Hi everyone. New to the forum but not PRS. I've had a custom 22 for about 15 years. I have the Dragon II pickups and I'd like to brighten up the sound. I like the 85/15 pickups but it was also suggested that I could remove the covers off of my Dragons to brighten them up a bit. I'm nervous about tinkering with the originals though. Any opinions on which route is the better option?
New Pickups or Remove My Covers?
- Thread starter Bobby.S.
- Start date
gush
Where is that speedo pic
8515s will be expensive to buy. I've never done it myself but I have watched a video of removing covers and I wouldn't hesitate to do it.
I owned the cu22 that rider has now and people have descibed dragon 2s as muddy but mine were not that way. I do play a 5150 head which can be kind of bright so maybe that explaines it.
Try adjusting pickup height first. You may be surprised at how much of a difference that can make.
I owned the cu22 that rider has now and people have descibed dragon 2s as muddy but mine were not that way. I do play a 5150 head which can be kind of bright so maybe that explaines it.
Try adjusting pickup height first. You may be surprised at how much of a difference that can make.
You-S4-It
New Member
- Joined
- Jun 21, 2014
- Messages
- 196
in addition to adjusting the PU height, try adjusting/raising the height of the screws. Might bring up a little bit of clarity. Just be wary that some pickups are also wax potted so the pickup might need some clean up after cover removal and might not look so beautiful.
Good luck and experiment with what you have! Doesn't cost a thing!
Good luck and experiment with what you have! Doesn't cost a thing!
iamgreg.net
A PRS guy since ‘92!
I find that removing the covers brings more “definition and clarity” to the sound. If you decide to do it you’ll need a good hot soldering iron; a little 15 watt one won’t do so well.
I just did it to a 57/08, it was mostly easy. it only creates some apparent brightness, I don't think the EQ changes very much, a little bit more upper mids. but the string attack and the clarity was very nice improvement, very noticeable especially low and mid gain. there's an extra level of raw grind very nice, I highly recommend no cover I think it's superior tone wise, just a little more edge, of course for certain pedals and gain settings it becomes less important.
to remove the pickup cover, I started to heat it up with a soldering station, seemed like it was taking wway too long to heat the entire mass, the pickup started getting hot, I could see some of the wax melting, so I took a brand-new razor blade and stuck it in there to try and scrape some of the wax out of the edge, and I noticed I was making a little bit of a dent in the solder, so I just kept cutting the solder joint rocking back and forth making sure not to cut the pickup wind, it probably took two minutes I stayed as close to the outer surface of the pickup cover, so essentially I did not need to heat it up, you can cut solder with a very sharp razor blade pretty easily. just don't cut your fingers. it also seems if you melt the solder you run the risk of it flowing or leaking into the pickup windings.
but if you want brighter, definitely try some different pickups, again probably with no cover.
to remove the pickup cover, I started to heat it up with a soldering station, seemed like it was taking wway too long to heat the entire mass, the pickup started getting hot, I could see some of the wax melting, so I took a brand-new razor blade and stuck it in there to try and scrape some of the wax out of the edge, and I noticed I was making a little bit of a dent in the solder, so I just kept cutting the solder joint rocking back and forth making sure not to cut the pickup wind, it probably took two minutes I stayed as close to the outer surface of the pickup cover, so essentially I did not need to heat it up, you can cut solder with a very sharp razor blade pretty easily. just don't cut your fingers. it also seems if you melt the solder you run the risk of it flowing or leaking into the pickup windings.
but if you want brighter, definitely try some different pickups, again probably with no cover.
dogrocketp
I drank the PRS kool aid, and it was tasty!
Start by adjusting the body of the pickup down, then raise the pole pieces. You can experiment by degrees, doing a little at at a time. This may very well get you what you want. Then try adjusting the amp settings, then try all of the above, starting with removing the covers, which may or may not be soldered on. I've seen them both ways.
Callan
hack guitarist..
Have you tried a brighter set of strings? Might be all you need. Very easy to undo as well 
Have you tried a brighter set of strings? Might be all you need. Very easy to undo as well
Genius!
Callan
hack guitarist..
It was really your idea..
https://forums.prsguitars.com/threads/obvious-tone-tweaks-we-sometimes-forget.27015/
