I ran into this article on Reverb.
The Mini-Humbucker: More Than Just a Miniature Humbucker
All in all, it's a pretty good article, until I ran into these paragraphs:
"As previously mentioned, the basic construction of a mini-humbucker is essentially the same as a regular humbucker, only miniaturized. Each coil has a bar magnet underneath of it, with the familiar adjustable pole pieces that most of us would recognize from a PAF-style pickup, each made of a magnetic, iron-based alloy (the technical term for this kind of metal alloy is "ferrous").
The other coil in the pickup also contains a similar ferrous bar magnet, but without the adjustable pole pieces. The only difference in a standard PAF-style design is that, rather than a second, non-adjustable bar magnet, there are typically several metal slugs arranged in series."
What's wrong with the above paragraphs?
1. The first paragraph could be worded better. At first read, the first paragraph suggests that each coil has it's own bar magnet. In fact, there is a single bar magnet that straddles the underside of both coils. Okay, so this really isn't "mis-information," but it could be worded a bit more clearly.
2. The second paragraph is just wrong, at least if you're considering a traditional mini-humbucker. In a traditional mini, that "bar" in the middle of the second coil is not a magnet. It is just a steel slug (a "blade" or "rail," if you will) that is used instead of the six plain steel slugs that you find in full-size pickups. That bar is ferrous, but it is not a magnet.
The author seems to be conflating Firebird pickup design with traditional miniature humbucking pickups. In Firebird minis, each coil does surround a bar magnet. There are no slugs or pole pieces. The paragraph above seems to be treating the second coil in a traditional mini like one of the coils in a Firebird pickup, which is incorrect.
Ah well...just a little something to spool me up!
The Mini-Humbucker: More Than Just a Miniature Humbucker
All in all, it's a pretty good article, until I ran into these paragraphs:
"As previously mentioned, the basic construction of a mini-humbucker is essentially the same as a regular humbucker, only miniaturized. Each coil has a bar magnet underneath of it, with the familiar adjustable pole pieces that most of us would recognize from a PAF-style pickup, each made of a magnetic, iron-based alloy (the technical term for this kind of metal alloy is "ferrous").
The other coil in the pickup also contains a similar ferrous bar magnet, but without the adjustable pole pieces. The only difference in a standard PAF-style design is that, rather than a second, non-adjustable bar magnet, there are typically several metal slugs arranged in series."
What's wrong with the above paragraphs?
1. The first paragraph could be worded better. At first read, the first paragraph suggests that each coil has it's own bar magnet. In fact, there is a single bar magnet that straddles the underside of both coils. Okay, so this really isn't "mis-information," but it could be worded a bit more clearly.
2. The second paragraph is just wrong, at least if you're considering a traditional mini-humbucker. In a traditional mini, that "bar" in the middle of the second coil is not a magnet. It is just a steel slug (a "blade" or "rail," if you will) that is used instead of the six plain steel slugs that you find in full-size pickups. That bar is ferrous, but it is not a magnet.
The author seems to be conflating Firebird pickup design with traditional miniature humbucking pickups. In Firebird minis, each coil does surround a bar magnet. There are no slugs or pole pieces. The paragraph above seems to be treating the second coil in a traditional mini like one of the coils in a Firebird pickup, which is incorrect.
Ah well...just a little something to spool me up!
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