I actually like the the crunchy crispiness of the EMG’s, but disliked the noise associated with it. I loved the clarity of the Leviathans though. I’d choose clarity over tone any day personally.
Tja, das mit der Lackierung ist natürlich total scheiße. Kann man eigentlich nur noch wegwerfen. Wenn du willst, kann ich dir da auch etwas Arbeit abnehmen. Würde dann die Tage bei dir vorbei kommen und die für dich entsorgen. 😇 Da du dann ja eine neue Bariton bräuchtest, würde ich mal dein Augenmerk auf die Förster Tiefstapler von Bassline (Krefeld) lenken. Ist der Hapas nicht ganz unähnlich, dann aber in geil. 😉
Well Glenn has kinda demonstrated how much pickup hight does to the sound and shown that actives and passives has their own characteristics and that's just from a audio guy perspective but he isn't really a guitar player so he doesn't give a fuck about response or attack or such which makes guitar players to play like they play. :D I'm a guitar playing sound guy and I can feel the differences between different setups, but in the big picture I still feel that pickups aren't that much of a factor what comes to the final tone. Actives are actives, passives are passives and single coils are single coils.:D
Glen would likely say something along the lines of "Sure, if you try to make them sound different, then ya they'll sound different. But if you're aiming for a specific tone, you can achieve that with almost any pickup that's set up properly."
I'd love hear the Hapas with EMG81 though 😊 I thought you will slap it in there. Another factor can be the distance of the pickup from the bridge. The farther it is the bassier the PU will be.
Pickup height is so important, in some cases, it legit can effect the intonation. Loved the vid, love the guitar. Bummer the back wasn’t as bright as you wanted, but it still looks stellar. Side note/pup recommendations, the Ludgren M series is my favorite (likely lower output than you’re used too), but the Bareknuckle Ragnarock’s have an incredible feel/dynamic for as high output as they are. Also find that in all my years of tech’n, that 6/64”- 7/64” (treble - bass) for bridge pups tends to be my happy starting place, then adjust by ear to taste. Excited to see/hear whatcha discover.
Dude this thing is siiiiiick! I totally forgot about that video of you at their shop since it's been so long lol. Sounds fantastic and it's the perfect balance of evil and classy looking.
Such overlooked details for guitar tone. Pickups do matter, and pickup height matters. I have a Judge 625 ordered and I chose the Leviathan pickup too. I'm stoked to get it in the future. Cool video.
I play a 28,5 inch Guitar an thanks to you, I now want Hapas Leviathan pickups. I was searching for years for better pickups than my EMGs, but was always coming back to them. Thanks dude!
Pickup height is definitly something to consider. Had that same "revelation" with a schecter 7 string/fishman PUs and it also took me way too long to think about it.
ok, now I'm regretting not buying that left-handed baritone Hapas they had for sale on their website. for the rest, the comparison you made for the pickups is wonderful, it really shows the difference they make
I actually really dig that grind in the Hapas pickup, in the same way I really like the added grit from the LBA DI box. Once adjusted, I think the lowend sounds better on the Leviathan vs the EMGs as well. Less sterile and flat.
really cool video! I admire how you can analyse and put in words the essence of the different sounds. I think the adjusted leviathan (?) setup yielded my favourite sound. Convinced 7-string player speaking here, tbh I prefer the frequency-range of drop a on a 7-string to these ultralow tunings on a bariton. Greetings from Zurich! 👋🏼
Yes, details (and pickups) do matter. And with that in mind, it would be great if you could do another video covering: 1) The signal chain; 2) The settings for the tones used (maybe including the bass); 3) How you recorded the tracks (mics, plugins, mix settings, etc.). The song and mix sounded great to me and yet, I am guessing you did not spend forever putting it together. So it would be fascinating to see just how you did it!
Been playing the guitar quite often in the control room and can confirm how easily it is to play that model although it was tuned to F# whatever! Really worth checking out the brand!
It's because the haps pickup has More bass itself and the Emg has a "fake like" bass itself, it's more mid bass than bass bass itself. The haps seems to have a cut at the mod bass whereas the Emg has a boost up.
Just bought my first 7 string in A standard and had a bit of the same experience and after first new setup tomorrow I’ll try some adjustments to the pickup hight because they are very close to the strings. Have fun with those low notes! I really dig it having some extended range and low notes on my new toy
Hapas guitars are great! I played one at Euroblast in Cologne, when they had a booth. Insane quality & overall great feel. I never understood how certain TH-camrs are just like "Nah does not make a difference". For my last recordings I started tracking with Fishman pick-ups, but I did not like them at all compared to passive bareknuckles. As you say it is a matter of taste for sure, but there is a difference and it makes you play differently as well since some pickups like really heaving picking while others are just sounding messy then!
@@KohleAudioKult I really love them, I am using the Juggernauts for more „dynamic“ playing and the Aftermath for heavy riffing. Curious to hear more Bareknuckles in a heavy context!
My 2 favorite pickup brands are Bare knuckle Pickups, and EMGs. In a basswood guitar, maple neck and rosewood fretboard, my perfect Emg setup is an EMG 81 bridge and an EMG 60A in the Neck. As for the perfect Bare Knuckle Pickups set.... I'm still experimenting. Cause I changed guitars and the woods/guitar configuration changed with it. But, as an old reference, it was either àn Emerald neck or warping alnico neck, and a warping alnico bridge and or an alnico nailbomb bridge. For the same basswood body, Maple neck and rosewood fretboard. But for a darker guitar, some of the pickup sets must change. DiMarzio evolution is known t For thickening a thin guitars sound. Whereas a DiMarzio Deactivation set would clear ans give more articulation to a darker guitar.
I got lucky and managed to get one of the NAMM Sludge modells, gonna be my working horse for upcoming music 🙌 Great Video and I really love the Judge as well!
Now that's a sweet guitar. I love the design. I'd have to argue that I'd like a little darker stain to the body, especially with the back of the neck being so dark. I can't wait for the pickup shootout. That should be fun. I play a Gretsch G5260. But this is one I'd really like to look into just for that purpose alone. I'm looking to record the next Ov Moros album and I'm looking for a very crushing yet controllable tone. I may be able to find that adjusting the pickup height on my Gretsch? I'd rather have the 'more pickups to choose from' option.
The EMG honk is always there and I like it in the mix because the guitars do not get lost, but I hate it to play. It sounds not good while playing and the low end is not as fast tightened as a passive DiMarzio for example. So to say, it is a descision you have to make.
Nice! The recorded track sounds great. The pickup comparison is really interesting, in high position the Hapas pickup does bring some rumble in the low freqencies but I like the clarity of it compared to the EMG. The guitar looks and sounds amazing to me. I play Emg's since 15 years now, still really like the tone but I m gonna try the Fishman Modern soon, i'm really curious about those. Nice video and nice reminder about how everything matters in the signal chain ! Some people are desperately trying to get views pretending the opposite.
Oh yeah, pickup height does matter! I once installed a Seymour Duncan I got off ebay, and there were no screws, and what I had from my other pickup was slightly shorter. So the pickup was very close to the strings. And it sounded all muddy and wrong. There was also the low-mid buildup that I just couldn't EQ out, without making the tone too thin. So some time later I got the right screws and it immediately sounded tighter and punchier.
@@KohleAudioKult It is hard for me to get that tight with a low G# On guitar maybe but not on bass But for a low G# on guitar, do you think it would be better to tune the same octave on bass or to a low G#0 in a mix context ? It would be pretty high for a bass tuning :/
I own two Hapas Guitars and both of them have the INCÆPTION & INTERSTÆLLAR combo, which i love. I can see that the differences in sound between the EMG´s and the Leviathan arebothering you, just keep in mind that you had that Fernandez Guitar for a long time and are probably pretty used to how it sounds and all your favorite tones, and the way you dial your amps might be catered slightly to how you like it with the Fernandez.
Hi, Well, I have a different opinion on what setting is best depending on the riffs of the comparison, on the one in the middle of the recorded sequence, the first one looped, I preferred the low Hapas pickup setting and on the end riff, I preferred the high Hapas pickup setting, but, I will never tweak my pickup position for each riffs when recording, this would be stupidly nerdy to do that, though, I now know that when adjusting a pickup (or anything that changes the sound), one need to do a bunch of really different riffs and choose the adjustment that sounds best in most cases (and do the adjustments in the mix for the least great sounding riffs). I think it will take me time to figure out a set of riffs that covers most of guitar uses that sound different from one another (that's already so nerdy). Gruß.
I come across so many posts where someone swapped out their stock pickups before making a pickup adjustment to rectify a tone issue. Simple and cost effective solution 👍🏼
It's definitely something one should include in the overall set-up as a matter of course. However, in my experience, cheap pickups that come with a lot of affordable guitars absolutely suck. The big give away isn't even the tone necessarily. It's the lack of string separation, and the fact they don't have much dynamics and don't clean up well. I have aftermarket pickups in my HH Mexican strat right now, that I can max the gain out on and still pick individual notes out of a full open chord with weird dissonant notes, tuned to drop B with 10s, and I can clearly hear each individual string ringing through all that distortion. Try that on your bog standard cheap ceramic humbuckers.
@@Patrick-857 yes that’s a fair point based on your experience. It really depends on the guitar you buy. For example I have an entry level PRS but the prs pickups in it are quality. I have a 7 string Ibanez IXL7 with the stock dimarzio fusion edge 7s, with a slight pup adjustment they sound great but so many people bag them out just because they’re stock. Then theres the American hss strat with Texas specials and atomic humbucker. Again stock but do the job. Really does depend on the guitar and yes definitely there’s a case for swapping out pups in more affordable guitars like you say.
Aaaaaaaaand the video of the guitar. I was talking at the Christmas party about this guitar and you madarlover didn't put a video about it, but here it is. Thanks my dude 🤘🤘🤘. I'll ask more when we meet in the boiler room, you know, down there 😉
@@KohleAudioKult You know, the cauldron, the one where we will spend the eternity 😁. I sent my CV, wana be a chief of cauldrons 🤘🤘🤘. Maybe il forget to put the wood on fire, make it chill 😂🤣😂
So I definitely feel like there's a little bit of rib poking to Glenn Fricker here LOL! Now, I believe the argument is that between passive humbuckers there's not a massive difference. However, between active and passive there is definitely a difference because as you can tell, there is the extra mid bump in the active pickups. But I don't think there's going to be much of a night and day difference between two different high output ceramic humbuckers. At least not much more of a difference than shifting the height of the pickup like you did would make. However, I look forward to hearing that shootout!
Based on this video I tried to make a comparison between my guitars that have different pickups and if at the beginning I thought there was no difference with careful listening I realized that the difference is there even if it is small which greatly affects the way of playing an amp. Then rightly it is based a lot on the needs of the musician but it is not something to be underestimated.
The back of my guitars are all carved up from belt buckles! 😂 Sick guitar though, I notice they've done a couple of flying V guitars on their website which has me interested. 😁🤘
Your Fernandez sounds amazing!!! Wasn't impressed with the other brand. What model is your Fernandez? I would like to pick one up and hopefully it's made for a lefty!
I hear the pickup difference clearly, it's very obvious, but I don't really care about it. Both sound fine. If I need to replace an awful or muddy stock pickup I usually get a DActivator, because is not as expensive as others. :)
Benin and Berlin are actually not in the same continent (besides the first being a state and the other a capital city). Anyway, if I go one day in Benin, I will go by train (and certainly a bit of boat).
Interesting. Congrats to your Hapas, have fun and a lot great recordings! I like the EMG tone much more, tbh. But yeah, it's a matter of taste and I'm old, so... I guess mahagony vs ash and hipshot vs stop tailpiece also make a difference.
Cool stuff, and I agree with everything you said. But EMGs need to be close to the strings. Also, the Leviathan are grindy on the top end, but it also sounds slappy on the top end. Like the very top end is slapping against something. But I 100% agree pickups make a difference!
Hey Kohle, ich selbst spiele seit 2020 meine Hapas und kenne diese "Probleme". Ich sehe es ganz ähnlich. Ich nutze sie als Rythmusgitarre im Studio weil ich finde das sie vorallem bei tieferen tunings eine hammer Definition an den Tag legt. Ich habe nie eine Gitarre in der Hamd gehabt die sich so gut spielt und so perfekt intoniert ist. Allerdings muss ich sagen das sie als Leadgitarre nicht sonderlich viel taugt und auch pinch harmonics sind nicht so leicht umzusetzen. Meine hat allerdings eine Evertunebridge drin, vielleicht gibt es auch da einen Zusammenhang?!. Kannst du vielleicht was zum Thema leads und pinch harmonics bei deiner hapas sagen? Grüße 😊
I'm with you. Every part of the signal chain matters Also FOR SCIENCE when you try the different pickups in Berlin, you should only listen to yourself playing acoustically while you play. That way your effort will be in making each acoustic performance identical, so we can REALLLY here the difference the pickup makes.
The difference that you're focusing on here is more the difference between Passive and Active pickups. The Leviathan is emphasizing your pick attack which is why the top end is jumping out, especially in the Marshall. Embrace those passive dynamics! I think it sounds cooler!
There are so many little things that sum up to a great guitar tone. I can easily make a video where I show that none of them matter. It’s the combination, the whole picture. If you ignore the details you’re probably gonna end up with something that sounds ok, but not great.
I do hear a difference. But it is 2 different guitars. The type of wood, the shape and the whole guitar itself has a dramatic impact on the sound. To really compare pickups it has to be on the same guitar. And then you will probably think that an eq or changing the height of the pickups change the sound a lot more than swapping pickups.
That’s correct. The example in this video just perfectly shows the typical behavior and tone of the EMG81 compared to pretty much every passive high gain PU. That’s why I felt it was legit to do this comparison.
What are your thoughts on pots? As in, being wired more or less than what they are advertised as? For example. 500k pots, but obviously, they probably aren't EXACTLY 500k. Probably varies between 410 to 580 maybe. Maybe buy a few different sets of pots and see how that goes? Or adjusting the pickup height is a way around that? I'm debating on putting 1 meg pots on my guitars that are tuned lower than A.
Beautiful guitar! What kind of bridge is that? I ask because I have a 28” baritone that I play in F. It is nearly impossible for me to get the intonation perfect on all 24 frets when tuned so low on a 28” scale.
Do you mean it's hard to get the octaves intonated/in equal tune (e.g. 0-12, 3-15, 6-18 etc) or literally every fret perfectly in tune (because that's physically impossible on any guitar with straight equal temperament frets)?
You’re right, I do technically mean each octave. It’s a little sharp at 12th on the lowest strings and more sharp at the 24th fret. I need more travel length at the bridge. And really, I need a longer scale guitar. There’s a reason many bands with tunings at F and E are on 29-30” scale lengths!
@@mattwhite399 Even tho 28" is already pretty long, you're probably right that it's gonna be easier to intonate a thinner string across a longer scale than it is to intonate a thicker string across a shorter scale. Sucks that you don't have any more way to go on your bridge saddle. How is your string tention? Could you live with a little lighter strings? That would kind of be my last hope to improve the intonation.
@@mattwhite399 I have a 27“ in G with a .064 and I‘m thinking about trying a 68 (gonna have to drill the peg). No problems with intonation, but on the looser side. 80 sounds super tough for me (never tried it), but if it feels loose to you, then who am I to tell you otherwise.
I have tried LOTS of pickups, but I just keep coming back to EMGs. I currently have three guitars and each one sounded best with a different bridge pickup: 81 for my PRS Custom 22, 85 (!) for my Fender Modern Strat and 57 for my PRS McCarty SC.
I’m lucky I guess - I quite like the high output and mid voicing of EMG’s - and am not too picky otherwise, as long as I get the high-gain combined with the percussive quality that I’m looking for.
I have a similar problem with my neck humbucker of my Chapman ml1 modern baritone. It's a Sentient and for my taste it has not enough definition. I lowered the pickup and adjusted the pole screws, for the 1. - 4. string a bit higher than the others and it was a better sound... But still not perfect. For my taste it is still too dark with a lot of low-end and still too undefined. Now I'm thinking about to change the neck pickup. The Seymoure Duncan Black Winter sounds good to me, also the Lundgren Humbucker Black Heaven.... Do you have any experience with these humbuckers in a neck position of a baritone?
I’ve heard a lot of positive comments about the Lundgrens being the passives with the tightness of three actives. I assume “active” stands for 81 here, But I haven’t tried them myself yet. That’s on the list!
As someone who always wanted to buy a Hapas guitar but does not know anything about their pickup differences, you are doing the Lord’s…. I mean Devil’s work 🙏🏻
I would put an Emg 81 or Fishman Modern ceramic in it, get Ernie Ball Mammoth Slinky (0.62) and tune down to G#. This would show the full potential of this beast. The exclusion of the best pickups for tight low chugging is a big mistake by hapas. Their pickups sound good, but even with passives I would rather go with SD Distortion or Dimarzio D'activator.
So youre saying that every little thing of the signal chain affects the overall sound? Who would have known. Those who say otherwise obviously dont know anything, dont care about the little differences, and only care about high gain implementation and dont realize that its the little things that matter. Thank you for proving them wrong
Sick guitar but yep sadly if they did a simply grain filler on the back and left it natural it would have looked killer and same with the neck. Pickups certainly matter though - Single coils, humbuckers, piezo, active pups all sound different. The same pickup from a different brand then sadly it’s a no.
I'm very curious to hear your opinion about this guitar! SHOOT!🤘
Had a blast with it, such a nice and evil piece of wood 🔥😈
Awesome! Can't wait for my hapas to be built and I'm so curious about how it sounds with the baehemoth PU 😁
I actually like the the crunchy crispiness of the EMG’s, but disliked the noise associated with it. I loved the clarity of the Leviathans though. I’d choose clarity over tone any day personally.
Tja, das mit der Lackierung ist natürlich total scheiße.
Kann man eigentlich nur noch wegwerfen. Wenn du willst, kann ich dir da auch etwas Arbeit abnehmen. Würde dann die Tage bei dir vorbei kommen und die für dich entsorgen. 😇
Da du dann ja eine neue Bariton bräuchtest, würde ich mal dein Augenmerk auf die Förster Tiefstapler von Bassline (Krefeld) lenken.
Ist der Hapas nicht ganz unähnlich, dann aber in geil. 😉
@@AygisMusicwhat noise? Every emg equipped guitar iv played has been super quiet.
13:34 shots fired at Glenn haha.
wonder what Glenn will say about the difference in the pickups sound
Probably BS like he does from time to time
He will yell and scream and say " save your fucking money" there is no difference. Money saved for cocaine and hookers of course
Glen can say his opinion on pickups, but I have different pickups in each of my guitars and they all sound different and unique.
Well Glenn has kinda demonstrated how much pickup hight does to the sound and shown that actives and passives has their own characteristics and that's just from a audio guy perspective but he isn't really a guitar player so he doesn't give a fuck about response or attack or such which makes guitar players to play like they play. :D I'm a guitar playing sound guy and I can feel the differences between different setups, but in the big picture I still feel that pickups aren't that much of a factor what comes to the final tone. Actives are actives, passives are passives and single coils are single coils.:D
Glen would likely say something along the lines of "Sure, if you try to make them sound different, then ya they'll sound different. But if you're aiming for a specific tone, you can achieve that with almost any pickup that's set up properly."
Been waiting for this
That's one killer gat! Lots of love and attention to detail has gone into that one for sure!
Awesome Guitar, awesome Video! Looking forward to the Pickup Shootout! 🤘
I'd love hear the Hapas with EMG81 though 😊 I thought you will slap it in there. Another factor can be the distance of the pickup from the bridge. The farther it is the bassier the PU will be.
That's correct. The EMG of the Fernandes is around 4mm closer to the bridge.
Pickup height is so important, in some cases, it legit can effect the intonation. Loved the vid, love the guitar. Bummer the back wasn’t as bright as you wanted, but it still looks stellar.
Side note/pup recommendations, the Ludgren M series is my favorite (likely lower output than you’re used too), but the Bareknuckle Ragnarock’s have an incredible feel/dynamic for as high output as they are.
Also find that in all my years of tech’n, that 6/64”- 7/64” (treble - bass) for bridge pups tends to be my happy starting place, then adjust by ear to taste. Excited to see/hear whatcha discover.
Dude this thing is siiiiiick! I totally forgot about that video of you at their shop since it's been so long lol. Sounds fantastic and it's the perfect balance of evil and classy looking.
Thanks man!
I have a judge 627 and went for the behaemoth and zaez set. Very happy with them.
yessss!
Such overlooked details for guitar tone. Pickups do matter, and pickup height matters. I have a Judge 625 ordered and I chose the Leviathan pickup too. I'm stoked to get it in the future. Cool video.
hell yeah, can´t wait to start with the building of yours, man.
@@PawelHAPASGUITARS Me too! It's going to be an epic guitar, for sure.
actualy waited for this. awesome dude.
Pick thickness also makes a big difference. Guitar bridge and nut material also make big differences.
Love your channel and content man. Keep killing it!
Thanks! 🤘❤️
@@KohleAudioKult no problem
Finally. Was excited for this vid. Didn’t disappoint. LOVED the playthrough. And another hapas vid on the way 🤘🏼🤘🏼
The looks, the chugs. damn man....damn . freaking sick!
I play a 28,5 inch Guitar an thanks to you, I now want Hapas Leviathan pickups. I was searching for years for better pickups than my EMGs, but was always coming back to them. Thanks dude!
This guitar definitely does the "Dängle". Awesome video!
Pickup height is definitly something to consider. Had that same "revelation" with a schecter 7 string/fishman PUs and it also took me way too long to think about it.
ok, now I'm regretting not buying that left-handed baritone Hapas they had for sale on their website. for the rest, the comparison you made for the pickups is wonderful, it really shows the difference they make
you can always order one, man ;)
@@PawelHAPASGUITARS I was think about a lot of time 💪🏻
Very cool guitar! Great tone!
I actually really dig that grind in the Hapas pickup, in the same way I really like the added grit from the LBA DI box. Once adjusted, I think the lowend sounds better on the Leviathan vs the EMGs as well. Less sterile and flat.
Total matter of taste I guess. Both works
really cool video! I admire how you can analyse and put in words the essence of the different sounds. I think the adjusted leviathan (?) setup yielded my favourite sound.
Convinced 7-string player speaking here, tbh I prefer the frequency-range of drop a on a 7-string to these ultralow tunings on a bariton.
Greetings from Zurich! 👋🏼
That song was fucking dope
Your riffing is always sick. Existing material or new for the demo?
Thanks! Just spontaneous riffing for the demo.
Yes, details (and pickups) do matter. And with that in mind, it would be great if you could do another video covering: 1) The signal chain; 2) The settings for the tones used (maybe including the bass); 3) How you recorded the tracks (mics, plugins, mix settings, etc.). The song and mix sounded great to me and yet, I am guessing you did not spend forever putting it together. So it would be fascinating to see just how you did it!
Happy to do that! Especially because the signal chain is pretty unusual. I’ll be back soon! 😎
0:53 I've never heard a bass guitar so prominent in a metal mix before.
Props
I was unsure about this for a moment when I listened back. Now I’m really happy the bass is that present. Adds to the overall ugliness 🥩💋
@@KohleAudioKult Your bass IR pack as I can guess, right? 👀
I don’t remember exactly. But these are the only bass IRs that I use so chances are high 🤘
That bass tone is indeed totally sick... Same tuning as the guitar?
@@martinschubert7031 Yes. No need to go lower
Been playing the guitar quite often in the control room and can confirm how easily it is to play that model although it was tuned to F# whatever! Really worth checking out the brand!
It's because the haps pickup has More bass itself and the Emg has a "fake like" bass itself, it's more mid bass than bass bass itself. The haps seems to have a cut at the mod bass whereas the Emg has a boost up.
Just bought my first 7 string in A standard and had a bit of the same experience and after first new setup tomorrow I’ll try some adjustments to the pickup hight because they are very close to the strings. Have fun with those low notes! I really dig it having some extended range and low notes on my new toy
Hapas guitars are great! I played one at Euroblast in Cologne, when they had a booth. Insane quality & overall great feel. I never understood how certain TH-camrs are just like "Nah does not make a difference". For my last recordings I started tracking with Fishman pick-ups, but I did not like them at all compared to passive bareknuckles. As you say it is a matter of taste for sure, but there is a difference and it makes you play differently as well since some pickups like really heaving picking while others are just sounding messy then!
Nolly got me intrigued about Bareknuckles. Gotta check them out!
@@KohleAudioKult I really love them, I am using the Juggernauts for more „dynamic“ playing and the Aftermath for heavy riffing. Curious to hear more Bareknuckles in a heavy context!
"I have become thall, the destroyer of worlds"
Christian Kohle, 2024
not kool
@@tangentdark Not kohle
Wow that sounds gnaaarly, super clear low end!
My 2 favorite pickup brands are Bare knuckle Pickups, and EMGs. In a basswood guitar, maple neck and rosewood fretboard, my perfect Emg setup is an EMG 81 bridge and an EMG 60A in the Neck.
As for the perfect Bare Knuckle Pickups set.... I'm still experimenting. Cause I changed guitars and the woods/guitar configuration changed with it. But, as an old reference, it was either àn Emerald neck or warping alnico neck, and a warping alnico bridge and or an alnico nailbomb bridge. For the same basswood body, Maple neck and rosewood fretboard. But for a darker guitar, some of the pickup sets must change. DiMarzio evolution is known t
For thickening a thin guitars sound. Whereas a DiMarzio Deactivation set would clear ans give more articulation to a darker guitar.
I got lucky and managed to get one of the NAMM Sludge modells, gonna be my working horse for upcoming music 🙌
Great Video and I really love the Judge as well!
Now that's a sweet guitar. I love the design. I'd have to argue that I'd like a little darker stain to the body, especially with the back of the neck being so dark. I can't wait for the pickup shootout. That should be fun. I play a Gretsch G5260. But this is one I'd really like to look into just for that purpose alone. I'm looking to record the next Ov Moros album and I'm looking for a very crushing yet controllable tone. I may be able to find that adjusting the pickup height on my Gretsch? I'd rather have the 'more pickups to choose from' option.
I have noticed that pickup with a plastic or metal cover tends to have that 1k resonant frequency in the transient. Almost like a microphonic tube.
The EMG honk is always there and I like it in the mix because the guitars do not get lost, but I hate it to play. It sounds not good while playing and the low end is not as fast tightened as a passive DiMarzio for example. So to say, it is a descision you have to make.
Sick guitar, and sick Tshirt!
Nice! The recorded track sounds great.
The pickup comparison is really interesting, in high position the Hapas pickup does bring some rumble in the low freqencies but I like the clarity of it compared to the EMG.
The guitar looks and sounds amazing to me.
I play Emg's since 15 years now, still really like the tone but I m gonna try the Fishman Modern soon, i'm really curious about those.
Nice video and nice reminder about how everything matters in the signal chain !
Some people are desperately trying to get views pretending the opposite.
Thanks!
I strongly believe you only get great results if you pay attention to ALL the details.
You get OKish results if you ignore that.
Lowering the pickup was clearly the Eureka moment when I got my custom made guitar!
Sick ass guitar brother! Lets hear that shit with the grind into your rectifer!
Did you pass this by Fricker first..?? That Axe is the Beast! Congrats!
Oh yeah, pickup height does matter! I once installed a Seymour Duncan I got off ebay, and there were no screws, and what I had from my other pickup was slightly shorter. So the pickup was very close to the strings. And it sounded all muddy and wrong. There was also the low-mid buildup that I just couldn't EQ out, without making the tone too thin. So some time later I got the right screws and it immediately sounded tighter and punchier.
What gauge strings are you using on that guitar?
Is the guitar low tuned and the bass tuned on the same octave ?
Super cool video and tones !
@KohleAudioKult
Yes they are. Makes no sense to go even lower
@@KohleAudioKult It is hard for me to get that tight with a low G#
On guitar maybe but not on bass
But for a low G# on guitar, do you think it would be better to tune the same octave on bass or to a low G#0 in a mix context ?
It would be pretty high for a bass tuning :/
I own two Hapas Guitars and both of them have the INCÆPTION & INTERSTÆLLAR combo, which i love. I can see that the differences in sound between the EMG´s and the Leviathan arebothering you, just keep in mind that you had that Fernandez Guitar for a long time and are probably pretty used to how it sounds and all your favorite tones, and the way you dial your amps might be catered slightly to how you like it with the Fernandez.
I have the same guitar but with the yellow pick guard area and it is grind sounding as fk. I love it. They make the best guitars.
Hi,
Well, I have a different opinion on what setting is best depending on the riffs of the comparison, on the one in the middle of the recorded sequence, the first one looped, I preferred the low Hapas pickup setting and on the end riff, I preferred the high Hapas pickup setting, but, I will never tweak my pickup position for each riffs when recording, this would be stupidly nerdy to do that, though, I now know that when adjusting a pickup (or anything that changes the sound), one need to do a bunch of really different riffs and choose the adjustment that sounds best in most cases (and do the adjustments in the mix for the least great sounding riffs).
I think it will take me time to figure out a set of riffs that covers most of guitar uses that sound different from one another (that's already so nerdy).
Gruß.
Great song, cool riffs! Feel production a bit too busy though.
I come across so many posts where someone swapped out their stock pickups before making a pickup adjustment to rectify a tone issue. Simple and cost effective solution 👍🏼
It's definitely something one should include in the overall set-up as a matter of course. However, in my experience, cheap pickups that come with a lot of affordable guitars absolutely suck. The big give away isn't even the tone necessarily. It's the lack of string separation, and the fact they don't have much dynamics and don't clean up well.
I have aftermarket pickups in my HH Mexican strat right now, that I can max the gain out on and still pick individual notes out of a full open chord with weird dissonant notes, tuned to drop B with 10s, and I can clearly hear each individual string ringing through all that distortion. Try that on your bog standard cheap ceramic humbuckers.
Guilty here!
@@Patrick-857 yes that’s a fair point based on your experience. It really depends on the guitar you buy. For example I have an entry level PRS but the prs pickups in it are quality.
I have a 7 string Ibanez IXL7 with the stock dimarzio fusion edge 7s, with a slight pup adjustment they sound great but so many people bag them out just because they’re stock.
Then theres the American hss strat with Texas specials and atomic humbucker. Again stock but do the job.
Really does depend on the guitar and yes definitely there’s a case for swapping out pups in more affordable guitars like you say.
Aaaaaaaaand the video of the guitar. I was talking at the Christmas party about this guitar and you madarlover didn't put a video about it, but here it is. Thanks my dude 🤘🤘🤘. I'll ask more when we meet in the boiler room, you know, down there 😉
The boiler room?
@@KohleAudioKult You know, the cauldron, the one where we will spend the eternity 😁. I sent my CV, wana be a chief of cauldrons 🤘🤘🤘. Maybe il forget to put the wood on fire, make it chill 😂🤣😂
@burtosu86guitar 😂 Now I get it!
@@KohleAudioKult Romanian dark humor, sound way awesome in my language 😂🤣😂
So I definitely feel like there's a little bit of rib poking to Glenn Fricker here LOL! Now, I believe the argument is that between passive humbuckers there's not a massive difference. However, between active and passive there is definitely a difference because as you can tell, there is the extra mid bump in the active pickups. But I don't think there's going to be much of a night and day difference between two different high output ceramic humbuckers. At least not much more of a difference than shifting the height of the pickup like you did would make. However, I look forward to hearing that shootout!
Based on this video I tried to make a comparison between my guitars that have different pickups and if at the beginning I thought there was no difference with careful listening I realized that the difference is there even if it is small which greatly affects the way of playing an amp. Then rightly it is based a lot on the needs of the musician but it is not something to be underestimated.
Sick guitar! Have you used DiMarzio X2Ns before? They've become my favorite passive pickup
The back of my guitars are all carved up from belt buckles! 😂 Sick guitar though, I notice they've done a couple of flying V guitars on their website which has me interested. 😁🤘
I'm so glad that Glenn Fricker apparently don't hear the difference so he can stop the shootouts hearing impared.
Your Fernandez sounds amazing!!! Wasn't impressed with the other brand. What model is your Fernandez? I would like to pick one up and hopefully it's made for a lefty!
Fernandes is no more. My model is the the Ravelle Baritone.
@@KohleAudioKult that is disappointing. Killer sounding guitar!
@KohleAudioKult Da würde mich mal interessieren, wie die Fernandes mit dem Hapas Pickup klingt :O
Bin ich aber zu faul für 😇😜
I hear the pickup difference clearly, it's very obvious, but I don't really care about it. Both sound fine.
If I need to replace an awful or muddy stock pickup I usually get a DActivator, because is not as expensive as others. :)
the song rocks!
Everytime he would say the name, I swear he was calling it the HOTBOX guitar 🤘😂 Name it the Hotbox guitar!!!
Can't believe you flew all the way to Benin for a guitar.
Who said that? I took the train!
Benin and Berlin are actually not in the same continent (besides the first being a state and the other a capital city).
Anyway, if I go one day in Benin, I will go by train (and certainly a bit of boat).
And here I am just hoping to get to Drop A 🤣SOUNDS KILLER🍻🤘
Interesting. Congrats to your Hapas, have fun and a lot great recordings! I like the EMG tone much more, tbh. But yeah, it's a matter of taste and I'm old, so...
I guess mahagony vs ash and hipshot vs stop tailpiece also make a difference.
That’s true. It’s not just the PU. But the mid forward tone is very 81 typical
@@KohleAudioKult You may like a BKP Blackhawk for the Hapas, if you want a little more weight a that mids. Had 'em once, very nice PUs.
BROOOOOOOOOOOTHALL!
Cool stuff, and I agree with everything you said. But EMGs need to be close to the strings. Also, the Leviathan are grindy on the top end, but it also sounds slappy on the top end. Like the very top end is slapping against something. But I 100% agree pickups make a difference!
Hey Kohle, ich selbst spiele seit 2020 meine Hapas und kenne diese "Probleme". Ich sehe es ganz ähnlich. Ich nutze sie als Rythmusgitarre im Studio weil ich finde das sie vorallem bei tieferen tunings eine hammer Definition an den Tag legt. Ich habe nie eine Gitarre in der Hamd gehabt die sich so gut spielt und so perfekt intoniert ist. Allerdings muss ich sagen das sie als Leadgitarre nicht sonderlich viel taugt und auch pinch harmonics sind nicht so leicht umzusetzen. Meine hat allerdings eine Evertunebridge drin, vielleicht gibt es auch da einen Zusammenhang?!. Kannst du vielleicht was zum Thema leads und pinch harmonics bei deiner hapas sagen? Grüße 😊
Manchmal braucht man nur andere Saiten draufziehen🤘
Für meine Baritone hab ich ungefähr 7 verschiedene Sätze an Saiten.
Finde die Hapas richtig gut🤘😎🤟
I'm with you. Every part of the signal chain matters
Also FOR SCIENCE when you try the different pickups in Berlin, you should only listen to yourself playing acoustically while you play. That way your effort will be in making each acoustic performance identical, so we can REALLLY here the difference the pickup makes.
I have my pickups at an angle so its closer to the low strings and further away from the high strings
The difference that you're focusing on here is more the difference between Passive and Active pickups. The Leviathan is emphasizing your pick attack which is why the top end is jumping out, especially in the Marshall. Embrace those passive dynamics! I think it sounds cooler!
Glenn Fricker will go crazy with this video)
You need to put them in a mix to see how much of a difference it makes, just ask Glen
There are so many little things that sum up to a great guitar tone. I can easily make a video where I show that none of them matter. It’s the combination, the whole picture.
If you ignore the details you’re probably gonna end up with something that sounds ok, but not great.
I do hear a difference. But it is 2 different guitars. The type of wood, the shape and the whole guitar itself has a dramatic impact on the sound. To really compare pickups it has to be on the same guitar. And then you will probably think that an eq or changing the height of the pickups change the sound a lot more than swapping pickups.
That’s correct. The example in this video just perfectly shows the typical behavior and tone of the EMG81 compared to pretty much every passive high gain PU. That’s why I felt it was legit to do this comparison.
What about the string gauge?
I gotta look it up!
Congratulations 🥳🥳😈
thats why i want leave mannheim to go to live in Berlin 🤟
I’m not a Berlin fan in general. Too big and too ugly,
I love Monnem though!
you are very welcome, to visit the Hapas workshop, man!
What are your thoughts on pots? As in, being wired more or less than what they are advertised as?
For example. 500k pots, but obviously, they probably aren't EXACTLY 500k. Probably varies between 410 to 580 maybe.
Maybe buy a few different sets of pots and see how that goes? Or adjusting the pickup height is a way around that?
I'm debating on putting 1 meg pots on my guitars that are tuned lower than A.
I have no idea to be honest.
Something I haven’t tried yet.
@@KohleAudioKult thanks for the response!
@@AaronMorgan666you should ask kyle bull he changes the pots on his guitars
@Durkhead yea maybe. I have a buddy I met in a djent group. He's the one that told me about 1 meg pots.
Omfg this Sounds Killer!!!
Beautiful guitar! What kind of bridge is that? I ask because I have a 28” baritone that I play in F. It is nearly impossible for me to get the intonation perfect on all 24 frets when tuned so low on a 28” scale.
Do you mean it's hard to get the octaves intonated/in equal tune (e.g. 0-12, 3-15, 6-18 etc) or literally every fret perfectly in tune (because that's physically impossible on any guitar with straight equal temperament frets)?
You’re right, I do technically mean each octave. It’s a little sharp at 12th on the lowest strings and more sharp at the 24th fret. I need more travel length at the bridge. And really, I need a longer scale guitar. There’s a reason many bands with tunings at F and E are on 29-30” scale lengths!
@@mattwhite399 Even tho 28" is already pretty long, you're probably right that it's gonna be easier to intonate a thinner string across a longer scale than it is to intonate a thicker string across a shorter scale.
Sucks that you don't have any more way to go on your bridge saddle.
How is your string tention?
Could you live with a little lighter strings?
That would kind of be my last hope to improve the intonation.
Low F is loose for my preferences. It’s a .080. Tension calculator says that’s 18 lbs.
@@mattwhite399 I have a 27“ in G with a .064 and I‘m thinking about trying a 68 (gonna have to drill the peg).
No problems with intonation, but on the looser side.
80 sounds super tough for me (never tried it), but if it feels loose to you, then who am I to tell you otherwise.
I have tried LOTS of pickups, but I just keep coming back to EMGs. I currently have three guitars and each one sounded best with a different bridge pickup: 81 for my PRS Custom 22, 85 (!) for my Fender Modern Strat and 57 for my PRS McCarty SC.
I’m lucky I guess - I quite like the high output and mid voicing of EMG’s - and am not too picky otherwise, as long as I get the high-gain combined with the percussive quality that I’m looking for.
I have a similar problem with my neck humbucker of my Chapman ml1 modern baritone. It's a Sentient and for my taste it has not enough definition. I lowered the pickup and adjusted the pole screws, for the 1. - 4. string a bit higher than the others and it was a better sound... But still not perfect. For my taste it is still too dark with a lot of low-end and still too undefined. Now I'm thinking about to change the neck pickup. The Seymoure Duncan Black Winter sounds good to me, also the Lundgren Humbucker Black Heaven.... Do you have any experience with these humbuckers in a neck position of a baritone?
I’ve heard a lot of positive comments about the Lundgrens being the passives with the tightness of three actives. I assume “active” stands for 81 here,
But I haven’t tried them myself yet. That’s on the list!
My favourite pickup for a low tuned guitar is the "Black Dog" from Bare Knuckle Pickups. I like it even more than the Black Winter.
where can I get that satan t-shirt
I’m a big fan of six string baritone guitars.
same here!
Killer guitar... but I think the real winner in this is the bass tone;)
Sounds sic af!!@Kristian Kohle
As someone who always wanted to buy a Hapas guitar but does not know anything about their pickup differences, you are doing the Lord’s…. I mean Devil’s work 🙏🏻
That should be covered soon
@@KohleAudioKult Hell yeah
right? hope we can have a good video about that soon
Massive!
I would put an Emg 81 or Fishman Modern ceramic in it, get Ernie Ball Mammoth Slinky (0.62) and tune down to G#. This would show the full potential of this beast. The exclusion of the best pickups for tight low chugging is a big mistake by hapas. Their pickups sound good, but even with passives I would rather go with SD Distortion or Dimarzio D'activator.
🔥
So youre saying that every little thing of the signal chain affects the overall sound? Who would have known.
Those who say otherwise obviously dont know anything, dont care about the little differences, and only care about high gain implementation and dont realize that its the little things that matter.
Thank you for proving them wrong
Shit has it been a year ALREADY?!
More than that actually
Man make a full length song out of that track its HUUUGE
Maybe I should let people do vocals for the track?
@@KohleAudioKult HELL YEAH, I'm going to record something for sure \m/
Agreed - That song/video production is 🔥🔥💀🤘
absolutely agree on that, haha
I need a seven string version!!!!!!! 😂
Nice guitar. "Feel" is something that cannot be measured or recorded - you just need to feel it.
What do you mean 1 year ago? I blinked like three times
😂
Sick guitar but yep sadly if they did a simply grain filler on the back and left it natural it would have looked killer and same with the neck.
Pickups certainly matter though -
Single coils, humbuckers, piezo, active pups all sound different.
The same pickup from a different brand then sadly it’s a no.
Fuck geil.... Erinnert direkt etwas an Meshuggah 😛
Love the shirt🤘💀🤘 Kanonenfieber is the shit!
They’re great. I just finished mixing their upcoming release!
@KohleAudioKult can't wait, hopefully you'll put something in the audio kult for us to work on.