• Registered: 2007-04-10
  • Posts: 2

Topic: Questions about electric

Hello everyone!  This is my first post on this forum, although I have been reading it for some time.

I've been playing acoustic on and off for several years.  Just recently I got my first electric.  It's a Dean EVO.  Based on some reviews I read online, it's supposed to be a cheap but decent beginner's guitar. 

I belive this guitar is setup to be simiar to a Les Paul with twin humbuckers. 

My quesiton is what does the toggle switch do, and how do you use it?  So far, this is what I know: 1.) It switches between which pickups are active.  If it's in the middle position, both pickups are active.  If it's switched towards the bridge, the bridge pickup is active, and if it's switched towards the neck, the neck pickup is active.

Now the real question is when do you use the different pickups?

Thanks in advance for your help!

  • Kahuna
  • Kahuna
  • Senior Member
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  • Registered: 2006-07-12
  • Posts: 290

Re: Questions about electric

I have a Les Paul model with similar switch.  And, I found that I like to keep it in the middle when I want the basic electric sound.  When I play more Jazz tunes, I switch it up.  Then, down when I want to play scales.  This switch, will make smaller difference if you use an effect pedal.  Also, depending on the amplifier you're using, the sound may be altered there as well.

  • From: Frederick, MD
  • Registered: 2006-12-28
  • Posts: 851

Re: Questions about electric

Normally, on my silverburst LP, I use the neck pickup for bluesy/gospel sounds
and the bridge pickup for rock/metal/reggae sounds.

I use the middle pickup for when I want the bluesy/gospel sound with the crunch/breakup of the Bridge pickup. It allows me to go easy on the strings and get that soft mellow tone and then strum the strings hard to get that ROCK crunch.

Very very versatile pickup styles on the LP style guitars.

=]
Dm

"Talent instantly recognizes genius,
but mediocrity knows nothing more than itself."

-Sir Arthur Conan-Doyle

Detman101's Website

  • From: Nottingham, UK
  • Registered: 2006-08-08
  • Posts: 690

Re: Questions about electric

The neck pickup will give a warm fat tone. If you leave distortion off and maybe add some reverb/echo it'll be very country/blues in sound.

The bridge pickup is harsher, thinner. Turn on the gain/overdrive and it'll give you the basic rock sound.

That's not to say you can't mix and match. Turn down the volume and mid the tone on the bridge pickup and you've got an early sixties group sound, sharp and twangy. Turn up the distortion of the neck pickup and you've got a snarling roar.

Keep experimenting and you should find the comfortable playing sounds your Evo can create (although one-trick crazy effects can be fun!).

'The sound of the city seems to disappear'
  • From: Pico Rivera, Calif. U.S.A.
  • Registered: 2006-10-26
  • Posts: 785

Re: Questions about electric

bzsasic wrote:

Hello everyone!  This is my first post on this forum, although I have been reading it for some time.

I've been playing acoustic on and off for several years.  Just recently I got my first electric.  It's a Dean EVO.  Based on some reviews I read online, it's supposed to be a cheap but decent beginner's guitar. 

I belive this guitar is setup to be simiar to a Les Paul with twin humbuckers. 

My quesiton is what does the toggle switch do, and how do you use it?  So far, this is what I know: 1.) It switches between which pickups are active.  If it's in the middle position, both pickups are active.  If it's switched towards the bridge, the bridge pickup is active, and if it's switched towards the neck, the neck pickup is active.

Now the real question is when do you use the different pickups?

Thanks in advance for your help!

Bz,

First of all when you refer to a pickup as active it indicates that is is a battery powered pickup like a EMG 81 pickup the pickups you have are actually passive pickups (no battery or preamp required). I understand what you mean as active that when you switch to the bridge pickup it activates or allows the brige pickup to be heard. Your summation of how your toggle switch works is correct. With that said which pick up to play on what type of music is a personal preference.

As you develope your playing ear for electric you will know what sound that you are after whe you hear it. All the other post mention some valid points on which direction to go.  However the correct determination as to which pickup is louder or what type of sound you get is determined on the "K" value of your pickups. The bridge pickup depending on who made them will usually be around 7.5"k" and the bridge will be around 8.2 "k". So the bridge pick up with the higher "k" value will have a higher output.

You can always put a push/pull pot in and as you pull it up you will split the coiuls on you pickup that you selected and get a single coil strat type sound. Of course it will cost you about the price of your guitar to have one installed unless you know how to do it yourself.

Good luck.

Bootlegger.
Bootlegger guitars.

  • From: BELGIUM
  • Registered: 2007-01-27
  • Posts: 3,403

Re: Questions about electric

Hello, to you too boot. Well that guitar is a really beautiful guitar: in fact it is one of the most beautiful guitar I saw.
If she "rocks" don't change a thing.
Try this guitar using an amp, and try to find by regulating the amp the sound that is closest to the sound you want.
I have 2 Gibson LP custom, one from the end seventies, the other a "black beauty" having 2 humbuckers too. I went to the music store, they changed first the pick-up in the neck by a P-94, = the P-90, but larger to fit into the whole. I should have kept it like that because the sound was incredible. 2 months later the bridge P-94 arrived, and I went home with the 2 humbuckers, and 1968 was the first year they started to produce them again. PROBLEM: I was in hospital, my girlfriend left me, the originals: DON'T FIND THEM.
So there are some real good coils, pick-ups like (my choice) lindy fralin. Check it out on eBay.
I think if you go on the www.gibson.com you can not only see the pick-ups they use, but you can hear them too. On the gibson site: really interesting stuff what you have as result with different humbuckers.

[color=blue]- GITAARDOCPHIL SAIS: TO CONQUER DEAD, YOU HAVE TO DIE[/color]   AND [color=blue] we are born to die[/color]
- MY GUITAR PLAYS EVERY STYLE = BLUES, ROCK, METAL, so I NEED TO LEARN HOW TO PLAY IT.
[color=blue]Civilization began the first time an angry person cast a word instead of a rock.[/color]

gitaardocphil's Website

  • From: Pico Rivera, Calif. U.S.A.
  • Registered: 2006-10-26
  • Posts: 785

Re: Questions about electric

Phil,

If you go the route of Gibson pickups you still are buying pickups that cost more than the guitar it's self. I almost bought a Dean Evo just for the price They were on sale for $99.00 american, there good guitars but I could not see spending a hundred dollars and then hot rodding it with even cheap pickups (inexpensive, not cheap in quality that would have cost $50.00 american and another $20.00 in pots and a capacitor. Not to mention that if I did not do my own work installing new pickups would cost about another $150.00 american to have the work done. It would just not be cost effective.

Bootlegger.

  • Registered: 2007-04-10
  • Posts: 2

Re: Questions about electric

Thank you all for the responses! It's so great to have a community like this. 

I will be experimenting with the different switch positions and my amp settings.  I was just wondering if there was any rule-of-thumb on how the switch was supposed to be used; and based on your responses, it sounds like its all based on what sound you're after.

Bootlegger, you're absolutley right.. I picked this guitar up really cheap because this is my first electric (i play acoustic) and I didn't want to invest $$$ not being sure if I would enjoy playing electric.  I read the reviews on the EVO, and most of the people highly recommended it for the price.  So far I'm having a blast! 

Thanks again to all!

  • From: BELGIUM
  • Registered: 2007-01-27
  • Posts: 3,403

Re: Questions about electric

The more I am on this site the more I learn. ME, always "greedy" to have the best.
My point of view was: the more expensive, the better. One thing I discovered, there are more guitars, a lot less expensive, and at least, if not better, as good.
The only definition that still stands is: CLOTHES.
An expensive costume, choosing an everlasting colour, is always better. I had to throw away or give away cheap costumes, but I still use the expensive costumes, 15 year later.
About guitars: I am really in love with a beautiful EPIPHONE CUSTOM in ALPINE WHITE.
I found one for 300$ on eBay, but having that much guitars, and still a few months to go, costing me a lot of money, I wait and see. Boys, since I am here, a lot of "statues about guitars" felt down. Back with my feet on earth.

[color=blue]- GITAARDOCPHIL SAIS: TO CONQUER DEAD, YOU HAVE TO DIE[/color]   AND [color=blue] we are born to die[/color]
- MY GUITAR PLAYS EVERY STYLE = BLUES, ROCK, METAL, so I NEED TO LEARN HOW TO PLAY IT.
[color=blue]Civilization began the first time an angry person cast a word instead of a rock.[/color]

gitaardocphil's Website

  • From: Gander Newfoundland
  • Registered: 2007-05-05
  • Posts: 246

Re: Questions about electric

gitaardocphil wrote:

The more I am on this site the more I learn. ME, always "greedy" to have the best.
My point of view was: the more expensive, the better. One thing I discovered, there are more guitars, a lot less expensive, and at least, if not better, as good.
The only definition that still stands is: CLOTHES.
An expensive costume, choosing an everlasting colour, is always better. I had to throw away or give away cheap costumes, but I still use the expensive costumes, 15 year later.
About guitars: I am really in love with a beautiful EPIPHONE CUSTOM in ALPINE WHITE.
I found one for 300$ on eBay, but having that much guitars, and still a few months to go, costing me a lot of money, I wait and see. Boys, since I am here, a lot of "statues about guitars" felt down. Back with my feet on earth.

Something like mine? An Alpine White G 400?

http://i148.photobucket.com/albums/s4/SGinCYQX/sg.jpg

"You have to get over the love of power, and enjoy the power of love, in order to know peace."
-Jimi Hendrix.
  • From: BELGIUM
  • Registered: 2007-01-27
  • Posts: 3,403

Re: Questions about electric

YEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAS  SGinCYQX, that's the kind of guitar I am referring, amongst others.
As you have noticed, I am a fanatic topic writer.
One of my topics is going about CHEAP to MORE EXPENSIVE, in fact, a guitar for every wallet. I am busy surfing a lot of hours to "try to contribute" some interesting information. I have the time, since I had to stop working as MD, due to an accident. I hope that some of my topics are helpful, like my topic, as told, concerning $$$ for ELECTRIC and the same for ACOUSTIC guitars.
Do you know, if you want to have the "real thing" a GIBSON SG (some, maybe a lot are "kicking" on a brand, like GIBSON or FENDER), while and this is for BOOTLEGER, there are probably better guitars. About the GIBSON SG, no options, no lacquer finish, just wood and humbuckers, well I just saw a price: brandnew on www.musiciansfriend.com for 579.99$
_____________________________________________________________________________

GITAARDOCPHIL SAIS: BEWARE OF THE ATTACK OF THE CLONES

[color=blue]- GITAARDOCPHIL SAIS: TO CONQUER DEAD, YOU HAVE TO DIE[/color]   AND [color=blue] we are born to die[/color]
- MY GUITAR PLAYS EVERY STYLE = BLUES, ROCK, METAL, so I NEED TO LEARN HOW TO PLAY IT.
[color=blue]Civilization began the first time an angry person cast a word instead of a rock.[/color]

gitaardocphil's Website