DiMarzio DP189 Tone Zone S Humbucker Pickup

Get thick humbucker tone in a single-coil space with the Tone Zone S. It's optimized for the bridge position with excellent bass response and warm highs.

$99.00

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    $16.50
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    $24.75
Overall User Ratings (based on 2 ratings)
  • Overall:
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Sound:
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Features:
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Ease of Use:
    4.5 out of 5 stars
  • Quality:
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Value:
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Manufacturer Support:
    4.5 out of 5 stars
  • The Wow Factor:
    3.5 out of 5 stars
Overall: 4 out of 5 stars
(2) (see rating details)
Submitted January 27, 2008 by a customer from yahoo.com

"Want the best of both worlds? Here it is!"

Overall: 4 out of 5 stars
(see rating details)
I think I will own this pickup as long as I own the guitar it's attatched to. perhaps different pickups for the middle and neck (probably hotter single coils, for my tone) It put the @$$ in my strat, so I can switch between my V, Les Paul, and Strat all without adjusting my amp.
Sound
Responds very well to blues/bluesy rock playing, especially when mixed with middle pickup. retains the strat twang, just richens it and adds a little gain. pull the coil tap and you're back to your old single coil sound! I play a Peavey JSX Combo with a Sonic Stomp and a Tape Echo pedal, and I can do everything from Country to hard rock with it. This pickup is probably not suitable for metal.
Features
Came with mounting screws. I wish they had packed some of the rubber hose that fender uses on the stock screws, as i kinda melted mine soldering(hand slipped.) the coil tapping feature is very nice, also series/parallel but i have not wired it that way (yet).
Ease of Use
My 2007 Mexi Strat is modified to have tone control on the bridge and neck pickups (very simple to change), and with a .022 cap on the bridge tone, it is very malleable and tone retention on volume swells is good.
Value
I think it was a great purchase altogether...my dealer even threw in a dpdt vol pot (500k) (you'll want one of those if you plan to use the 4-conductor wiring)
Manufacturer Support
Haven't needed it, except the catalog(which was very informative).
The Wow Factor
It's versatile, sexy as hell, and just right with the program.

Musical Background:

Active recording musician

Musical Style:

Blues, Classic Rock, Rock, Metal, a lil bluegrass, etc.
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Submitted August 10, 2010 by a customer from bellsouth.net

"My Neck No Longer Chokes"

Overall: 4 out of 5 stars
(see rating details)
Verified Customer zZounds has verified that this reviewer made a purchase from us.
I know I wont be replacing this pickup. I will say that I am looking to supplement it with new middle and bridge pickups eventually. But this pickup sounds great all by itself. I dont think I will get this same pickup for the bridge, but its definately a consideration.
Sound
Most of the reviews and recommendations I read for this pickup were in the bridge position. But, I put my Tone Zone in neck position and I love it. I play a lot of full-chord clean rhythym and in clean mode with a slight chorus effect it has made a world of difference in my Strat. Suddenly, there is a full bottom end to my Fender Strat and it has opened up a world of tonal opportunities. I also play some with an overdrive or distortion effect, and where the palm mute used to be just sad sounding with the single coil, it has come alive with this pickup. Ive played around with chorus, tremolo and phaser effect and the new mid/bass capabilities of my Strat allow me to do a lot of different things. Whereas before, the Flanger affect with the single coil in the neck sounded fake and empty, with this pickup I love the sound. Im sure this pickup does provide good bite in the bridge position, but I highly recommend it for the neck as well.
Features
I had a professional install the pickup with a push/pull pot on the volume knob. This allows me to use the pickup as a single coil in either the '4' position with the mid pickup, or as a single coil by itself in the '5' position. I love the tone of the pickup in full humbucking mode, so im not sure how much I will use the push/pull, but its nice to know its there.
Ease of Use
The pickup itself is built with a lot of bass/mid, so it just depends on how much of that you want/need in your guitar's setup. I have a Strat and I love the play and really liked the sound with the single coil in the neck. But I love the sound I can get now with this pickup in the neck. The little bit I've played around with effects has already made it clear to me that there is great versatility to this pickup in the mid/bass range especially.
Quality
I havent had the pickup long at all, but the delivery from this site was quick and painless. As for the pickup itself, it looks great on my guitar and there doesnt seem to be any blemishes or issues so far.
Value
Of the shopping I did, it appears that the quality of this pickup match the price pretty well. In all honesty, they could prob price it $5-$10 more expensive and it would still be fair, but don't tell them that.
Manufacturer Support
Haven't had to use the service part yet, but I've always heard good things about Dimarzio.
The Wow Factor
I love how the pickup looks on the Strat. It was only available in white, although the Dimarzio site shows there are a lot of diff available colors. I wanted yellow or red, but in the end it probably looks better with white.

Musical Background:

Active Musician (guitar and bass) for 12yrs

Musical Style:

Country Blues and Southern Rock
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