DiMarzio custom pickups

[TalM]

Hi

Anyone here ever order a DiMarzio replacement for their fly?
I am interested in ordering a tone-zone and an air norton replacements for my gen 1.
So far no response from their customer service (a week now).
I read that they can still custom make pickups for the fly.

Thanks

[vjmanzo]

Hi @TalM; I've ordered from them before without issue. I know they still do it, but I believe they are still playing catch-up and putting out all sorts of supply-chain disruption issues a la COVID.

Are you just looking for a set of Gen 1s? Maybe try posting a "Want to Buy" or "Want to Trade" on the classifieds section??

[TalM]

I'm looking for an upgrade.
I got a set on gen 1 but the they both sound a bit flat to me.

Thanks

[vjmanzo]

Gotcha. You saw this thread already about the usual suggestions for conquering Fly flatness?

I personally prefer the Gen 1 pickups, but I do have the Gen 2 and the DiMarzio Joe Satriani pickups on some Flys and they also sound nice, but, unless you are changing the magnet, the various winding methods, to me, don’t produce much of a “night and day” difference. In other words, I think one could more or less dial in the sound of the Satriani pickups with a little EQ and pickup height adjustment. Just my opinion, however.

What kind of strings do you use and what gauge?

[mmmguitar]

@TalM, forgive me for splitting hairs in two directions but, the Gen 1 pickups kind of *are* the Tone Zone and Air Norton.

The main difference (other than theoretical ones to do with the Fly pickups’ short hex screws affecting changes in inductance and shape of the magnetic field with their metallurgy and length) is that the Gen 1 neck pickup does not have the “airbucker” spacers - As weird as it is to consider, it’s essentially a Norton wound to sound like a lower-inductance version of itself (which the Air Norton achieves via the spacers).

That said, Steve will be happy to prescribe any number of different winds to address your specific complaints to do with the Gen 1 pickups. And considering Steve made the Gen 2s to address the same complaint you seem to have, do you have thoughts/experience with the Gen 2 Dimarzios?

I second VJ’s suggestion to solicit pickups in the Classifieds, in case Dimarzio is slow to catch up to your email or order. Steve did reply to an email of mine earlier in the week within 24 hours, though. Sorry to hear they still seem to be swamped.

Pete at http://www.vintagevibeguitars.com/ has wound a few sets of Fly pickups just in the last few weeks - May be worth looking into.

[TalM]

Thanks for all the info.
Ill be sure to check the provided links.
I'm currently using a 9 gauge with a set of Dean Markley blue steel strings.
I noticed my magnetic switch (on-on-on) is "jumping" into center position by itself all of the time and something seems to be a bit off there.
Need to get a closer look.
The "flatness" I was describing is kind of having no mid to the sound.

Thanks.

[vjmanzo]

Understood, and certainly happy to help. The Fly manual recommends D’Addario XL strings, which is what they used to test the Flys at the factory. If your open to changing your string brand, I think you can get a better sound just by doing that.

Nothing against Dean Markley strings, but I think you’ll find the D’Addarios to be an all-around improvement in tone and longevity; in short: they give the pickup more to work with. Ideally, instead of dropping a few hundred dollars playing “the pickup game”, you can try all sorts of different D’Addario strings for just a few dollars a pack; way easier to experiment.

[TalM]

Thanks again VJ.
I'll do some string experiments.
Tried Elixir & Cleartone sets which I didn't like. I'll try D'Addarios.
I think I'll have to change my switch as well. Got a a spare.

[Musikron]

Get the NYXL set, the plain ones not the coated ones. Well worth it, that’s all I’ll bother with on my fly now.

[vjmanzo]

+1 what @Musikron said! Those are great strings!

[mmmguitar]

+2. I’ve been using NYXLs ever since Belew made a Facebook post raving about them.

[TalM]

Wow... big difference.. Just put a set of NYXL.
Didn't realize it made that of a difference.

Thanks again.

[vjmanzo]

Great to hear, @TalM! The NYXLs are great!

Yeah, it’s pretty wild: you can get significantly different sounds just by trying out different strings! Way cheaper/easier to experiment with new sounds than buying pickups.

[Voice Of Reason]

Great to hear, @TalM! The NYXLs are great!

Yeah, it’s pretty wild: you can get significantly different sounds just by trying out different strings! Way cheaper/easier to experiment with new sounds than buying pickups.

That being said, I have a set of Fender pure nickels waiting. Looking forward to the comparison.

As for new pickups, the output will not match those found in most other guitar types (humbuckers). I am not saying different humbuckers couldn’t help ; however, don’t expect them to sound exactly as they would in most guitar types.

When all is said and done, Flys are more responsive and need tweaking compared to many other guitars. The tone knob is much more useful than one may think (magnetic and piezo). I couldn’t imagine the piezo, for instance, without the pre-refined tone knob. Do not hesitate to fiddle with this.

[Voice Of Reason]

...unless you are changing the magnet, the various winding methods, to me, don’t produce much of a “night and day” difference. In other words, I think one could more or less dial in the sound of the Satriani pickups with a little EQ and pickup height adjustment. Just my opinion, however.

I can attest that changing magnets makes a significant difference. I went from gen 1 to hybrid pickups (made by 908ssp). Switching the neck pickup magnet to an A2 made it for me : it is closer to that more vintage (sweeter) sound I prefer.