Product: Bartolini 3XV
Price Paid: N/A
Submitted
12/11/2004
at
03:42pm
by
Dave
Email: helderdg<at>juno dot com
Features
:
Pickup features: humcancelling singlecoil
Impedence or other specs:
Instrument
:
Model of guitar or bass: Epiphone AlleyKay
Position: neck
Pickup being replaced: Stock "Mini-Bucker"
Other pickups on guitar: Stock humbucker at bridge (I never use)
Artists using this pickup:
You musical style(s): Jazz, blues
Reason for pickup change: Humbuckers do not give me the articulation and definition I want. Just mud and more mud. The minibucker is the worst.
Sound
:
No Opinion
Perceived output level: Output level is quite low-- about like a Tele neck pickup. Big deal-- all my amps have *plenty* of preamp juice!
Tone: Balanced past balanced. The most "ACOUSTIC" soudning electric pickup I have ever tried (except the Bart TXE, which is so acoustic as to have zero versatility).
Sonic evaluation: I made a mount the size of the minibucker mount (out of ebony) so the Strat-size Bart fits at the neck.
I run this into a plain preamp. I use no EQ whatsoever-- this pickup doesn't NEED any. I like some hall reverb, and a little stereo chorus. I get a tone that reminds me of McLaughlin on Miles Davis' "Silent Way," though it's not the same. Just very open and airy. Never quite sounds electric. No other pickup sounds like this.
I can't get very dirty without a lot of EQ to cut the highs-- but that's somewhat true with any balanced pickup. Just more so with this one. So I don't use it dirty. It's too delicious clean anyway.
For which styles and positions is this pickup (un)suitable: Jazz, Blues, and a sort of acoustic-clean early fusion (see above re: McLaughlin).
Overall Rating
:
10
Comments: I have compared this to a Lawrence L280 and a DiMarzio VirtuAL2 DP409 at the same time. The Lawrence is sort of 50/50 acoustic electric compared to the very acoustic Bart 3XV. The DiMarzio is more electric. They are all very balanced. The Bart is the lowest output of the lot. I like them all for the clean style, so I have one each in the neck slot of my three Epiphone AlleyKats! I would go out of my way to get another 3XV... very very far out of my way. I've already paid plenty for a backup.
TRY Bart guitar pickups! Bill and Pat make a lot of nice new models and some of the older models as well. They got known for bass but to me, they're guitar-pickup designers. I try anything with the name on it, and always like them.
