# Why is Ibanez putting the DiMarzio PAF 7 in their 7 string prestige RGs?



## Matt08642 (Oct 4, 2015)

I got an RG752FX earlier this year, and was kind of underwhelmed by the pickups, felt they completely lacked punch and clarity. Replaced the bridge with a Crunch Lab 7 last night and it's like a totally new guitar.

What's their reasoning for PAF 7s?


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## HeHasTheJazzHands (Oct 4, 2015)

Probably because they can buy a ....ton of them for cheap.


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## Lorcan Ward (Oct 4, 2015)

I can understand the tone zone/air norton combo in most of their 6s but I really don't like Paf 7s. If they made Paf Pro 7s it would be an improvement but a crunch lab/Liquifire set would be much better suited for most players buying 7s.


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## HoneyNut (Oct 4, 2015)

^ those are not Paf Pro 7s?! ...Paf 7s?! What's the 6 string equivalent of that?


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## HeHasTheJazzHands (Oct 4, 2015)

Jeesan said:


> ^ those are not Paf Pro 7s?! ...Paf 7s?! What's the 6 string equivalent of that?



It's SUPPOSED to be the old Virtual PAF/current 36th Anniversary, but it has a ceramic magnet, which makes things sound quite a bit different. 

DiMarzio isn't good with making their 6-string and 7-string pickups sound similar, though.


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## PBGas (Oct 4, 2015)

I like the Paf 7 in the neck of my 3727Z but yes...in the bridge, not my favorite.


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## jarledge (Oct 4, 2015)

i played a couple of j custom 7 strings with pafs and actually really liked them. The korn model comes with pafs too and I liked it. 

They are well balanced, clear and sort of a blank slate. They don't have a huge defining eq curve/bump like the tone zone 7 or some other 7 strings pickups. I like the tone zone but it always sounds like a tone zone regardless of how you set your amp.


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## cardinal (Oct 4, 2015)

I like the PAF7. Nice "chime" in the neck, but I can see not liking it if you want a darker sound from the neck. In the bridge, I think that PAF7 can sound pretty vicious. You have to get your gain somewhere else, but gunned up through an OD808 into a Triple Recto, I thought it sounded monstrous.


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## Alex Kenivel (Oct 5, 2015)

The PAF bridge is really boomy. It does sound nice split. I can see using them for more classic rock..but with a 7? 

They came in my SIR, but have since been replaced with Ionizer 7s.


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## Bloody_Inferno (Oct 5, 2015)

HeHasTheJazzHands said:


> Probably because they can buy a ....ton of them for cheap.


 
Also consider that, in this case, the Liquifire/Crunchlab combo are a signature series, so not only companies will have to pay for Petrucci's name, but also nulls them from showing up in any production model outside Petrucci's siganture guitar line. 

Jazzhands is right. Pretty much every Dimarzio 7 pickup is ceramic magnet, hence why a lot of the 7 string counterparts of their 6s never sound alike. This is why the Tone Zone 7 sounds nowhere near as good as the 6 string version. The PAF7s also suffer the same dilemma but it's actually one of the better Dimarzio 7 pickups that come stock. Of course they're not for everyone, particularly players who want higher output. 

Also, FWIW, I can't stand the Crunchlab.


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## Lorcan Ward (Oct 5, 2015)

Jeesan said:


> ^ those are not Paf Pro 7s?! ...Paf 7s?! What's the 6 string equivalent of that?



As far as I know only artists who have a LACS endorsement can get Paf Pro 7s.


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## Bloody_Inferno (Oct 5, 2015)

Lorcan Ward said:


> As far as I know only artists who have a LACS endorsement can get Paf Pro 7s.


 
Nope. Paf Pro 7s don't exist... unless you can give me an example, I'm curious myself. 

And Ibanez endorsers with LACS access won't have access to custom Dimarzios unless they endorse Dimarzios as well. In which case they'd be custom orders for the artist, which is usually the case. I'd imagine them asking for 7 string pickups similarily voiced as the PAF Pro, if that's what you mean.


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## Lorcan Ward (Oct 5, 2015)

I read that on here but I'm not sure how true it is. An artist said their LACS had Paf Pro 7s or you could get a set if they swapped them out. 

Edit: Last post
http://www.sevenstring.org/forum/pi...al-tech/201826-paf-pro-7s-blaze-possibly.html


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## CaptainD00M (Oct 5, 2015)

Alex Kenivel said:


> The PAF bridge is really boomy. It does sound nice split. I can see using them for more classic rock..but with a 7?
> 
> They came in my SIR, but have since been replaced with Ionizer 7s.



I currently have a Paf7 in my Custom 7 String Strat (neck and bridge) and like Cardinal said, it really can be a great pickup for metal if you give it some love.

I would stick with it for sure if I didn't want something with more output that sounds dirty thick for sludge. IMO its a very solid all rounder if you compensate for its low output.


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## TommyG (Oct 5, 2015)

I have PAF7's in my RG-7321 and I really like them.
They don't have a ton of Pizazz but they are even balanced and the ceramic magnet is good for a 7 string guitar with lower tunings.
I thought they were very capable of a modern metal tone.

You can hear it on the soundcloud link in my signature.


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## Bloody_Inferno (Oct 5, 2015)

Lorcan Ward said:


> I read that on here but I'm not sure how true it is. An artist said their LACS had Paf Pro 7s or you could get a set if they swapped them out.
> 
> Edit: Last post
> http://www.sevenstring.org/forum/pi...al-tech/201826-paf-pro-7s-blaze-possibly.html



That thread, especially Drew's post only proves my point further. 

The previous owners of said LACS would have had Dimarzio endorsements, hence custom voiced Dimarzios. And when they jump ship, they offload said LACS, as Drew said. 

Dimarzio do custom voiced pickups for their artists all the time. EG: Joe Satriani (and I should have known this earlier) would be an example of owning custom PAF7s voiced like PAF Pros (or possible prototypes of PAF7s) in his custom Ibanez JS7s. I'm unsure if their custom shop is open to the public, but said custom pickups aren't available commercially unless they're sold exclusively on a signature model, i.e Herman Li's Egen series.


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## cardinal (Oct 5, 2015)

A Dimarzio rep claimed that the Ionizer is close to a PAF Pro 7, which makes sense based on the specs.


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## Itchyman (Oct 5, 2015)

Have a V7 instead you whiny person. Also, a RG752FX is barely a prestige (I mean it has a gibraltar bridge). You get what you pay for.


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## AkiraSpectrum (Oct 5, 2015)

Itchyman said:


> Have a V7 instead you whiny person. Also, a RG752FX is barely a prestige (I mean it has a gibraltar bridge). You get what you pay for.



How is a RG752FX barely a prestige? What does the gibraltar bridge have to do with anything in this thread, and what on earth makes you think the Gibraltar bridge signifies lower quality? Some of the more expensive Prestige models utilize this bridge, not to mention, I've seen numerous Ibanez LA Custom Shop guitars feature this bridge.


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## jvms (Oct 5, 2015)

Itchyman said:


> Have a V7 instead you whiny person. Also, a RG752FX is barely a prestige (I mean it has a gibraltar bridge). You get what you pay for.



What the guy above said. The RG752FX is exactly the RG15271 with different paint, better pickups and a different bridge. The Gibraltar is great, lots of Prestige and LACS have them. I can't think of a reason it would be "barely" a prestige. It is a Prestige and a great one.


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## MaxOfMetal (Oct 5, 2015)

Lack of clarity on a PAF7 in a basswood RG? Something is up, as those are lower output, ceramic pickups with a nice amount of treble. The mids are a little scooped, but not incredibly so in practice. 

What rig are you running it through? If you're already running something scooped or bass heavy I could see the lack of clarity.


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## Lorcan Ward (Oct 5, 2015)

Itchyman said:


> Have a V7 instead you whiny person. Also, a RG752FX is barely a prestige (I mean it has a gibraltar bridge). You get what you pay for.



I like the gibraltar on my Ibbys more than hipshot or Schaller Hannes bridges. Its a really good bridge.


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## s2k9k (Oct 6, 2015)

I really like PAF 7's. I'm one of the few it seems. Also what's up with the barely Prestige comment?


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## TommyG (Oct 6, 2015)

Many of the Ibanez Iron Label guitars have PAF 7's in them also...


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## 7 Dying Trees (Oct 6, 2015)

If you remember new7 pickups coming stock, well, paf7's are a massive upgrade! Not for everyone, but then again, stuff like the drop sonic isn't for everyone either (I hate the DS7, also the TZ7, find them horrid pickups).

So a fairly nuetral pickup that will sund clear is a decent choice, and as I said, it's a hell of a lot better than the new7's they used to use!


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## bzhan1 (Oct 6, 2015)

Ibanez marketing goes full retard sometimes, unless dimarzio is cutting them a nice deal on those pafs. Such great guitars with generally mediocre finish and pickup options.


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## Jaxcharvel (Oct 6, 2015)

Bloody_Inferno said:


> Also consider that, in this case, the Liquifire/Crunchlab combo are a signature series, so not only companies will have to pay for Petrucci's name, but also nulls them from showing up in any production model outside Petrucci's siganture guitar line.
> 
> Jazzhands is right. Pretty much every Dimarzio 7 pickup is ceramic magnet, hence why a lot of the 7 string counterparts of their 6s never sound alike. This is why the Tone Zone 7 sounds nowhere near as good as the 6 string version. The PAF7s also suffer the same dilemma but it's actually one of the better Dimarzio 7 pickups that come stock. Of course they're not for everyone, particularly players who want higher output.
> 
> Also, FWIW, I can't stand the Crunchlab.



If I'm not mistaken the CL/LF combo comes stock in the Ben Savage LTD too.


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## Bloody_Inferno (Oct 6, 2015)

Jaxcharvel said:


> If I'm not mistaken the CL/LF combo comes stock in the Ben Savage LTD too.


 
Correct. Of course the Ben Savage LTD is a signature line and Ben just happens to choose a siganture pickup set for his guitar.


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## TommyG (Oct 7, 2015)

Here is a clip of and Ibanez Iron Label S Series guitar with PAF 7 pickups and they sound pretty badass...

Not bad for the lowest output 7 string pickups that DImarzio makes....


Enjoy... 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UIQQIt8UATQ


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