the PK and CL banged and gave birth to a Crunch Killer or Pain Lab it would be the end all pickup for me.



This sentence just made my day!


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## whosdealin (Aug 10, 2009)

jam3v said:


> Interesting review. I'm curious about the comparison you make with the DS and the CL. Did you ever try installing the DS with the blade toward the neck? And if so, how did that compare to installing the CL in that position?
> 
> I ordered a DS for my 1527 but only got to play with a short while. It was microphonic and I had to send it in. I still want to try some other pickups before settling on anything.



I've never tried the D-sonic with the bar towards the neck. Not sure how it would compare.



HumanFuseBen said:


> i am really interested in the Crunch Lab, too! i have the D Sonic (bar facing bridge) in my 7421, and i've never been any happier with a pickup. let me ask you a few questions, and maybe you can compare that to the d sonic!
> 
> one thing i love about the d sonic is the MASSIVE pick attack you get off of it when palm muting low notes and power chords. it almost has that same clarity and "click/chunk" that an active PUP has, which i adore. how does the attack on the CL sound?
> 
> i like how the D Sonic gets a little twangy when you roll the volume back. how is the CL in this regard?



It sounds big man and real tight at the same time, clear like actives but much warmer and real sounding


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## reguv760 (Aug 11, 2009)

whosdealin said:


> I know this isnt a BK thread but I wanted to point out that the Crunch Lab can hold it's own against the BK's. The D-sonic fell a little short because It wasnt as clear as the BK's but the CL is as clear or at least very close to the Bare Knuckles.



I can second that! I have a C-Pig in my Ibanez S and a D-Sonic in my RG's. Two different guitars and very different tones. However, the CL7 I have in my RG7 [bar towards bridge] is pretty damn close to the C-Pig's clarity and articulation... but the CL7 seems to be more in your face with the slight "clank" it has.



HumanFuseBen said:


> one thing i love about the d sonic is the MASSIVE pick attack you get off of it when palm muting low notes and power chords. it almost has that same clarity and "click/chunk" that an active PUP has, which i adore. how does the attack on the CL sound?



... the CL has a totally different dynamics to the D-Sonic. The D-sonic "growls" while having the warm "boom" and very dynamic with volume/pick attack whereas the CL "grunts" with really tight lows and has that "tone" whether you pick loud/soft. I've had/have most of the hi-gain DiMarzio stuff and I'd say the CL7 in my RG7 is kinda like an Evo7 with an X2N blade. 

note: the CL has a REALLY huge magnet.

Reg


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## zimbloth (Aug 11, 2009)

Glad you're digging the Crunch Lab 7 Chris, and thanks for the endorsement  I may give this one a try in one of my guitars and see what happens. I doubt I'll like it as much as the BKPs but you never know!


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## scott from _actual time_ (Aug 11, 2009)

what do you all think about the high-end with the Crunch Lab 7? 

the description on dimarzio.com says they made the highs "deeper," and what i've heard from the new DT record has a pretty gritty high-end, sizzly/crunchy in a pleasant way, almost like the gritty guitar sound on "Moving Pictures" but way more high-gain. i'm just worried that it might be too much highs and might sound shrill.


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## Nick1 (Aug 14, 2009)

I put a Liquifire in the neck position of my EBMM Silhouette. It replaced an Air Norton. Wow this is a great pickup! First impression is that its got a cleaner sound yet still fat and thick sounding and its less muddy and slightly hotter sounding. It gets great harmonics. Both natural and pinch. The split positions sound so Stratty its un-real! I believe its a keeper. It matches the Andy Timmons Dimarzio I have in the bridge very well. To best describe it, Its like if the Air Norton and the Humbucker From Hell Fucked and had a baby then years later that pickup met the Blaze neck humbucker and they Fucked.... This is what you would get.


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## reguv760 (Aug 14, 2009)

scott from _actual time_ said:


> what do you all think about the high-end with the Crunch Lab 7?
> 
> the description on dimarzio.com says they made the highs "deeper," and what i've heard from the new DT record has a pretty gritty high-end, sizzly/crunchy in a pleasant way, almost like the gritty guitar sound on "Moving Pictures" but way more high-gain. i'm just worried that it might be too much highs and might sound shrill.



not at all! the highs are just "about right". definitely not X2N "piercing" nor Evo "shrill" but definitely a tad less than that but has the "crunchy" qualities of both. 



Nick1 said:


> The split positions sound so Stratty its un-real! I believe its a keeper. It matches the Andy Timmons Dimarzio I have in the bridge very well. To best describe it, Its like if the Air Norton and the Humbucker From Hell Fucked and had a baby then years later that pickup met the Blaze neck humbucker and they Fucked.... This is what you would get.



I have an orange sprague on my tone pot and with the tone all the down, the LF7 sounds like a wah with the foot up! I'd say the LF is pretty close to a Paf Pro with a little less 'aw' and but inherited the AN's "Oo"... if that makes sense 

Reg


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## Nick1 (Aug 14, 2009)

reguv760 said:


> not at all! the highs are just "about right". definitely not X2N "piercing" nor Evo "shrill" but definitely a tad less than that but has the "crunchy" qualities of both.
> 
> 
> 
> ...



I like the way I said it best. But whatever.


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## sh4z (Aug 26, 2009)

hey Reg any chance for some clean clips


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## metalmankam (Aug 6, 2010)

i'm a little confused as to how to install my crunch lab 7. Haven't bought it yet, but it's definitely the plan. Petrucci has the bar towards the bridge on his 7's but towards the neck on his 6's. The description of the pickup (7 string one) says it should be towards the neck. I want a good mid range heavy crunch with good low end on the b string but also the roundness for soloing. I don't want the highs to be shrill and thin when soloing. Should I go with the bar towards the bridge or neck?


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## Toshiro (Aug 6, 2010)

So, is the Crunch Lab as noisy as the D-Sonic? That was my main issue with the DS...


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## sh4z (Oct 6, 2010)

I can second with reguv about the "Clank" of the pickup with the bar facing bridge it has a very strong attack and is quite dynamic in its response to pick technique. I like it heaps better than the stock pickup in my S7320. Not that they where bad or anything..

With the bar facing the neck.. It has a much more musical sound but it is still just as LOUD. After a long time playing with the Crunch Lab.. I have decided I like it much better with the Blade facing the neck instead of the bridge (Had it installed this way originally)

I have little experience with the D-Sonic but when you use a lot of gain the CL does make a noticeable amount of noise.. To be fair though It's more when you pile on the gain 

Noise gate is pretty important with this pickup when you use a lot of gain.

If I play with it clean on my amp it sounds awesome. Noise level is hardly noticeable.


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## blackrobedone (Oct 6, 2010)

Well, I just put in the Crunchlab Liquifire set in my Universe a few weeks ago and I am underwhelmed. I was excited at first but after last nights practice they may have to go. The Crunchlab's highs seemed very harsh through my Triple Rec. Chords on the low strings sounded good, but trem picked notes on the low strings were giving off too much cocked wah sound. It is a very clear sounding pickup though.

The Liquifire is very muddy in the neck position. Not what I was looking for at all - i.e., something like a single coil with lots of pick attack and bite.

For comparison purposes, I plugged in my grey RG7620 with stock pickups that I just scored at a pawn shop. The bridge pickup probably sounded better than the Crunchlab, to my dismay. Was more clear, had more bite, yet the treble was not as spikey and harsh. The neck pup on the RG was horrendous though, and the opposite of the Liquifire - all highs.


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## onefingersweep (Oct 6, 2010)

Haha Pain Lab , that sounds sadistic 

I really need to try the CL in my 7-string, already have the LiquiFire in!


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## Toshiro (Oct 6, 2010)

I actually picked up a CL/LF set for my 6 string Xiphos. The CL is not as noisy as the DS7 I used to own, but it is the noisiest pickup I currently own.  Bearable though. 

I tried it installed both ways, and did not like the bar towards the bridge at all. It sounded hollow and nasty to my ears. With the bar towards the neck it's pretty thick and warm, but tight and clear enough at the same time. Like a perfected D-Sonic.


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## sh4z (Oct 6, 2010)

@blackrobedone - with the Crunchlab Did you have the bar facing the bridge or the neck when you installed it in your universe? - I think the general consensus is it sounds better with the bar facing the neck? 

Can someone with more experience chime in regarding other 7 string dimarzio pickups .. do they exhibit the same noise issue as the Crunchlab / D-Sonic ? And can anything be done to fix it or perhaps just lessen the effect..


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## mr coffee (Oct 17, 2010)

@blackrobedone - let me know if you decide to get rid of those, I may be interested!

-m


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## TMatt142 (Oct 17, 2010)

sh4z said:


> @blackrobedone - with the Crunchlab Did you have the bar facing the bridge or the neck when you installed it in your universe? - I think the general consensus is it sounds better with the bar facing the neck?
> 
> Can someone with more experience chime in regarding other 7 string dimarzio pickups .. do they exhibit the same noise issue as the Crunchlab / D-Sonic ? And can anything be done to fix it or perhaps just lessen the effect..



It's noisy but no where near as bad as the D-Sonic....And I would strongly suggest keeping the bar towards the neck on the CL...A much better sound IMO. The CL/LF combo to me is pure win. But, that's in a mahogany RG7-CT. Not sure how the CL would sound in any of the basswood RG's..


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## Bloody_Inferno (Oct 17, 2010)

TMatt142 said:


> Not sure how the CL would sound in any of the basswood RG's..


 
I've got the LF/CL set on my black 1527 (basswood + bar facing the neck) and it sounds nothing short of amazing.


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## maxoom (Oct 18, 2010)

I ended up liking the CL better than my MM. It was really close though.


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