DiMarzio DP211/DP212 EJ Custom Pickup RedRegular Spacing

Comments about DiMarzio DP211/DP212 EJ Custom Pickup:

I just installed the EJ Custom set in a PRS SE Custom semi-hollow body guitar to get cleaner sounds, perhaps more like a Gretsch Country Gentleman (not that I've ever played one.) I found myself adjusting the tone controls on my amp and on my guitar to get a great sound when clean, turning the treble way down.

So I tried an experiment, replacing the stock 500k tone pot and .022uF tone cap with the values used in a Strat: 250k pot and .047uF tone. Eureka! To my ears it sounded about 10 times better- very smooth. There is a "quick'n'dirty" way to accomplish this without having to replace the tone pots or caps in your HB-equipted guitar. If you add another .022uF cap in parallel with the existing .022uF that adds up to .044uF, which is ~10% less than ,047uF (not a problem.) To convert a 500k pot to 250k you need to add a 470k resistor between one of the terminals and ground:

If you think that the taper of your existing tone pot gets too bright too fast it is probably a linear pot. In that case you can add the resistor between the wiper (the middle terminal) and ground which will make the taper more like an audio taper, with a slower rise in tone.

If you are happy with the taper of your existing tone control you can add the 470k resistor between the "hot" (ungrounded) outside terminal and ground. Looking at the back of the pot, the hot terminal is the one next to the middle terminal going counter-clockwise. Normally there is nothing connected to the "cold" outside terminal which makes it simpler.

You might try all of that as an experiment and if you are satisfied with the sound put in new 250k pots and .047uF caps. (If you have a Les Paul with long bushings on your pots I would keep them and add the resistor.)

With this modification the pickups sound really smooth without having to adjust the tone controls on your guitar or amp radically. This guitar provides a really nice contrast to my LP with BurstBucker pickups in it.

Comments about DiMarzio DP211/DP212 EJ Custom Pickup:

If you want that clear sound, or want to put humbuckers on your Strat or Tele style guitar, this pickup would be a good choice.
According to DiMarzio, "They’re bright and have great presence without sounding thin. When Eric tried them, he said they were almost as clear-sounding as Strat® pickups." I would agree with this. These pickups don't sound like tradional humbuckers, they really do sound clear, like a Strat, but without the hum, and more bass response, which you would expect of a humbucker

DiMarzio also states that they have "less power and much more treble response than 'vintage' humbuckers. In fact, treble response is comparable to that of typical single-coils, but since bass response is still very solid, the EJ Custom™ isn't thin-sounding." I also agree with this.

The EJ Custom bridge pickup gets that classic rock and roll sound... turn down the tone to 50% or less, and crank it up!

Comments about DiMarzio DP211/DP212 EJ Custom Pickup:

First off let me say if you are looking for that traditional humbucker sound (ie. Gibson,etc) then don't waste your money on these pups, you will not be happy and you will come back here and write a negative review on how this pickup sucks. This pickup was made with a particular tonal palette in mind. Also if you want the full impact these pickups can produce, then you will want to change both bridge and neck pickups. DP211(neck) / DP212(bridge) I put these pickups into a PRS SE Custom 22 I had and really loved the tone. You can get very close to the Filteron & TV Jones sound right out of the gate with just the guitar and amp with no effects and very little eq tweaking. I wired both pickups with coil taps, and that single coil strat sound jumped right out. It is a brighter pickup then say the DP100, but you can get a descent old school humbucker sound with a little tweaking. I can't stress enough that these pickups should be installed as pairs (neck/bridge) in order to get the full effect and tonal quality. If your looking for that rockabilly/country rock tone, then you may want to give them a try. I'd set-up one guitar with these pickups for specific song sets and use other guitars for the rest of song list. I haven't tried them in a hollow body yet, but that should open up the gretsch 6120 Brain Setzer tone even more. Give em try, but you have been forwarned as to what they can and can't do. If you want Lynard Skynard, Twisted Sister, etc., better go with something else.

Comments about DiMarzio DP211/DP212 EJ Custom Pickup:

I installed these into my PRS SE Singlecut because the stock pick-ups sounded muddy to me (I'm a single-coil fan). I have to say the sound of these just blew me away. They added so much clarity and sparkle, they actually sound better than my '57 strat pick-ups. It's possible to play really clean with these for a brilliant glass-like sound, and yet they also sound great retain their clarity with distortion added. Before this, I never knew humbuckers could sound so great. Also, I want to mention that I emailed DiMarzio with a question about wiring these before I bought them, and that was on a Sunday night. A DiMarzio tech responded to my email that night, just one hour later. with answers and attached diagrams. Unbelievable customer service.

Comments about DiMarzio DP211/DP212 EJ Custom Pickup:

I put this pickup in the neck of my strat along with a yjm single coil and a super distortion in the bridge. Man Does it sing. I added many series/parallel and coil splitting switches and it comes alive. it can turn from clean cliffs of dover to raw gritty AC/DC to gainy megadeth Dave Mustaine tone. Paired with the super distortion its the best guitar tone ive heard from my fender (and i have quite a few pickups in there). Don't bother buying any other pickups for raw/gritty/clean tone. This is the best you'll find. Dimarzio should be advertising this way more, its better than any other pickup ive heard.

Comments about DiMarzio DP211/DP212 EJ Custom Pickup:

Looking for Youngish bright but thick crunch on your bridge pickup (Neil OR Malcolm)? Would like to flip to the neck for some PAF-ish jazz, or southern Betts tones? DiMarzio has been making your pickups, under a name you might not suspect. I went through a half-dozen sets of Duncan, DiMarzio, and boutique humbuckers, all good but if you want to cover that classic ground authentically in one guitar you can do no better than these. Don't wind up here, like I did. START here, and you'll probably stop (with a big smile on your ears).

Comments about DiMarzio DP211/DP212 EJ Custom Pickup:

I want to start by saying I love these pickups. I have an '07 Gibson Les Paul Standard (non-chambered) and switched out BurstBucker Pros for these lovely pups. Not that the pros are bad pickups I just did not care for the sound. They were too bright, a bit muddy, and too dirty for my liking. I love my Gibby but have loved the sound of a Strat so I wanted to get more of that sound without actually getting one. I read reviews about these and read how they were low output and things so I figured why not try them? I was debating on these or Gibson Classic '57s but figured I would try these out instead. I came so close to buying the Classics and had even heard them but got these instead and I do not have any regret in doing so! I use a Fender HotRod DeLuxe tube amp mic'd up to a PA system. The clarity of these are incredible. I can strum a chord distorted and here every note that is strummed and not have it be dirty. I was hesitant with how the amount of treble in these is high and I like more the low end tone but they still have plenty of mid and low end. Beautifully crisp and balanced tone with a more compressed clean sound! For being low output they still deliver plenty of punch and add a touch of percussive pop to them much like that of a Strat. The guys at DiMarzio know what they are doing when it comes to tone! I would highly recommend these for anyone with any playing style!

Comments about DiMarzio DP211/DP212 EJ Custom Pickup:

I dropped an EJ bridge and EJ neck into my Ibanez RG2EX2. My guitar had been muddy sounding even on the clean channel and now has clear notes in chords and it still has plenty of punch. Installed a DPDT switch for the neck pickup to have the option of series or parallel wiring. I also installed a DPDT switch for the bridge pickup to have the "out of phase" option. With the EJ pickups and the two switches I mentioned you will be able to get virtually any tone. If you want clarity and sparkle without giving up some punch if needed then these are your pickups!

Comments about DiMarzio DP211/DP212 EJ Custom Pickup:

I've been playing 29 years, and this is the tone I've always wanted. DiMarzio hit the nail right on the head. I slapped one of these in the bridge of my Epiphone G-400 and it now sounds better than any Gibson I own.

Comments about DiMarzio DP211/DP212 EJ Custom Pickup:

I bought this pickup to replace the Duncan Design pickup in the bridge position of my Schecter. I don't play metal but this schecter guitar had all the features I wanted with an unbeatable price. My main guitar before this guitar was a telecaster and I love the twang of single coils. That led me to this pickup. These pickups are great. They're very balanced from lows to highs and they are crystal clear. Exellent definition between the notes when cords are strummed (clean or overdriven) Of course they're much lower output than the duncan, but that's what I wanted. My coil tap is pretty much useless now but I think I'm going to get some concentric knobs and get rid of the tap. I don't get enough control with one volume and one tone knob. Overall this pickup gets a big thumbs up from me. The only problems i've had is that it's hard to keep it clean and shiny, and a little discoloration has shown up on the nickel finish. I think it may have been caused by the string cleaner I use. Way to go dimarzio!