Seymour Duncan JB vs. Bare Knuckle Holy Diver Comparison Video using my McCarty 594s

[JJDon]

A little comparison video I decided to do between the JB and Holy Diver using some 80s riffs as examples. My SC594 has the uncovered JB while the DC594 has the covered Holy Diver. The Holy Diver is Bare Knuckle's take on a JB/80s hot-rodded pickup. I was curious as to how both compared because I was thinking of replacing the JB in the singlecut with another Holy Diver, which has much better clarity. However, I do like the grunt that the JB has. Both probably sound very similar, but I think in a mix the difference might be a little more noticeable.

 

[Alan Jurgens]

I have a guitar that has a jb and jazz pick up combo in it. To me it’s the poorest sounding humbucker guitar that I have and thought about putting bootstrap p90’s in it since I don’t have a guitar with p90’s. It’s a Les Paul chibson that was given to me so I have no money in it other than the cts pots I put into it. Yours sound better but you also are a much better player than me.

I put bootstraps in a squire that was also given to me that I modded to learn how to set up guitars. I’m impressed how that turned out and sounds way better than I expected before I made the changes in that one.

Sorry to hijack, your post resonated with me and wanted to comment and say your playing was very good and I like your choice in songs.

 

[JJDon]

I have a guitar that has a jb and jazz pick up combo in it. To me it’s the poorest sounding humbucker guitar that I have and thought about putting bootstrap p90’s in it since I don’t have a guitar with p90’s. It’s a Les Paul chibson that was given to me so I have no money in it other than the cts pots I put into it. Yours sound better but you also are a much better player than me.

I put bootstraps in a squire that was also given to me that I modded to learn how to set up guitars. I’m impressed how that turned out and sounds way better than I expected before I made the changes in that one.

Sorry to hijack, your post resonated with me and wanted to comment and say your playing was very good and I like your choice in songs.

No prob and thanks for the response. I've heard the JB depends a lot on what guitar you put it in. I think I should have played more complex chords under distortion to illustrate how much clearer the Holy Diver is. I still like the JB for what it is though. Downtuned, I'd take the Holy Diver anyday, but for standard E stuff, especially rock and metal, the JB is still a good choice.

 

[skelt101]

The JB has an upper midrange “krang” thing going on. Hard to get lost in a mix with that!

 

[RickP]

I'm a fan of the JB sound, having used it a lot in the 80s and 90s. There are so many options out there these days, sometimes its just nice to have a pickup where you're sure of how it'll sound! Just have to trust your own ears because, these days, you can find lovers and haters of anything available.