Bare Knuckle Pickups The Mule

passive Humbuckers PAF style, vintage style.

I use the Mule with the Alnico IV magnet, in the bridge position of my guitar. In the neck position I have the BKP 90, and they work together beautifully! The difference from the stock pickups to the Mule was amazing, it made my guitar go from sounding very good to sounding amazing.

The output level is perfect, not too hot, so it doesn't overcompress, it gives your guitar a very organic and ricc tone, and it brings out the best of the tone, you can have it sweeter by lowering it, or more rock/metal by raising it's height, it's how a PAF humbucker is supposed to sound! very balanced and vintage. You won't find a better humbucker for any money, it's just astounding! I can't stop playing since I installed my mule!

It may seem slightly expensive, but this is for a good reason, the Mule is leaps and bounds better sounding than all the other competition. It makes playing an absolute pleasure, and will bring out the best of your setup. It's very organic in tone, which means you can compress, or add any fx you can throw at it and it will always cut through, I can get tones that are as nice as Dave Gilmour, Jeff Beck and Jimi Page, bear in mind you can also get some amazing controlled feedback easily, plus Tim will advise you on which pickup he thinks best suits your needs.

passive humbuckers

installed to gibson les paul studio,calibrated set,replacing gibson 490r and 498t,was reasonably happy with 490r but 498t was very week and pickups did'nt seem well matched

I find the output level perfect for my style(blues/rock,punk),running through Klon Centaur and 5 watt celestion equipped gibson valve amp,treble pickup cuts through perfectly and rythm pickup is full and deep without the muddiness of the gibson

would definately buy again if i needed to and am seriously thinking of fitting bare knuckles in my other guitar,I've been playing for about 25 years and have had many guitars and many makes of pickups,I've used various Duncans in les pauls but I'm now sticking with bare knuckle,this review may sound completely glowing and arsey but I can't say a bad word about these pickups

It's the calibrated set, PAF replica, handmade by Bareknuckle. I have the Alnico IV magnet version, which is the closest to the original. Mine's also unpotted like the original. Mine are uncovered with a nice zebra finish. The bridge has a resitance of 8.K and the neck of 7.3K, this gives it a low- meduim output. I have also installed a coil splitter.

The guitar is a 1998 Gibson Les Paul Studio. It's a set so it's oth in the neck and bridge position. I wanted to change the pickups to achieve more vintage tone an get a more even and clearer tone.

The output ins't too high, but will drive your amp a bit. I'm using it with my 2006 Orange Rocker 30 combo, with an 12" Eminence Red Fang speaker. The tone is quite balanced, with a bit empahisis on the mids. They are pretty fat, without getting muddy, the classic PAF tone. Very twangy and trebly actually, but never getting biting or nasaly. The tone is extremely clear, you can really hear every nuance, picking and dynamic with them. They let your playing through to 100%. The tone is very classic voiced, great for classic rock and blues. Think early Cream, Beano era Clapton, Free, Led Zeppelin. I play these styles and it's perfect for that. These are the best pickups I have ever heard.

They are not a good choice if you are looking for screaming high gain pickups, but if you want classic PAF tone these are the ones to go with.

Check out some soundclips here:
http://gabel.dmusic.com

I would get new ones if I lost them or if they were stolen. I have been playing for over two years, my gear mostly mentioned in the sound and instrument section. I love everything about it, it's the best pickups I have played.

vintage style paf 2 conducting wires

i installed a calibrated set of bareknuckle pickups into a baker b1+ replacing the stock pickups,the origional pickups were ok but seemed a bit honky and hard to get a clear clean sound.

the output of the mules was slightly less than the bakers but the mules were very balanced across the strings.played clean the mules were beautiful,warm but bright with just enough bite and so responsive to pick attack or finger.played overdriven they kept all the note definition and never got muddy even with the volume rolled off. i play alot of different styles including funk blues and jazz these pickups are a godsend to my sound

if stolen i would order another set instantly,ive been playing guitar for 20yrs used seymour duncans for most of that.after playing bareknuckles i wont be going back to duncans sorry seymour!

The Mule - calibrated humbucking pickups, the DC is like 8.4 or something on the bridge and around 7.4 on the neck. They usually come with Alnico IV magnets but I had mine wound with Alnico II's. They are built to be replications of the late-50's Gibson PAF's that are so world famous

These pickups were put into a 2002 PRS Singlecut. I was replacing a Seymour Duncan Custon in the bridge and the a Seymour Duncan Custom 5(upside down) in the neck. I was just tired of the sterileness of the pickups and they just never seemed to sound good in the guitar. It was something that continually ticked me off about the seymours.

The output isnt insane, they really lend themselves to a mild/hard overdrive. They are voiced to the late 60's/70's Les Paul thing, but let me tell you they are super versitle pickups. I play everything from Van Halen to United Live stuff and it covers everything well. They clean up very nice, they are not overally dark, they are very clear when distorted. They handle any amount of gain very well, they dont distort the amp, they really send a great clear signal to the amp and I just the Splawn Quickrod do all the rest. For a vintage-y pickup, these are really the cream of the crop I would totally recomend this company and these pickups..

If these were stolen, I would just go buy another pair, they are amazing pickups....

Passieve humbucker. Made just like the original 50's PAF.
Nickle covers.

Gibson les Paul Standard Silverburst 'Showcase Edition' from 1988.
I replaced the original EMG humbuckers with a set of Bare Knuckle Mules. The EMG humbuckers didn't sound pure and clear, they could only sustain with high gain, but it had nothing to do with PURE TONE. So I wanted a great PAF sound with clear tones and even could handle distortion for classic rock/hardrock. The Mule is really amazing for everything!

The output is medium. Lots of character with pure tone. Even through the distortion you can hear the clarity and the single notes without sounding thin. Really ballsy rock sound, with a classic, aggresive bite if you want to. Perfect for Deep Purpe, Dire Straits, ZZ Top, Peter Green, Gary Moore, AC/DC and many others. The neck pickup sounds VERY warm (great blues/jazz pickup) and the bridge pickup is also warm, but with more bite and great for classic rock leads and rythm...absolutely not harsh sounding. The balans between the two pickups is amazing. Really great, clear and warm on clean sounds. I had some problems with adjusting the right hight of the bridge pickup, but after some little tweaks the balans with the neck is just AMAZING!!

I would buy this pickup definately again. I have only 1 Les Paul, but if I had more, they all would get some Mules.
I love the clarity of these pickups, even with the distortion. Very classic! I'm very satisfied. If you have the choice for choosing a pickup, buy a set of Mules!

These pups are humbucking passive pick ups. You can basically check it out on the website for more information; considering the pup covers, how its set up, etc.

I have the callibrated mule set; neck and bridge models. It's inside an esp ltd ec-1000 gutiar and I replaced EMG's (which I am really happy that I did)

The biggest reason why I changed the pups is becausethe EMG's weren't clear at all, they only could sustain those highly distorted sounds but while doing so, they couldn't be clear at all...and it was bad for me because I barely play metal.

The output is mildly high, pretty bright, but not too bright, it's just good enough! I'm using it with a roland 30 amp...and I still could tell the difference in tone from the EMG's to the BKP's mule.

I play everything from blues to hard rock and a bit of metal. Honestly, these pups can nail almost everythin I throw at it! Seriously...

The bridge can nail all of those super bright things you need to hit, the neck is really warm, very nice on the cleans and really nice on lower gain volumes.

If it were lost, I would cry...and cry, no only because I basically lost my tone I was looking for, but because these things are really expensive! But honestly, if you had enough money for these pick ups...GET THEM, they are seriously worth it in the long run...really I think these are the best pups out there in the market.

I've been playing for about 2-3 year.

Like I said, i compared these pups to the emgs and they completly blow the 81's and 60's out of the water.

I am completly satisfied with these pick ups, I'm just scared that the fact that when I get other guitars...i'll have to replace their pups too! *dies*

Finally, I would like to leave you with this.

If you're looking for yourself a good pair of pups that are very versatile and can give a great tone ( and i mean great ).

Stop looking, you're already half way there. (go to the shop now!)

humbucker set
bridge 8.4dc
neck 7.4 dc
alnico IV magnets

they're in a epiphone les paul standard, neck and bridge positions and the original epi pup's are being replaced. I changed the pickups because I didn't like the tone of the stock epiphone pickups. they didn't have enough high end and clarity.

feels a bit hotter than the stock epiphone humbuckers. I'm playing it through a solid state randall rg100sc. not a great amp at all but the distortion channel is good. I play anything from classic rock to metal. I just wanted a versatile and responsive pickup for good overdriven and clean tones. The pickup's tone is very well balanced and I really like it. The neck position doesn't sound muddy at all and the bridge doesn't sound harsh. These pickups sound very clear and aren't muddy at all. the overdriven and clean tones both sound great

I would definitely buy it again unless I could find something just as good for cheaper which I think could be done in North America. I've played for about 5 years. I didn't compare this pickup to many others so I feel I can't rate it very fairly. However I can tell you it doesn't have that annoying sizzling sound that I heard on some gibsons I played in stores. I am very satisfied with these pickups.

Pickup features: Humbucker - matched pair
Impedence or other specs: Standard

Model of guitar or bass: Cort M700
Position: all positions
Pickup being replaced: Standard Cort Mighty Mite pickups
Other pickups on guitar: none
Artists using this pickup:
You musical style(s): Blues / classic rock
Reason for pickup change: The Cort was a decent guitar, but when I bought an American Strat, it started to sound poor in comparison. I considered buying a better quality humbuckling guitar, but then I read the various reviews for these pickups and thought I would give the Cort a chance with a decent set of pickups (all of the rest of the hardware on the guitar is of a good quality and the guitar is realy nice to play). I was originally considering a pair of Stormy Mondays, but Tim suggested that The Mules might be more a appropriate choice - email answered within 24 hours.

Perceived output level: Not too powerful, but sound great through my Blues Junior amp (and through the pod when my wife is in the house)
Tone: Very well balanced and rich sounding - makes you want to play.
Sonic evaluation: I either play through a Blues Junior amp or through a Pod 2 (when silent playing is required). My guitar is transformed - no need to buy a Les Paul, my relatively cheap Cort now sounds great. These pickups have even led to an improvement in my playing!

For which styles and positions is this pickup (un)suitable: Blues / Rock - Great for both - superb service

Comments:

Pickup features: humbucker bridge poistion
Impedence or other specs: don't remember

Model of guitar or bass: self made guitar with warmoth parts-mahogany-maple top-ebony
Position: bridge
Pickup being replaced: none..the guitar was just made when i got this
Other pickups on guitar: semour duncan jazz on the neck
Artists using this pickup: ME!
You musical style(s): psichedelic, psot rock,shoegazing,ambient,hard rock
Reason for pickup change: none..i just want the best

Perceived output level: hot but in a reasonable way
Tone: balanced 100% perfect brilliat, best ever
Sonic evaluation: my project guitar (warmoth top notch mahogany body with maple top, maple neck with ebony fingeboard) thorugh a mes boogie v twin preamp, sometimes a boss giga delay (twin series) and a brilliant Fender Twin amp blackface with groove tubes on

For which styles and positions is this pickup (un)suitable: psichedelic, psot rock,shoegazing,ambient,hard rock..PERFECT!!!

Comments: if stolen.. I 'd write Tim and get one again!!!!
I play sicne 1988 and have a dozen of guitars ..this is the best pick up I ever tried for the bridge position
love it 100%..hate? nothing
I've got mysound now..thank to Tim