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First look at inexpensive humbucker

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2/2/2005 12:37 PM

First look at inexpensive humbucker

Hi everyone,

I decided to remove the humbuckers from my low end Epiphone SG and take a look. My first impression is they are MUCH better built than I expected. So far I have only dug into the rear pickup. This is what I found:

Overall the pickup appears to be well made.

It seems to be very well wax potted.

The coils are very closely matched at 7.95k each +/- .02k. My meter jumps around a bit so that is hard to measure. Close enough for me...

The bobbins, frames, slugs, screws, and hardware look good.

Well protected with cloth tape.

The coils don't seem to be buldging out the sides of the bobbins so my guess is #44 wire but don't know for sure.

The front pickup is narrower spaced and 12.65k resistance.

All in all I'm impressed for an inexpensive guitar.

I'm thinking about rewinding to a lower output pickup. Any suggestions? I have #42 and #43 wire.

Thanks,

Clint B

2/3/2005 6:21 AM
MKB	Are the magnets alnico or ceramic? If you're going for a more vintage tone, you might consider changing the magnet if it's ceramic. A standard PAF wind (#42, around 8k or so) might sound really bright with a ceramic magnet from a hot wound humbucker.

2/3/2005 9:46 AM

I think the magnet is ceramic. I hope to get an order for pickup supplies together soon and it will include A2 and A5 magnets.

Humbuckers seem to be very easy to mod.

What logic says to do is change the pickup to 4 conductor wiring and wait for more supplies. But hey, I laugh at logic! Really, why ruin a perfectly good pickup only because I don't have the parts for another one? Now if I took an ice pick and poked it through the coils I would have an excuse.... Hmmmm.... Save me from myself!

Clint

2/3/2005 10:45 AM
SK	Component quality does not determine tonal quality by any means. In fact some very good sounding pickups were made terribly cheaply (I'm surprised some are even still in one piece)

2/3/2005 2:22 PM
Jeff G	Ain't that the truth.

2/3/2005 2:26 PM
Jeff G	Clint, If you think the magnets are ceramic and you're not satsified with them (even if you are), I'd suggest simply swapping magnets to begin with. You never know what you might find. I'd start with A5 at that output. I don't much care for multi-tap pickup building. It's so much easier, IMO, to go with the single conductor for buckers. YMMV. Jeff

2/3/2005 8:00 PM

The design of those cheaper pickups seem to be based on the fact that ceramic pickups with a low dc output generally do not sound very good, but ceramic magnets cost less than 10% of the cost of alnico ones. Further the higher tension used when winding with 42 wire means that it is harder to wind at the ridiculous speeds they use - about 3000rpm - without warping the bobbin.

Further, most Asian enamel wire makers only charge very little extra for finer guages of wire.

You would be destroying anything of real value, and surely the object of the exercise is to change "a good pickup" into a great pickup....we wouldn't be here otherwise, no...

Go crazy with it! Try every magnet and wire guage under the sun!

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