Bare Knuckle VHII Set

BACKGROUND: Setting the Stage

When looking at VHII, the album, you immediately start thinking about a thick, saturated tone. You’re No Good, Beautiful Girls, and Dance the Night Away all bring to mind that late 70s Van Halen sound. A cranked Marshall, a little Phase 90, and a guitar that wants to misbehave. The Bare Knuckle VHII humbucker set understands that assignment.

The interesting thing is that the VHII pickup is not simply a recreation of one specific era. It takes inspiration from those classic tones while giving players much more room to explore. As Eddie Van Halen’s playing evolved through the 80s, his tone became more open and articulate because his technique demanded a voice that could keep up. The VHII follows that same philosophy by offering plenty of aggression while keeping the note separation and dynamics that allow more technical playing to shine.

The VHII falls into Bare Knuckle’s vintage hot category. But that description can be misleading if you are expecting a weak or overly polite pickup. There is plenty of output available to push an amplifier, but the design avoids the compressed and congested response that can happen with some higher output pickups.

Bare Knuckle uses an Alnico V magnet, plain enamel wire, asymmetrical coils, and scatter winding techniques in the VHII. Those design choices contribute to the pickup’s overall character by keeping the response open. It allows the player’s picking attack, guitar controls, and amplifier settings to remain part of the final tone.

That responsiveness is really what makes the VHII interesting. It can cover classic hard rock territory with ease, but it is equally comfortable handling blues rock, fusion, garage rock, and other styles where clarity and dynamics matter.

---

INSTALLATION: The Soundcheck

The VHII set arrived with the level of craftsmanship expected from Bare Knuckle. The bobbins are cleanly finished, the baseplates are neatly assembled, and the overall construction immediately gives the impression of a pickup designed for long term service.

Installation was straightforward. For this installation, the VHII set was installed in an all mahogany guitar. Maple neck, maple fretboard 22 frets with 25-1/2″ scale. The pickups dropped into place without requiring modification, and the wiring was simple thanks to the generous lead length.

The VHII testing includes clean tones, classic rock crunch, and higher gain settings using standard tuning with .009 to .042 gauge strings.

As with any pickup installation, final setup comes down to adjustment. Pickup height makes a noticeable difference with the VHII. Raising the pickup adds additional punch and midrange authority. Lowering it slightly opens up the response and allows more dynamic range. Spending time finding the right balance is worthwhile because this pickup has a wide range of usable settings.

The VHII is available in six, seven, and eight string versions with standard spacing, wide spacing, and multiscale options. Four conductor wiring comes standard, providing flexibility for coil splits, series switching, parallel wiring, and other custom configurations. Bare Knuckle also offers triangle mounting feet along with a variety of cover and bobbin options.

---

EVALUATION: Center Stage

The first thing that stands out about the VHII is how responsive it feels. The pickup reacts naturally to changes in picking attack and guitar volume, which makes it easy to move between different shades of tone without constantly adjusting the amplifier.

This is one of the reasons players who enjoy vintage style pickups tend to gravitate toward designs like the VHII. The pickup does not force one sound onto the guitar. Instead, it leaves room for the player and amplifier to contribute.

VHII Bridge: The Business End

The bridge pickup delivers an impressive clean tone that may surprise players expecting a dedicated hard rock machine.

Through a clean amplifier setting, the VHII bridge has a full and chimey character. The highs have enough presence to provide definition without becoming sharp, while the low end remains controlled and musical. Chords maintain excellent separation, and individual notes remain easy to hear instead of blending together.

The volume control is also an important part of the VHII’s personality. Rolling back the guitar volume produces useful clean and edge of breakup tones rather than simply reducing the amount of output. Players who actively work the guitar’s controls will appreciate how much range is available.

Once the amplifier moves into gain territory, the VHII settles comfortably into classic rock territory.

The pickup has enough output to push a Marshall style amplifier into familiar hard rock tones while maintaining the clarity that keeps riffs and chords defined. Palm muted passages stay tight, lead lines have plenty of harmonic content, and sustained notes retain their character without becoming overly compressed.

The “vintage hot” label should not be mistaken for a lack of power. The VHII has enough drive for aggressive rock tones, but it achieves that through an open and dynamic response rather than simply adding more output.

The tradeoff is that the pickup remains very honest about what is happening at the guitar. Clean muting, consistent picking, and controlled dynamics are rewarded because the pickup passes those details along to the amplifier. For players who like a pickup that responds to their technique, that relationship is a big part of the appeal.

VHII Neck: The Secret Weapon

The VHII neck model may be the most impressive part of the set. Neck pickups can be difficult to balance. Traditional designs can become muddy when pushed with gain, while higher output models sometimes lose the warmth and character that make a neck pickup enjoyable. The VHII manages to maintain both qualities.

The low end has enough body to sound full without becoming boomy, which makes it especially useful in darker sounding guitars. Single note lines have thickness and sustain, while chords maintain enough separation that individual notes remain recognizable.

Clean tones are where the neck pickup really shows its versatility. Series wiring delivers a warm, musical voice, while parallel wiring opens the sound up and adds clarity without making the pickup feel thin.

With gain, the VHII neck works extremely well for lead playing. Notes have enough weight to sing, but there is enough articulation to keep faster passages defined. It handles expressive bends, sustained melodies, and more technical playing without losing the character that makes a great neck pickup enjoyable.

Many neck pickups tend to lean heavily toward either vintage warmth or modern clarity. The VHII finds a comfortable balance between the two, which is why it works so well across different playing styles.

---

Demo

---

Specs

Tone Chart

---

CONCLUSION: Final Encore

The Bare Knuckle VHII set arrives with a name that immediately creates expectations. Fortunately, it delivers those classic Van Halen inspired tones while offering much more versatility than the name alone suggests.

Players chasing late 70s and early 80s hard rock tones will find plenty to like here. The combination of an Alnico V magnet, open response, and excellent dynamics makes it easy to cover everything from classic rock rhythm work to more expressive lead playing.

At the same time, the VHII is not locked into one era. It works well for players who need a pickup that can move between clean passages, vintage crunch, and higher gain tones without losing definition.

The VHII is a great choice for guitarists who want their pickup to become part of their playing rather than something that simply overwhelms the instrument. It gives the guitar room to breathe, lets the amplifier contribute its personality, and rewards players who enjoy being involved in the process of creating their tone.

The name may point toward one legendary album, but the VHII earns its place as a versatile Bare Knuckle humbucker set that belongs in many more musical situations than its inspiration might suggest.

For reference, this Bare Knuckle VHII humbucker set evaluation was conducted with a Fractal Axe-Fx II XL+ featuring Celestion Impluse Responses and Fractal MFC-101 MIDI Foot Controller.  Real cabs in use are Marshall 1960B, Mojotone British, and Peavey 6505 cabs loaded with Celestion Classic Series Vintage 30s and Classic Series G12M Greenbacks.

Bare Knuckle Pickups Website | Facebook | Twitter | YouTube | Instagram

7 string 59 Airbucker Alnico 2 Alnico 3 Alnico 4 Alnico 5 Alnico 8 Bare Knuckle BKP Brown Sound Celestion Ceramic Charvel Custom Shop David Shepherd DiMarzio Dual Resonance Edge EVH Fishman Floyd Rose Gibson HSP90 Humbucker Ibanez JB Jimmy Page John Petrucci MJ Mojotone P90 PAF Pariah Pickup Satch Satriani Seymour Duncan Singlecoil Single Width Speaker Steve Vai Tech Tip Tremolo Virtual Vintage