gball
Ambassador of Boogie
The Sensors are killer with high gain. A bit sterile clean but they come to life when things get heavier.
My fav Strat size pickups are the Duncan Rails.
Single Coil Question:
- Thread starter Inspector #20
- Start date
The Sensors are killer with high gain. A bit sterile clean but they come to life when things get heavier.
My fav Strat size pickups are the Duncan Rails.
OP
Here's a question for our esteemed sonic gurus...
Does anyone make a single coil that does not use magnets for pole pieces??? I mean, constructed more like a humbucker??? This would help alleviate the magnetic pull when placed close to the strings...
Does anyone make a single coil that does not use magnets for pole pieces??? I mean, constructed more like a humbucker??? This would help alleviate the magnetic pull when placed close to the strings...
OP
Amp Mad Scientist
Ambassador of Heresy
We need to make a few clarifications here:
A. "single coil" pickups, on this guitar, are not actually single coil at all.
These PUs have 2 coils (stacked).
These coils are wired in series and out of phase, to produce a hum-bucking pickup configuration.
B. "Stacked" single coil pickups: are not single coil pickups, they are humbucking pickups sold as "single coil." See "A" above.
This name "stacked single coil" is a bit misleading.
C. "Silent single Coil" is not a single coil pickup at all. It's a humbucking PU, that fits in a single coil space.
D. There is no such thing, as a "silent" single coil PU.
It's a marketing gimmick, for a humbucking pickup.
Although it will fit in a single coil cutout space.
E. Dummy coils inside the guitar: Turns a single coil PU into a humbucking PU. The result "is" a hum-bucking pickup.
F. "Coil Tap:" Turns a humbucking pickup, into a single coil pickup. When the humbucking pickup is "tapped," the single coil result -- HUMS loud !
Tech Tip for guitar wiring:
A. I always keep the pickup in hum-bucking mode. I never coil-tap any pickup. This reduces noise a great deal.
This would be ideal for high gain amplifiers, and booster pedals, etc.
B. Guitar Internal Shielding:
is a critical necessity for guitars that are used for high gain setups.
Yes, it makes a very large difference. Do not doubt this.
2 Layers of shielding (such as paint and copper foil) are far more effective than a single layer shield.
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gball
Ambassador of Boogie
That's what I like about the Duncan Rails. They are basically Strat single-coil-sized humbuckers but somehow retain the essential Strat/Fender sound. Plenty of output to keep up with a full size humbucker and since the magnets are at the baseplate like a regular humbucker you don't get all that woofy weirdness that Fender pickups do with gain.
How are they with medium gain?
Forgive the cliche reference, but something more towards a blues-type gain?
I realize they have different varieties, but the science behind them is intriguing.
Sure. The pickups in Mexican Strats are conceptually the same design as a P-90 - two magnets in the base that lie on either side of steel pole pieces. While the construction is definitely cheaper than a P-90, the idea is the same.
But, they are true single coil pickups, so they will still hum. But, the string pull is much less.
OP
Actually, I found that hardly anyone is making a hum cancelling, single-coil sized pickup. I did find that Guitar Madness sells an Artec hum cancelling single coil sized pickup with adjustable pole pieces and 4 conductor wiring....
syscokid
Ambassador of War & Peace
Have you sent, or thought about sending, this question to an actual builder of boutique pickups? I bet you that Chris Kinman of KINMAN pickups will give you an interesting reply...
Have I mentioned KINMAN pickups yet?
Absolutely!
That is a sermon I‘ve been preaching for a long time!
Glad to see I’m not the only one.
The marketing spiel kind of annoys me. I know what the manufacturers are trying to say, but it’s one of those things that makes my teeth itch, like calling a “vibrato” a “tremolo”!
Forgive me for letting my own OCD spill over, but this is actually “coil splitting”. “Coil tapping“ is much less common. Though the terms are often used interchangeably, there is a difference between the two.
When a humbucking pickup is wired so that one coil is shunted to ground, leaving only one coil active, that is coil splitting.
Coil tapping has to be done during the winding process and is very much the same idea as a transformer tap. During the winding process, a lead will be attached to the winding at some point so that you can tap into an individual coil, bypassing some of the windings. For example, a coil with 5000 winds may be tapped so that 2000 winds are bypassed when a switch (or push-pull pot) is switched. This will result in a much weaker output. These are purely hypothetical values just to illustrate the point. You’re unlikely to see coil tapping in a humbucker, as you’d have to tap both coils to avoid the coils being wildly asymmetrical. It’s more common in single coils. The Seymour Duncan SSL-5 can be purchased with an optional coil tap. I think you can get a Quarter Pounder with a tap, too.
Here’s a brief article describing the difference:
By the way, I have split the humbuckers on my Les Paul Studio. You’re absolutely correct - they will hum if exposed to interference, just like any other single coil! But, for certain cleaner passages, I like the sound. It has an airy quality. It definitely is not a Strat sound, but it’s useful in the right context.
DiMarzio and Seymour Duncan both make stacked humbuckers (hum-cancelling “single coils”).
Dimarzio:
Rail Hum Canceling Strat | DiMarzio
Seymour Duncan:
Strat Pickups | Seymour Duncan
Breathe some life into your Strat with our Stratocaster replacement pickups for classic rock, jazz, blues, metal and everything in between
www.seymourduncan.com
Amp Mad Scientist
Ambassador of Heresy
Forgive me for letting my own OCD spill over, but this is actually “coil splitting”. “Coil tapping“ is much less common. Though the terms are often used interchangeably, there is a difference between the two.
When a humbucking pickup is wired so that one coil is shunted to ground, leaving only one coil active, that is coil splitting.
Coil tapping has to be done during the winding process and is very much the same idea as a transformer tap. During the winding process, a lead will be attached to the winding at some point so that you can tap into an individual coil, bypassing some of the windings. For example, a coil with 5000 winds may be tapped so that 2000 winds are bypassed when a switch (or push-pull pot) is switched. This will result in a much weaker output. These are purely hypothetical values just to illustrate the point. You’re unlikely to see coil tapping in a humbucker, as you’d have to tap both coils to avoid the coils being wildly asymmetrical. It’s more common in single coils. The Seymour Duncan SSL-5 can be purchased with an optional coil tap. I think you can get a Quarter Pounder with a tap, too.
Here’s a brief article describing the difference:
By the way, I have split the humbuckers on my Les Paul Studio. You’re absolutely correct - they will hum if exposed to interference, just like any other single coil! But, for certain cleaner passages, I like the sound. It has an airy quality. It definitely is not a Strat sound, but it’s definitely useful in the right context.
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Yeah I see.
Splitting and tapping are not the same.
True you are not alone on that. I do have a habit of analyzing.
Amp Mad Scientist
Ambassador of Heresy
The Charlie Christian stratocaster sounds jaw dropping.
I mean, this will make you turn around and look.
But the buzzing from the single coils is too much.
So if you could just balance the pickups with a dummy coil, Then you would probably have something.
It definitely loses the usual Fender Twang, and turns into something new worth listening to.
syscokid
Ambassador of War & Peace
That does look cool. How do you adjust them?
Amp Mad Scientist
Ambassador of Heresy
Charlie Christian Pickups: Handmade in USA | Lollar Pickups
Lollar's Charlie Christian style pickups give players the rich, deep tones made famous by the titular jazz guitar legend. Check out our website for our full line of Charlie Christian pickups!
www.lollarguitars.com
WOW
Sp8ctre
Ambassador of Steel
Nope, I have built a three single coil setup with Fender Custom Shop Fat 50's in it.