Seymour Duncan Full Shred Review – Specs, Tone & Custom 5 Comparison
- Barış Şahin
- 15 hours ago
- 11 min read
Seymour Duncan Full Shred SH-10/TB-10 Review
Major automotive manufacturers rely on shared product platforms in their design philosophy. By developing a single, strong platform and using it across multiple brands and models, they gain both efficiency and consistency. Designers then build surprisingly different vehicles on top of that common foundation. Volkswagen’s MQB platform is a perfect example: cars like the Volkswagen Virtus, Škoda Scala, Volkswagen T-Cross, SEAT Arona, or Škoda Fabia may look very different from one another, yet all are based on the same underlying MQB-A0 architecture.
When it comes to guitar pickups, manufacturers follow a remarkably similar logic. In DiMarzio’s world, we can clearly talk about “platforms” or “bases” such as the PAF family, the Super family, or the PAF Pro platform. Seymour Duncan has its own well-defined lineages as well: the JB platform (which includes models like the JB, Distortion, Invader, and Black Winter), the Jazz platform (Jazz, Full Shred Neck, Alnico II Pro, PATB-1 neck and others), and a few more distinct families.
The “Custom” platform, however, has always been one of my personal favorites—very clearly so. I genuinely love every member of that family, and under the right conditions, I believe they can add a significant amount tonal value to a guitar’s voice. With the Full Shred, the last missing piece of that family has finally fallen into place for me.
The reason it took so long is, unfortunately, Seymour Duncan’s own official description. For years, I stayed away from the Full Shred, assuming it would be overly bright. Thankfully, thanks to my dear reader Emre Bingöl, I finally had the chance to spend enough time with it—and now I can share my impressions with you.
The Test Guitar
‘Full Shred’ (FS shortly) was rocking&rolling on my “Pink Tiger”. That pink tiger is a superstrat has a Jackson Dinky body made of alder, one piece maple neck in modern C profile, German made Jackson Floyd Rose tremolo with Japanese stainless steel saddles, 25,5” scale, stainless steel frets, Alpha 500K pots and elixir strings in Eb tuning. Guitar had Seymour Duncan Alnico 2 Pro in the neck and No-name blade style middle pickup (~9K thou). Its primary (unplugged) tone is neutral to fairly bright.
Evaluation
Let’s read the official desciption first, as always;
“The Full Shred medium-output bridge humbucker delivers a clear, focused tone with a nicely balanced treble and bass response, and a backed-off midrange. The shorter Allen head poles and Alnico 5 bar magnet bring a nice crisp clarity to the high end, while keeping the low end tight and articulate. It’s great for all types of rock, blues, and metal, and works well in any humbucker-equipped guitar with medium to warm tone.
The Full Shred neck is designed for players who want maximum clarity from their neck position. This pickup also uses an Alnico 5 bar magnet and short Allen screw poles to create a tighter, brighter neck humbucker tone than ever before. It’s bright and clear enough to breathe life into the middle position of a dual-humbucker guitar, giving it an almost Tele-like quality. The Full Shred neck gets along beautifully with the Full Shred bridge, but can also be combined with one of our high-output bridge pickups like the Invader, Duncan Distortion, or Alternative 8.
Because the Full Shred has such an articulate voice, it works brilliantly as a 7-string pickup, lending separation and distinction to even the lowest and most distorted riffs. Also available in Trembucker spacing (for symmetrical positioning under the strings of guitars with a tremolo or wide-spaced hardtail bridge), the Full Shred medium-output humbucker pickup is hand built in our Santa Barbara, CA, factory, uses an Alnico 5 bar magnet, nickel-silver bottom plate, 4-conductor lead wire for multiple wiring options, and is vacuum wax potted for squeal-free performance.”
And from old catalogs;
“Application
High output tone for heavy rhythms and speed riffs. Used for classic rock, heavy rock, hip hop, fusion and aggressive solo playing.
Description
Double rows of Allen screw pole pieces help fine tune the high end, leaving a tone that's fat and chunky, yet perfectly defined for speed riffs. Gives tonal control in high-gain situation. Less aggressive than an SH-6 Distortion. More articulate than an SH-5 Custom. Comes with four-conductor hookup cable.
Complete setup
Available in both neck and bridge models-- most commonly used in the bridge position. The Full Shred neck pickup has reduced output and more treble for tonal versatility.
Guitars
For balanced and warm instruments. Works especially well with rosewood fingerboards.
Available mods
Trembucker. Available in 7-string. Colors (humbucker spacing).
Players
Riggs/Rob Zombie (bridge), Phil Campbell/Motorhead (bridge), Chris Rest/Lagwagon (bridge)”
…And, my measuremens are here;
Seymour Duncan Full Shred TB-10 SH-10
Magnet – Alnico 5
Advertised DCR: 14.60 K Ohm (Series) (14.80 for trembuckers)
Measured DCR: 14.91 K Ohm (Series)
Measured DCR: 7.38 K Ohm (Screw Coil/South)
Measured DCR: 7.56 K Ohm (Slug Coil/North)
Inductance @100Hz: 7.94 H (Series)
Inductance @100Hz: 3.49 H (Screw Coil)
Inductance @100Hz: 3.41 H (Slug Coil)
Advertised Resonance Frequency: 5.5KHz (unloaded)
Measured C: -18.9nF (Series)/ -36.5nF (Screw Coil) / -35nF (Slug Coil)
Output: Moderate
EQ (B/M/T) – 4/4/8 (old catalog data)
Gauss: 300G screw, 300G slug (measured at top center of D&G pole pieces)
Ambient Measurement Temperature: 20oC
At first glance, the Full Shred immediately brings a typical DiMarzio pickup to mind. This is largely due to its dual rows of Allen head pole screws, which are clearly visible and define much of its visual character. The baseplate is nickel silver, and I have to admit that I’m particularly fond of the Trembucker baseplate shape—there’s something very refined and elegant about it, visually speaking. The pole piece dimensions are very close to what I measured on the Alnico II Pro I reviewed recently, though it isn’t perfectly the same. Notably, these pole pieces do not carry the YFS logo stamping. BTW, you can see some clear oxidation marks on them. Dude, the guitar was not from freaking 1983, you know. It is made in 2020 and has gold hardware. Just after 5 years the guitars gold hardware looks fine but the pole pole pieces of the pickups? Looks TOO BAD. So if i prefer Full Shred on a guitar, i would certainly go black painted ones. They seems to withstand corrosion much better.
From a winding perspective, the Full Shred clearly exhibits typical Custom-family characteristics in terms of DC resistance. What really caught my attention, however, was the inductance, which measures close to 8 henries. This alone tells me that we’re not dealing with an overly bright or ice-picky pickup, despite some of its reputation.
Despite using an Alnico 5 magnet, I measured an average magnetic flux density of around 300 gauss on both coils. This is neither particularly strong nor weak—very much in line with what you’d expect from a typical Alnico 5 implementation. That said, it is slightly lower than its sibling, the Custom 5, where I previously measured values in the 340–350 gauss range. That difference is hardly surprising.
In the introduction, I mentioned one particular detail that played a major role in shaping my long-standing prejudice against the Full Shred. In Seymour Duncan’s official description, the Full Shred bridge pickup (SH-10) is defined as “a bright, medium output humbucker with a tight low end and scooped mids.” I remember seeing something similar words in older catalogs, and the same general sentiment echoed repeatedly on the Duncan Forum over the years.
That emphasis on “brightness” kept me at a distance from this pickup for a very long time. With super-Strat–style guitars in particular, I’m not always fond of excessive brightness beyond a certain point. There are certainly bright pickups I enjoy, but overly aggressive highs and/or exaggerated upper mids are often things I tend to avoid.
Had I simply listened to my own logic, I probably wouldn’t have allowed this prejudice to form in the first place. Better late than never, I suppose. In short, the Full Shred is very much a sibling of the Custom 5—arguably even its older brother if we go by release dates—and it is far from being thin or ice-picky. After all, we are still talking about the familiar ~14 kΩ DC resistance of the “Custom” platform.
The low end is tight, but I can’t call it particularly rich. In other words, when palm-muting high-gain tones, the Full Shred does not deliver the same depth, weight, and gut-punching authority that you get from the Custom 5 once the strings are muted. That character is still there—but not at the same intensity.
You can clearly hear the presence of the midrange, yet there is rarely a specific notch or peak that jumps out and grabs your ear. In that sense, I wouldn’t really describe the ‘Full Shred’ as heavily scooped. Older catalogs listed its EQ as B/M/T = 4/4/8, but if it were up to me, I’d probably place it closer to something like 4/5/7—though I’m not entirely sure myself. These EQ ratings are something of a mystery anyway. Seymour Duncan, in particular, could really benefit from a more refined EQ evaluation system—or better yet, more detailed tonal characterization overall. Older catalogs at least provided useful data such as unloaded resonant frequency. Today? In some cases, the exact magnet type used in certain pickups isn’t even clearly stated. Sometimes the only concrete figure you’re given is a rough DC resistance. EQ graphs? A large portion of them look almost identical—have you noticed that? And what about output ratings? We used to have the chili peppers… now?
Anyway, Often overshadowed by classics like the JB or the Distortion, The Seymour Duncan Full Shred is not about brute force or exaggerated mids. Instead, it focuses on precision, articulation, and a tight low end—qualities that make it a favorite among players who value clarity under high gain.
Originally designed with shred and technical playing in mind, The Seymour Duncan Full Shred offers a unique take on the Alnico 5 humbucker formula. It delivers a fast attack, delightful pick response and a unpronounced lower-mid profile that sets it apart from more traditional hot humbuckers. All the elements within and its design aspects help maintain note separation under high gain, especially during fast alternate picking and complex chord voicings.
Now, let’s get to the most obvious question: How different is it from a Custom 5? ‘Mincer’ from Seymour Duncan Forum Admin also asked me that question. I didn’t do an A/B test on the same guitar, and I haven’t used a Custom 5 in a long time, so my memory might not be perfectly fresh. All fair disclaimers. Well, my answer is, i think, Custom 5 has a little bit bolder on the lows and felt Custom 5 more scooped feel then the Full Shred. Apart these details they are very close. Which one i would prefer? Totally depending on the guitars natural tendency. I can’t rate any from that duo as “better”. Just a bit difference in the lows shortly.
So, what kind of music does the Full Shred actually suit? We could easily wrap this up by saying “rock and its derivatives” and move on—but that would be selling it short. The Full Shred is clearly at home in chug-heavy riffs, progressive metal, and shred-oriented playing, where tightness and note definition matter more than sheer mass.
Historically, it also gives us some useful clues. The Full Shred was one of the stock pickups found in Kramer Nightswan models, which already says a lot about the kind of playing it was designed for. Similarly, certain Ibanez RG2610 single-humbucker models shipped from the factory with the TB-10 Full Shred in the bridge position. Even today, the concept remains relevant. Several modern instruments still feature the Full Shred as a stock option, including some Jackson models (such as the Jackson Concept Series Soloist SL Walnut) and Charvel guitars (notably parts of the DK24 lineup). Both the design philosophy of these guitars and their intended tonal direction line up perfectly with what the Full Shred offers. Taken together, these examples paint a fairly clear picture: the Full Shred is not about vintage warmth or overwhelming low-end girth. It’s about control, precision, and clarity—qualities that make it particularly well-suited to modern, performance-driven styles.
When evaluating the Full Shred in terms of dynamic range, I must say has a low to moderate natural compression when volume pot is full up, but as you lower the volume knob down, you can get serious cleans. This level of sonic clarity and control is very nice. Not best but still fine. Moreover, even with the knobs fully open, if the amp’s compression or saturation isn’t too high.
If you’re wondering which guitars it works best in, I’d definitely say warmer guitars, first of all. Neutral guitars are also good platform for the Full Shred. My guitar is a bit brighter yet still sounded awesome.
As many of you probably know by now, I don’t usually prefer humbuckers for clean tones. That’s what in-between positions and split tones are for. And thanks to its ~7K coils, the full shred delivers very good results in split mode. The in-between positions also perform far better than the standard “satisfactory” level you’d expect. In fact, if you set to position 2 (middle single+full shred North coil – parallel wired) and roll the tone knob all the way down, you can even get some quite PAF-like tones with overdriven sounds. Heil Mark Knopfler! :) However, I must say that the Full Shred, even for clean tones, holds its own quite well—especially when compared to its peers.
So, which neck pickups pair well with the Full Shred? First and foremost, I should emphasize that the Alnico II Pro neck in my own guitar turned out to be an excellent match. The balance between the two is natural, musical, and highly usable across a wide range of gain levels. Within the Seymour Duncan family, I’m confident that the ’59 neck and the Jazz neck would also deliver very strong results. Naturally, the Full Shred neck itself is an obvious and well-matched choice, given how closely it is related to the Jazz in terms of overall voicing. The same goes for the PATB-1n. Looking beyond Duncan, DiMarzio’s PAF Pro is the first model that comes to mind as a particularly good pairing. Among the pickups I’ve personally tried, the Humbucker From Hell, Bluesbucker, and Fred also stand out as neck options that complement the Full Shred’s character very well. Each of these pairings preserves the Full Shred’s strengths—clarity, articulation, and control—while adding enough warmth and depth in the neck position to keep the overall setup balanced and musically flexible.
Conclusion
The Seymour Duncan Full Shred is a pickup that I personally misjudged for years—and not without reason. Seymour Duncan’s own descriptions, older catalog blurbs, and long-standing forum narratives consistently framed it as a bright and scooped pickup. For someone who is already cautious about excessive top end in super-Strat style guitars, that was more than enough to keep my distance.
Ironically, both logic and measurements were pointing in a different direction all along. A ~14 kΩ DC resistance, nearly 8 henries of inductance, and moderate Alnico 5 gauss readings are not the ingredients of an ice-picky pickup. And once you actually spend time with the Full Shred, it becomes obvious that it is far closer to the Custom family—especially the Custom 5—than its reputation suggests.
In real-world use, The Seymour Duncan Full Shred proves to be a controlled, articulate, and all-around bridge humbucker. Its low end is tight rather than massive, its midrange is present but rarely exaggerated, and its top end is rich without being fatiguing. It doesn’t try to impress with sheer output or brute force; instead, it rewards precision, dynamic control, and clarity—particularly under high gain.
If anything, the Full Shred feels like a pickup that suffered from poor characterization rather than poor design. It is neither excessively bright nor truly scooped, and certainly not thin. It simply occupies a slightly leaner, more disciplined corner of the Custom platform—one that makes far more sense once you stop reading descriptions and start listening.
Pros
Tight, well-controlled low end with excellent tracking
Clear and usable midrange without harsh peaks or artificial notches
Crisp highs that remain musical rather than piercing
Excellent articulation and note separation under high gain
Very good coil-split and in-between position performance
Responds well to volume knob cleanup
Pairs easily with clear, articulate neck pickups (A2P, Jazz, ’59, PAF Pro, etc.)
Cons
Lacks the low-end richness and physical impact of the Custom 5
Players expecting a thick or saturated “wall of sound” may be underwhelmed
Manufacturer EQ ratings and tonal descriptions are misleading at best
Limited official technical data compared to older Duncan catalogs
Unplated pole pieces are prone to oxidation over time
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