pickup height

[the lamb]

i wanted more attack in the sound of my guitar
so is it ok to just increase the height of the pickup?
also i have a stupid question
while playing some (tough) songs i prefer to change the tuning of my guitar so that the pickin becomes eaiser ... but i feel like i m cheating myself .... so i just wanted to know if there are many ppl who do or is it only me (i live in the gulf and noone plays a guiatr here

[Unholy Walter]

I'm pretty sure it's fine to raise the pickup height. It'll give it more crunch n stuff.
Not sure bout the tuning thing. I personally wouldn't do it.

[guitar_demon]

its perfectly ok to change the hieght of your pickups thats why you can

[Shreddist]

i wanted more attack in the sound of my guitar
so is it ok to just increase the height of the pickup?
also i have a stupid question
while playing some (tough) songs i prefer to change the tuning of my guitar so that the pickin becomes eaiser ... but i feel like i m cheating myself .... so i just wanted to know if there are many ppl who do or is it only me (i live in the gulf and noone plays a guiatr here

Yeah its fine, just make sure when you palm mute hard your string doesnt slap the pickup, that sounds terrible. Changing tunings is fine, most people do it, but i find picking is easier on a standard tuned guitar.

[IRON90]

It's ok to change the height but don't change it to much on the neck pickup cos then if you're going to play on the 21 or 22 fret(or 23-24) the tone will die almost instantly because the string is touching the neck pickup.

[Dahmers Fridge]

Raise those pick-ups as high as you can(active pick-ups work better when as close to the strings as possible) I'd fret the 22nd(or 24th fret) whilst raising them so as to ensure the pick-ups don't catch. :)

I'm not sure about the tuning thingy, I've played songs in different tunings either to make it sound different or heavier, I wouldn't say that made the songs easier!
I do know that Zak often uses different tunings on live Ozzy tracks that he didn't use in the studio(probably to help Ozzy's voice out)

[Schizoid]

Changing the pickup height is normal. I always do it. But I don't ever change my tunings cuz that may affect your neck and it is a risk and pain in the ass making your neck just right with the tross rod. If you want more output make the pickups closer to the strings and if you want less output and a weaker sound make the pickups farther away from the strings.

[deifiler]

Higher pickups = Beast tone but more noise. If you ever get a multi-effects unit aim for one with noise reduction, but otherwise I wouldn't say it's an essential tool to buy. I always want some excessive noise beyond basic distortion to help smooth out the notes anyway and give some depth (similar to delay)

[guitar_demon]

Higher pickups = Beast tone but more noise.
not really, i have an x2n and I find it sounds best when its set lower a bit

[fatdanny]

Changing tuning for harder songs is just changing the string tension to the tension you find easiest to play with.
Change string guage (thicker if you have to keep tuning up, thinner if you have to tune down to play harder songs) and you wont have to adjust your tuning.

[YJM04]

make sure u dont have the pick-ups too high or else your going to hear the strings vibrate litterally and u'll get a sort of chourus-y sound. just make sure u mesure

[John Holland]

If you have EMG's, definitely set them as close to the string as possible. You pretty much can't go wrong, unless the strings are touching the pickups.