The Invader's a bit of a monster, so the Pearly Gates will probably be way too low an output in comparison. The PAF Joe is your best bet and isn't so powerful that it limits your bridge pickup choice if you decide to change the bridge pickup later.

The PAF JOE is a good choice because its medium output, so its gonna balance well with the other
MEDIUM outputs like FRED, NORTON, and even sum of the hotter bridge models like TONE ZONE, EVO2 , etc

Im running my EVO2(High Output at 375) in bridge while the Air Norton measures at 270, in the neck...

and they are matched pretty well. (even though I was suspecting the Evo2 too be substantially louder.)

Those "Output Catagories" on the Dimarzio site are just guidelines , and you don't have to match them

according to catagoy of output, but it helps.

ok cool,i'm gonna go for the paf-and maybe change the bridge to a tone zone aswell.is there a big dif between the tone zone and invader sound?or would i be wasting money,and not hear that big dif between them?

Im havent tried the Invader.... How does it sound?


The Tone Zone is Shred-o-Rama as many of the greats use it, They also bringing it out as the Stock bridge p/up on
some of the 2009 Prestige models...

The invader is like the little brother of the emg 81 in sound-pretty metallic sounding, it`s just an ok pickup, nothing to write home about. Good for metal....i`ve decided gonna put in the paf joe in neck, and the tone zone in the bridge, thought about the fred but like the screaming quality (and it is`nt a thin scream like u get with most higher output pickups) of the tone zone. Thanx for the input!

Yeah - the Invader is like a DM Super Distortion or most early design high output pickups - heavy on the mids and lows and the highs are a bit brittle and harsh thanks to a ceramic magnet. Not subtle at all.

yip, it aint a friendly sound - thought bout it and think i`m rather going for the dimarzio mo jo - coz it`s inbetween the fred and tone zone, bit scared the tone zone is going to be too hot for the paf joe.

No problem - if a bridge pickup is a bit hot for the neck, set it down a little lower. Aside from lower output, you get a bit more "woodiness" and a little smoother tone from it that way. I have my Air Zone set down a bit lower to match with a vintage style PAF (Lollar) in the neck and I really like it that way.

Do u think i must try the tone zone instead of the mo joe??I just don`t want that metallic, high treble sound i`m getting with the invader - thats why i thought of the mo joe, its in the middle output, don`t want to be dissapointed. Read some review of the tone zone and most ppl say it`s a harsh sounding pickup aswell.The epi is made of mohagony and alder wood, solid body so maybe it will sound more full, coz most reviews was from ppl putting it into ibanez guitars. Read some good reviews of ppl replacing pickups into the epi lp custom (neck paf joe, bridge mo joe) just don`t want a metal sound again. I`m a bit over the metal phase...

But ya as u say i can set the tone zone lower and match the paf, and if the mood takes me to metal or something heavier i can bring it closer to the strings again, more versetile pickup....but i`m really not sure what to get now.

And was wondering, what k pots does the custom have - and what would u reccomend i do, keep the pots currently or put onther ones in. (for bridge to get rid of a bit treble if i choose the tone zone)

Quinus wrote: Do u think i must try the tone zone instead of the mo joe??

You mean replace your bridge pickup instead of the neck? Depends on which is more important pickup to you and how much the Invader annoys you. For most of us I think the bridge pickup is higher priority on a two humbucker guitar, but if the Invader is serviceable, it may do for now and you can change the neck first. At least the Invader is sellable, so when you change the bridge pickup, you should be able to partially finance the new one off the sale of the old.

I just don`t want that metallic, high treble sound i`m getting with the invader

Compared to a pickup with an alnico magnet, ceramics always have a bit of an edge to them - it works well to put back some of the high end lost by winding the pickup hot though, and sometimes that edginess helps you cut through dense metal mixes.

Read some review of the tone zone and most ppl say it`s a harsh sounding pickup aswell.
Not by my reckoning and I'm fussy about such things. It's an alnico 5 magnet and is pretty warm sounding (Too warm in an LP for many people). It's an excellent pickup in a bright guitar (if you want to tame the highs of a Floyd) or for a thick, heavy tone. I use Air Zone (same thing, but with the magnet spaced further from the poles to lower the magnetic gauss and output), and I'm happy - but that's in a bright guitar.

The epi is made of mohagony and alder wood

An LP? I think you'll find it's mahogany with a maple cap and a rosewood fingerboard. Unless it's one of the other, less common models.

What sounds are you chasing now? More classic rock? I've got to be honest - medium to lower powered pickups make more sense in most cases these days. Modern amps and distortion pedals have more than enough gain to make up for a lower powered pickup and the pickups themselves have more dynamic and tonal range.

Quinus wrote: And was wondering, what k pots does the custom have

Humbucker guitars will almost always have 500K pots, which are fine in most cases. If you find your pickups are too bright or too dark, you can hand select a different value pot (a pot marked 500K can actually fall anywhere in the range between 400K and 600K) to compensate. Pot quality may not be the best in an Epi, but as long as they are in range, they do the job until they start wearing out in a year or two - then you pop in some CTS brand and forget about them for the next 10 years or so.

ya i am going for a more classic rock sound - but if need be i don`t want the mo joe in bridge to be lacking if i want to play something more heavy, otherwise i`ll get the tone zone instead. I`m looking to replace both when i take my guitar in, so i`m going to put the paf joe in neck but i`m still a bit uncertain if i`m going to put in the tone zone or the mo jo in bridge.

Quinus, i bought a "Tone Zone T" yesterday, the telecaster version of the pickup, dont know if its the same as a normal Tone Zone, but so far it sounds really good, i would describe the sound to be a 80's sound with a modern touch(Some clarity).

Still need to do the coil split wiring, but so far the pickup isn't to hot and bright just enough for what i looking for, infact when i switch to the neck single coil it seems to keep equal energy in volume.

It is really sensitive to pickup height, i bet you can go from john 5 to albert lee by adjusting the height.

You can come and test out if you wanna, altough it is a maple fretboard telecaster.


Marshall music in cape town has a pretty big collection of dimarzio pickups, and they are going really fast!!!