Seymour Duncan's El Diablo is a custom shop unit, the chances of one offered in stores as a regular production unit is slim. This one here is a special offering to SD's distributors & it costs $100 more than a standard production model. Despite being touted as a distortion monster, the El Diablo features an Alnico II magnet which is the highlight of the pickup itself- a monster based on tamed essentials. Jumping right into the driven territory, the El Diablo has no issues delivering impact; all manner of drive/ distortion is supplemented by a very crunchy voicing, meaning, it has a treble highlight but nothing repulsive. Imagine your tone being supplemented by a treble boost unit but not set to stun. Moving over to the opposite end, the El Diablo pomises some of the best & tightest bass notes delivery especially for those of us who palm mute our notes. With these in mind, expect a scooped overall response but it's made rather undetectable due to the top end emphasis somewhat.
Where does the Alnico II advantage come in? It's for those of us who further trim our tones via the volume pot or we have a tone control which is aptly supplemented by a named capacitor. This is where the the El Diablo shines, subtle dialing in of tones but not one that relents when distortion is concerned.
From a personal perspective, the El Diablo is a little differentiated because of the afforementioned magnet in use, otherwise, we would be hard pressed to recognize its subtleties considering what the Nazgul, Black Winter & Distortion could do in this turf.
Amps used:
- Marshall JCM800 Anniversary 1W
- EVH 5150III
- Randall LX20R
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