Has anyone here tried the Golden Age pickups that Stewart-MacDonald sells? I'm thinking of upgrading my Squier Standard Strat, and these look like a fairly low-cost way to enter into the world of project guitars: http://www.stewmac.com/shop/Electronics,_pickups/Pickups:_Guitar,_electric/1/Golden_Age_Pickups.html

What do you think?

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I really like all them "Aster" guitars. You know, like the Stratoc, Telec and Jazzm.

Hi russianracehorse: can't help on the Golden Age pickups, though Dan Erlewine says they're good. Well he would, wouldn't he?

However, at a similar price point I've had good service out of some of Kent Armstrong's single coils which WD Music sell - and there's plenty of choice regarding output, RW/RP and so forth:

http://www.wdmusic.com/kent_armstrong_s ... ckups.html

Something else to look at...

Cheers - C

So many pickups, so few sound samples...

I agree. That would make it easier to make an informed decision, wouldn't it?

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I really like all them "Aster" guitars. You know, like the Stratoc, Telec and Jazzm.

That's what would prevent me from buying a pickup. I mean people might say it's awesome but I just couldnt buy if I dont hear it first. There's always youtube but the test would have to be fair, same amp, same tune.

I have Golden Age pickups in an Ibanez AK75 hollowbody and I love them. They sound way better than the stock pickups that came with it. They are humbuckers though so I can't comment on the single coils. If they're as good as the humbuckers I think you'll be pleased. They are great for the money. I think I paid around $50 each.

Thank you for the testimonial, edzio. That helps me.

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I really like all them "Aster" guitars. You know, like the Stratoc, Telec and Jazzm.

I'll venture that all the brands mentioned in this thread thus far are from the same Asian factory.

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You dig?

Hi Martian - don't remember ever disagreeing with a word you've had to say before. So this makes a refreshing change!

As far as the Kent Armstrong pickups I mentioned are concerned, it is claimed that he hand-winds all of those himself in the good ol' USA. In fact, I've even seen a photo of him doing it. I thought that was on one of the WD Music websites, but I can't find it right at this minute. However, this page certainly maintains the claim:

http://www.wdmusic.co.uk/article/about_us

If it is true then those are very reasonable prices for hand-wound pickups. Not aware of any to match at the price...

Cheers - C

Boy, I don't know. This page http://www.kentarmstrong.com/KentPage2.html suggests that some are Asian made.

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Member #26797
My other guitar is a Strat.

Crikey, well I stand immediately corrected. Thank you. I can go back to agreeing with everything Martian says - what a relief!

So how do we tell the USA from the Asian ones? Just out of curiosity - do let's not get into one of those "which place of origin is best" discussions...

Cheers - C

Ceri,

You flatter me! And I thank you!!

At the risk of sounding pompous, I've known a certain pickup manufacturer for literally 40 years. Before he even went into his incredibly successful business which he enjoys today, I've seen him hand wind plenty of pickups by hand vs. the techniques used in his production models. Back then, he used to literally unwind and "unbuild" Gibson pickups and then rewind and rebuild them to his specs, again, 100% by hand! These are known today as the, "Dual Sound" and the "PAF". I used to even help him keep count of the number of times he wound the coil wire around the bobbin!

Nowadays, since he has all the facilities of his factory, it would be the absence of a model number on the base plate or an oddity grouping of certain construction hardware which may or may not give it away. Other than that, he has very strict, exacting specs which are never deviated from, be it a production model or a, "one off".

Outsourcing for the sake of cost reduction is certainly not a new phenomenon. If Kent Armstrong is anything like his father, Dan Armstrong (whom I also knew), he would keep the same stringent specifications for his designs as his father did and as Larry does. Larry Davis too, the owner of WD Products (yep, I know him too) would never agree to be Kent's distributor unless he had a consistently superior product.

I've said this a million times: With the advent of CNC machines, a cognizant QC group and a team of employees with a superior work ethic, outstanding guitars and their components are no longer limited to US origin. As a matter of fact, my #1 Strat today is a MIM. Granted, the neck/body combo is not OEM nor are the pickups. Yet, even my Squier Strat (Chinese) is a truly fine instrument. Sure, years ago, I'd have to agree with the importance of country of origin but per the aforementioned, this country of origin fixation and oftentimes, snobbery, prohibits many players from experiencing and enjoying many fine products which indeed, equal or surpass many of their American counterparts.

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You dig?

I would guess the actual Kent Armstrong hand wound pickups are identified as being a special limited edition product with a special type of price! I can't say I have seen those advertised, however.

I couldn't find much info on Dong Ho Electronics on the web. What I did find was confusing: is it a Phillipine or Korean company? Or maybe it has factories in both places. I did find out that Dong Ho Electronics sells their pickups under the Sky brand (same ones as the Kent Armstrong, supposedly).

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Member #26797
My other guitar is a Strat.

Ive come across sky pickups before now, somewhere in the murky distant 90's. Cant remember anything about em though.

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No no and no

Oh man, do you know, getting something wrong on this Forum is even better than getting it right, because the process of being corrected is so informative and enjoyable!

I've a whole row of questions arising from what you say, Martian. Firstly, I know I'm being dumb but am I to understand that the "certain pickup manufacturer" you mentioned first is Kent Armstrong himself, or another? If another I am just itching to know who...

Next, I notice the US version of WD Music's website shows a slightly different selection of Armstrong single coil pickups than the UK one, where I shop:

http://www.wdmusic.com/kent_armstrong_s ... ckups.html

http://www.wdmusic.co.uk/category/Elect ... ?limit=200

For example, the UK one doesn't list those "Kent Armstrong OEM Hot Single Coil" pups - would those be the Asian ones?

The ones I have are the Tweedtone's, towards the top of the price range. Will those have been made by Kent himself, or outsourced? (On the basis that it doesn't bother me in the slightest: they are what they are. Merely curious.)

Finally, should you find yourself speaking to Mr Armstrong or to Larry Davis, may I ask you to pass on my appreciation of what an excellent job a certain "Ben" does at running the UK end of the operation? One of those fellas who's always friendly and helpful beyond the call of duty, and makes WD a pleasure to do business with in my part of the world. Deserves plenty of recognition for it...

Anyhow: tell us more, Martian, if you please!

Cheers - C