High Order Sound Clips

Zoso · Post by **Zoso** » Wed May 25, 2005 7:06 pm

OK, here are the High Order and Duncan '59 soundclips. I did one clip of each, bridge and neck, full volume and volume on about 6 on the guitar, and one each of the middle position. On the full volume ones, I strummed some chords with different attacks, to see how well the PU's responded to attack. I put on brand new strings, stretched them out as best I could, recorded the Duncan clips, and then loosened the tailpiece, swapped out the pickups for the High Orders, retuned it and recorded the clips for the HO's. So both sets were done with new strings, and the recording setup wasn't touched in between. Then amp settings were (1976 50 watt non-mv)

Presence-4
Bass-5
Middle-10
Treble-8
Vol I -6
Vol II -NA

Greenbacks miced with an SM57 into Cakewalk Sonar. As I said before, the amp settings weren't ideal for the HO's, but I left them the same for continuity. Also, I usually use a TMB to drive the amp a little more, but I didn't want anything else in the signal path. So these aren't the highest gain clips, but they get the job done. I don't really play with much more gain than this anyway, so it's no big deal. I love the clarity the HO's have brought me, perfect for my style and preferred tone. Anyway, all the usual disclaimers, left in mistakes, recorded in one take, blah blah. Enjoy.

http://www.soundclick.com/bands/6/shaneallen_music.htm

JasonC · Post by **JasonC** » Wed May 25, 2005 8:09 pm

Those HO's sound great! Like you already said, they have a really nice top.

And I'm stoked because my wife called me earlier and mentioned that my HO's got here today!

Don't worry though, those Duncan's will be right at home in that LP studio I bought them for.

Jason

Necrovore · Post by **Necrovore** » Wed May 25, 2005 10:08 pm

Sounds really good. The HO pickups have more sparkle to the recordings. I would really like to hear some clips of these used with a bunch of gain in the signal, this would sway my decision on whether or not I plan on buying a set.

Zoso · Post by **Zoso** » Thu May 26, 2005 12:09 am

JasonC wrote:Those HO's sound great! Like you already said, they have a really nice top.

And I'm stoked because my wife called me earlier and mentioned that my HO's got here today!

Don't worry though, those Duncan's will be right at home in that LP studio I bought them for.

Jason

Yes, like I said before, I think that they will be well suited for that guitar. The Duncan's are not bad sounding PU's at all, I just think the HO's are closer to the vintage sound I like. I may try to make some more clips of the HO's with my current settings and with the TMB.
Necrovore, I would be more than happy to make some high gain clips, but I can't promise very good playing since that isn't my style. But I could probably at least give you an idea of how they would sound.

Necrovore · Post by **Necrovore** » Thu May 26, 2005 12:54 am

Thanks man that would be most excellent. Maybe a high gain version of the Immigrant Song

I just want to hear what these pickups sound like with some gain behind them. 2203 level gain would be cool if at all possible.

Zoso · Post by **Zoso** » Thu May 26, 2005 3:17 am

I can put the Marshall on ten and then use the clean side of the TMB to drive it more, that should get some decent gain. I also have a SD-1 that, despite what people say, I think sounds great boosting a Marshall. I'll give those a go and see what I can do.

gnugear · Post by **gnugear** » Thu May 26, 2005 2:55 pm

Oh man, I need more details. What winding did you get and what magnet? I'm replacing the exact same pickup with a 8.3k alnico III.

I'm on crappy speakers right now, but the Hi Order has a lot more presence ... I think I like the '59 better.

Billy Batz · Post by **Billy Batz** » Thu May 26, 2005 4:28 pm

Im a bit removed from everyone else here. I hated the 59. It just seemed extremely flat to me. Id used PAF Pros for a long time then after playing a late 60's 335 with real zebra PAFs installed I thought that was by a huge margin the best sounding guitar Id ever played. I always thought PAFs were about the blues/jazz or 'Allman' thing which I was never into then I realized with a REAL guitar, a PAF couldnt be beat. Less gain but more tone. The thing was just so deatailed, articulate and musical. Dynamic, raw/earthy you name the cliche it was that! Ive been on a looong PAF hunt ever since. Then I realized less gain in that setup = more dynamics clarity cut and definition and even punch which you have to be a better player to handle. I dont need the exact tone (the 335 was a little too tubby or bouncy on the low end by nature I guess) but anything even close would be wonderful. I started with the 59 which I knew wasnt cutting it after a week. Took it out of my 78 and put it in my epi where it still is. Then I tried a series of other SDs and custom shops. Kept getting better. Seth Lovers are pretty cool. Then Fralins which is what I use now. SD always seem a little 'too much' even the PAF clones seem like they want to be high gain if that makes sense. Havent done the DiMarzio thing as much. They seem to aim for that old-meets-space-age thing with Vai and Satch and the AIRs etc.. teamed up with ibanezs. I was about to get a set of crossroads or burstbuckers then I was swayed by the HO thread. And the price. C'mon! I cant wait to try em out. I hope this month goes by quickly.

gnugear · Post by **gnugear** » Thu May 26, 2005 5:07 pm

Yeah, I can't wait to hear the reports from others that have ordered them. I know John (soZo) got one to compare dircectly with his Voodoo '59. That's the one I'm most interested in because it was my next pickup to try.

Zoso · Post by **Zoso** » Thu May 26, 2005 5:22 pm

I got an 8.3k A5 for the bridge and a 7.6k A3 for the neck.

I totally agree, Dan. These pickups have a little less gain than the Duncans, (which I still don't hate) but the clarity and sustain is so much better. IMO, the notes sing and there is no comparison in the neck position. It finally makes the neck PU usable, as far as I'm concerned. For the first time, I feel I'm finally getting to hear what my amp sounds like. I can actually hear the extra bite of the treble channel and dial in as much as I need, and was even able to use the normal channel without it turning to mud. Plus, I'm able to use the volume control on the guitar. Those clips were made with no bright cap on the volume controls, and I thought the HO's cleaned up nicely. I'm going to make some more clips with different gain settings, but so far these HO's really maintain their clarity at different levels of gain, that I've tried at least. Plus, I'm sure what Jeff at HO says is true, and his higher wound PU's give more wallop without losing definition. So I think he has all the bases covered, for whatever style. I just know for me, this is the tone I've been hearing in my head, and what more can you ask for?

Zoso · Post by **Zoso** » Thu May 26, 2005 5:28 pm

gnugear wrote: I'm on crappy speakers right now, but the Hi Order has a lot more presence ... I think I like the '59 better.

Also, keep in mind what I said about not changing the amp setings between pickups. I had the mids dimed and the treble almost dimed, which now that the HO's have "opened up" the amp for me, I find I don't need that much.

Billy Batz · Post by **Billy Batz** » Thu May 26, 2005 5:28 pm

You got a step lower then me. I was really struggling to decide which to get. The 8k5 or 8k3. Jeff described the 8k5s as a having a little more beef but otherwise the same but stronger obviously. That seems to be perfect for me. I do want to try the lower output. Im thinking if I like then as much as I think Ill get a set of A2 8.3k/7.6k and try them as well.

Billy Batz · Post by **Billy Batz** » Thu May 26, 2005 5:31 pm

Zoso wrote:
gnugear wrote: I'm on crappy speakers right now, but the Hi Order has a lot more presence ... I think I like the '59 better.
Also, keep in mind what I said about not changing the amp setings between pickups. I had the mids dimed and the treble almost dimed, which now that the HO's have "opened up" the amp for me, I find I don't need that much.

Yeah seriously. Having more presence up front only helps you get a stronger bass. You can get the bass higher and punchier without muddying up the tone if the input signal doesnt have a ton of low end from the start to get amplified in the first few stages which only layers on mud.

I wonder if Jeff does single coils? Think. 61 Strat.

Zoso · Post by **Zoso** » Thu May 26, 2005 5:34 pm

I don't think he does single coils yet, although his spec sheet that comes with the PU's where he fills in all the specific info about your PU has a space to check either single coil or humbucker. So maybe he is planning on doing them in the future. THAT WOULD RULE.

Billy Batz · Post by **Billy Batz** » Thu May 26, 2005 5:46 pm

That would be fantastic