Are Kent Armstrong pickups any good?

Posted: Fri Jan 09, 2004 11:11 pm

http://cgi.ebay.ca/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=2370400952&category=22670

Any help would be great Very Happy

thanks!

nick

Joined: 29 Nov 2003 Posts: 5324

they are pretty decent from what i have read..

make sure that they are fully potted.. (i.e. dipped in wax) these are really high output pickups, and without potting, your asking for alot of feedback and squealing.. unless you cover them with a pickup cover..

i don't know what the specific tone of these exact pickups are..

you pretty much have to match the pickup with the acoustic tone of the guitar that your installing them into.. i.e. the pickup cannot compensate for what isn't there to begin with..

sticking humbuckers in a strat, won't make it sound like a les paul.. it sounds like a strat with humbuckers..

but, the right pickup installed in a guitar can make it unreal.. so, if your guitar has a LP tone, then you probably want a pickup to accentuate the natural tone of the guitar.. beefy mids, thick lows, and full highs..

usually the manufacturer has specfic sets that will get you closer to the tone that you want..

remember, most modern amps are extremely high gain by 70's standards.. so, you probably don't need a extremely high output pickup.. it's not going to give you a decent tone.. if you are running through a bunch of pedals/fx, then you might want a *higher* output pickup..

it's all a game of balance.. too much in, and you get crap coming out.. too little and it becomes thin and empty..

email Kent Armstrong and ask for a suggestion on what would be a decent match for your guitar..

anyway, these might fit your overall tone that you want to build..

good luck..

Posted: Sat Jan 10, 2004 1:32 am

cool, thanks!

my amp is pretty high gain, so I dont need anything with a rediculous amount of output. I'm considering EMGs, but they're kinda expensive Confused

I also don't know if they'll fit into my Z, I hear that some guitars have to be routed for the electronics to fit. I'm also thinking about Bill Lawrences.

ahh so many pickups, so little money!

Joined: 29 Nov 2003 Posts: 303

I own a guitar with Armstrong pickups....don't much care for them . I have to crank my amp about 3 more notches to get the same level as dimarzio's.

Joined: 29 Nov 2003 Posts: 4381 Location: Vaasa, Finland

All i say is Bill Lawrence...

Joined: 29 Nov 2003 Posts: 5324

NickM wrote:

cool, thanks!

my amp is pretty high gain, so I dont need anything with a rediculous amount of output. I'm considering EMGs, but they're kinda expensive Confused

I also don't know if they'll fit into my Z, I hear that some guitars have to be routed for the electronics to fit. I'm also thinking about Bill Lawrences.

ahh so many pickups, so little money!

EMGs are fine.. yes, you do have to find space for the 9V battery.. this is a problem with *ALL* Active pickups.. EMG does make passive pickups.. the HZ's.. some seem to think that they are a "lesser" pickup.. incorrectly comparing them to the "Select by EMG" pickups (horrible pickups, imo).. the HZ's are USA made, and depending on which model, and how you wire them in, can sound great.. i've installed a set of HZ/H4's (H4 neck & bridge) in my DOA Caddy.. they are essentially, passive 81's.. and the H4A is the passive 85..

mine is like a passive EMG-KH21, Kirk Hammet set.. but with the coil-tapping like the Caddy has..

i've seen sets on eBay for $50.00-75.00 for a SET..

you can always install the "EMG-AB" afterburner in your guitar for a heavier punch.. or, the switch-less "EMG-PA2" to actually have a real pre-amp in your guitar, this will essentially make your HZ's into a active-like setup..

i'm not going to kid you.. they are bright.. you will have to play with different value capcitors and pots to control the edginess of the pickups.. but when you get them dialed in, they can be really nice..

they are sensitive.. somewhat like playing a singlecoil guitar thru a class A amp.. everything is very clear, and if there is slop in your playing, it will come out.. so, be aware of this before considering EMGs..

other than that..

DiMarzios are great pickups.. i prefer the vintage late 70's pickups for obvious reasons.. but the new stuff isn't too bad..

and Duncans are great pickups also.. they have a more "woody" tone to them across the board, opposed to the DiMarzios.. of course, this is my opinion and there are opposing views to this..

look around for guitars of similar construction, and look at the pickups and try to get a general feel for what you'd want..

if it were me, i'd stick a set of zebra DiMarzio Super Distortions (DP-100) in there and enjoy it.. (changing out the all electronics in the guitar too..)

good luck again..

Posted: Sat Jan 10, 2004 7:57 pm

cool, thanks for your help!

i'm probably going to buy 2 Bill Lawrence L-500XL's. They're $50 now, instead of $48. Oh well, only $2. How long is the waiting list for those pickups?

Joined: 29 Nov 2003 Posts: 5324

NickM wrote:

cool, thanks for your help!

i'm probably going to buy 2 Bill Lawrence L-500XL's. They're $50 now, instead of $48. Oh well, only $2. How long is the waiting list for those pickups?

between 3 to 6 weeks..

and it's 14.50 shipped to The Great White North.. eh..

got poutine??

Posted: Sat Jan 10, 2004 8:18 pm

throbgod13 wrote:

NickM wrote:

cool, thanks for your help!

i'm probably going to buy 2 Bill Lawrence L-500XL's. They're $50 now, instead of $48. Oh well, only $2. How long is the waiting list for those pickups?

between 3 to 6 weeks..

and it's 14.50 shipped to The Great White North.. eh..

got poutine??

hahaha poutine is awesome eh!

$14.50? will that cover the shipping for 2 pickups?

Joined: 30 Nov 2003 Posts: 4406 Location: Hostile Territory

Hey Nick - on the subject of Bill Lawrence pups you might want to consider a L-500XL for the bridge and a L-500 Rhythm for the neck. I have this set in a maple bodied Strat and it's a very nice setup with a lot of range. I have mine wired up with a 5 way super switch & a push/pull tone pot (only 1 volume & 1 tone on this Strat) The push/pull is for phasing Cool

Posted: Sun Jan 11, 2004 12:08 am

How does the rythym sound clean? the neck pickup on my dean right now sounds pretty cool, but a little muddy..

Joined: 29 Nov 2003 Posts: 5324

NickM wrote:

throbgod13 wrote:

NickM wrote:

cool, thanks for your help!

i'm probably going to buy 2 Bill Lawrence L-500XL's. They're $50 now, instead of $48. Oh well, only $2. How long is the waiting list for those pickups?

between 3 to 6 weeks..

and it's 14.50 shipped to The Great White North.. eh..

got poutine??

hahaha poutine is awesome eh!

$14.50? will that cover the shipping for 2 pickups?

with a cold Black Label, and a spork, mmmmmm...

Poutine Rocks.. eh..

the 14.50 thing is on the lawrence site.. i suppose that they would send two pickups for that..

of course, you have customs to deal with too..

Joined: 29 Nov 2003 Posts: 4797 Location: BEERMUDA

I believe their shipping prices cover 1 to max 5 PU's...at least it used to be like that!

Joined: 30 Nov 2003 Posts: 4406 Location: Hostile Territory

The L-500 Rhythm is a great pickup - not muddy at all IMHO great output and depth of clarity. I think these are some of the finest pickups I've heard bar none. Very Happy