Dragon 1 pickups

[Anthony88]

Hey guys

I might be acquiring a PRS with some dragon 1 pickups and rotary dial.

I don't have any experience with the rotary dial or those pickups, but everything I've seen online seems to lean towards it being a heavy metal/heavy rock style of pickup.. most demos I've seen are just metal guitar.

I'm more of a bluesy kind of player, love my LP style PAF sound.

So I'm wondering a few things:

Is the bridge pickup going to be extremely spicy to the point where I can't tame it to get a more tame PAF sound?

Can these pickups be easily replaced with that rotary switch? Would it be just a straight drop in with other pickups?


Thanks in advance!

 

[DISTORT6]

Dibs on the DI’s if you don’t like them

 

[Mark Ray]

Dragon 1's are still my favorite PRS pickups.

Using your volume and tone controls can get you SO many tones, overdriven or clean.

*2nd Dibs! (Dammit I'm always a day late and a dollar short!)

 

[WEDGE]

I find them not necessarily spicy but very bold. They push a tube amp nice, but sound good pushed clean too. Roll the volume a hair and they work good too.

 

[Anthony88]

Would you guys classify them as a warm tone? I love that warm, creamy humbucking tone.

And sounds like there will be a lineup for these pickups if I don't like them haha

 

[Bowtiefanatc]

Dragon 1 neck pickup is my favorite of all time. The bridge is a fire breather, but not shrill. It’s weird but it has some vintage “tone” to it but very hot and bold.

 

[Rod/]

Would you guys classify them as a warm tone? I love that warm, creamy humbucking tone.

And sounds like there will be a lineup for these pickups if I don't like them haha

I’m a Bluesrock and blues guitarist and my 93 Custom 22 stoptail (with Dragon 1’s and rotary) I played with many gigs and recordings. I put the Duncan spec treble bleed cap/resistor on the volume pot and just by turning down the volume a few numbers you get PAF output and still great personality. The rotary switch 2 clicks from bridge pickup gives a great powerful PAF middle tone . It wires the 2 inner coils from both pickups in series! It’s awesome. Dragon 1 neck is very warm and is awesome as well. Both highly recommended. I don’t play metal. Ever

 

[gush]

I have a ce22 with D1s. When I was running more gain those pickups were killer. I ran the pickups really low in the rings so rolling down the volume pot on the guitar really made positions 2-5 very usable.

You will be surprised how versatile they can be.

 

[Bowtiefanatc]

I will add that I personally believe that Dragon 1’s sound the best in all mahogany guitars.

 

[MWebster]

They're amazing pickups. I tried the guitar they were in (and then bought) through a vintage fender amp, only cleans into a slight drive and that was enough wow to sell me on them. But yes, or course they can drive really hard. There's a reason people like them so much. I pray PRS re-releases them one day. It makes no sense why they sell the dragon 2 but not the set people actually want.

 

[sergiodeblanc]

Dragon 1 neck pickup is my favorite of all time. The bridge is a fire breather, but not shrill. It’s weird but it has some vintage “tone” to it but very hot and bold.

Aren’t DI neck pups just McCartys without the cover?

Buy those, nobody wants them.

I will add that I personally believe that Dragon 1’s sound the best in all mahogany guitars.

Because all mahogany guitars sound better. At least according to some dude named Paul.

 

[WEDGE]

I will add that I personally believe that Dragon 1’s sound the best in all mahogany guitars.

Agree, I put a pair in a DGT standard and they sounded fantastic.

 

[Going Modal]

Aren’t DI neck pups just McCartys without the cover?

Evidence I've found seems to indicate so. It would make sense, too, since the 22-fret Dragon and the McCarty came from very nearly the same era of Paul's first 22-fret guitars.

Is the bridge pickup going to be extremely spicy to the point where I can't tame it to get a more tame PAF sound?

No, I don't think so. It's not quite a metal (or metal-ish) pickup like a Duncan JB. It's more like a Duncan Custom or a Dimarzio Super Distortion (ignore that "distortion" name!) in that it's like the strongest PAF-like pickup you could ever imagine. Kinda like the "greatest and highest output PAF type pickup" from the perspective of what everybody thought/wanted in the mid-1990s, which is when these pickups were conceived.

Can these pickups be easily replaced with that rotary switch? Would it be just a straight drop in with other pickups?

If you end up not liking the Dragon 1's, then I would suggest just simply updating the guitar to the McCarty-style 3-way toggle switch using the 5-way rotary hole, etc.--this was an extremely common PRS mod for a long time. The Dragon 1 pickups really do sound good throughout the 5 rotary positions, but practically every other pickup would probably be best with a standard 3-way toggle.

 

[Anthony88]

Thank you guys for the info!

That's exactly what I wanted go here.. PAF sounding, not shrill, not uncontrollable.

I'm sure there's a reason everyone loves them!

 

[gush]

Thank you guys for the info!

That's exactly what I wanted go here.. PAF sounding, not shrill, not uncontrollable.

I'm sure there's a reason everyone loves them!

Just keep in mind if you swap pickups then they have to be the 3 wire configuration just like what's in there now.

Don't buy 2 wire and expect to use them with rotary switch.

Lastly.....dibs on the D1s if you want to sell them!

 

[Mark Ray]

Dragon 1's you say?

Well allrighty then, I gigged "Cherry Bomb" last night in fact. '94 CE22 loaded with the original Dragon 1's. OH YEAH!

 

[WEDGE]

Dragon 1's you say?

Well allrighty then, I gigged "Cherry Bomb" last night in fact. '94 CE22 loaded with the original Dragon 1's. OH YEAH!

A 22 fret PRS and Dragons is a deadly combo.

 

[Jbyrd78]

How is Dragon 1 bridge pickup compared to the following pickups:
- PRS \m/ Metal
- PRS HFS
- Seymour Duncan SH-6
- Wolfetone Timberwolve
- Wolfetone Blisterbucker

I'm just curious b/c I've heard nothing but praise for these Dragon 1 pickup's. I'm thinking about picking one up to try and I'm wondering whereabouts it falls tonewise with the pickups I mentioned.

 

[VHTStark]

How is Dragon 1 bridge pickup compared to the following pickups:
- PRS \m/ Metal
- PRS HFS
- Seymour Duncan SH-6
- Wolfetone Timberwolve
- Wolfetone Blisterbucker

I'm just curious b/c I've heard nothing but praise for these Dragon 1 pickup's. I'm thinking about picking one up to try and I'm wondering whereabouts it falls tonewise with the pickups I mentioned.

I have not played the Wolftones, but have a lot of experience with the first three.

Vs \m/: The metal has a tighter lows and more prominent mids. Both have what I would call "broad mids" in that there is no frequency spike, but the D1's are more laid back overall compared to the metal.

Vs HFS: HFS has noticeably more top end and an upper midrange spike; also has a thumps, tight bass. Dragon, has those laid back, broad mids in comparison, less top end and a more chewy feel.

Vs Distortion: similar to the HFS in that the Distortion will have a noticeable upper mid and top end spike. Distortion I find even brighter than an HFS, as it has a bit less low and low mid content.

All three of these will come off as tighter and "hotter" and more aggressive than the Dragon 1.

 

[Jimi D]

Dragon 1's you say?

Well allrighty then, I gigged "Cherry Bomb" last night in fact. '94 CE22 loaded with the original Dragon 1's. OH YEAH!

Brother!!

And ya, I love me some Dragon 1s too!! Awesome pickups! I was somewhat tentative about the bridge until I started using it myself at gig volumes and thought "this reminds me of the Super Distortion". Now it's got me thinking I should do something with the old '80s vintage Dual Sound (Super Distortion with coil tap) I have in the parts drawer... (I've had that pickup in so many guitars; and I kept pulling it out of them, so you know I loved it!)

Also, belated DIBS! Just put my on the list; I won't hold my breath...