When Seth Lover at Gibson , discovered that by joining two single-coils together, wired with opposite polarities…. Originally known as PAF P atent A pplied F or pickups…this new dual-coil design eventually came to be known simply as humbuckers. Over the past many decades, the Gibson Les Paul is the guitar style most closely associated with humbuckers…. While Fender Stratocasters and Telecasters are most known for single-coils. And while it may seem that humbuckers are superior to single-coils from a technical standpoint…what really matters is how they compare in tone.
Because the final guitar sound depends on so many other factors besides just the pickups. Pickups generate a voltage using 1 of 2 methods:. Active pickups solve this problem using weaker magnets, and boosting the signal later with the preamp.
As you can see, the benefits of active pickups go on and on. Objectively, they win in almost every comparison. Ironically though…the majority of the guitar-playing world STILL prefers the sound of passive pickups. With passive pickups…you can actually increase the output, simply by adding more winds of copper wire. And one reason why this alloy so popular is its ability to maintain its magnetic properties over time.
Potting is one of those rarely discussed topics…. And prevent any movement or vibration between parts…the entire pickup is dipped in wax. Somehow, though, you're beginning to feel there might be a pickup more suited to you - or there are still aspects of your tone that bother you.
Pickups can be changed almost at will, as they hold their value reasonably well and most techs won't charge a fortune for the work. The most experienced players sometimes tie themselves in knots over tonal issues only to find the answer was staring them in the face.
By the way, unless you are willing to invest time and money into buying a good soldering iron, solder, flux, tools and workbench - and subsequently learning how to do the job cleanly and safely which you can with our step-by-step guide - I would heartily recommend paying a tech.
The heartache of potentially damaging a favourite instrument or the stress of having to work with sub-par tools far outweigh the bench charge in my opinion. With this out of the way - and at the risk of seeming pedantic - step one is to "idiot-check" your rig.
Is your guitar properly set up and wearing new ish strings? Are you fundamentally happy with the sound of your amp and pedals? Are your cables of good quality and have you avoided unnecessary tonal degradation by keeping lengths to a practical minimum? Is there anything in your signal path that wouldn't normally be there that might be degrading the tone? Are any tubes, batteries or other wearing parts in good order? The most experienced players sometimes tie themselves in knots over tonal issues only to find the answer was staring them in the face!
The next step is diagnosis. For this we need a case study, and this is where the fun really begins! I bought it in and it came with a maple neck, alder body, and it had the standard at the time five-way switch and classic Strat wiring with a volume pot and two tone controls.
It came with a set of absolutely wonderful-sounding stock Fender pickups that had just the right balance of output, clarity, chime and warmth. Fender's pickup designs are truly excellent and are usually very well-matched to the guitar they sit in.
After two years of gigging and recording, I began to wonder what possible improvements a pickup swap might yield. I'd had good results with Seymour Duncan's Alnino II Pro humbuckers before in other guitars, and I wanted to experiment with a slightly darker and smoother version of my sound, so I bought and fitted a set of Alnico II Pro Staggered pickups. At first they sounded great. They really lent my lead tones a hint of warmth and class, and the additional smoothness balanced well with my bright maple-necked Strat.
Quickly, though, I realised that something had been lost in translation. Search Search. Suggested keywords menu. Account Cart. Popular Brands Shop All Brands. Boxes Acoustic Guitar Accessories. Laminate Tops Acoustic Piezo vs. Soundhole Pickups Dreadnought vs. View all Guides. Should I buy a Shell pack or drum kit? Beginners guide to cymbals More Buyer's Guides.
Do I want an electric or acoustic kit? Ultimate Guide to Guitar Pickups They are the reason that your guitar sings the way that it does Humbuckers vs. Single Coils There are two main types of pickups: single coils and humbuckers. Single Coils How they work: Insulated wire is wrapped around six individual magnets.
How they sound: Clear and detailed: snappy, twangy, bell-like, jangly. What is a Single Coil Pickup? What is a Humbucker? Active vs. Let's take a look: Alnico III - The 'weakest' of the magnets used in pickups because it has no cobalt.
The tone is relatively soft and clear, often described as sweet, with a slight rounding off of the more brittle treble frequencies. Alnico VIII - Possibly the least common magnet type, but many players consider it to be an undiscovered gem. It gives you the power of a ceramic magnet but with the warmth and harmonics of an Alnico V, and is a great way of preserving some of the woodiness of your guitar tone while still hitting your amp with plenty of output. You can usually bet that a ceramic-loaded guitar will sound pretty powerful, maybe with a little more bold midrange, especially in the upper mids.
Some early ceramic pickups sounded rather flat and pinched, but as pickup companies further explored the capabilities of the magnets they discovered how to really get the most out of the tone. Acoustic Guitar Pickups Amplifying an acoustic guitar can be tricky.
Rails Set Black. Fishman Fluence loaded pickguard white - 3 single width pickups for strat. Price pending. EMG 81 Pickup in Black. EMG 85 Pickup in Black. However Gibson also produce single coils, with the P being the most ubiquitous. The P was developed in but lost favour once the humbucker was released and remained relegated to their budget lines. Although humbuckers and single coils are by far the two most popular types, the two are occasionally used together, such as the H-S-S configuration sometimes found in Stratocasters, which uses a humbucker in the bridge position.
Consequently they are very popular for use in country and surf music. The pickups used in Stratocaster style guitars have a broader range than the Teles, resulting a comparatively warmer, more rounded tone that still maintains quite bright and punchy high to high-mid frequencies. Humbuckers have generally a thicker, heavier sound and tend to accentuate both midrange and sustain. This has meant that they are popular with jazz and blues players seeking warm, round tones, as well as metal and heavy rock guitarists who prefer heft and darkness over brightness.
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