Thanks so much for all the feedback guys! The bridge video will be coming SOON. Probably next week, since it arrived this weekend. Also, let me know what you want to see in the Fishman video!! 👀
This video is such great timing, I'm actually looking at picking up the exact same guitar and upgrading it, might go for EMG pickups rather though... Looking forward to the bridge video 🤘
I usually buy budget and mod. Mostly because I like variety, and regularly use alternate tunings. I am also notoriously rough on my gear, so a high end axe isn't really practical for me personally. I'm no metal guy, mostly stoner rock, punk and hardcore, and I've overall been more than pleased with Squier's quality control over the past few years as I currently own 4. A Jaguar Bass, two Affinity Jazzmasters, and the new Baritone Tele. I also own an Agile LP with custom hand made pups, a Firefly P90 junior, and recently got one of those Green P90 Epiphone SG's. The factory fret job on that SG however left much to be desired IMO. Right out of the box? I will always upgrade the tuning machines. No question. I will also ditch any plastic nuts pronto if the guitar has one. After that? It's really just a matter of getting comfortable with the guitar and deciding whether better pickups are worth it. Sometimes just some good old copper shielding tape, capacitors, and beefier pots are all that's required, and I usually have most of that stuff on hand tucked away somewhere. Nice content Taylor. Keep up the good work!
Nice video. Thanks for the comparison. Both pickups sounded almost the same. The stock pickups were actually brighter. If I was playing on stage, the audience wouldn't notice any difference. As you mentioned and you are correct that replacing pickups can give a good 'feeling' but in reality it is just a few $$$'s flying off the pocket. Stock pickup's from notable brands like Ibanez and Jackson have gone through significant R&D over the years and what comes as stock pickups are pretty good and stage worthy. It is just a recent hype where ""Hey have you upgraded your pickups to EMG's etc yet?"" etc etc.
If you're playing Jazz, then a pickup swap would probably matter, but for high gain, you'll be better off shielding your guitar to eliminate hum, and then swap out your tired, old speakers for quality ones.
A pickup swap can be 100% warranted on cheaper models. The pickups on the GRG7221 are straight from the trash, for instance. This isn't much of a budget guitar, it's a mid budget guitar. There the pickups might be better considered, but there's a bunch of pickups out there on budget guitars that aren't worth their weight in raw materials.
@@iurigrang My stock Dean pickups sounded as good as the $250 high-end models, but I swapped them for some EMG look-alikes fro $20 a piece on ebay. Best sounding pickups my eyes have ever seen! In short, just buy a pickup if it loolks good on your axe, because at high gain, all pickups sound identical anyway.
I've got that same ibanez for 5 years and I've installed a fishman fluence modern with 3 voices set over a week ago, the change was huge compared to the stock pickups, and it was definitely worth it
First we need to talk about your riffs - there's some really nice riffs here! I especially liked that second playthrough riff, it's a perfect blend of things, could even hear an accompanying drumtrack in my head. Now the title, Fishman tighten up the tone in the best possible ways and I think if a guitar feels good to play (neck and frets) and doesn't have tuning stability issues, better pickups than stock are worth it. And for guitar projects, if you're a tinkerer, it's going to feel good when you upgrade stuff yourself. Looking forward to Hipshot video, I'm eyeing some cheap 7 strings.
Daniel with a J! Thanks dude. I don't play 7 strings that often anymore so I had to reach way down in my memory bank to come up with some riffs 😂 Hipshot video INCOMING!!
I've always swapped the crappy zinc saddles on those types of bridges with either brass or stainless steel. As far as the saddle height adjustment screws, I've always taken them out one at a time and shortened them by grinding them from the bottom up on a bench grinder until they were flush with the top of the saddles.
Best bridge I've ever used was a roller type. Combined with a Tusq and good Grovers, I never go out of tune, because of almost zero friction between the tuners and the bridge. Plus a roller is so comfortable to play.
I think you can get away with either. I will say, it's nice to be able to buy a guitar with the features that you want. My Mick Thomson Jackson is a pretty good example. Things like Reverb can also blur the lines a bit closer. The Jackson I just mentioned was available for a third of the price than MSRP from a reseller who got that guitar as an overstock.
The best thing about the Fishman Fluence modern pickups are it’s multiple voicings if you ask me. I’m able to get completely different tones out of whatever voicing I’m using, especially since Voice 2 gives me that classic Passive feel that I love and have loved ever since I started playing over 5 years ago. Voice 1 is perfect because I can play straight into an amplifier without the need of an overdrive in front of the amp, but just in case I want to play with an overdrive in front I always have voice 2 readily available!
I prefer the crunchier tone of the passives and would’ve favoured the Blackwinters, however, I noted in many of your videos that you do your best work with active pickups, so the Fishmans are the best option to keep you motivated and engaged with your playing. Also, active pickups are definitely quieter in general. As for the central question within the video. A decent but affordable guitar with a good pickup upgrade is preferable to the prospects of getting an expensive guitar with generally higher quality electronics.
Dude hell ya. Great video man. I love vids like this. I just had black winters put in my 2008 ibanez prestige its a whole differnet animal now lol. Keep up the great work man. I like the sacrificer merch too looks dope will have to pick something up.
I have an rg6003. Stock pickups were muddy AF. Immediately got a DiMarzio super distortion for the bridge. Cleaned up a lot, just not like I was looking for. Bought a set of Dragonfire Crusaders for the same price as the SD single pickup. That was the sound.
On DiMarzio's site, every pickup has an EQ listing, so you should be able to find the exact sound you want with ease, if you know what you're looking for in the first place.
The stock Ibanez pickup for this guitar is AH2-7, which is similar to a Dimarzio Tone Zone or a SD JB/Invader. Comparing these pickups with actives on a patch that's created for EMGs(active themselves) is not a pretty fair comparison. If you want to compare actives with passives, try a SD Nazgul + Sentient set for 7 string guitars. I've changed the bridge pickup in my main guitar from a stock to a JB, then from the JB to a Nazgul. The jump from JB to Nazgul came with a much tighter low end. The JB was waaay looser in the low end than the Nazgul. I think that for a passive pickup, it doesn't get much tighter than a Nazgul.
Now I know good and well you're not using that pod hd 500 rack mount you have turned on in the background!! Not when you have that Axe fx III am I right? Do you just turn it on for looks or what?
Damn, you've found me out! ALL my demos are actually through the POD HD, It's a scam!!!! 😂 Nah, it's just there for lights. I'll replace it with something that has a purpose one day.
Those grub screws on the bridge can be shortened till flush with the saddle. You can also buy a different length. Just shorten them from the bottom, otherwise you end up with almost no hole for the allen key (happened to me once)
You can hate me now but I liked the stock pick ups better in the mix. But the difference is suttle, I bet you could achieve the same effect by playing with the cab section. I would always start at the cab and save the pic ups as last resort. It's the most complex change with the least return on investment.
Yeah. Funny thing is I have seen pickups from 17 to 300 USD which, depending on the axe destroyed the ones that came with it. I figure this unless your guitar cost 4 grand, or more, the company is going to scrimp on something and electronics is a good place to hit, along with the wood types. If my guitar from Ibanez cost 300 USD then what would happen if I spent 300 on new pickups? I bet you that starting around the 50-100 USD mark for new pickups they would begin to blow away the stock ones.
@@generalawareness101 Also complicating the situation is there are high-quality clones coming out of China. I blame Seymour Duncan for sending his pickup designs over there to create Duncan Designed pickups. The pickups I put in my Benton are clones of the JB and Jazz, and they sound extremely similar.
@@TheRosswise Yep, hence my 17 USD I mentioned as they were fantastic sounding. For under 60 USD you can get a full set of Dragon fire pickups (various kinds) that blows away the originals of most name brand guitars.
I have one of these, too, lol. I got mine when I was in middle school, back in like 2002 or 2003. Pickups on mine have a crunchy mid range and flubby/loose low end, as well.
Also what do you think of the diezel v44 preamp pedal? If you get it can you compare it to the what ever mooer modeler you kept (if you have them all I guess pick your favorite one) if I had to tell you which one maybe the ge300 or the preamp live.
Love the video! I just got an Ibanez 10th anniversary RG1421 and am loving it. That being said i was wondering if changing pickups to the Fishmans was something that would give me a hard sound. I’m a novice when it comes to a change like this so any recommendations or advice would be greatly appreciated!
Save your money for better cab speakers. Trust me, that will do your sound more justice than new pickups. You have to understand the science of sound, like the purpose of a pickup and how they affect sound as well as speakers for the same reason.
I think the biggest difference they make is supposedly they don't wear, so you don't ever have to replace them. I have them on my solar, and I don't really notice a difference between them and my other guitars... I think I notice a bigger difference in the feel of an ebony neck and a rosewood neck personally
Installing a better bridge and nut is a wiser choice than new pickups. About the noise, that's what the noise gate was made for. While you're at it, new tuners make a big difference in playability as well, when combined with a quality nut and bridge. Still, speakers make the biggest difference in tone, IMO.
Haha about time you gave the Fishman’s a shot. Did you use the passive or active voicing? I actually have been digging the passive voice with the fatter low end. But yeah they sound and feel really great and having the those tone options with different amps is sweet. 🔥🔥🔥
Well, here's the thing. On the bridge I use the knob in, which should be active, but by comparison it sounds like the passive voicing... although I can hardly tell when I'm playing with any high gain amp. But the neck, 100% prefer the sound of the active voicing.
@@TaylorDanley I hear you the down position the active setting has a noticeable jump in signal when I’m plugged straight into an interface then the passive voicing and lower output but a fatter sounding chug. Damn near a bass boost.
@@TaylorDanley just wondering if it got wired backwards maybe? I know I sure as hell couldn’t read the different wiring diagrams. I need the one volume, one tone so I had a friend do as well. Lol
Dude, I literally picked up an ibanez rg7321 yesterday. It had duncan Pegasus set, and sperzel locking tuners on it. Got it for $140. It is banged up, so I am going to sand and repaint it maybe purple. It was a complete cob job. Only about 50 pounds of solder was used.
Yeah bro I have the same guitar and I'm gonna upgrade hipshot bridge and fishmans I don't really like emgs I prefer Seymour duncan blackouts. But I'm happy with it it's a great guitar I got for a steal cool video man helps alot
I've got me an rg and I couldn't stand my stock pickups. So I debated long and hard which pickups to get and I got Seymour Duncans sh6's aaaand they are awesome. But now I'm gonna trade them for JBs cuz damn those are gorgeous sounding
@Varity Topic I have built a few warmoth strats myself since I made this comment, and you’re absolutely right, proper cavity shielding has made my Seymour Duncan’s as quiet as can be.
Yeah, it sounds great, but not $240 great. The stock PUs, even though noisier was very similar in tone and dynamics. Noise gates were made for a reason.
Hey Man! I've had this same guitar with for the last 20 years with me, my dad gave it to me back in 2003 for my 15th birthday, and after all these years I just came across with replacing the pickups and looking for some info about it I found your video here on TH-cam, and this just me finally decided to do it. It's funny 'cause even though I love the sound of this guitar and how cool and badass it looks all back with its seven strings, that noise coming from the original pickups always made me feel uncomfortable playing it, specially going deep into the gain and distortion, so yeah ...thanks for your video. Next thing I'll do would be replacing the bridge, I also agree with you on that. Anyway, greetings from Mexico City.
Also, also! Unless your older videos handle this, can you do a tone tutorial of how to make a good deathcore tone. Yours is perfect! Gear that are needed, setup if it matters. And what ever american me is considered (hardcore/deathcore) haven't heard them in a while. I'll go listen to them for a bit.
I haven't done a tone video in a while, but TBH the majority of my videos where I check something out and dial in a tone, I'm going to probably get to my normal rhythm tone, within like a 10% margin. I can't help it, I just know the sound I like and usually try to dial in gear to that preference.
Most decent Pups can be made to sound really good with a Top Line EQ Pedal !! Couldn't live without one ? Boss as almost always is the go to !!!!! Got to pay for Quality !!!!!!!!
Cool video. Fishman seems to sound better. Personnaly, I am totally a guy which prefer to buy 2 or 3 guitars and change pickups if needed, than buy only 1 expensive. To have different sounds, different tunings, different using of course. And it's cool to have a guitar collection also 😎
So your tones differ per pickup? Or do you just plug in and play? I'm finally replacing my blackouts in my 8. Ordered some bareknuckle juggernauts. ($500!!!) My wife was pissed bc I said $350. And she said no its fricken $430. And I was like oh... 350... euros... but it'll be about $500 with installation from a luthier in town.
My guitars are in the 300-450 price range and both are upgraded with emg/dimarzio pick ups, worth every penny if you ask me. I would always go with a cheaper guitar and upgrade it.
12:29 - I "think" the stock PUs bring more video noise to B-rolls compared to the amount with actives ;) That's another thing to consider if you're an active youtuber
Per Nilsson (Scar Symmetry) never changed the Stock Pickups from his Ibanez's, he played the first four Albums with Ibanez Stock Pickups, and listen to those Tones he produced 🔥🎸🔥
With that guitar I would have just put in some Dragonfire screamers. You get a comparable tone to a Duncan distortion set at a much lower price than $240 for the Fishmans. I used to be all about getting a cheap guitar that plays well and putting nice pickups and upgrades on it later. But that was when I had less money. Now I would rather buy a guitar that has everything I want on it like a Schecter Banshee Mach 7 or KM7 MKii black pearl.
I wouldn't be putting Fishmans in a SUPER cheap guitar (like something you would get for 100-200 bucks), because those are really expensive and there's way more affordable ways to upgrade PUs. But I definitely think that swapping stock, non-brand PUs for something better will improve your guitar a lot. Definitely worth it. I actually have an Ibanez RG7321 too which I upgraded with DiMarzio Evolutions and it's made a world of difference. Personally I'm not getting any 1000 bucks guitars anymore. Kind of not worth it. I prefer getting a really nice mid-range guitar and further tailoring it to my needs. I like experimenting with PUs and get a kick out of trying out stuff. All my guitars have different aftermarket DiMarzios and EMGs in them. I also enjoy doing fun projects like modding and improving dirt cheap instruments like some of the low tier Harley Bentons and I ended up keeping some of them because I really enjoyed what I was able to get out of them after changing PUs and electronics, in some cases upgrading the hardware, touching up the frets, doing a good setup etc.
Recently upgraded the pickups in in old Westfield E4500 to some emg’s. I loved the guitars playability but the sound just wasn’t right.. perfect now though! (Moral of the story is I’d sooner buy a more budget guitar and upgrade) 🤟🏻
Personally, I could give a fuck about resale value, which tends to drive most gear people, so I always buy a guitar I think looks mostly the way I prefer and is also below my gear price cap. Then at the very least, I will swap the pickups, but sometimes more. The difference between the two is certainly there, but with the full mix (as with most things) the differences get kind of lost or could be adjusted with EQ (at least to my ear). The noise is probably the most glaring difference, but it didn't bother me at all. Would I have done THIS particular swap? Nah. WAY too much money for the sound difference, but I think most pickups are overpriced, so my opinion is a definite minority. Rabble rabble rabble, blah blah blah.
I have a squire strat and the bridge pickup was just not doing it for the type of rig I was using/still am using and for the style of music I play. Saved up like $100 and got me a Seymour Duncan hot rails and it changed everything along with a nice OD
Wow, I thought I won’t hear any difference other than less noise (because I’m listening on phone speakers at the moment) but it is a HUGE difference. Definitely the new pickups sounds tighter and more lively. I’ll also add to the discussion of buying vs modding is that an instrument that came stock with the features you want will have a higher resell value than other you mod.
Night and day difference in the quality of tones. The fishman just sound way better. The upgrading question... It pays to know how to do them yourself. I'm finding after 25 years of playing - Fretwork looks more intimidating than it is, and everything else is something I learned in my 7th grade woodworking class.
Pickup swaps can be both worth it or not worth it depending on what pickups you are starting with and what you are swapping in. I have an old Jackson that i swapped in some Duncan JBs and there was hardly any difference since the Jackson pickups were very good quality and designed to be like the JB. My other guitar was a much larger difference.
@@brpadington What ESP did u have? According to my research the current ESP stock pickups should sound the MOST closest to brand name pickups! Better than the Jacksons.
@MaximusAdonicus it's an old ESP V from 2000 or so. I swapped in some Duncan jbs and it sounded about the same. Swapped it to the Gary holt EMGs now it sounds better to me.
@@brpadington Hmm, did they have the ESP Designed pickups already then? I believe the ESP Designed are based on Duncan Designed, which are based on SD JB's, as are probably the Jacksons! That would explain why the swapping didn't have much effect... But above u said there's was a much bigger effect on ur other guitar=ESP?, but now u said they sounded about the same? 🤔
@@MaximusAdonicus I did several pickup swaps. The first was the stock pickups to the JB. Didn't do much but made the guitar sound a little brighter. The swap to EMGs was a big change.
@@thedanksavatron7782 unless it's a Kiesel, Mayones or Suhr I feel any aftermarket pickup like Duncan or Dimarzio will sound better especially if it's a signature model or pickup for Watch, Vai or Petrucci etc you know what to expect
For $1000 or less you can build a guitar that is the equivalent of the best most expensive on the market ! However in some cases you may find a used guitar for around or under $1000 that is just as great as the build or best as a new out on the market today, but this may take some time due to you having to test in person... There are plenty of awesome new and used guitars out there that are under a grand that are worth the wait shopping for... In my opinion!😊
I just got a is-22 7 rr which is an absolute weapon for the money but the Jackson pickups are horrible. Really muddy and super noisey. The model was ideal for me as I didn’t want a 7 banger with a FR trem and with a few little mods it’s got potential to be something killer
The Fishman's sounded better solo, especially with the lower noise floor. In the full mix (which should always be most importent, unless you are just a bedroom player) however, I couldn't really differentiate between the two. I was listening through a decent party-grade speaker with a subwoofer. I would still upgrade the stock pickups on a case-by-case basis though, but not anything near the price of the Fishman's, Bare Knuckle's, or anything in that boutique price range. $100 and under is where I would be comfortable for upgrade options, with Seymour Duncan or EMG being my first choices, with smaller local U.S.A. made brands being considered when affordable. \m/ P.S. - You completely forgot to shootout both pickups against the EMG's in the full mix like you said you would in the first half of the video!
I decided years ago I'd much rather pimp out a decent import with premium hardware and electronics. Then give it a good setup, and you usually end up with something better than you would have, if you dropped a wad of cash on an expensive model. I like to mod deans, schecter, ltd's and epiphones. They have great "bones"😉
I smashed the subscribe button. You have an incredible home studio. Not too big, but not too small. Inspiring for sure. Great video also. Personally, I prefer upgrading cheaper guitars.
Hard to say. If any pickup cheap or expensive is used to imitate a chainsaw you may as well go with the cheap pup. In fact the cheap ones probably introduce extra abrasiveness for the absolute worst (best?) chainsaw effect. If your goal is to play recognizable music, expensive pups don't guarantee a noticeable improvement. It'd be great to be able to try them first. I replaced a stock bridge pup in an epiphone with a $140 Jeff beck pup once. I got burned. No noticeable difference. So I quit with pup upgrades.
i got a used ibanez7321 and here's the thing - the stock pickups are just unplayable they sound like fucking ass (as do most lower end ibanez stock pickups). I had to upgrade immediately - got some SD blackouts. now sure if its your first guitar-likely tone searching is not something you are into yet as you are just figuring the basics, but stock pickups generally leave a lot to desire compared to EMGs, SDs, or Fishman. lucky for u there is sub 500$ guitars all over the board that include these hi end pickups now - which is pretty damn funny that a 400$ LTD can have a 200$ set of pickups in it and still be pretty decent qual
Yes, they all play different and youtube demo make them all sound the same. The jupiter set and yngwie neck are my favorite after market pickups. The evo neck is pretty fun too. Active pickups are lame, the blackwinter set is weird. Ibanez has the best stock pickup imo.
To me, the Fishmans do sound better. My position on Fishman Fluances is that I prefer EMGs. It's not that I dislike the Fishmans, I think they are amazing for clean tones, and are very versatile, but EMGs do the thing I'm looking for. They aren't as refined as Fishmans, but for certain things, there's simply no substitute for the EMGs.
Ive had the same guitar for years an did the same thing to mine lol love the guitar but the stock pickups are very crap I put a Seymour Duncan JB in the bridge and the Jazz in the neck sounds amazing now 👌🏻
Honestly, some good troubleshooting and grounding probably couldve gotten rid of the noise in the stock pickups. Imma go against the grain and say that I liked the sound of the stock pickups in a mix better. They sounded less sterile and had some mass behind them. EDIT: im listening through studio monitors if it makes any difference lol.
Same for me. There's some weird mid-honk in the Moderns that I just can't dig. I have them in 2 guitars and really want to swap them out. I like the Abasi and the Will Adler a lot better. They seem fuller and more organic and don't sound as anemic
I prefer EMGs. The Fishmans are great technology though, and they can be voiced any way Fishman decides to voice them. Thats why one may want to take a good look at the signature model Fishmans, because certain artists (like Devin Townsend) really know there stuff, and will have worked with Fishman to get what they are after, and not in the old trial and error until it's "good enough" way that signature pickups used to be made, but a fairly precise snd repeatable process. However EMGs are the gold standard when it comes to high gain guitar tones. I say this as someone who's been strictly on passive pickups for 20 years. Actives are better for high gain, there's no two ways about it. No matter how hard you try, you'll never get passive to be ad quite, or as high output as actives, nor will they have as wide or flat a frequency response. And passive will never be as tweakable. Another thing, no more ground wire to your bridge giving you shocks, no more opening up the noise when you let go of the strings, no more worries about long cables or effects chains. In so many ways, actives are just superior technology. I feel like there needs to be a reason not to have actives at this point. Like if you want authentic vintage tones, or something. Even then, David Gilmore and Steve Lukather got great tones from EMGs.
If you're listening really hard, especially in a mix, you can hear a slight difference. There's tonal differences between the two. However, when you're listening to that mix and you turn your head away and focus on anything else, the switch between the two disappears. If you want to hear the difference, you will. However, in the overall scheme of things, no one but the guy intently listening for the A/B differences is going to hear anything. BOTH, sound great in a mix and no one would listen to the song without knowing what pickup it was and say, "Dude, that guitar pickup sucks balls. You should probably use a Fishman". Another thing is that the guitar is mid-level guitar which will have decent pickups. What's a Jackson JS32, a sub $400 guitar, with a pickup replacement going to sound like?
They sounded pretty much the same......just as I have a Duncan Pegasus 8 on the way fron Amazon to replace my stock rg8 bridge pickup 😂 🤷♂️ 🤷🏽♂️ 🤦🏻♂️
Nissssssssssssssssssce🤘🏻 I been wanting to upgrade my ibanez7 . Stock pups ain't cutting it so I put a nagül in it but I think it sounds worse! Active seems to be the clearer & crisper route to go. Keep on keeping on brother🍻
Really? Glad I didnt go that route then. TBH I was going to go passive, but I get asked about the Fishmans all the time, so I thought I'd check them out
I just got a new guitar with a set of fishmans on it yesterday, and the sticker was a HUGE PAIN in the ass to get off, left a bunch of glue on the pickup. Took FOREVER to get off... Did you have the same issue? So dumb dude... 🤦♂️
I would say if your just going to put fishmans or emgs in it then I'd say it's not worth it. if ur going to put dimarzios or bare knuckles and upgrade the electronics as well then yeah id say it's worth it. active pickups are just far too sterile sounding to Me to be worth the effort involved. also from the amount of noise coming from the guitar before u changed the pickups It sounds less like a pickup issue and more like you had a grounding problem which could've been fixed by rewiring the guitar and upgrading the electronics to better quality.
if you have a guitar with a great neck hell yea mod the shit out of it !! pots ,caps.pickups , bridge , nut, tuners and it will sound and play like a 2k guitar
I guess I'm an idiot, cuz I buy expensive guitars, and still swap out parts and mod them. Lol. I've only seen a few guitars that were spec'd out the way I want, and played great. I just wasn't in a position to purchase them. So... I've always had to buy guitars that are "close" to what I want, and then modding them. :(
We "hear" the difference with our eyes more than our ears. The mere knowledge that we just spent over $100 on a new pickup is enough for us to think the amp sounds better. Swap out that crappy speaker for a high quality one and you'll immediately get a fuller, richer tone.
Thanks so much for all the feedback guys! The bridge video will be coming SOON. Probably next week, since it arrived this weekend. Also, let me know what you want to see in the Fishman video!! 👀
This video is such great timing, I'm actually looking at picking up the exact same guitar and upgrading it, might go for EMG pickups rather though... Looking forward to the bridge video 🤘
I usually buy budget and mod. Mostly because I like variety, and regularly use alternate tunings. I am also notoriously rough on my gear, so a high end axe isn't really practical for me personally. I'm no metal guy, mostly stoner rock, punk and hardcore, and I've overall been more than pleased with Squier's quality control over the past few years as I currently own 4. A Jaguar Bass, two Affinity Jazzmasters, and the new Baritone Tele.
I also own an Agile LP with custom hand made pups, a Firefly P90 junior, and recently got one of those Green P90 Epiphone SG's. The factory fret job on that SG however left much to be desired IMO. Right out of the box? I will always upgrade the tuning machines. No question. I will also ditch any plastic nuts pronto if the guitar has one. After that? It's really just a matter of getting comfortable with the guitar and deciding whether better pickups are worth it. Sometimes just some good old copper shielding tape, capacitors, and beefier pots are all that's required, and I usually have most of that stuff on hand tucked away somewhere.
Nice content Taylor.
Keep up the good work!
I wanna see the Alnico pickup in the bridge position 😁
There's no way you just played "Black Malicious Lie". I love you ❤️
@@SEPULCH3R haha yeah dude, I played in AM for a while lol.
Nice video. Thanks for the comparison. Both pickups sounded almost the same. The stock pickups were actually brighter. If I was playing on stage, the audience wouldn't notice any difference. As you mentioned and you are correct that replacing pickups can give a good 'feeling' but in reality it is just a few $$$'s flying off the pocket. Stock pickup's from notable brands like Ibanez and Jackson have gone through significant R&D over the years and what comes as stock pickups are pretty good and stage worthy. It is just a recent hype where ""Hey have you upgraded your pickups to EMG's etc yet?"" etc etc.
If you're playing Jazz, then a pickup swap would probably matter, but for high gain, you'll be better off shielding your guitar to eliminate hum, and then swap out your tired, old speakers for quality ones.
A pickup swap can be 100% warranted on cheaper models. The pickups on the GRG7221 are straight from the trash, for instance.
This isn't much of a budget guitar, it's a mid budget guitar. There the pickups might be better considered, but there's a bunch of pickups out there on budget guitars that aren't worth their weight in raw materials.
@@iurigrang My stock Dean pickups sounded as good as the $250 high-end models, but I swapped them for some EMG look-alikes fro $20 a piece on ebay. Best sounding pickups my eyes have ever seen! In short, just buy a pickup if it loolks good on your axe, because at high gain, all pickups sound identical anyway.
I've got that same ibanez for 5 years and I've installed a fishman fluence modern with 3 voices set over a week ago, the change was huge compared to the stock pickups, and it was definitely worth it
First we need to talk about your riffs - there's some really nice riffs here! I especially liked that second playthrough riff, it's a perfect blend of things, could even hear an accompanying drumtrack in my head. Now the title, Fishman tighten up the tone in the best possible ways and I think if a guitar feels good to play (neck and frets) and doesn't have tuning stability issues, better pickups than stock are worth it. And for guitar projects, if you're a tinkerer, it's going to feel good when you upgrade stuff yourself. Looking forward to Hipshot video, I'm eyeing some cheap 7 strings.
Daniel with a J! Thanks dude. I don't play 7 strings that often anymore so I had to reach way down in my memory bank to come up with some riffs 😂 Hipshot video INCOMING!!
I've always swapped the crappy zinc saddles on those types of bridges with either brass or stainless steel. As far as the saddle height adjustment screws, I've always taken them out one at a time and shortened them by grinding them from the bottom up on a bench grinder until they were flush with the top of the saddles.
Best bridge I've ever used was a roller type. Combined with a Tusq and good Grovers, I never go out of tune, because of almost zero friction between the tuners and the bridge. Plus a roller is so comfortable to play.
Putting some seymour duncan invader pickups in my old washburn was one of the best things i did. Still love the sound a decade on🤙🤙
I did almost same - I've put dimarzio D Sonic in my old washburn, and saw 0 difference))
I think you can get away with either. I will say, it's nice to be able to buy a guitar with the features that you want. My Mick Thomson Jackson is a pretty good example. Things like Reverb can also blur the lines a bit closer. The Jackson I just mentioned was available for a third of the price than MSRP from a reseller who got that guitar as an overstock.
The best thing about the Fishman Fluence modern pickups are it’s multiple voicings if you ask me. I’m able to get completely different tones out of whatever voicing I’m using, especially since Voice 2 gives me that classic Passive feel that I love and have loved ever since I started playing over 5 years ago. Voice 1 is perfect because I can play straight into an amplifier without the need of an overdrive in front of the amp, but just in case I want to play with an overdrive in front I always have voice 2 readily available!
I prefer the crunchier tone of the passives and would’ve favoured the Blackwinters, however, I noted in many of your videos that you do your best work with active pickups, so the Fishmans are the best option to keep you motivated and engaged with your playing. Also, active pickups are definitely quieter in general.
As for the central question within the video. A decent but affordable guitar with a good pickup upgrade is preferable to the prospects of getting an expensive guitar with generally higher quality electronics.
Dude hell ya. Great video man. I love vids like this. I just had black winters put in my 2008 ibanez prestige its a whole differnet animal now lol. Keep up the great work man. I like the sacrificer merch too looks dope will have to pick something up.
I have an rg6003. Stock pickups were muddy AF. Immediately got a DiMarzio super distortion for the bridge. Cleaned up a lot, just not like I was looking for. Bought a set of Dragonfire Crusaders for the same price as the SD single pickup. That was the sound.
On DiMarzio's site, every pickup has an EQ listing, so you should be able to find the exact sound you want with ease, if you know what you're looking for in the first place.
Amazing demo dude, the stock pickups sounded pretty good!!
I concur. Not as big a shift in tone that $250 should provide.
The stock Ibanez pickup for this guitar is AH2-7, which is similar to a Dimarzio Tone Zone or a SD JB/Invader. Comparing these pickups with actives on a patch that's created for EMGs(active themselves) is not a pretty fair comparison. If you want to compare actives with passives, try a SD Nazgul + Sentient set for 7 string guitars. I've changed the bridge pickup in my main guitar from a stock to a JB, then from the JB to a Nazgul. The jump from JB to Nazgul came with a much tighter low end. The JB was waaay looser in the low end than the Nazgul. I think that for a passive pickup, it doesn't get much tighter than a Nazgul.
would you do a stock rg 7321 or a Ibanez GRG7221M
Now I know good and well you're not using that pod hd 500 rack mount you have turned on in the background!! Not when you have that Axe fx III am I right? Do you just turn it on for looks or what?
Damn, you've found me out! ALL my demos are actually through the POD HD, It's a scam!!!! 😂
Nah, it's just there for lights. I'll replace it with something that has a purpose one day.
Those grub screws on the bridge can be shortened till flush with the saddle. You can also buy a different length. Just shorten them from the bottom, otherwise you end up with almost no hole for the allen key (happened to me once)
I've got such specific specs I had a guy build me my dream guitar. I'd never look back.
i just buy expensive guitars to downgrade them
Smart af bro
I’m new to the channel. Making my way through some of the older videos. I’ve been upgrading my rg7421pb
You can hate me now but I liked the stock pick ups better in the mix. But the difference is suttle, I bet you could achieve the same effect by playing with the cab section. I would always start at the cab and save the pic ups as last resort. It's the most complex change with the least return on investment.
Lol, no hate for having an opinion, that's your right!
Great video! I agree with others. I would love to see this series extend in to replacing tuners. Maybe changing the nut as well.
Keep killin' it!
Are those RG 7321 good for more advanced players? I found one with a pair of Dimarzio for sale but never played one, would you recommend it?
Hi Taylor! Pardon my ignorance, but where did you put the battery for the Fishman's?
Hey dude, I forgot to show that part! There's barely enough room to put it in the cavity with the tone and volume knob.
With most guitars, not really. I have a Harley Benton LP clone where a pickup swap made a HUGE difference though.
Yeah. Funny thing is I have seen pickups from 17 to 300 USD which, depending on the axe destroyed the ones that came with it. I figure this unless your guitar cost 4 grand, or more, the company is going to scrimp on something and electronics is a good place to hit, along with the wood types. If my guitar from Ibanez cost 300 USD then what would happen if I spent 300 on new pickups? I bet you that starting around the 50-100 USD mark for new pickups they would begin to blow away the stock ones.
@@generalawareness101 Also complicating the situation is there are high-quality clones coming out of China. I blame Seymour Duncan for sending his pickup designs over there to create Duncan Designed pickups. The pickups I put in my Benton are clones of the JB and Jazz, and they sound extremely similar.
@@TheRosswise I love them Chinese clones. Affordable and sound amazing.
@@TheRosswise Yep, hence my 17 USD I mentioned as they were fantastic sounding. For under 60 USD you can get a full set of Dragon fire pickups (various kinds) that blows away the originals of most name brand guitars.
I have one of these, too, lol. I got mine when I was in middle school, back in like 2002 or 2003. Pickups on mine have a crunchy mid range and flubby/loose low end, as well.
Also what do you think of the diezel v44 preamp pedal? If you get it can you compare it to the what ever mooer modeler you kept (if you have them all I guess pick your favorite one) if I had to tell you which one maybe the ge300 or the preamp live.
Love the video! I just got an Ibanez 10th anniversary RG1421 and am loving it. That being said i was wondering if changing pickups to the Fishmans was something that would give me a hard sound. I’m a novice when it comes to a change like this so any recommendations or advice would be greatly appreciated!
Save your money for better cab speakers. Trust me, that will do your sound more justice than new pickups. You have to understand the science of sound, like the purpose of a pickup and how they affect sound as well as speakers for the same reason.
Stainless steel frets make a big difference? Seems like I can only find those on high up axes.
I think the biggest difference they make is supposedly they don't wear, so you don't ever have to replace them. I have them on my solar, and I don't really notice a difference between them and my other guitars... I think I notice a bigger difference in the feel of an ebony neck and a rosewood neck personally
@@TaylorDanley interesting
Short answer....Yes !
Long answer....Yes!
Installing a better bridge and nut is a wiser choice than new pickups. About the noise, that's what the noise gate was made for. While you're at it, new tuners make a big difference in playability as well, when combined with a quality nut and bridge. Still, speakers make the biggest difference in tone, IMO.
Haha about time you gave the Fishman’s a shot. Did you use the passive or active voicing? I actually have been digging the passive voice with the fatter low end. But yeah they sound and feel really great and having the those tone options with different amps is sweet. 🔥🔥🔥
Well, here's the thing. On the bridge I use the knob in, which should be active, but by comparison it sounds like the passive voicing... although I can hardly tell when I'm playing with any high gain amp. But the neck, 100% prefer the sound of the active voicing.
@@TaylorDanley I hear you the down position the active setting has a noticeable jump in signal when I’m plugged straight into an interface then the passive voicing and lower output but a fatter sounding chug. Damn near a bass boost.
@@TaylorDanley the active setting has less of the low end and should sound more balanced.
@@TaylorDanley just wondering if it got wired backwards maybe? I know I sure as hell couldn’t read the different wiring diagrams. I need the one volume, one tone so I had a friend do as well. Lol
Dude, I literally picked up an ibanez rg7321 yesterday. It had duncan Pegasus set, and sperzel locking tuners on it. Got it for $140. It is banged up, so I am going to sand and repaint it maybe purple. It was a complete cob job. Only about 50 pounds of solder was used.
Nice! That's a good deal!
@@TaylorDanley You ever attempt to strip and repaint a guitar?
I would only mod to fix a problem, but the basic spec should be ballpark what you want. Think about resale too
I have the exactly the same 🎸 & I want to change the pickups in it badly. The stock pickups sound like 💩
Yeah bro I have the same guitar and I'm gonna upgrade hipshot bridge and fishmans I don't really like emgs I prefer Seymour duncan blackouts. But I'm happy with it it's a great guitar I got for a steal cool video man helps alot
I've got me an rg and I couldn't stand my stock pickups. So I debated long and hard which pickups to get and I got Seymour Duncans sh6's aaaand they are awesome. But now I'm gonna trade them for JBs cuz damn those are gorgeous sounding
Yeah, JBs are like the gold standard for rock/metal IMO
@@TaylorDanley yeah! They're just so well rounded with tone and have a very nice breakup
Just the fact that they have lower noise would make it better for live applications, but $240 is pretty expensive. Looks and sounds great for sure.
@Varity Topic I have built a few warmoth strats myself since I made this comment, and you’re absolutely right, proper cavity shielding has made my Seymour Duncan’s as quiet as can be.
Yeah, it sounds great, but not $240 great. The stock PUs, even though noisier was very similar in tone and dynamics. Noise gates were made for a reason.
Hey Man! I've had this same guitar with for the last 20 years with me, my dad gave it to me back in 2003 for my 15th birthday, and after all these years I just came across with replacing the pickups and looking for some info about it I found your video here on TH-cam, and this just me finally decided to do it. It's funny 'cause even though I love the sound of this guitar and how cool and badass it looks all back with its seven strings, that noise coming from the original pickups always made me feel uncomfortable playing it, specially going deep into the gain and distortion, so yeah ...thanks for your video. Next thing I'll do would be replacing the bridge, I also agree with you on that. Anyway, greetings from Mexico City.
Get that thing a gigbag. She deserves it. Cool video
Also, also! Unless your older videos handle this, can you do a tone tutorial of how to make a good deathcore tone. Yours is perfect! Gear that are needed, setup if it matters. And what ever american me is considered (hardcore/deathcore) haven't heard them in a while. I'll go listen to them for a bit.
I haven't done a tone video in a while, but TBH the majority of my videos where I check something out and dial in a tone, I'm going to probably get to my normal rhythm tone, within like a 10% margin. I can't help it, I just know the sound I like and usually try to dial in gear to that preference.
Most decent Pups can be made to sound really good with a Top Line EQ Pedal !! Couldn't live without one ? Boss as almost always is the go to !!!!! Got to pay for Quality !!!!!!!!
Cool video. Fishman seems to sound better.
Personnaly, I am totally a guy which prefer to buy 2 or 3 guitars and change pickups if needed, than buy only 1 expensive.
To have different sounds, different tunings, different using of course.
And it's cool to have a guitar collection also 😎
So your tones differ per pickup? Or do you just plug in and play? I'm finally replacing my blackouts in my 8. Ordered some bareknuckle juggernauts. ($500!!!) My wife was pissed bc I said $350. And she said no its fricken $430. And I was like oh... 350... euros... but it'll be about $500 with installation from a luthier in town.
Think the most important thing to upgrade is technique , upgrading parts is rather a matter of taste and opinion.
I just put a set of fishman in my PRS. It was quite a task. But not that complicated. The sound? OMG. Changing most of my guitars to fishman modern.
Very good 👍 i am install Dimarzio x2n7+D Activator neck
Definitely do a fishman video. So many voices. So many combinations. It’s amazing! Inspiring!
My guitars are in the 300-450 price range and both are upgraded with emg/dimarzio pick ups, worth every penny if you ask me. I would always go with a cheaper guitar and upgrade it.
12:29 - I "think" the stock PUs bring more video noise to B-rolls compared to the amount with actives ;)
That's another thing to consider if you're an active youtuber
😂 touche
Per Nilsson (Scar Symmetry) never changed the Stock Pickups from his Ibanez's, he played the first four Albums with Ibanez Stock Pickups, and listen to those Tones he produced 🔥🎸🔥
Wow so I don't need an active pickup guitar to use Fishmans??
Where can I get that VH4 profile? DAMN I gotz the axe-fx iii, and I need that tone in life, breh.
Maybe just change the amp settings to suit your pickups!?
In the mix the difference is nominal with this amount of gain, Fishman still sound better. Cool vid.
The fishman sound great. I have 2 Ibanez exactly the same and may consider a swap as well. Cheers🤘🏻
With that guitar I would have just put in some Dragonfire screamers. You get a comparable tone to a Duncan distortion set at a much lower price than $240 for the Fishmans.
I used to be all about getting a cheap guitar that plays well and putting nice pickups and upgrades on it later. But that was when I had less money. Now I would rather buy a guitar that has everything I want on it like a Schecter Banshee Mach 7 or KM7 MKii black pearl.
I wouldn't be putting Fishmans in a SUPER cheap guitar (like something you would get for 100-200 bucks), because those are really expensive and there's way more affordable ways to upgrade PUs. But I definitely think that swapping stock, non-brand PUs for something better will improve your guitar a lot. Definitely worth it. I actually have an Ibanez RG7321 too which I upgraded with DiMarzio Evolutions and it's made a world of difference.
Personally I'm not getting any 1000 bucks guitars anymore. Kind of not worth it. I prefer getting a really nice mid-range guitar and further tailoring it to my needs. I like experimenting with PUs and get a kick out of trying out stuff. All my guitars have different aftermarket DiMarzios and EMGs in them. I also enjoy doing fun projects like modding and improving dirt cheap instruments like some of the low tier Harley Bentons and I ended up keeping some of them because I really enjoyed what I was able to get out of them after changing PUs and electronics, in some cases upgrading the hardware, touching up the frets, doing a good setup etc.
Recently upgraded the pickups in in old Westfield E4500 to some emg’s. I loved the guitars playability but the sound just wasn’t right.. perfect now though!
(Moral of the story is I’d sooner buy a more budget guitar and upgrade) 🤟🏻
Personally, I could give a fuck about resale value, which tends to drive most gear people, so I always buy a guitar I think looks mostly the way I prefer and is also below my gear price cap. Then at the very least, I will swap the pickups, but sometimes more.
The difference between the two is certainly there, but with the full mix (as with most things) the differences get kind of lost or could be adjusted with EQ (at least to my ear). The noise is probably the most glaring difference, but it didn't bother me at all.
Would I have done THIS particular swap? Nah. WAY too much money for the sound difference, but I think most pickups are overpriced, so my opinion is a definite minority.
Rabble rabble rabble, blah blah blah.
Almost always best to upgrade pickups. I even upgrade the pickups in my Gibson’s.
Oooookay I see you playing that American Me riff 🤘🏼🤘🏼
I have a squire strat and the bridge pickup was just not doing it for the type of rig I was using/still am using and for the style of music I play. Saved up like $100 and got me a Seymour Duncan hot rails and it changed everything along with a nice OD
I do enjoy the SD hotrails! Nice.
Wow, I thought I won’t hear any difference other than less noise (because I’m listening on phone speakers at the moment) but it is a HUGE difference. Definitely the new pickups sounds tighter and more lively. I’ll also add to the discussion of buying vs modding is that an instrument that came stock with the features you want will have a higher resell value than other you mod.
Night and day difference in the quality of tones. The fishman just sound way better.
The upgrading question... It pays to know how to do them yourself.
I'm finding after 25 years of playing - Fretwork looks more intimidating than it is, and everything else is something I learned in my 7th grade woodworking class.
If people like a more mid range pickup then I’d try out the Reyes fishmans.
Pickup swaps can be both worth it or not worth it depending on what pickups you are starting with and what you are swapping in. I have an old Jackson that i swapped in some Duncan JBs and there was hardly any difference since the Jackson pickups were very good quality and designed to be like the JB. My other guitar was a much larger difference.
@Varity Topic The Jackson ones sound great. My ESP guitar benefits a lot more from a swap.
@@brpadington What ESP did u have? According to my research the current ESP stock pickups should sound the MOST closest to brand name pickups! Better than the Jacksons.
@MaximusAdonicus it's an old ESP V from 2000 or so. I swapped in some Duncan jbs and it sounded about the same. Swapped it to the Gary holt EMGs now it sounds better to me.
@@brpadington Hmm, did they have the ESP Designed pickups already then? I believe the ESP Designed are based on Duncan Designed, which are based on SD JB's, as are probably the Jacksons! That would explain why the swapping didn't have much effect... But above u said there's was a much bigger effect on ur other guitar=ESP?, but now u said they sounded about the same? 🤔
@@MaximusAdonicus I did several pickup swaps. The first was the stock pickups to the JB. Didn't do much but made the guitar sound a little brighter. The swap to EMGs was a big change.
VERY HELPFULL
Not if you got the Ibanez Quantums. They're fantastic! I just can't see a reason to replace them.
Unless it's a custom shop guitar, I always upgrade stock pickups! Imo Dimarzio beats any stock pickup.
Stock in house pickups rarely make the cut!
@@thedanksavatron7782 unless it's a Kiesel, Mayones or Suhr I feel any aftermarket pickup like Duncan or Dimarzio will sound better especially if it's a signature model or pickup for Watch, Vai or Petrucci etc you know what to expect
Those pickups sound absolutely fantastic! 🤘🏻😎
What a fucking banger
For $1000 or less you can build a guitar that is the equivalent of the best most expensive on the market !
However in some cases you may find a used guitar for around or under $1000 that is just as great as the build or best as a new out on the market today, but this may take some time due to you having to test in person...
There are plenty of awesome new and used guitars out there that are under a grand that are worth the wait shopping for... In my opinion!😊
I just got a is-22 7 rr which is an absolute weapon for the money but the Jackson pickups are horrible. Really muddy and super noisey. The model was ideal for me as I didn’t want a 7 banger with a FR trem and with a few little mods it’s got potential to be something killer
The Fishman's sounded better solo, especially with the lower noise floor. In the full mix (which should always be most importent, unless you are just a bedroom player) however, I couldn't really differentiate between the two. I was listening through a decent party-grade speaker with a subwoofer. I would still upgrade the stock pickups on a case-by-case basis though, but not anything near the price of the Fishman's, Bare Knuckle's, or anything in that boutique price range. $100 and under is where I would be comfortable for upgrade options, with Seymour Duncan or EMG being my first choices, with smaller local U.S.A. made brands being considered when affordable. \m/
P.S. - You completely forgot to shootout both pickups against the EMG's in the full mix like you said you would in the first half of the video!
I decided years ago I'd much rather pimp out a decent import with premium hardware and electronics. Then give it a good setup, and you usually end up with something better than you would have, if you dropped a wad of cash on an expensive model. I like to mod deans, schecter, ltd's and epiphones. They have great "bones"😉
I smashed the subscribe button. You have an incredible home studio. Not too big, but not too small. Inspiring for sure. Great video also. Personally, I prefer upgrading cheaper guitars.
Thanks for the sub!
Hard to say. If any pickup cheap or expensive is used to imitate a chainsaw you may as well go with the cheap pup. In fact the cheap ones probably introduce extra abrasiveness for the absolute worst (best?) chainsaw effect. If your goal is to play recognizable music, expensive pups don't guarantee a noticeable improvement. It'd be great to be able to try them first. I replaced a stock bridge pup in an epiphone with a $140 Jeff beck pup once. I got burned. No noticeable difference. So I quit with pup upgrades.
They both sound amazing but I would have to say I like the fluence more
i got a used ibanez7321 and here's the thing - the stock pickups are just unplayable they sound like fucking ass (as do most lower end ibanez stock pickups). I had to upgrade immediately - got some SD blackouts. now sure if its your first guitar-likely tone searching is not something you are into yet as you are just figuring the basics, but stock pickups generally leave a lot to desire compared to EMGs, SDs, or Fishman. lucky for u there is sub 500$ guitars all over the board that include these hi end pickups now - which is pretty damn funny that a 400$ LTD can have a 200$ set of pickups in it and still be pretty decent qual
Yes, they all play different and youtube demo make them all sound the same. The jupiter set and yngwie neck are my favorite after market pickups. The evo neck is pretty fun too. Active pickups are lame, the blackwinter set is weird.
Ibanez has the best stock pickup imo.
not much of a diff tbh but im swapping my stock ibby pickups for some seymour duncan invaders
To me, the Fishmans do sound better. My position on Fishman Fluances is that I prefer EMGs. It's not that I dislike the Fishmans, I think they are amazing for clean tones, and are very versatile, but EMGs do the thing I'm looking for. They aren't as refined as Fishmans, but for certain things, there's simply no substitute for the EMGs.
Oh yeah. I totally forgot about routing when I replied on chug life. Fuckin Ibanez routes.
😂 it made for a good slow mo shot
Is that all your dead skin scraped off from those bolts at 01:30?
I want that fucking song dude
yes, just.....yes!
Ive had the same guitar for years an did the same thing to mine lol love the guitar but the stock pickups are very crap I put a Seymour Duncan JB in the bridge and the Jazz in the neck sounds amazing now 👌🏻
Honestly, some good troubleshooting and grounding probably couldve gotten rid of the noise in the stock pickups. Imma go against the grain and say that I liked the sound of the stock pickups in a mix better. They sounded less sterile and had some mass behind them. EDIT: im listening through studio monitors if it makes any difference lol.
Same for me. There's some weird mid-honk in the Moderns that I just can't dig. I have them in 2 guitars and really want to swap them out.
I like the Abasi and the Will Adler a lot better. They seem fuller and more organic and don't sound as anemic
I prefer EMGs. The Fishmans are great technology though, and they can be voiced any way Fishman decides to voice them. Thats why one may want to take a good look at the signature model Fishmans, because certain artists (like Devin Townsend) really know there stuff, and will have worked with Fishman to get what they are after, and not in the old trial and error until it's "good enough" way that signature pickups used to be made, but a fairly precise snd repeatable process.
However EMGs are the gold standard when it comes to high gain guitar tones. I say this as someone who's been strictly on passive pickups for 20 years. Actives are better for high gain, there's no two ways about it. No matter how hard you try, you'll never get passive to be ad quite, or as high output as actives, nor will they have as wide or flat a frequency response. And passive will never be as tweakable.
Another thing, no more ground wire to your bridge giving you shocks, no more opening up the noise when you let go of the strings, no more worries about long cables or effects chains. In so many ways, actives are just superior technology.
I feel like there needs to be a reason not to have actives at this point. Like if you want authentic vintage tones, or something. Even then, David Gilmore and Steve Lukather got great tones from EMGs.
I Think now that the EMG's will meet the Hammer
LOL
If you're listening really hard, especially in a mix, you can hear a slight difference. There's tonal differences between the two. However, when you're listening to that mix and you turn your head away and focus on anything else, the switch between the two disappears. If you want to hear the difference, you will. However, in the overall scheme of things, no one but the guy intently listening for the A/B differences is going to hear anything. BOTH, sound great in a mix and no one would listen to the song without knowing what pickup it was and say, "Dude, that guitar pickup sucks balls. You should probably use a Fishman". Another thing is that the guitar is mid-level guitar which will have decent pickups. What's a Jackson JS32, a sub $400 guitar, with a pickup replacement going to sound like?
I love changing the pickups however I wouldn't use pickups that cost more than the guitar itself. There are decent budget solutions.
They sounded pretty much the same......just as I have a Duncan Pegasus 8 on the way fron Amazon to replace my stock rg8 bridge pickup 😂 🤷♂️ 🤷🏽♂️ 🤦🏻♂️
Nissssssssssssssssssce🤘🏻
I been wanting to upgrade my ibanez7 . Stock pups ain't cutting it so I put a nagül in it but I think it sounds worse! Active seems to be the clearer & crisper route to go.
Keep on keeping on brother🍻
Really? Glad I didnt go that route then. TBH I was going to go passive, but I get asked about the Fishmans all the time, so I thought I'd check them out
I just got a new guitar with a set of fishmans on it yesterday, and the sticker was a HUGE PAIN in the ass to get off, left a bunch of glue on the pickup. Took FOREVER to get off... Did you have the same issue? So dumb dude... 🤦♂️
I would say if your just going to put fishmans or emgs in it then I'd say it's not worth it. if ur going to put dimarzios or bare knuckles and upgrade the electronics as well then yeah id say it's worth it. active pickups are just far too sterile sounding to Me to be worth the effort involved. also from the amount of noise coming from the guitar before u changed the pickups It sounds less like a pickup issue and more like you had a grounding problem which could've been fixed by rewiring the guitar and upgrading the electronics to better quality.
if you have a guitar with a great neck hell yea mod the shit out of it !! pots ,caps.pickups , bridge , nut, tuners and it will sound and play like a 2k guitar
you didnt de noisegate after lmao
I guess I'm an idiot, cuz I buy expensive guitars, and still swap out parts and mod them. Lol. I've only seen a few guitars that were spec'd out the way I want, and played great. I just wasn't in a position to purchase them. So... I've always had to buy guitars that are "close" to what I want, and then modding them. :(
We "hear" the difference with our eyes more than our ears. The mere knowledge that we just spent over $100 on a new pickup is enough for us to think the amp sounds better. Swap out that crappy speaker for a high quality one and you'll immediately get a fuller, richer tone.
Dude once you go fish, you never go black, jack. 🤣 If you play your cards right.