Mr. John Petrucci of Dream Theater has a heck of a pair of ears on him for designing pickups. His DiMarzio Crunch Lab and LiquiFire set is one of my favourite combinations ever, and the Illuminators are no slouches either (I haven’t tried his Sonic Ecstasy set but I’m sure they’re badass too). His latest collaboration with DiMarzio is the Rainmaker neck and Dreamcatcher bridge humbucker set, which DiMarzio describes like this:
“The Dreamcatcher
Bridge reflects John Petrucci’s continuing process of refining and expanding his sound. Although designed specifically for John’s neck-through signature Ernie Ball Music Man Majesty guitar, the basic performance shows the overall direction John said he wants to follow in pursuit of his personal sound. This pickup has an increased sensitivity to pick attack and more dynamic range overall. The Dreamcatcher Bridge focuses more power on the low mids to allow the bridge position to cut through the mix without brittle highs or muddy lows. The Rainmaker Neck has an interesting blend of both warmer highs and more open mids to blend classic and modern approaches to the neck pickup.”
And:
“The Dreamcatcher Bridge is a heavyweight pickup that’s also light on its feet. It has power but is not ultra-high output. The power is concentrated on the low mids, and there is a small scoop in the upper mids to keep the overall sound both warm and defined. The split sound is both full and very focused for the middle position neck and bridge split combination that John Petrucci is known for.
Although it may seem odd, John Petrucci has recently requested more of a blues-based tone without sacrificing his signature Dream Theater sound. The Rainmaker Neck achieves this with a broader EQ than John’s other models, with open mids and a bit less output. The result is a sweet overdriven sound that can clean up when the volume is rolled down and remains solid and articulate with high gain.”
The pickups are available in six and seven-string configurations in a huge variety of colours, and you can learn more about them on Petrucci’s Artists Page on DiMarzio.com, along with the various other pickups he’s used over the years.
