Which pickup position do you gravitate to?

[jamjam1]

Seems like most people don't just spend most time on the bridge, but when they're on the neck, it's mostly single. Strange that the 5 way blade doesn't have a neck single option. Only neck humbucker.

 

[Herr Squid]

Seems like most people don't just spend most time on the bridge, but when they're on the neck, it's mostly single. Strange that the 5 way blade doesn't have a neck single option. Only neck humbucker.

To be fair, a neck humbucker can sound pretty fantastic, but as dirty as I play most of the time, a single coil neck pickup sound is less woofy and muddy. I favored an HSS pickup configuration for decades. The PRS Studio did amazing job of balancing bridge humbucker and neck single coil(-ish) to my ears. Even better is the Paul's Guitar and Modern Eagle V setup with the mini toggles for maximum tonal versatility.

 

[helmi]

Neck or middle. bridge pickup is my least favorite by far!

 

[TheCraftsman]

SE CU24-08; I play all usually dictated by what sounds / suits best what I’m playing or what I’m trying to achieve. I’m a sucker for a creamy clean tone.

 

[MarcWink]

This very much depends on what guitar I'm playing and what's being played on it, but generally for dirty, chunky rhythm tones, I gravitate toward a bridge humbucker tone, for leads, it's 50/50 between neck and bridge pickup for guitars that are HH, HSS, or SSS. For clean rhythm tones, it's a 50/30 split between a bridge humbucker (50) and neck humbucker (40). The rest of the time is on position 4 if I'm using my S2 10th Anniversary Custom 24, on the neck split with my 35th Anniversary Custom 24, or when I was using my SE Silver Sky, I pretty much lived on the neck pickup for everything. It's just a tone I really enjoyed, and now that I don't have it available, I want it again, hence my looking into either an American Silver Sky or a Fiore that I won't have to worry about shoddy QC on.

 

[Gtrbldr]

Depends largely on the song, feel and especially mix, what I use.

My reference is in a band situation in church. In a dense mix (as is often the case wirh cc music, overly produced and (a little) bombastic) always the bridge. No matter how much gain is required. You need that to cut with the punchier transients. Especially when using some gain; otherwise you just drown in the mushy mix.

In a lower intensity part of a song or just smaller song or mix I gravitate to neck or middle for clean or break up sounds (sweeter, airier) and bridge for dirty sounds. All about the punch there as well.

In a smaller band (like just drums, guitar, bass and regular keys and no tracks) I feel a lot more space to use the different flavours available on my guitar.

 

[SinSir]

This seems to be the consensus, with most time spent on the bridge for most people.

I probably spend more time on the neck once it's dialed in right. Mostly probably because of my Fender days.

 

[Maxime Bousquet]

I have a preference for the bridge and the neck.
In sss configuration I like positions 2 and 4 on a 5-way selector, but with the humbuckers, when it gets more intense the bridge is the best place for me.

 

[dmatthews]

Def bridge, a lot!

 

[Tony M.]

It depends on what I'm playing to complement each song.
The song is the cake. I just put some icing on it.

 

[SinSir]

In these discussions I always think knob controls. That's often just as crucial as the pickup selected. Dime all the time just doesn't open up the full potential of tones.

 

[Bogner]

All Of My Guitars Are 1 Pickup (Bridge Humbucker) Models No Matter What They Are Or How Many Pickups They Have.

All Joking Aside...I Would Say I Am On The Bridge Pickup 99.9% Of The Time. The Time I Am Not On The Bridge Pickup I Could Be Doing All Sorts Of Things With Neck, Splits, Roll Off's, Blends, Etc.

I Play Heavy Stuff Most Of The Time So I Can Get Away With That Kind Of Nonsense.

 

[bodia]

Bridge, all day.

 

[Glide-bpm]

For blues, when do you use the bridge and when do you use the neck?

I mix them up randomly...

 

[Prina]

Some of the time mixed but mostly bridge. And all the time on the single H superstrat.

 

[Aahzz]

60% bridge, 30% both, 10% neck.

 

[DECEMBERmusic.org]

I put EMG 81X/60X in my PRS SE Mira with an ABCX active balance control instead of a switch and some active EQ pots.
High gain is almost always on the bridge, with an occasional solo near the middle position.
Cleans are often ~60% neck/40% bridge, but sometimes I blend it closer to 90% neck or 70% bridge.
There are passive blend/balance pots that can be used with passive pickups. I highly recommend it. So many more options than just neck/bridge/both.
When I had passive pickups and a switch, it was either bridge for gain or middle for clean. Passive neck pickups were always too muddy to use alone, and the bridge is too quacky to use alone for clean. Very limited options until I got the balance pot. And having a semi-parametric mid EQ in the guitar really opens up the possibilities... EMG VMC variable mid control.

 

[Steve's addiction]

Mostly neck except when I play a 305, then its neck/middle.

 

[El Fenix]

Clean: neck

Gain: bridge

Like this

 

[Xtcclassic]

I just play loud, driving rock stuff so it’s 99% bridge for me.