John 5 Talks Fender Telecasters

[Newbyrock23]

Such a fantastic company, D's all the way! And John is such a great player, wish he would get more recognition

[edslides1]

he sure wasted a lot of valuable time playin with that moron marilyn....

much better with chris goss, love to hear a solo album

[coupe662]

Ive seen different D activator pups, what exact model are theese?

[thecapitolwasteland]

wow that guys a lot cooler than expected.

[funbagproductions]

i wish i could play as good as him.

[elstroshitnonstop]

telecasters have changed considerably, they got thinner and the wood changed and the electrics changed almost yearly. the 52 teles dont have a tone knob, its a blend knob that blends the pickups, changed in 53. also the pickups and wiring changed a lot and you really need to look this stuff up to get a correct sounding tele, nothing worse than a tele not being right

[InsaneMovie]

Nice Pants...

[CBJackets07]

Playing some crazy cords

[oioi99]

i like how smooth he plays hes just like" yup..im just gonnna play 10000 riffs in 4 secends and not even break a sweat no big deal"

[artistssoftpastels]

kind of reminds me of Will Ferrel playing Mugatu in Zoolander

[FanJohn5]

Spider fingers :x

[glenmatlock94]

There are 2 reasons why I want a telecaster: 1- John 5, keith richards play teles and 2-EVERYBODY I KNOW play Fkn stratocasters. something different would be nice.

[glenmatlock94]

If i took guitar classes, i'd want John % to be my teacher loll he could teach me anything either him or slash obviously hahahaha

[JjPaRk149]

Thank you Larry DiMarzio for making these awesome picksup. It inspired me to change my picksups on my guitar, but I can't decide what to put for the middle single coil. The humbuckers are going to be the D Activators bride and neck, but the middle I'm still trying to figure out. I like progressive metal such as Dream Theater and instrumental rock by Steve Va and Steve Morse.

[LarryDiMarzio]

@JjPaRk149 It depends on the specific guitar, and whether you want the middle pickup to be hum-cancelling or a true single-coil. Please email your question along with this info to tech@dimarzio.com & we'll give you good recommendations.

[LouTheMetalhead]

I really dont like the look of a telecaster.... or the sound, really..

[bilbomarks]

Teles haven't changed much. Except for the pickup switch position, chrome scratch plate, string saddles, colored headstock, humbucker pickups and body binding.

[20stevieray]

how much r these pick ups? can i put them on my strat or my jag hh?

[LarryDiMarzio]

@20stevieray

Prices vary in different stores, so I can only tell you the US list price, which is $99.00 each. You can put them in any guitar that's routed for full-size humbuckers. Sorry, but I don't think I can get you a signed photo.

[20stevieray]

how much r these pick ups? can i put them on my strat or my jag hh? can u get me a signed john 5 photo or sumthn?

[LarryDiMarzio]

@20stevieray Hi, Thanks for your interest in DiMarzio, I have seen D-Activators on Musicians Friend from $69.95 to $109.95.

Please check out the PICKUP PICKER on the DiMarzio website (it is in the lower right corner) for other pickup recommendations. John 5 has prints available on his site.

All the best,

Larry DiMarzio

Hope that helps,

Larry DiMarzio

[allnsntll]

hey mister Dimarzio. I have played Gibson and Mr Duncans pick ups for along time.

I have recently been watching you on you tube and out of shear likability I have decided to look into using exclusively your products. your products are excellent but your force of will has won me over. After listening to Mr Duncan talk about cutting plastic out of his drummers case to make his first pick up to some guy from Gibson with a doubleneck I believe Uare the only artist I could build relationship with

[LarryDiMarzio]

@allnsntll Hi, Thanks for your kind comment. I have always felt that DiMarzio is there for the artists and that it isn't about DiMarzio.

All the best,

Larry DiMarzio

[suzuki15]

"it's like driving your friends bentley"

I can TOTALLY relate to that....

[scarred2112]

I love when John 5 gets to school someone with his playing. I just became aware of him in the mid-'90s playing all different types of music, and when you can tell people you've toured with Marilyn Manson *and* KD Lang, you know your shit guitar-wise.

[Goth3m3]

@LarryDiMarzio Do you ever do apprenticeships? I'd love to break into the pickup business learning from a great!

[Hendrixidol]

Christ man!!! These sound just like actives!!! This is EVERYTHING I dreamed of in a pickup. I didn't know that these were meant for guys like me who love the loudness and bright attack of actives, but wanted the perfect clarity of passives. Nevermind Mr. DiMarzio, I won't hold you up. Don't even bother about responding sir, I just wanna tell you that you've read my mind and are truly a genius!!!

[Hendrixidol]

Never mind sir, I now see why John uses these pickups, they give that same high output tone as the Fender enforcers, but have even more spank to them. What's it like working with someone so perfect? lol Both you and J5 have shown how even more versatile a guitar can be. God bless u guys!!!

[Hendrixidol]

Mr. DiMarzio, I'm a big fan of crunch...a BIG fan!!! And being a fan of J5 I happened to wonder, would using a crunch lab pickup in my J5 tele, versus the stock Fenders, still give me John's versatility with an added crunch, or would these D Activator pickups still be a wiser choice? I'm used to using actives ALOT, (EMGs) but I love how your passives still have a bright tone like actives, but love how they still maintain clarity that even the most organic of the actives just can't do.

[LarryDiMarzio]

@Hendrixidol

It's really down to a personal choice. The D Ac is a little louder than the Crunch Lab and is tighter & brighter. The choice may come down to which one works best with your amp & effects.

[lukejgregory]

Wear can I get a pair of pants like his? They're killer jeans.

[copnite12342]

@lukejgregory have a talior make them, just take a few photos and show it to a tailor

[israeldogfather]

i wish i had the money to buy this guitar...all i have is a stupid squire.

[tatsandteles]

Man, he has such a soft touch. Great player.

[spencerrr321]

@LarryDiMarzio thanks Larry! i have just one more question.. what type of pots and capacitors should i use? i was thinking about using 500k pots but i dont know what type of capacitors to buy

[LarryDiMarzio]

@spencerrr321 It's a matter of personal taste, but it's usually good to start with 500K controls and a .022mFd cap.

[copnite12342]

i did'nt know he was so soft spoken. what a sweety

[spencerrr321]

Hey Larry, i have a quick question. i play an ibanez RG. i has a basswood body and an H-S-H pickup combination. i like to have a tight heavy bridge pickup with good harmonics and i like to have a really warm and smooth neck pickup. which pickups would you recommend for me? i play mostly on a heavy distortion.

[LarryDiMarzio]

@spencerrr321

An F-spaced D Activator bridge model fits the description of what you want in the bridge position with an F-spaced LiquiFire in the neck.

[spencerrr321]

Hey Larry, i have a quick question. i play an ibanez RG. i has a basswood body and an H-S-H pickup combination. i like to have a tight heavy bridge pickup with good harmonics and i like to have a really warm and smooth neck pickup. which pickups would you recommend for me? i play mostly on a heavy distortion.

[rotolo]

i always like how he talks about teles , you can tell everyone he talks too it comes up atleast twice..

[MegashadX]

Another question.... how would this pups sound coil-split? I'm just curious, as many active pickups I have used have the coil-splitting, and they all sound excellent...

Thanks!

[LarryDiMarzio]

They work well in split mode - good output level and a bright sound that isn't too thin.

[TheDSparky]

Hello Larry,

I'm thinking about getting these pickups, but I don't have the money to pay for installation ($25 a PUP). So I'm going to put them in myself. But I don't know which diagram to use. I have an ESP LTD M-100FM. Are there any diagrams that you suggest I should?

Many thanks,

Sparky.

[MegashadX]

Man, these D-activators sound so badass! I'm thinking of getting them for my Ibanez S-series guitar... I took my Schecter Hellraiser to Guitar Center because of problems with the EMGs, and I remember them joking around about how "no guitar should need batteries". These pickups are finally proof of that, in my opinion.

I just wonder how the thin S body would hold against such cutting pups... lol

[LarryDiMarzio]

The high strings should actually be pretty big-sounding, and not as piercing as you might imagine. The low strings should be very tight - you should be able to run a fair amount of bass on the amp without mud.

[MegashadX]

Wow, thanks for the reply! the more I hear about these, the more I'm urged to get them. I might just even drop them into my Schecter just 'cause I'm tired of buying 9 volt batteries!

[TheDSparky]

So would these pickups go well with 11 gauge strings in C# standard, in a basswood body guitar? Or are there any other pickups that you would reccomend? I just want a very versitile pickup that can play Heavy Metal, to rock, to smooth jazz.

Thank you very much,

Sparky

[LarryDiMarzio]

The bridge model should be good, but you might try a warmer & quieter pickup in the neck position like a LiquiFire or Evolution neck model if you want a good jazz tone.

[TheDSparky]

Hello Larry,

I've been useing and EMG 81 in the bridge of my LTD m-100fm, with 11 gauge strings, tuned to 3 different tunings (C# standard, Drop B, and C standard). Now the pickup has "ok" lows and somewhat "ok' soloing sound. But I've recently got to test out these wonderful pickups in a Xiphos, and they just scream! Perfect lows, highs, mids, and you actually here the guitar itself, instead of just a bunch of extra distortion.

[signinname41]

I feel like Dimarzio should offer a metal single coil made to go along with the D-activator (X) and X2N in HSS guitars. It seems like all the current Dimarzio single coils are suited for strat sounds or the Dimarzio lead/shred tone and therefore wouldn't go as well with a D-Activator as, say, an EMG HZ single coil.

[LarryDiMarzio]

I guess it depends on what you mean by metal, but a BC-1, Air Norton S or possibly a Super Distortion S would be better able to work with a D-Ac X or X2N than an HZ would.

[signinname41]

By metal i mean like death metal, black metal, etc. For instance, if someone wants to sound like an EMG, they're probably not going to want to use Billy Corgan's, John Petrucci's, or Kiss' pickup to fill out their HSS. None of the Dimarzio single coils are marketed as extreme metal pickups in the way the X2N and D-Activators are. If there was one, i think HSS, or even HSH, customers into extreme metal would find it easier to stay loyal to Dimarzio.

[ItsA6StringThing]

Your comment made me think of an idea...The Death Metal Pickup, with help from Pat O'Brian and John Gallagher they should be able to make a pretty shredding pickup.

[gixxer6000]

John5 Rocks makes a Country Tele to a Rock Monster :) i play normaly Les Pauls but i woudnt say no to a J5 Telecaster this things must be killer

[lukatherofficial]

How can you not just love this cat !

LUKE

[15viceandvirtues]

John uses D activators? Sweeeeeeeet

[robertegnacheski]

ok, listened to some Marilyn Manson before, have not thought much of the guitar playing in that band or even Rob Zombies' stuff, or even John 5's "look / persona", but I respect John 5's actual guitar skills, after actually watching his youtube channel.

[crazyhaircut94]

Wait, when was this recorded? Is he referring to Requiem when he mentioned the album he's recording?

[KKKevin8000]

I love his guitar.. I wish I could buy one.

[Volcombaker111595]

@KKKevin8000 the squire version is Only about 400 bucks brah

[joniiboy]

@KKKevin8000 My friend bought one of those...then he sold it xD

[crazyhaircut94]

He's a great player. He's been my inspiration for so long, and I really admire his work. Also, damn John, that's a nice house!

(Also, what song is it at 1:41?)

[Alexpumpkins]

Hy, it's Liberty on Vertigo album

[ANOTHERHOLEINYOHEAD]

@crazyhaircut94 I agree, he has come along way since he used to live in a warehouse.

[PrsFenderJackson1980]

I just bought a Crunch Lab humbucker to replace my Super 3. Also seriously considering an Air Norton S for the neck. I am pretty sure a 500k volume will be needed, but I have no idea how or where to do that. Is there a website that gives details on that or blog.

[SteveBrownOfficial]

Brilliant as always.

[PrsFenderJackson1980]

I am adding a custom guitar with OFR, alder body, maple neck, coil splitting ability, and only one humbucker. What are my choices? Rock to Metal genre.

[LarryDiMarzio]

An F-spaced Tone Zone, Breed bridge model, AT-1, Air Zone should all be good choices.

[brandon5pennies]

i would say tone zone, paf pro, d activator, and super distortion would be best for that. one of dimarzios best pickups however is the air classic

[newyearsprayer]

Wow. He's quite versatile and all around player.

[starbuko03]

he looks like a lot jeff hardy

[gitarmats]

Really cool video! John 5 is great!

Did he mention a new solo album? I hope that's what he meant, his music is awesome!

[ItsA6StringThing]

The guy from Brutal Truth also has a Tele.

[kristofferpence]

saw this guy at the namm show in a captains hat at moody leather. really strange looking if you ask me haha. larry, just ordered some new pickups from Sheptone. ever heard of them, they're makind there way up. 6 week waiting period for the pickups. what do you think of them

[20108024]

I find the D Activators a bit "dry". The PAF Pro on the other hand...

[eleph4nt]

yea ive been a PAF Pro fan for many years, really some of the most versatile pickups out there

[Kloopdog]

His Country and Jazz stuff is amazing. I like his solo work the best. :)

[dethklokfan254]

thanks for the video larry, love john 5

[CriticsConfession]

Thanks for the video, Mr. DiMarzio. I subscribed to you for only pickup reviews or interviews with you, not knowing about these interviews about artists that use your AMAZING Pickups. I too - like John 5 - use D Activators. They're just amazing! They're the greatest pickups! Thanks so much, and I look forward to another Artist Interview.

[DavidRck]

i love how john can rule the tele

[dimehead666]

john 5 is awesome !

[brian91145]

awesome player!

[andr3wbr1an]

izzy stradlin from guns n roses played a telecaster!! tele's aren't just great for country you know?

[high8us]

I've always thought a banjo picking style would be killer.....sounds like thats what he's doin.

[ngshredtolive]

John would be one sweet banjo player.

[EricImpMusic]

sick