DiMarzio Chopper

Single coil or humbucking? Rail-type single coil sized humbucker.

Impedance or other specs? 9.16 kOhm, 260 mV, ceramic magnet

What model guitar or bass did you install this in? Jeff Beck Signature Stratocaster (alder body), maple neck, birdseye maple fretboard, floating tremolo

What position is it in? neck

What pickup are you replacing? Dimarzio HS-3

Other pickups installed on the instrument? Dimarzio Fast Track 2 (bridge) and Fast Track 1 (middle)

Reason for changing the pickup? I originally had this pickup in the neck position of an ash-body start (maple fretboard), but it was too muddy - had nice tone, smooth highs, good mids, but was just too muddy in that guitar (which naturally has a loud, loose bottom end). This alder strat, the one the Chopper is in now, had an HS-3 in the neck (and bridge), but it sounded a little thin and had very low output.

What's the output level like? A perfect match for the Fast Track 2 in the bridge (321 mv). Loud.

What amps and effects are you using it with? Fender Pro 185 and Boss ME-50 effects.

Tone - Bassy, middy, muddy, trebly, balanced? Fairly well balanced, can be a tad muddy if you don't adjust the bass side down a little lower - a 500 kOhm pot is good.

What style of music do you play? Is this a good match? This pickup was put in the neck of what was intended to be a metal, hard rock, "shredding" guitar - it suits that application well. It's also a perfect match for overdriven bluesy, jazzy type stuff - as one reviewer said, can nail Gilmour's "Crazy Diamond" neck tone.

For which positions is this pickup (un)suitable? I think it would probably perform well in all positions, but I've only tried it in the neck.

If it was destroyed or stolen, would you buy it again or get something else? I'd get this pickup again. I gave it an 8 in the sound section because it tends to be just a tad muddy in the neck, even on a bright guitar like my alder body, maple fretboard strat with a fully floating bridge, if you don't take precautions. It was too muddy in my ash-body strat (also with maple fretboard). But slight muddiness works in certain situations, and gives it a very smooth, warm tone - perfect for runs across the low strings up to the highs, and it's wonderful for soaring Pink Floyd style leads. It's somewhat a trade-off. On the other hand, a higher value tone pot (500+ k) and lowering the bass side of the pickup down a bit goes a long way to "remedying" this. For this guitar, the Chopper's staying put because it's balanced well, both volume- and tone-wise, to this setup ...and can nail Gilmour and fast neo-classical runs (which is all I can ask).

How long have you been playing? 20-something years

What other gear do you own? 5 Strat style guitars (three Fenders, two "frankenstrats"), 3 Les Paul style guitars (ESP Edwards LP, two bolt-on "franken-LPs") and an acoustic (Yamaha).

Why did you choose this one? I chose this pickup because it seemed to balance well, "on paper", with a bridge Fast Track 2 - and it does.

Are you satisfied with this pickup or still searching for <b>that</b> sound? I'm satisfied. The search is over for now.

Passive, hum-canceling, strat-sized rail pickup.

Choppers in Neck and Bridge position and a Fast Track 1 in the middle position. I installed these pickups in a neckthru Jackson S/S/S guitar, replacing the stock Kent Armstrong rail strat pickups. The stock pickups were nice, but I wanted a hotter tone.

I have this running through one 500k volume pot and a 1m (1000k) tone pot for a brighter tone.

Hot for a strat, normal output for a humbucker. Pretty balanced. It has some nice strat character - like a warm single coil with more output. If you want a humbucker tone, this isn't for you.

I play metal and instrumental rock. In the neck, this pickup is great clean or distorted! In the bridge, it has a nice clean tone (like a strat bridge pickup, without the piercing high end). With distortion, the Chopper in the bridge is a little weak for metal rhythm, but it has a unique tone that's half strat and half humbucker - good for Yngwie type stuff.

I would buy this again. I've been playing for 10 years. I love the clean tone, because it has a very warm strat tone. I was afraid it would just sound like a humbucker, but it still maintains that glassy strat sound, without the harsh high end.

Well its a single coil sized twin blade humbucker. The Dimarzio site has all the specs. Most important to me was the 260mV output. I think I purchased mine in 1994 or 1993.

Installed in the bridge position of a '92 Fender Squier "Waynes World" Strat (made in japan). Basswood body, maple neck, Indian Rosewood fretboard. I replaced the stock pickup with this. I was young and inexperienced, all I wanted was the highest output pickup I could put in that spot. Well I didn't have a lot of money, so I bought the cheapest pickup I could get to do this for me. I picked this up at Samash (Edison, NJ) for $50. That is all I could afford.

Well when I got it, I thought it was outrageously high output. Now, compared to my Super Distortion, I'd say its medium or little below that. But definitely higher than any SC you can find. I have used it with Mesa/Boogie DC-2, Peavey 5150 2x12 combo, '66 Fender Deluxe Reverb, Line 6 Spider Valve (bogner) and Peavey Classic 50.

Now hear this... This guitar and pickup combo is still my GO TO instrument for everything. I have other guitars that are supposedly better, this pickup and guitar combo is where its at. With my band, I play "Before you accuse me" and quick turn of the volume knob and I'm off playing "Everlong"... then crank it up higher to 10 and I am right there with that massive distortion I need for Radiohead's Creep.

This pickup is warm. Great clarity, excellent highs. Not harsh, just smooth. I'm so shocked that this pickup I bought when I was so "green" still stands up to all the boutique pickups I've tried.

Currently in a cover band, playing all styles. Mostly classic rock, modern rock, some blues and some funk. Pickup is a slam dunk for this type of music.

Definitely replace it if it was destroyed. I don't see anything else in the Dimarzio line that sounds like it can do what the chopper does. FS1 might be too tame. FS2 might be too hot. Chopper for me please. =) I've been playing for 21 years and I've had some very good gear. Not ridiculous high end, but not cheap either. I love that it is a do it all pickup. What I hate about it is that I am afraid to buy another strat and put this pickup in it to find out that it sucks! For the bridge pickup sound that I need, this is all I need. No need to upgrade. A regular humbucker, is too warm and dark compared to this. This is just perfect for my taste.

It's a stacked humbucker in a single coil space.

Installed in Fender Standard Strat (MIM) in the neck position. It had replaced a Pro Track (which was a pretty damn good pickup)
I currently have a Fender Texas Special in the middle position and a Breed (the best pickup ever) in the bridge.

I changed the previous pickup because I wanted a little more clarity and less tubbiness than the Pro Track, which this couldn't deliver.

Output is pretty hot, but less than the Pro Track and is rated at 260.
I'm using a Peavey Valveking 212 with an Eminence Swamp Thang and Governor and an Alesis Quadraverb.
The tone is pretty muddy and very tubby. If you're looking to sound like Yngwie or that type of clarity, this pickup will NOT deliver at all. However, if you want to sound like Carlos Santana, this pickup is spot on. From the reviews I had read, and a video posted on UTube, this pickup kind of sounded very open, but it's not. It's not good for fast, shred type leads. So if you're looking for that, try something else. It would be great for Fusion and Jazz, but nothing else really.

It's not a bad pickup overall, it's just not what I was looking for. It's pretty dry and has medium output, but I just couldn't take the tubbiness anymore so I swapped this out for the stock Fender pickup - which is exactly the sound I had been searching for.

Strat-sized humbucker...can be wired for dual-parallel or single coil.

I've had 3 other different bridge PUPs in my "Franken-Tele"....a Duncan, a Fender Noiseless, then a Rio Grande Tallboy. They all had their pros & cons, but none of them would give me what I really needed...that fat 'bucker tone and level that would match that of the TV Jones Filtertron at the neck position (there's also a Bill Lawrence 280 in the middle!). This PUP was perfect. Using a 3 position mini-toggle, I wired it for all 3 configurations. I now have the best of all worlds

With the 3 available positions, I can go from fat bucker, to Strat. In dual-parallel, I get a nice clear Strat tone with no noise. Switching to single, the level drops a tad and there's hum, but now I've got that sweet vintage single-coil sound. I am thinking of building another Strat using three of these babies. I play thru a 1979 Music Man RD-100 head into two JBL E-110's in an open-back, George Terry design cab. Effects include, Digitech delay pedal, Tube Screamer, MXR Dynacomp, and a Line 6 MM-4. I'm a classic (old fart) rocker.

humbucker single coil size, passive, very sweet , good output power...

i purchased it for a us standard stratocaster because i found that the stock bridge pickup compared to the neck there was too muck difference in sound... so i put the chopper in the bridge position.. fat sounding good ... i'd recomend it..

i play blues , hard rock .. a little bit of everything, love it, maybe not great for every style out there,or every player. i'm talking about bridge position... try it.

well i bought it on ebay , great price. wasn't sattisfied with stock fender pickups, hopefully they'll put better one's sooner or later.. many players use the chopper in the neck , it's suggested in both neck and bridge .. i'm sattisfied.

Single coil size passive humbucker. Can be connected like a single coil or humbucker.

Guitar: Fender Fat Strat USA.
Position: Neck
Replacing: Fender Noiseless
Other PUs: Fender Noiseless (middle), DiMarzio Tone Zone (Bridge)
Artists using this PU: Richie Kotzen
Reason for changing PU: Lack of punch, sustain from the neck PU and I wanted a "fatter" sound.

Output level: 260

The PU is connected like an HUMBUCKER, because I have an humbucker at the bridge.

My amp: Carvin Legacy 100w head+4x12" carvin legacy cab.

It has a lot of output for a Neck pickup, the sound is really near an active PU. The sound is like a "Tube", really round, fat with a lot of sustain and character. It has a lot of Mids and Bass, enough highs and high mids to cut the mix. it sounds very balanced for my taste.

It's really a great PU for playing "Shine On crazy diamond" (Pink Floyd) for example... it's "right on". It's perfect for blues, rock and warm heavy/progressive "soloing sound".

I think it's not for Nu Metal, Punk or Grunge, but if you want an "organic, warm, fat" sound it's for you.

The only complain I have about this PU... It's about the "maybe overcompress" sound that falls sometimes in unwanted overdrive if you play too hard on the clean channel.

This PU is suitable for Neck and Bridge, that's why it has that much output !

If it was destroyed or stolen I surely buy another one... this is THE Neck PU I always wanted for my Fender, very versatile and with a lot of character and very "natural" sounding.

I've been playing for 13 years, I mostly play rock, heavy, progressive and blues music. I owned a Jackson KV2 USA, Schecter C7-Blackjack electric guitars both with JB (bridge) and '59 (neck)... and I'm starting to think about changing those PUs for DiMarzios ! I'm really pleased and surprised with my new DiMarzio PUs (Tone Zone+Chopper)... this is the 1st time I buy DiMarzio's and it's surely not my last !

The only complaint about the PU it's the "unwanted overdrive" I have when I play too "roughly" on the clean channel.

For my fender, my search is done... this is THE sound I always wanted for my neck PU.

Single coil sized dual rail passive humbucker.

Neck position in a Steinberger GM copy project guitar. The stock pickups were just crap. I was concerned this pickup wouldn't be a great match for the guitar, as the body is made of Elm, a very soft lightweight wood. This type of wood with a middy pickup could've been a muddy disaster. I was wrong, this pickup is simply perfect for the application, and It's a perfect match with the Tone Zone I installed in the bridge. The guitar is an H/S/S configuration, I yanked out the middle pickup and left the position empty to leave room for picking. Just the two pickups with a few extra switching options is quite enough.

High output, a perfect match with a high output bridge pickup. The tone is bold and clear, great sustain, very middy but nicely balanced. Noise? It's dead silent! Enough output for some nice rumble when you push it, but it cleans up very nicely. My new favorite single coil replacement. I play jazz metal, a style that demands a wide variety of tasteful sounds. This one delivers.

I'll buy this again next time I need a single coil replacement for a project. Under direct comparison, it kicks the *** out from under a Seymour Duncan Hot Rails. Might be a little hot for purist vintage single coil junkies. That's not what this one's after. But for what it is, this pickup is the shit.

See bellow

Gibson Melod Maker :)
Bridge position
Stock,Dimarzio Solo Pro
It is a Single pickup Melody Maker.
Artist...I think mr. Kotzen
Reason for change: I generally like Gibson pickups. They are just great with Marshall, However I am a Peavey, Mesa Guy. So Stock was very treble heavy. Solo Pro was just the opposit so too warm for my taste. I replaced stock Cap. Replacement caused some improvements
I used a lot og choppers before, it worked always so had good experience.

Chopper is just a masterpiaece. I am not great fan of Dimarzio however I really think this is the best ever singlebucker. Great character. Very quick, dynamic. Tone is balanced however tends towards treble side very good upper mids.
I dont like scooped mid pickups. I don't always like the Dimarzio enchanted mids. I accept they work if you are a professional musician and want to stay alive in the mix. I don't like Tone Zone but I like Breed, I don't like Fred but I like Norton I don't like VV2.1 2.2, 54s but I like Area 58-61. Funny relationship.
BUT CHOPPER JUST RULES. There are more aggressive, more muscular, hotter rails howerer it is just lovely for Rock music, in my melody maker sound like AC/DC Back in Black era.

Avoid the risk buy a chopper.
I warn you it doesn't fit Melody maker so you have to work a bit.

Single coil sized humbucker. Passive pu.

Custom Strat, in the bridge position. It is replacing EMG SV's Dimarzio cruisers. Reason changed is that I wanted a more versatile sound and the bridge pickup on most Strats sound like crap.

The output is similar to my Les Paul with stock pups. I use a Mesa Boogie Triaxis and a Mesa 50/50 power amp. Effects are through an old Alesis Quadraverb. The sound of this pickup is what I was looking for - and I was really worried. I wanted more of a paf sound, but from a single coil sized pickup. It is a touch more mid rangey compared to the Les Paul Gibson 498T, but has nice high end and plenty of beef down low. Clean it doesn't sound much like a Strat bridge pu, but that is good for me. It does clean up though, unlike some humbucker pup's - My Les Paul you really can't get a good clean sound out of the bridge pickup. It blends fairly well with the middle pickup to give you some quack, but you lose some of the high end sparkle, but when you go distorted it is worth it. I was having to change back and forth between guitars all the time, but I can rock this really hard and still shift around and get a good clean tone. I'm pretty happy. I've been playing it now for about two months. PS. the bottom end is not muddy, which is one of the things I feared. I put it with a Cruiser bridge in the middle position and a Cruiser neck in the neck pos. It all works well together with just a bit less highend than a reg. Strat, but with much better sustain and little drop off after the initial pluck, which is a plague of most Strats.

Is anything really a 10 when it comes to Guitar players who are always searching for the holy grail of tone? I would buy this pu again. I've had many different pups in the bridge of this custom Strat including a Duncan Custom, Duncan Alan Holdsworth - nice sustain but too middy, EMG SV - too much like reg. strat, but great classic tone with a bit more output, much better than stock strat and really nice neck tones, and my favorite up to now was the Dimarzio PAF Pro - I eventually got tired of an annoying res. peak. The Chopper works really well for a good, hot PAF sound (similar to Gibsons 498T) but still has a good clean tone. What I don't like is the out of phase sound, where you lose some of the highs, but still have good quack (but for me the trade is worth it, since a only play a few songs where I use that quacky strat, Dire Straights tone) If that is what you want stick with the more stock pups. The thing that I like most is the increased sustain, excellent rock tone when distorted and only a touch of dropoff, which you just can't get with lower out put pickups - I don't like high output pickups either, but you've got to have something that doesn't just die after you hit it.