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Post subject: Alnico III Pickups
Posted: Thu Feb 10, 2011 10:25 pm
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I bought some alnico III pickups for my standard strat. They are OK, I think this type was used in a 50s strat. My problem is I can't get a good quack sound in 2 and 4. I've been moving them around. Now they are set at single and double nickels. Any suggestions?


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Post subject: Re: Alnico III Pickups
Posted: Thu Feb 10, 2011 10:44 pm
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Wiring and soldering job okay?

How about your pots and tone caps?

Single-coils prefer 250k and alnico III's seem to respond well to .01 or .022 mfd.

HTH

Arjay

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Post subject: Re: Alnico III Pickups
Posted: Fri Feb 11, 2011 11:34 am
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Retroverbial wrote:
Wiring and soldering job okay?

How about your pots and tone caps?

Single-coils prefer 250k and alnico III's seem to respond well to .01 or .022 mfd.

HTH

Arjay



Wiring and soldering seems ok. All the other stuff is stock standard strat, 2003. What about a new toneshaper? The original pickups had no quack or strat sound. These do sound better. They're supposed to be good for OD and dist., but I want a good clean most.


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Post subject: Re: Alnico III Pickups
Posted: Fri Feb 11, 2011 11:45 am
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For "good clean" and bell-like chime, you might try the CS 54's or the CS 69's.

Arjay

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Post subject: Re: Alnico III Pickups
Posted: Fri Feb 11, 2011 2:18 pm
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Retroverbial wrote:
For "good clean" and bell-like chime, you might try the CS 54's or the CS 69's.

Arjay



I bought these pickups some time back and have unsuccessfully fiddled with them ever since. Trying to get the sound. You might recall, I asked about the 57/62 and 69s a short time ago. I think I like the 69s, so I might go to the back pocket and get them, although it hurts my semi-tight arse. :) Thanks for the help.


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Post subject: Re: Alnico III Pickups
Posted: Fri Feb 11, 2011 7:09 pm
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Sometimes you can find used sets of Fender pickups on Ebay, with a substantial savings over the MSRP or even the discounted "street price".

Best of luck, let us know how it goes.

Arjay

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Post subject: Re: Alnico III Pickups
Posted: Sun Feb 13, 2011 7:26 am
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Alnico IIIs impart a sweeter, more mellow, midrangey tone than that of Alnico Vs which produce a crisper, more percussive tonality where even the quack jumps out at you more. You sound like a candidate for CS69s with the Alnico V magnets for sure. YMMV.

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Post subject: Re: Alnico III Pickups
Posted: Sun Feb 13, 2011 11:19 am
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Martian wrote:
You sound like a candidate for CS69s with the Alnico V magnets for sure.


Indeed!

Try them with .022 mfd tone caps.

HTH

Arjay

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Post subject: Re: Alnico III Pickups
Posted: Sun Feb 13, 2011 12:09 pm
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Thanks guys. I keep checking them out on youtube. I like the cs54s, but I think I like the cs69s best. I was bidding on some eric johnson pickups on ebay. I was waiting for the end to make my big move. I got into replacing some pipe, and forgot to get back on time. They went for $117.75. Will somebody kick me? The 69s sell for $134 new, so they're not too expensive. On ebay it's hard to tell what you're getting. Thanks again. Martian, is that new strat perfect for you? All the best. Glenn


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Post subject: Re: Alnico III Pickups
Posted: Sun Feb 13, 2011 12:43 pm
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GTG wrote:
Thanks guys. I keep checking them out on youtube. I like the cs54s, but I think I like the cs69s best. I was bidding on some eric johnson pickups on ebay. I was waiting for the end to make my big move. I got into replacing some pipe, and forgot to get back on time. They went for $117.75. Will somebody kick me? The 69s sell for $134 new, so they're not too expensive. On ebay it's hard to tell what you're getting. Thanks again. Martian, is that new strat perfect for you? All the best. Glenn


Any time!

Yes, the "Fratocaster" is absolutely perfect! As a matter of fact, because of it, I am playing more daily than I ever have. And because of its extraordinarily wonderful history, even just to look at it across the room (I always keep it readily on a stand), it gives off the ultimate best of vibes!!

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Post subject: Re: Alnico III Pickups
Posted: Sun Feb 20, 2011 12:32 pm
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An update. I ordered CS - 69s from Amazon for $134.50. I put my MIM up for sale. I am going to build my own strat. I already bought a two piece ash body. Should be easy until I get to the tremolo. Thanks for your help.


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Post subject: Re: Alnico III Pickups
Posted: Sun Feb 20, 2011 9:16 pm
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GTG wrote:
An update. I ordered CS - 69s from Amazon for $134.50. I put my MIM up for sale. I am going to build my own strat. I already bought a two piece ash body. Should be easy until I get to the tremolo. Thanks for your help.


Awesome!

Gimme a holler if you need any help -- I've built a dozen over the years and modded many more.

Rawk on!

Arjay

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"Here's why reliability is job one: A great sounding amp that breaks down goes from being a favorite piece of gear to a useless piece of crap in less time than it takes to read this sentence." -- BRUCE ZINKY


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Post subject: Re: Alnico III Pickups
Posted: Sat May 14, 2011 2:02 pm
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Hi!
I just saw this post, as I don't hang around here much. I think the pups you have are the hot AlNiCo IIIs from a Highway 1. I have a 2006 HWY 1 that came with them.
All 3 pups measured in the 11 ohm range. That's pretty hot, and therefore will be very thick in the mids with little treble, making for little quack potential. On my guitar, I took out all of the Greasebucket circuit and soldered in a master tone with a .022 Orange Drop cap, soldered a treble bleed circuit onto the volume pot, and installed a blender pot. This opened up the tone hugely for the guitar. The highs came through more pronounced and crystal-like, the bottom thumped a bit better, and the detail across the board was increased. But they still behaved like overwound pups and still fell short on the quack. I replaced them with custom pickups made with AlNiCo 5 flat-pole mags and Formvar wire wound to 5.8 ohms. They're similar to '57/'62s. They ride to quack central at the flick of the switch.


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Post subject: Re: Alnico III Pickups
Posted: Sat Oct 01, 2011 5:38 pm
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Yes, I know, here's why reliability is job one, it's getting old!


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