How similar

[Dr.Mavashi]

is Custom to Fullshred?

[Dr.Mavashi]

Bamparu

[heymcz]

Hey, Doc,

My two favorite Duncans! I have had both multiple times in multiple guitars.

The Full Shred (we're talking bridge here) has a lot more lowermids and can sound boxy for rhythm...it is a lot clearer, and the sustain goes on and on...you can get buzzsaw rhythm layers. Almost like a keyboard, you hit it and it keeps going....for solos it's a very unique voice. Almost like a wah, there's a delayed frequency response. It's "vocal" and it's "precise as all heck"...every single mistake you make will be readily apparent to all involved. Yet, it's a very "alive" sounding pickup...not warm, per say, but very colorful. It's a little percussive on single notes, but nowhere near as percussive as a Demon.

The Custom, on the other hand, has more uppermids. It sounds thin when directly compared to the Full Shred, because it doesn't have a lot of lowermids. But it's a wider frequency spread. It does have a lot of bass, but if you listen, there's a hollow spot. On the other hand, the Custom is a lot more fun to play. There's no delay in the frequency response, and it covers a lot more mistakes/flubs. It is, however, cold and somewhat garbled in the mids. And it doesn't sustain quite as long as you think it should. Funny thing is that the Custom has frequency dependent clarity, so the top and bottom are smoother and crisper than the mids. So it sounds "complex". If you plug in a Custom, be prepared to whip out some Who or other Big Rawk.

Other notes: The FS "grunts" and the Custom "bites". FS works better under high gain, but you are better off with medium gain on the Custom. For recording, I would use a Full Shred. For all-around jamming goodness, the Custom is more versatile and fun. But it's a little "cloudy" on rhythm. Both need some adjustment of the tone knob. Both sound good clean. In my rigs, they have had the same amount of bass despite what the tone chart says.

Hope that helps!

[Dr.Mavashi]

heymcz,
Awesome, thank you dude. Boys, may I have a few more?

[Farkus]

IMO the FSb is the most 'DiMarzio' sounding pickup I've tried by SD. It sounds very HiFi. It does have a tone all of its own, though. I was very surprised how clean it sounds even with lots of gain. Also, it's focused to the point you can pull off some Yngwie style moves and sound believable.

[Dr.Mavashi]

Would you say that Fullshred has some of the qualities of Dirty Fingers or Cold Sweat ?