Neil Spencer Bruce

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Bare Knuckles Miracle Man review and comparison to stock pickups

A short video of the fantastic Miracle Man pickups in an basswood Ibanez RG-350. I have also run along side this a comparison between the Miracle Man pickups and those in an Ibanez RG7321 which is also an basswood body. Hopefully this helps demonstrate audibly the differences between the two. I have done this because purchasing pickups can be a complete nightmare, primarily as they aren't something you can try out in the shop. You generally have to base your choice on internet demos (okay I realise the irony!), which are in some instances well produced and mastered, or feature the guitar in buried in tracks. I decided to try and do a direct comparison by cutting between the guitar with the Miracle Man and another similar (in this case with basswood body...but different neck not maple, but same construction apart from fingerboard) guitar.The miracle man really is a great pick up, it is obviously based on Zakk Wylde style sound. Zakk uses active EMG pickups, and personally I really don't like active pickups or the way they sound. The Bareknuckles is totally in a world of it's own. It has tremendous output, but retains a passive humbucker sound, full of air and depth rather than bland like an active pick up. The think I love most about this pick up is the sound. It have very pronounced mids (in my opinion) and this really helps with cut through and not end up in mush. When split it has a really funky fender strat type sound, which is fantastic and makes the guitar infinitely versatile. I think I am going get the neck pickup coil tapped for ultimate in versatility and that lovely single coil sound in the neck...which I love. I would certainly recommend taking a look (listen!) to these pickups, I spend a long time considering which ones to go for, my choices were between the VH II (For that Van Halen PAF sound) and the Rebel Yell's. I spend a fair amount of time thinking about (and listening to demos!) about which would meet my needs, as well as conversations with Steve at The Guitar Repair workshop in Manchester about what to go for and we ended up with the Miracle Man. I certainly do like what I hear about the Rebel Yell though, which seem to also have a wide range of tonal options.Here's the video..You can also listen to an audio only version here. The audio version has all the clips with the BareKnuckles Miracle Man pickup first and then that is followed by the stock Ibanez pickups in the RG-7321.Hope that is of use to you guys out there.EnjoyPeaceNeil