PRS Dragon II Vs Vintage Bass & HFS Pickups

[@evinoc]

Nice playing. Am I correct that the VB is the neck pickup and HFS is in the bridge? New to these pickups. What great tones

[@jonathananthony1901]

First of all, outstanding video! This shows the same conclusion I came to a while back. The HFS vintage base set definitely lends itself to more Rhythm Style, they are more aggressive with less mids. The dragon 2s definitely lean more towards the lead guitar player. Something about the mid-range frequency they have just makes the notes seem to jump out of the guitar! The dragon 2s are what I have in my PRS Custom 22 and I absolutely love them to death!

[@barneycarparts]

I have a 2003 with Dragon IIs I understand Santana started with the Dragons too. I really love my ce22 has the regular wide neck. The new 2018 CE24 I have has a narrower Fender type neck and 85/15 pups split. Its good but my 2003 is my #1

[@MrMariodraiby1]

Dragon 2 vs HFS vs Tremonti, we need a comparison 😀

[@Jalliams]

Great video, man! Thanks very much. Big help to fans seeking to hear the tones before making new pickup choices. Have just bought 2 x different sets of old PRS pickups - HFS & VB, and HFS 2 & VB. Quick note, pickup covers make a difference to the sound.

[@SimonSmithGuitar]

Thanks mate

[@timothyhingham3672]

Thanks for the video Dragon 2 Bridge has more soul than the HFS. Vintage bass is much nicer than Dragon 2 neck as used in the video.

[@ADITDITO]

HFS Vintage Bass the best..

[@lucioroberto]

both are amazing! :D

[@christocaster]

For sound, the red sound amazing for me! Blue IS a beauty but sound's less Grrrrrr...

[@rileyioacura]

hey Simon is the laney ironheart good for progressive metal like periphery and toska and could you please do a lesson on periphery 's the way the news goes thank you so glad I found your channel, you are awesome

[@SimonSmithGuitar]

Thanks mate. The Ironheart is amazing. It'll do any tone!

[@KneeKrusher]

Beautiful guitars

[@4ntifreez]

Hey simon, can i suggest you to upload sverddans by burzum please? Im a noob on the guitar and i can't deconstruct that solo part

[@AMB666]

Very sexy guitars, how cool is that!

[@jihada.5288]

Can you do dragon ii vs 57/08? Never done on KZbin

[@SimonSmithGuitar]

One day, if I get a guitar with the 57/08's in and still have the other one.

[@Dirge4july]

buy the pick up and put it in a guitar.

[@memnoch6]

What music is it. it's incredible

[@SimonSmithGuitar]

Memnoch De La Rosa Just some stuff I made up mate

[@조성진-g2x]

Nice guitar! I wanna have guitar too...

[@sideoutside]

I'm sure there's a Chinese knockoff you could afford.

[@조성진-g2x]

@@sideoutside yes it is.. I bought one a years ago Which is made from China lol

[@sideoutside]

@@조성진-g2x They're not all bad, you just have to pick the right one.

[@조성진-g2x]

@@sideoutside yeah.. I bought Volcan black burn mk2

[@sideoutside]

@@조성진-g2x Kinda looks like a souped up old school Jackson guitar.

[@BoozyBeggar]

Maybe I'm a tone-deaf nub, but the Dragon IIs sound a bit more Les Pauly from what I'm hearing. I think I prefer those.

[@BoozyBeggar]

Actually, they remind me a little of the Duncan Full Shreds I have in one guitar.

[@nanashi1025]

First!!!

[@nanashi1025]

:)

[@manifestgtr]

The hfs/vb is among the greatest pickup sets of all time. I’ve been using that set in my cu24 for over 20 years and it never sounds anything but amazing. Here’s the kicker…the hfs/vb set sounds incredible through ANYTHING. Straight into my bassman, direct in through my flyrig, with just a ts-9, into a high gain engl, through plugins into pro tools…it doesn’t matter. They just *always* sound incredible. No other pickup set is as universally perfect and I own many, many sets. Even the 85/15s in my ce semihollow…they sound great almost everywhere but they don’t eat up my small, pickup gig board the same way my hfs set does. Even if I eventually retire my number 1 custom 24 from gigging, I’ll always have at least one set of those pickups in rotation. They’re essentially perfect…

[@Hypersp4ce]

I have a SE Custom 22 MIK from 2009 loaded with some killer HFS pups. For anyone interested in them, I highly recommend playing with the tone control to dial in tones. I keep my mine around 7.5 with lil changes here and there. In this video I liked the Dragon II's for clean stuff and the HFS pups for Distortion/High Gain. I love PRS guitars

[@Camarondods]

Seems hfs sounds more dynamic, and dragon more compressed.

[@rainshadowband3161]

Both sound great! Personally digging the Dragon over the HFS because saying you have "dragon pickups" sounds a lot more fun than an acronym.

[@chrisrva710]

I have a custom 22 with D2s and just ordered a CE with the HFS & Vintage. Best of both worlds.

[@mmkk539]

I like dragon ⅱ.

[@broccoliking6668]

AWESOME playing! I just ordered a CE and found out they are selling the dragon IIs again, I had no idea, just a memory of those old guitar world magazines with the rig rundowns at the end.

[@lilvfr400boy]

Felt like the d2’s sounded a bit sterile until it got to the neck. Nice neck tone but overall felt like the hfs / bass were miles more tonally capable

[@doublefatstrat]

what is the song the end?on the red prs

[@realtruenorth]

both sound great, i liked the dragon lls better

[@johnheath4305]

Dragon 2 sounds like a super creamy PAF. The others sound relatively generic

[@jettsom]

No winner here, a matter of taste and music style.

[@taroatom4731]

...HFS&vntageBASS！

[@guitarandotherthings6090]

The VB and HFS are just much better, hence why chosen for their 20th anniversary model.

[@angusorvid8840]

Excellent demo. I loaded my PRS with several different sets of DiMarzios, Duncans and actives before settling on a JB/Jazz combo. It really shines. The bright, trebly send of the JB is toned down because it absorbs into the mahogany. The Jazz neck really pops. I love PRS guitars but I don't always feel their pickups are that well matched. I did back in the 80s when I first tried a PRS but I think it's a little too one size fits all with their pups unless you are considering their Narrowfields which I love.

[@andersonk8434]

nice playing good bro

[@justincase4925]

Purple guitar wins sound test

[@justincase4925]

4:40 to 4:50 what do you call that?

[@MrMariodraiby1]

Great 👍🏻, can you do hfs vs Tremonti 🍻

[@danielgalanti2166]

Honestly I prefer the HFS. If I want more mids I'll turn a knob or kick on the secret freq. Pedal by M. Fuller. I think Paul got it right straight off. Nice video

[@AllCarsUnited]

Same can be said about the other pups 😂😂😂

[@allsic]

I want them both... ill have them both... one day... soon...

[@allsic]

I liked the blue one... buy I have the red one...

[@scotthesterly2320]

I have played both sets of pickups HFS jave been my facorites. I am curently installing Fralin PAFS on the c22 that had the dragon2 pickups. Dont like the dragon 2 pickups and desire different sound

[@RayDGoodwin]

Hot Fat Screaming and the Vintage Bass for me.

[@jackzango427]

To my ears the HFS pickups are the clear winners. They just sound thicker and will respond to rolling off your volume knobs. The Dragon's are also nice but my ears choose the HFS.

[@andreil1234]

To the hands also. They're more sensitive to playing and you get much more out of them overall.

[@studiolargo8320]

Thanks for the excellent video. Minimal talking, fantastic playing and you didn't play the SAME GODDAMN THING OVER AND OVER.

[@scottyx77]

fabulous guitars in fabulous amp !

[@kingfisher7960]

I am contemplating replacing my Tremonti SE pickups for the USA made Dragon 2's. Came here to listen.

[@lordgraga]

As someone who has owned tons of PRS guitars, several USA/core, I wouldn't recommend spending money on PRS pickups aftermarkets. You can get equally nice (or even better) sounds just with Seymour Duncans, which are usually 2-3 times less the price used. Dragon II is a shitty bridge pickup for general use, more weaknesses than strengths. The Dragon II neck is nice though. If I could recomend you something, I'd say get a Seymour Duncan Jazz, 59 or Seth Lover neck (any PAF like really), and then a Custom 5, Distortion or Full Shred bridge (if you want high gain). Dimarzio also makes equally great and affordable pickups. I love PRS but their pickups are not competetive.

[@kingfisher7960]

@@lordgraga In my experience the USA made pickups are hotter and gave a bit more to the preamp. Thats the only reason I ask. Most people I hear who get PRS USA pickups are really impressed. I have some duncans, Slash and a JB bridge, also a duncan distortion. They have thier uses but I was looking to put the Dragon 2's in a single cut PRS to give it more of a vintage vibe without going way back to PAF style. Wanted a more modern high gain tone with the Dragons. What do you think?

[@lordgraga]

@@kingfisher7960 The Dragon II neck is a lovely pickup, and it definitely is PAF like, woody, and musical in its own way. The bridge, however, I do not care for.

[@jakecal6802]

HOT. FAT. SCREAMING!!! I have a 7 string PRS with those I love them. The vintage bass is so nice too. But I want a pair of dragons once I get another guitar.

[@Hypersp4ce]

The HFS pups sound killer for downtuned riffage!!!

[@josephrandazzo7923]

Dragons kind of dull by comparison

[@zamsden]

Thanks for making this video. Playing was great, pickups were not.

[@fedboy21]

Both dont have the bark...just not my cup of tea 🍺🍺🍺

[@danpalmer2865]

Yes, I've chosen the ax, now I'm looking to sharpen the blade--I've been going back and forth between the HFS, 85/15, 85/15s and now the dragon--I'm back to the HFS--any real suggestions before I go all in?

[@Hypersp4ce]

Very late reply but I highly recommend playing with the tone control to dial in tones. I keep my mine around 7.5 with lil changes here and there. In this video I liked the Dragon II's for clean stuff and the HFS pups for Distortion/High Gain. I love PRS guitars

[@josephnadeau6689]

Man, that first dirty lead tone with the hfs/vb's made me soak my pants, and I don't mean the yellow stuff! 🤤🤤

[@SimonSmithGuitar]

Lol!!

[@bradt.3555]

Nice to listen to but really you gotta use the same. I have 2 identical (except color) cu22's and if I take the PU from one and put it in the other it sounds different. Now the HFS and the D2 do sound a lot different but were also hearing the diff. in guitars too. Oh, I've tried both PU's in several PRS's and prefer the D2's. Really I like the original incarnation of the 57/08's in my Sunburst 22. The 245's (also called Mira) are also nice PU's.

[@BobK5]

Both sound great, playing and arranging is excellent, could listen to more of this, well done 😎

[@craigchapman6613]

My previous PRS Standard had fantastic Bare Knuckle Stormy Mondays fitted when I got it, but the weight was getting too much for 2-3 hour band sessions. I've now got a 10 Top Custom 24 with HFS/VB and a rotary switch. The inside pick up positions are quite usable but the bridge and neck go beyond fat into flabby territory. The Rotary switch is the biggest headache, who ever thought to put that on a guitar ? So change picks up and electrics or get another guitar ? I'm going back to Musicman

[@colingrobertson2782]

Help ! You're you guy that knows! I just got a 2003 10 Top Custom 24 with the HFS/VB pick-ups. What does the rotary switch do? I can't figure it at all. I had thought 1-2-3-4-5 Neck HB then single- Both HB's- then Single bridge and Bridge HB. Obviously this ain't right. Please buddy, tell me, I'm lost.

[@craigchapman6613]

@@colingrobertson2782 - Hi Colin, I've googled this from Sweetwater - Parallel means both pick up signals meet at the jack and you get that side by side thinner sound. Series means one pick up coil is powered through another and you get a fatter sound. Q: I understand the PRS pickup switching that has the 3-way toggle switch, but what exactly do the five positions on the rotary switch offer in terms of pickup combinations and voicings? A: On all PRS CE Bolt-On, Standard, and Custom models, there is a 5-way rotary hybrid pickup switching system. This system is not offered on the company’s Singlecut or McCarty models. Here is the breakout: (Note: The switch position numbers below refer to the number displayed on the knob as the rotary switch is turned; this isn’t a 10-position switch…) Position 10: Humbucking treble (bridge) pickup alone Position 9: Outside coils of both pickups in parallel for what PRS calls a “deep and clear” sound Position 8: Series single coils - PRS describes this as a “warm version of the classic in-between the bridge and middle pickups” Position 7: Parallel single coils - Here PRS describes the sound as a “crisp version of the in-between the treble and middle pickups” Position 6: Humbucking bass (neck) pickup alone As you can see, this switching and pickup configuration offers a number of interesting and “non-standard” voicings.

[@colingrobertson2782]

@@craigchapman6613 Thanks Craig, your help is much appreciated. I have to say the rotary switch does my head in, but now it's been explained, I get it. Funny that, eh? I've had a play around on it and the difference in the nine and seven positions is negligible, but I don't have a Mesa Boogie or a Marshall stack... I don't quite understand why PRS would put a simple 10 speed knob on a 5-position switch either, but wtf. I just changed mine for a blacked-out Strat knob that now shows 5 positions, so that helps a bit. Thanks for the clarity and for your trouble. If you were nearby, I'd but you a pint (Or 3) Cheers buddy and thanks again.

[@craigchapman6613]

@@colingrobertson2782 haha, no probs, hope you like the guitar, I couldn't get used the feel and string tension. Highly recommend a blob of tippex on setting 1 and 5, so you can see in darker locations

[@colingrobertson2782]

@@craigchapman6613 I had a black tone tone knob from a Strat in my box of tricks, so I took a black marker to numbers 6 -10. Job done. The difference in the sound on the split and parallel settings is subtle but I'm getting used to it, good sounds. Spent the last hour balancing the trem to semitones up and down, so I'll be ready to clean it and put on a set of Elixir's tomorrow, good job for a Sunday... I'm on FB and if you want to join my "Stringbenders" group, you'd be welcome. Mostly guitarists, nutcases, various music from here... you know. Fun mostly, not too serious. Thanks for your help.

[@leoahearn7382]

HFS/VB seem to be more clear and broader tone.

[@Deebz270]

Such a close call. Having heard Dragon II's before live, I am slightly biased... However, trying to be objective, I still err toward the D2's though, they seem to have more depth, especially in lead playing. . I'm looking to upgrade the pups on my S2 CU22 Semi-Hollow and D2's are in my laser sights. This excellent comparison video has helped with that decision. Well done Simon - thumbs up and subscribed. Great playing BTW.

[@jamespomar4524]

Hello, if anyone could help me, I would appreciate it. I just recently purchased an artist pack Cu24, and I would like to change to maybe Dragon II bridge and VB neck. Would that be a good idea or should I just stick with a regular Dragon II set? Has anyone ever done this or attempted or heard of that sounds good?

[@jamespomar4524]

@Jon Oz Thanks man I really appreciate that. Thats awesome that you and your son play. I ended up putting a Dragon II in the neck and a new version of the old HFS in the bridge. The artist pack was 2100, and then with the pickups and install it came out to 2500. It's a slick guitar though. Since then, I purchased another custom 24 and that is in the shop right now because I am having Fishman Killswitch Engage pickups put in. I like how it can split coil, be active, and be passive with one pickup. I purchased this custom 24 from ebay completely stripped so I purchased the parts to have restored from the bottom up. After around 5,000 dollars, my new years resolution is to stop buying guitars! hahaha

[@vonbleak101]

I love my Dragon II's in my Custom 22 :)

[@ericdenton6664]

Please. Not another worthless pickup comparison video using 2 different guitars. No 2 pieces of wood are exactly the same. Btw. Just label your video's jamming to a backing track instead of a pickup comparison.

[@gtrman12887]

You should grow up...you left a comment like this on another video...its easy to not watch if it doesnt satisfy you...

[@sideoutside]

If you leave a comment without a profile avatar, why even bother? Just say "spam spam I'm scared to post from my real account spam spam"

[@AllCarsUnited]

@@gtrman12887 he does seem like a miserable person . Oh well

[@HuWhiteNat]

You can’t hear wood, no matter what you think.

[@eloysuopunki7926]

These Dragon pickups are fucking amazing. The best pickups with the Tremonti pups.

[@kingfisher7960]

Huh? You mentioned 2 different sets?

[@lilybond5536]

I just brought a 2002 ce24 with the dragon pickup ups in mint condition! I absolutely love it

[@ericdenton6664]

The Dragons sound more complex. Both guitars sound good.

[@talmenik07]

nice playing

[@Rose.Of.Hizaki]

Dragon II rhythm channel distortion sounds very much like Satana to me

[@barneycarparts]

Santana used Dragon IIs. for a few years then Paul got all fussy and wound a bucket load of customs for Santana to try. Now his new pups are slightly different but still very Dragon II velvet warm. Tom Johnston of Doobie Bros use the 59/08 supposed to be more like the 1957 Gibson PAF bite with 2008 improvements.

[@5urg3x]

Didn't you say you weren't going to do the middle positions? Lol

[@30smsuperstrat]

No he said he was just doing the humbucker positions, not the split stuff.

[@m.stewart8094]

Great vid. I just got an old PRS with D2s and I’m digging it. Not sure why people dog these pickups. They have much more character than the 85/15 which i find a little stale. I might be wrong but the middle position on the rotary is both pups single coil in series but with the three way they could be both full humbucker or single depending on the pullups i assume in series.