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Post subject: Re: Just Curious
Posted: Sat Jul 18, 2015 7:39 pm
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asgeirman wrote:
... where nearly all of you agree that mixing of pups is bullshi-t.
I don't know that I'd go that far. My own comment was intended to convey the idea that mixing pups is not for the novice, not that it's a pointless endeavour. There are lots of stock factory guitars, Fender, Ibanez, Shecter, etc. made and designed by people with more knowledge than most of us that have a mixed complement of pups and they work just fine.

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Post subject: Re: Just Curious
Posted: Sat Jul 18, 2015 8:02 pm
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True. They don't all mix and match well. And unless you have a bunch to choose from lying around, it's not the easiest task.

A while back, I raved about some Squier pickups. Seriously beastly sounding pickups (in a good way). The neck pickup can hang with bridge hums with ease.

In fact, I find that it pairs better with hums. It makes even the single bridge it originally came with sound thin and weak. At one point, I did a side by side comparison with a Texas Special neck, and it had more output, more girth, and a more flavorful sound.

I'll probably be pairing it up with a Duncan Pearly Gates Plus bridge. I actually find it hard to WANT to use it in a SSS setup.

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Post subject: Re: Just Curious
Posted: Sat Jul 18, 2015 8:55 pm
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shred6 wrote:
True. They don't all mix and match well. And unless you have a bunch to choose from lying around, it's not the easiest task.


I tried running an N3 (stacked humbucker) on the bridge only on a tele here, with an original on the neck. It did not work out too well, because no matter how I adjusted pickup heights, it would only really match well at one particular volume. Change the volume, and they would diverge quite a lot. Now I have N3s in both positions, and I'm much happier about the sound.
It might work better on a guitar with separate volume controls for each pickup, or if using an expression pedal for the volume.


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Post subject: Re: Just Curious
Posted: Sun Jul 19, 2015 12:47 am
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One thing I really like about the DiMarzio website is they give you their "output" spec for their pickups. Others might tell you Vintage, Moderate, or hot. Or for the most part, you will get the resistance spec. Hell, I don't think Gibson even gives out any specs.

But that would have given you a good thing to know.

DiMarzio makes it very easy to match the outputs of both pickups just by that spec alone.

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Post subject: Re: Just Curious
Posted: Sun Jul 19, 2015 2:10 am
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shred6 wrote:
One thing I really like about the DiMarzio website is they give you their "output" spec for their pickups......DiMarzio makes it very easy to match the outputs of both pickups just by that spec alone.


+1

DiMarzio's are my favorite non-Fender pickup brand.

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Post subject: Re: Just Curious
Posted: Sun Jul 19, 2015 8:21 am
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shred6 wrote:
One thing I really like about the DiMarzio website is they give you their "output" spec for their pickups. Others might tell you Vintage, Moderate, or hot. Or for the most part, you will get the resistance spec. Hell, I don't think Gibson even gives out any specs.

But that would have given you a good thing to know.

DiMarzio makes it very easy to match the outputs of both pickups just by that spec alone.


But isn't that spec just at full power? Won't the characteristics change as you hit the volume and tone controls, with some dropping off quicker than others, or more in the bass than the treble (or vice versa)?


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Post subject: Re: Just Curious
Posted: Mon Jul 20, 2015 11:50 am
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Yea, that would be full volume.

It's not really the best idea to take a Dimarzio with an output of 425 and pair it with another that's 180. You will have a height adjustment problem.

For myself, I don't fidget much with Volume knobs. I don't like backing off. I think it creates a sterile sound. Even a treble bleed doesn't do much for me sound wise. So I try my best to pair up similar outputs. Sure, a neck pickup should be a little lower in output. But too much, and it's a pain to me.

That output spec is great planning tool to use for pairing up pickups, as well as the other specs.

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Post subject: Re: Just Curious
Posted: Mon Jul 20, 2015 2:05 pm
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shred6 wrote:
Sure, a neck pickup should be a little lower in output.


I don't necessarily find that to be the case. There are many artists who rely on a beefy neck pickup for solo work. Think Gilmore, Clapton, SRV, others......

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Post subject: Re: Just Curious
Posted: Mon Jul 20, 2015 8:24 pm
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I guess that was kind of a blanket statement eh?

You find that a lot of pickup sets do have a slightly lower output pickup for the neck compared to the bridge to even things out a little. But I suppose not all sets are like that.

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Post subject: Re: Just Curious
Posted: Tue Jul 21, 2015 4:59 pm
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The Seymour Duncan Facebook page posted this, and I thought it would be a good video for this topic.


That sounds like a great pairing to me.

I have a Pearly Gates Plus which is the same pickup only with an A-5 magnet. If I want the same setup, all I'd have to do is swap the magnet with a A-2.

Sounds good to me.

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Post subject: Re: Just Curious
Posted: Tue Jul 21, 2015 8:59 pm
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shred6 wrote:
You find that a lot of pickup sets do have a slightly lower output pickup for the neck compared to the bridge to even things out a little. But I suppose not all sets are like that.


Two of mine have the same strength pickups in neck and bridge.

I tend to raise the bass side of the bridge pickup (only) a fair amount, to compensate for the bass otherwise being louder for the neck pickup. Raising a neck pickup too much can be problematic, but bridge pups can go quite high on the bass side without causing problems.


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Post subject: Re: Just Curious
Posted: Wed Jul 22, 2015 12:40 am
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arth1 wrote:
shred6 wrote:
You find that a lot of pickup sets do have a slightly lower output pickup for the neck compared to the bridge to even things out a little. But I suppose not all sets are like that.


Two of mine have the same strength pickups in neck and bridge.

I tend to raise the bass side of the bridge pickup (only) a fair amount, to compensate for the bass otherwise being louder for the neck pickup. Raising a neck pickup too much can be problematic, but bridge pups can go quite high on the bass side without causing problems.


+1

As well, if a bridge pickup lacks sufficient bass response, adding a base plate to the bottom of the bobbin can often compensate for it.

Arjay

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Post subject: Re: Just Curious
Posted: Wed Jul 22, 2015 4:47 pm
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Are we talking about the same thing here?

My point with the Dimarzio output spec. Was that you can determine the output of a single coil, then effectively choose a Humbucker based on the output of the single.

If I want a neck pickup that outputs at 180 on their spec. Choosing a humbucker at 425 might not be the best way to go. That's kinda the point the video was getting across as well. In terms of output pairing, you'd most likely be better off with a Humbucker in the Vintage to moderate power category.

In terms of resistance, just for the sake of the norm, if you pair a 6.5k single neck with a 17k bridge hum, you might be in for a height adjustment struggle.

I try not to use resistance as a true meter of output though. My Squier single neck PU registers at about 6.8 but has no problem being paired with a Super Distortion or Steve's Special in the bridge. That would suggest to me that the resistance doesn't tell the true story of the output. The Squier IS a beefy, hot, PU. And certainly more than any of my others that register around 7k.

And that's why I like the Dimarzio output spec better than referring to resistance specs.

If I were to go the normal rout, and look at resistance for refference, I would normally choose something like a Duncan AP-2, but I'd be lowering the neck pickup literally to the pickguard to match the two outputs. And the pickup loses it's mojo being that far down.

When I A/B'd the Squier to a Texas Special, the output was noticeably hotter by at least 1/3rd. That's how powerful it is. But the resistance reading doesn't suggest that. Hence, the Dimarzio spec making things a bit easier to choose a proper pairing to it. In terms of "K", I'd be doomed to frustration.

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Post subject: Re: Just Curious
Posted: Fri Jul 24, 2015 8:00 pm
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shred6 wrote:
I try not to use resistance as a true meter of output though. My Squier single neck PU registers at about 6.8 but has no problem being paired with a Super Distortion or Steve's Special in the bridge. That would suggest to me that the resistance doesn't tell the true story of the output.


Very true. Pickups with the same resistance can vary quite a bit, due to different gauge, different gauss, and different diameter. A cool Select Wide Range Humbucker or a hot Seymour Duncan Black Winter[*] are going to sound very different from PAF-style pickups wound to the same resistances. To say nothing of the crispy sound of the mini-humbuckers in the Firebirds that can give a single coil Tele a run for the money on the treble side.

[*]: Both awesome pickups for precise bass. But they darn well should be, when a set will set you back as much as a decent Squier.

All things being equal, the resistance is a very useful metric, but you're right, it certainly won't tell the full story.


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Post subject: Re: Just Curious
Posted: Mon Aug 17, 2015 2:56 am
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asgeirman wrote:
I feel SOME comfort in reading the last post (philipk) - or else I felt a bit stupid after reading all these postings , where nearly all of you agree that mixing of pups is bullshi-t.
The thing is : I've just been playing for some hours (at home) with my new guitar , which I bought 2 days ago. (- and left behind a considerable amount of money in the shop) And i have been very happy with the tonality and sound in most pickup combinations , leaving the amp with the same settings (Princeton rec. amp)
My new axe is a Am Strat deluxe , with a shawbucker . But I think I stay to my own observation there , because I really like this axe and the superb tones I can get from it. I've just owned one HSS guitar ( for nearly 25 years) - and that was quite good , but not as easy to balance as this one. (Carvin DC135C, which I sold a couple of weeks ago)
So this new Strat is just a breeze to dial in a diversity of tones, also in conjunction with the S1-switch. For me , this is a stayer :D
ImageImage


Congratulations asgeirman ! That is a beautiful Stratocaster !

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