Thanks a million!! I too was looking for dimensions earlier, and (if my head wasn't shaved) was ready to pull my hair out!
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DiMarzio's Billy Sheehan 'Relentless' pickups
- Thread starter Killed_by_Death
- Start date
I too am not a huge fan of its sonic specs. But, I'm contemplating getting one anyways and placing it a bit further away from the neck... maybe close to standard P pickup location w/ the split P Relentless near the bridge, who knows. Thoughts and decisions...decisions and thoughts..... but that sonic profile? All low end and no highs? Not for me....
I'm a large fanatic of his sound, but it's not because I'm tall.
However, what works for him, probably wouldn't work for me.
The Relentless is too low in output, on paper. (for my taste)
However, what works for him, probably wouldn't work for me.
The Relentless is too low in output, on paper. (for my taste)
Man, that's so awesome! I'm trying to find something to fit a 8cmX3cm route, so it's 7mm too wide, dernit. Not sure what I'm going to be able to find. Thank you.
Do you mean the middle/P or the neck/humbucker?
I will say that I was quite surprised... the middle/P is WAY hotter than I expected. I normally play active basses (Stingray 5, and two different J styles with 18v preamps) and upon first plug in to my rig at church, the Relentless P was clipping like crazy! I don't run into ANY clipping with that gain setting on the 3 other basses. I had to take the gain from noon to about 9:30 to clean it up. It's definitely not mellow!
I don't have experience with the neck humbucker yet. I probably won't have that installed until early next year.
Regarding the comment about the neck bucker's tone profile; yes, it is very specific to Billy's setup. That pickup is there just to send clean lows to one rig. The middle P has really strong mids and some highs, and not as much bottom as it feeds a separate, overdriven rig to complete his sound.
The Relentless middle P works really well as a standalone solution, but I doubt the neck bucker will be the same.
Billy also high-pass filters his P pick up chain much higher than most folks realize. If I'm not mistaken, that side is running 300Hz and up. Not at all a typical chain
This is a few years old, but I don't think the way he's running things has really changed. Helix these days, but as far as his biamp stuff, pretty much the same.
Has anyone paired the Relentless with a passive J bridge pickup yet? Curious to see what some of the best power matches are for this.
I haven’t played mine yet, but Carl said the Relentless P is LOUD and impressive, and it overpowers the passive J pickup he put in the bridge location. We are working on a solution.
According to DiMarzio themselve, the Ultra-Jazz has more output than the Relentless split-coil, so it seems an obvious choice for pairing.
For those already using them - do they make that horrible noise when the string touches the cover like a pole piece?
I'm hoping not, but before I spend money I like to ask.
Thanks.
I'm hoping not, but before I spend money I like to ask.
Thanks.
They’re metal so probably. You might want to lighten up on the touch a bit.
No they don't. It's not at all like when a string touches a pole piece.
If you know anything about Billy's playing, then you know he is one of the most aggressive players of all time. In fact, his entire career he looked for ways to avoid the exact sound you're talking about... from a strip of electrical tape to additional epoxy coating on top of a pickup, he is VERY aware of the unpleasant phenomenon about which you speak. These pickups are great in that regard. The metal cover is NOT a pole piece or part of the electrical signal chain in any way. When a string touches these pickups it sounds just like any other fully-covered (no exposed pole pieces) pickup. Of course, anything impacting a string in motion will change its sound and vibration pattern, so if that bothers you then yes, you should adjust your pickup. However, these do NOT make that horrible someone-whacked-a-sheet-of-metal-with-a-sledgehammer sound.
Hope that clears up any misinformation, and helps you make your decision.
If you know anything about Billy's playing, then you know he is one of the most aggressive players of all time. In fact, his entire career he looked for ways to avoid the exact sound you're talking about... from a strip of electrical tape to additional epoxy coating on top of a pickup, he is VERY aware of the unpleasant phenomenon about which you speak. These pickups are great in that regard. The metal cover is NOT a pole piece or part of the electrical signal chain in any way. When a string touches these pickups it sounds just like any other fully-covered (no exposed pole pieces) pickup. Of course, anything impacting a string in motion will change its sound and vibration pattern, so if that bothers you then yes, you should adjust your pickup. However, these do NOT make that horrible someone-whacked-a-sheet-of-metal-with-a-sledgehammer sound.
Hope that clears up any misinformation, and helps you make your decision.
No. Nope. Not a bit. Try one out.
I figured with them being nickel they'd be fine(the other poster I guess plays a bit too hard), I never have that problem and i know these are meant for the most aggressive player out there...I might still give these a try if the other Dimarzios don't work out
That's great, and exactly what I was hoping for.
I've owned several Attitude basses over the years, but these days I need something lighter in weight. Going to try the new pickup in a couple of different basses I have.
Thank you.
Awesome! I think you'll love the Relentless middle. I'm planning out my next custom build around a PJ set, once the J version gets released. Enjoy!
