How do you choose the right pickup?
- Thread starter 14drz
- Start date
Dayn
SS.org Regular
You mean, how to choose which one to use that you already have installed in your guitar? Because if you're new there's no point changing pickups at this point. As a very brief, very simple guide...
To demonstrate the difference that pickup position makes, make sure your guitar is unplugged. Pick the D string very close to the bridge and hear how bright it sounds. Then pick the D string right over the 12th fret and hear how smooth it sounds. That's because the string has more noticeable higher-frequency overtones nearer to the bridge, and when it's near the neck those higher frequencies are less pronounced but the lower ones are more prominent.
So a bridge pickup will be brighter, and a neck pickup will be smoother/rounder, because it picks up the sound of the string at those points. Use the bridge for brighter sounds to cut through, use the neck for smoother sounds. But that's just a very general guide, depends on the pickup, and you can use whatever for anything, and the results may not be as noticeable if you have a beginner setup.
To demonstrate the difference that pickup position makes, make sure your guitar is unplugged. Pick the D string very close to the bridge and hear how bright it sounds. Then pick the D string right over the 12th fret and hear how smooth it sounds. That's because the string has more noticeable higher-frequency overtones nearer to the bridge, and when it's near the neck those higher frequencies are less pronounced but the lower ones are more prominent.
So a bridge pickup will be brighter, and a neck pickup will be smoother/rounder, because it picks up the sound of the string at those points. Use the bridge for brighter sounds to cut through, use the neck for smoother sounds. But that's just a very general guide, depends on the pickup, and you can use whatever for anything, and the results may not be as noticeable if you have a beginner setup.
Leviathus
Psychotic Monster
Just have fun with it.
RevDrucifer
SS.org Regular
What guitarists are you into? What songs are you learning? If you give some examples we can point out when they’re switching pickups (in most cases) to give you a better example of why it’s done.
For distorted rhythms I‘m 100% on the bridge pickup. I only do neck pickup rhythm stuff on a Strat with a clean tone. For leads I switch between the bridge and neck, sometimes in the same solo. Vai/Petrucci are great to watch for how they incorporate both pickups into their playing.
For distorted rhythms I‘m 100% on the bridge pickup. I only do neck pickup rhythm stuff on a Strat with a clean tone. For leads I switch between the bridge and neck, sometimes in the same solo. Vai/Petrucci are great to watch for how they incorporate both pickups into their playing.
Neon_Knight_
SS.org Regular
There's definitely no exact science to this. It's a matter of doing what works for you, for the tone you're trying to achieve.
My general rule for relatively high-gain / distorted metal is to use the bridge pickup for rhythm (the added brightness provides more cut / bite / aggression) and the neck pickup for leads (solos on the higher frets sound sweeter / less harsh with the neck pickup).
For clean tones, you may well want to use your pickups the opposite way around. This is how the switch is labelled on a Gibson LP - "Rhythm" (neck) & "Treble" (bridge).
For doom metal, I use the neck pickup for both leads & rhythm. I'm not sure whether this is what doom guitarists (e.g. Tony Iommi, Matt Pike etc.) routinely do, but it works for me. It's possible my bridge pickups aren't well suited to doom (mine are relatively bright) or that I need to be more extreme with my EQ settings.
My general rule for relatively high-gain / distorted metal is to use the bridge pickup for rhythm (the added brightness provides more cut / bite / aggression) and the neck pickup for leads (solos on the higher frets sound sweeter / less harsh with the neck pickup).
For clean tones, you may well want to use your pickups the opposite way around. This is how the switch is labelled on a Gibson LP - "Rhythm" (neck) & "Treble" (bridge).
For doom metal, I use the neck pickup for both leads & rhythm. I'm not sure whether this is what doom guitarists (e.g. Tony Iommi, Matt Pike etc.) routinely do, but it works for me. It's possible my bridge pickups aren't well suited to doom (mine are relatively bright) or that I need to be more extreme with my EQ settings.
I
i’m very much into arctic monkeys so I play a lot of that
