DiMarzios: Why Didn’t You Tell Me????

[Guitarwiz007]

I've been perusing this topic with some degree of amazement. I've been a DiMarzio proponent for decades; their pickups sound like they say they do, and their service has been stellar, the few times I've had to call. I've talked to both Steve and Larry, and both were very accommodating and friendly, and took care of issues immediately. But it seemed every time I brought them up in conversation, people were completely close-minded about trying them, even to the point of complaining they'd never buy them because they trademarked a colour (!). @#$% that; they sound bloody great. The original aftermarket pickup, the Super Distortion, is still one of the best. And they have an ear for what sounds good.

And I'm not on their artist roster, nor am I affiliated in any way except as a satisfied customer.

This^^^ It cracks me up when people get all torqued up about the trademark. I see it as a smart business move. They make fantastic sounding pickups. Customer service is one of the best.

 

[Roddy Cash]

I have heard that women, on average, have more acute hearing,

I've also heard that they are sugar and spice and everything nice.
Not entirely accurate though.

 

[supersoldier71]

I have a Jackson Dinky with a Super Distortion in the bridge and a Super 2 in the neck. Shockingly versatile. Based on DiMarzio marketing and product names, you would think this guitar could not do cleans. You would be wrong. I think the SD is unfortunately named. Switch to a lower gain channel on my amp and roll off the volume and the SD can do dirt, edge of break up, and cleans very well. I think people (many of whom have never used an SD) see the name and "put it in a box". That is unfortunate and their loss.

The Super 2 is great pickup too for both distortions and cleans. The frequency response of the Super 2 really makes this my favorite neck pickup. YMMV.

Being a long time Jackson player, I am very familiar with the good 'ole JB/'59 combo. Not my cup of tea. I do have a Jackson Dinky with a Duncan Parallel Axis Distortion in the bridge and a custom wound Parallel Axis in the neck. The PAs are a different breed of Duncan. I am somewhat surprised they have not caught on more.

I have another Jackson Soloist on order that I plan to put a DiMarzio X2N in once it is built and delivered. I am very excited for that guitar!

Now if you want to go in a completely different direction. I have a pair of Bare Knuckle Juggernauts that came stock on one of my Jackson Soloists. That guitar is bad a$$! The Juggs are tight and articulate and have a rip your throat out aggressiveness when overdriven and they clean up nicely too.

That’s another pleasant surprise from my SD. It seems like they’d be too hot to clean up, but that’s far from true.

I discovered that if I set the amp gain a little higher than I normally would, backing off the guitar volume gives me the full range of sounds.

Also, since I started this thread, I got rid of the Charvel and now the PRS with the DiMarzios is my main.

 

[SwissPicks]

Dimarzio Super D's are amazing in Mahogany guitars.. And have em in most of mine.

 

[AndreasG]

With all the boutique builders and stuff I still think you hardly can go wrong with Di Marzios or Duncans. Had a Super Distortion in the bridge and a PAF in the neck of a Les Paul custom copy in the early eighties and they for sure rocked!

 

[Vmathias]

Installed a Super Distortion and a Bluesbucker in my S2 Standard 24.

My favorite pickups are the JB/59 set in my San Dimas.

But I think these DiMarzios may have taken the title.

I’d listened to too many people saying ceramic magnet pickups sucked. But I like clarity and a tight attack and while I don’t spend all my time at high gain, when I go there, I like to keep everything together.

The stock set didn’t have enough output at the bridge and I wasn’t overly fond of any of the sounds, clean to crunchy.

DiMarzios solved the issues. Similar to the JB, the Super Distortion has power to spare, but while the stock 85/15s lacked a little treble in the S24, the SD gives me brightness and easy artificial harmonics.

The Bluesbucker was kind of a flyer, but it’s crystal clean when I want it to be, and only gets better with gain.

I’m pleased with the mod because it made a guitar that’s otherwise almost perfect for me about perfect.

I have loved the Dimarzio sound since the 80s HM strat guitars. My buddy had an HM strat with a Super Distortion. I can still remember how great that guitar sounded. The thing was a beast when it came to tone. That sold me on them. I think Seymour Duncan and Bare Knuckle make phenomenal sounding PUs as well, but there is just something about the voicing with Dimarzios.

 

[davesultra]

Because you needed to find out for yourself!

 

[Humble Texan Fan]

I've always claimed that diMarzios sound instant guitar hero and I think that would have to do with the tightness, grit and low mid emphasis - and possibly that so many guitar heroes have used this brand over the years. Possibly it's with diMarzios as it is with Korg synthesisers: you're put in a certain frame of mind when hearing them, having been relentlessly exposed by them in your adolescent years. They may not be loved by everyone but everyone have some kind of relation to them.

On a sidenote: I'm somewhat confused by the new character/ EQ graphs of Dimmie's. Some pickups I do recognise with this four band thing they use these days. Then some I just don't get at all, to be frank.

 

[disconnector]

I use Dimarzio's in all my guitars (except for the ones with EMGs). They sound great and they don't have a SEYMOUR DUNCAN billboard on every single dang one.

 

[chrisrocksusa]

Damn I feel the OP. My fave pickup set is the Jb/jazz combo.

I throw JBs and a similar neck variant in all my Les Pauls but that changed once I got a charvel that came with a dimarzio super distortion. I think the name used to turn me off but it’s a great pickup. I like it so much that I’ve elected to pull a perfectly good Seymour Duncan pickup set from my Lp Standard in favor of some double cream dimarzios