DiMarzio DP218 Super Distortion S

Dimarzio is a modern pickup maker and they are known for that. But they have some old models still around from when they first started. Their most famous old model is the Super Distortion. This pickup was made back in the day when there were not really many after market pickups out on the market. The pickup was designed just to push hard any amp it encoutered and come through with a dirty sound. The pickup had tons of low end and did not clean up well at all. Lots of people who used these in the 70s still use them today as they can still get the job done and have a good sound all their own. This pickup is the sound of 70s rock and roll. Now you can get all this old school Dimarzio tone in the size of a single coil. The pickup features 4 conductor wiring with a ceramic magnet. The 4 conductor wiring lets you split the pickup which is something you cannot do with a normal super distortion. So this pickup is essentially a Super Distortion Dual Sound S. The output of the pickup is 13k so it is not super hot but you get kind of an old school hotness. The tone of the pickup is slightly tweaked to take into account the factt hat it will be in the bridge position of a strat. Because this pickup is for going into a strat they dialed back some of the high end to make the sound less brittle. This pickup has huge low end and mid range. This is good because strats are normally lacking in the bottom end. This pickup fills that void perfectly. The low end is great but it is still pretty tight. If you have a strat and want the sound of 70s rock in it this is an easy way to get that tone.

The DiMarzio Super Distortion S is exactly what the name implies – it’s a single coil sized version of the original Super Distortion. It features blade rails that so many other DiMarzio single coil humbuckers have, a ceramic magnet and four conductor wiring.

Back, in the 70s, DiMarzio was one of the first aftermarket companies to form, and the Super Distortion was one of the world’s first high output pickups. During the 70s and 80s, it gained tons of popularity for those wanting to drive their amps even harder.

The Super Distortion is one of those pickups that, even though it’s old, it’s still somewhat relevant today. It’s a high output pickup that doesn’t clean up too well, but it can still do that oldschool hard rock vibe no problem. Plugged straight into a Marshall, it’ll give you that famous KISS style sound – enough breakup but not too much over the top distortion. It’s a fairly compressed pickup, but it still retains the character of the guitar, unlike certain other pickups on the market.

The single coil sized version of this pickup is no different. It works best in guitars that are a bit lacking in the bottom end, IMO. It’s a fat pickup with lots of midrange. If you have a single pickup guitar, I’d say your best bet would probably be either this or a Seymour Duncan Custom. The low notes are fat without sounding flubby, and the high notes sound very round. You don’t have to worry about your treble strings getting too harsh when using this pickup.

The adjustable pole pieces help make this super versatile when it comes to dialing in the magnetic string pull. If you’re finding there’s a bit too much output with this pickup, try lowering it. As it gets lower, it helps clean everything up. It’ll also ghost note less. If you have a four-conductor version, try adding a push/pull pot to split it. Once you do, you’ll have the DiMarzio Dual Sound S (which they don’t offer).

Those of you looking to try out a new pickup for your guitar, this is still worth checking out. It’s a bit more compressed than most boutique pickups, but since the market is saturated with these, you can find them real cheap on eBay or online forms. If you don’t like it, it should be easy enough to flip, unlike certain other rare pickups.