5 Stupid Pickup Myths

[@DylanTalksTone]

I mean the JB jr in the video... sorry I misspoke On that

[@Addahasan]

Please Dylan, do the Alnico and Ceramic differences video.

[@haveagoodone5830]

Dylan, there's this one thing one been thinking about and couldn't find it in the webs: a given pickup+ pot + cap setup sets a specific resonance peak. A different piece in this combo means a different result in resonance peak. Ok. But does this actually mean that it CHANGES as you sweep the pot?

[@dw7704]

I just heard that part, and thought, wait.. The Duncan Distortion is a ceramic magnet, and basically a hotter JB (or so it said on their website when I bought a JB)

[@nocturnal101ravenous6]

Magnet decay is real, but not in 70 years as far as I know unless there are extreme things happening to that magnet to get it to lose remanence, like it being exposed to rogue strong magnetic fields, or like really vast temperature changes(Yep you covered them), I mean there is literally no guide in science to predict the half life of a magnet its not like Radioactivity where you can measure it specifically, so in another couple hundred years we may need to talk about it but the question then would be how many Tesla did it lose over a couple hundred years I would bet it is a very slight difference. Pickups well guitar playing is weird when it comes to quantifying "Tone", Pickups are designed and are a sum of all the parts that go into it, I kind of stick to saying the Tone is from you to the speaker and its a sum of all the parts, if your tone sucks figure out where specifically it needs alteration, but I strongly object that there is bad Tone, just bad placement. Some of the most famous songs in rock and roll history had bad tone when taken in isolation, on its own, but as part of the whole and why it was used to get the overall sound and effect that is needed it ends up an amazing combination and thus doesn't suck.

[@GCKelloch]

@@haveagoodone5830 The peak level (detemined by the cable Capacitance) drops and shifts slightly down as the tone knob is turned down until it gets to the point on the knob where the pot resistance on the tone cap is low enough that the tone cap value determines the peak. That's generally at 3~4 on an audio taper pot.

[@scottschuster3848]

I would absolutely watch a Ceramic vs Alnico magnet video. Thanks for this.

[@scottschuster3848]

This is very likely beyond the scope of what you want to do, but: it would be really cool to also hear the same test on speaker magnets in otherwise identical speakers, w/a breakdown on the effects produced on those separate ends of our tone

[@matthewaltomare7629]

I'd like to see that Ceramic vs. ALNICO comparison

[@jordimateubartroli951]

There are. Ceramic don't sound worse if properly designed.

[@realtruenorth]

​@@jordimateubartroli951 ceramic sound better for metal sometimes, not so great for jazz and not the same as alnico. Same with speakers I have found I love ceramic speakers for metal and rock and alnico for jazz/blues/vintage cleans.

[@jordimateubartroli951]

@@realtruenorth It depends on the design: the comparison I saw was between strat pickups, clean. Ceramics sounded as good and sweet as alnico. They were well designed.

[@realtruenorth]

@@jordimateubartroli951 yes, I have ceramics that sound great. Ceramic and alnico sound different. But better is subjective.

[@lazersheep]

I would love to see that Ceramic v Alnico video, I've always accidentally held the wrong idea about ceramic magnets thanks to mainline attitudes.

[@picksalot1]

Me too. Frequency analysis and Chart comparison would illustrative as well. I've heard good sounding Ceramic Magnet Pickups in blind tests.

[@ericmc6482]

Ceramic (ferrite) magnets are intrinsically noisy and this translates into the output. Alnico magnets are much quieter and this is audible.

[@stevelaferney3579]

Matters not what magnet it depends on whether you like it. Jack Pearson, used to play with Allman Brothers as well as others, is considered one of the top most players, plus other top players are using stock Squier Bullet guitars w/o changing pups in all kinds of gigs. They sound just fine.

[@dw7704]

Having both ceramic and alnico magnets in my pickups, there isn’t much difference I can hear, at least for my guitars and what I play. But I remember once hearing you should buy and use ceramic magnets because they hold their magnetic properties much longer and your alnico magnets will eventually stop working. Guitars that are much older than I am still have their original pickups and they still work. But even if they lose that property I have heard of them being re-magnetized

[@Dudemandude007]

@stevelaferney3579 nah those pickups are junk and noisy. The higher end Squiers with the SQR pickups are sooooo much better.

[@traineecanuck]

Phil McNight did a tour at Kiesel and the one place they wouldn’t let him into was the pickup room. The reason being they have all the formulas for their pickups up on the wall, so they didn’t want anyone else to see that, and Jeff Kiesel stated that pickups are just math.

[@josephc3276]

This is definitely the content I love from your channel!!! Even when you have posted similar before, because if it's not something you work with on a regular basis, I for one can't remember the details. At 70 years old I'll never stop asking WHY IS THAT? Thanks Dylan for your time Sir. jm2c

[@jeffmurdock8321]

Cat didn't even have a guitar in the video. I was afraid I'd get bored 5 minutes in, but at the end I wanted more. Really fascinating and so well explained.

[@pageveazey9874]

I really liked your video. I'm a retired Guitarist and Guitar Tech. Everything that you said was spot on. However, some things carry more weight than others. For instance, I could care less if the windings are 42 or 43 gauge. Very little difference in overall tone. I loved that you destroyed the myth about Ceramic Magnets being bad because they are cheaper. I personally find that Ceramic magnets often give more clarity. Now the one thing you didn't mention was random winding. I'm a big fan of random winding because it is closer to the old hand winding from the past. From an electronics standpoint, it should make no difference, but Lindy Fralin straightened me out on that when he told me that random windings have less resonant frequency dead spots and peaks. When he said that, I let my electronics training bias go and told myself that he just might be onto something because running the signal through a O-Scope might just show some resonant peaks and/or valleys and random winding might just reduce those peaks and valleys. For some reason, today's stupid guitarist seem to think the higher the resistance, the better the pickup. Nay, Nay, I say. Whenever I get Lindy to build me a pickup, I tell him what kind of sound I'm looking for and to never to wind above 10K Ohms on a humbucker and never more than 7K Ohms on a single coil pickup. While Magnet choice is a major thing, I always let Lindy choose the magnet.

[@eddiejr540]

I’ve probably learned more about pickups in this video than I have in my entire guitar playing life…great video Dylan👍

[@ooloncaluphid]

A couple or a few years ago Darrel Braun switched the magnets in a pickup, and in that particular instance the ceramic pickup had a "warmer" sound but the alnico was clearer and more articulate. I'd be curious to hear, if you made alnico and ceramic pickups that were exactly the same size, shape, and strength, whether there would be any difference in sound.

[@pablosantiago266]

resonance frequency will change /varie as a result of the combined materials in all model of a pickup, even if they’re using the same magnet.

[@p.s8950]

I honestly dont know why anybody wants to duplicate old vintage equipment. The new stuff has evolved into way better sound and duty.

[@philipm33]

They’re after the sound of their hero’s

[@realtruenorth]

Have you ever played a 1959 Les Paul or a 50s stratocaster into a 60s Fender silverface or 50s tweed amp? I'm guessing no.

[@timwoodruff]

One thing I've found with Ceramic Magnet pickups, even cheap ones, is that they sound way better when backed away from the strings. It's done the trick on some of my cheaper strats.

[@emmettsullivan690]

EVH stated in an interview in Guitar Player Magazine long ago that when he rewound his PAF pickup he didn't count the number of turns.

[@markbaldwin1776]

Add an extra element of nerdiness and do a side by side through an O-scope. Seeing it quantified would be pretty awesome.

[@beerbikesandblues]

I admire your quest for awesome tones, Sir Dylan. Travel forth and discover great things for the people from the land of guitars.

[@MrGlynsPickups]

Thanks Dylan, you put it very well. Stopping players referring to dc resistance as 'output' is hard. Like them calling positions 2 and 4 of a Strat switch 'out of phase'. I'm right behind ya fella.

[@GhostpainOG]

Stratocasters. Tremolo. Vibrato. The most egregious. :D We forget that EEs are designing modern pickups and have been for a few decades now. It's science folks.

[@standingbadger]

Great video, thank you. Is there a reason why you don't use A3 or A4 magnets in your pickups?

[@KnowJuanSpecial]

“You can’t duplicate PAFs.” Hell, they (Gibson) couldn’t duplicate it back then. lol. They didn’t make the same one twice. They grabbed anything they had sitting around. Some sounded great and some didn’t.

[@GhostpainOG]

I think there's a lot of caveats in that situation. They were a production floor, not a custom shop, so there wasn't a lot of thought going into it let alone reproducing it. Especially when "it" was such an elusive target. They were just trying to sell guitars. Remember, the LP got canceled for a reason. That hard rock adopted the PAF LP as "the sound" was a happy accident. Like the reverse of the "Friday Ford" concept. In the many decades since, there are a plethora of "magic PAF tone" pickups, but how can you tell except in isolation? I could probably tell the difference in a small room with me, the guitar and an amp or in a very controlled studio recording of guitar and amp, but otherwise? Nah. I mean BFG famously "recreates" the Pearly Gates live tone for all of his other guitars with a rack of stuff.

[@curtisprice9806]

OF COURSE YOU CAN DUPLICATE PAF'S. IT'S NOT MAGIC!!!!

[@KnowJuanSpecial]

I think you both are missing my point. You can replicate particular pickup, it happens everyday. My point was that it has been said that many paf’s measured differently to each other. Some had a2 magnets some a5, with some a3’s thrown in there to confuse the tone bros. Some were drastically under wound while others were total opposite. So my point, and my question, out of the few thousand that were produced (the good, the bad, and the ugly), which paf do you reproduce?

[@stevebarnes766]

The nerd in me says DEFINITELY do a Ceramic vs. ALNICO comparison video. It will be fun to watch and listen to. If there are any oscilloscopes or spectrum analyzers available to hook on the outputs of the pickups, I think they would be huge visual examples of output, Q, etc. vs. the sound you get as you change the magnet strengths, sizes or what's easier for you with what's on hand. Thanks for putting in all this work in your channel. Love the tech talk!

[@fat-hand]

I always learn something new with Dylan and he keeps my curiosity peaked. It would be cool to see a graphical representation of your various pickups mapped to resonant peaks and Q widths and tonal qualities (potentials?) so folks who think they want a hotter pickup can actually see how to get what they’re after vs assuming. Then videos like the ceramic vs alnico swap will also have a visual representation. This video puts to rest why you rise above others in this field. Well done sir.

[@stratolestele7611]

"curiosity *piqued*" I promise, I'm not trying to be a grammar nerd, but you seem to care about your words, so I figured I'd just pass along that tidbit as someone did for me many years ago. I'm grateful for those that correct me. 👍

[@thseed7]

Love the nerdy science part. Understanding more about how and why the gear we love works is always interesting.

[@cliffhanger8170]

People also forget pickup height makes a huge difference

[@michaelthomas9991]

Fascinating episode! All I can say is, more please. Nobody has ever explained the science you discussed here, I imagine because most “experts” are pulling information right out of their butts. Thank you for posting this episode.

[@keithsmith9889]

Just seeing this didn't realize i have not subscribed until someone tried to tell me what I hear on your covered vs uncovered video i guess I appreciate it. Cause this kinda stuff is great. I honestly think think I hear more detail then most. And I think that guy's comments just proved that to me. To me alnico 2 sounds best it's crunchy and fuzzy enough a zeplin flashy tone is easy, ceramic to me sounds mid scooped like perfect if you're trying to get a dimebag type tone. And alnico 5 has some pretty crystal clear note definition just to me sounds tighter in general. Beyond that I can't really tell but I can always tell which one of those 3

[@HeyNostradamus]

In regards to the strength and design of the magnet being more important than the material used for tone, if you read what Seth Lover said about magnets in pickups, basically all the magnet does is magnetize the string for the coils. Thats it. All the tone comes from the coils.

[@Trollsmacker]

Keep on delivering in the objective, patient, and experienced way that you do. There's so much BS out there that needs to be swept away.

[@Mattguitarmania]

You’re my favorite MythBuster in the world of guitars! I’d like to see the video comparing ceramic and alnico magnets

[@realtruenorth]

He busts myths and also confirms many, that's why I like this guy, no B.S. but no bias either.

[@jimiwills]

I swapped pickups in my 335 and my LP and my strat (because I wanted coil splits... And I wanted a different colour on my strat!) They all still sound like the guitars they are.

[@WavyNinja]

Learned a bunch in this one! Thanks man!

[@valleybudokan]

This is the type of content that caused me to subscribe back when you were making videos in your back yard. Great topic! Love this approach to understanding the components that contribute to a tone.

[@gringogreen4719]

My main Tele has a Filtertron in the neck and it took a Seymour Duncan Quarter Pounder in the bridge to balance the sound. Filtertrons are LOUD pickups but they are not very strong. I also have a crazy Strat shaped (Samick Malibu) guitar where I put in a Filtertron (bridge), SD Little 59 (middle), and a Quarter Pounder (neck) and it sounds great! I have a coil split in the middle hole for the Little 59 and I have a treble bleed on the volume and a Grease bucket on the tone. Both pots are Bournes minis with 250k pots. The guitar sounds fantastic and all pickups play well together. The idea for this was AC/DC (bridge), Wayne Kramer as well as a jangle (middle and middle split) and a P-90ish tone (neck). Those Quarter Pounders are good as being a P-90 punch with the glassiness of a Strat pickup. Oh yeah magnet wise it's a Alnico ll (bridge), ceramic (middle) and Alnico V (neck) for the Samick. Again, in 2 & 4 on the five way switch, they play well with each other 😉👍✨

[@erickmo1188]

I love the no none sense no Bs of this channel. Most people that make good/great pickups try to make you believe that this stuff is all special sauce or wizardry. Dylan’s the guy that gives it to us straight! I had a set of HW Abby pickups that I coveted for the simple fact that they were wound by her… were they the best sounding- nope. Did I like the brittle nature of the ‘69 design- nope. Sold them to someone in a CS strat and have never regretted either. The magic doesn’t come from the person or process that makes the guitar. It comes from the person that plays it.

[@sea-tramp]

Totally correct. It doesnt matter if its a $50 guitar or a $5000 guitar, its whats comes out of the person who plays it.

[@Pondo1221]

Do the magnet swap, but do NOT tell viewers which is which.

[@tgarder]

It's amazing how videos where they do that (like can you pick out the cheap vs expensive pickups or cheap vs expensive guitar) in blind test videos and don't reveal the answer until a later video always gets so few comments :D :D

[@AA-MusicVideos-zs1nu]

Great vid, Dylan, particularly because there is so much nonsense believed and spoken about pickups - (e.g. why a Fender pickup set costing $150 has to be so much better, beacuse its made by Fender and costs a fortune. Liked & subscribed. What I would love to get some advice on is how best to match up pickups from a mixed box of random used pickups, without actually putting them in a guitar to findout out if they work well together. I bought a multimeter that covers capacitance and inductance as well as resistance, but having listened to this video, I'm not sure that's a reliable solution.

[@anthonycandell5397]

Nice! Great info Dylan. Thanks for sewing it all up.

[@youtubecommentor4480]

Hey Dylan, guys like you make the universe a much better place to exist in. Thank you!

[@mauriciogambini]

Thanks for sharing the technical perspective about it. It was very helpful. I'm looking forward to the alnico vs ceramic video !

[@stoneglad]

Thanks, interesting stuff! I’m glad I’m now better informed and more knowledgeable about pickups than I was before watching this!!

[@dustyhatkins]

Hey! I'm churious about one thing. We always hear talk about alnico and ceramic magnets. I was wondering though if you could talk about rubber magnets at some point (if i'm not mistaking,dearmo rythm chiefs 1100 have them, as well as some old "gold foils" - whatever gold foil means, haha). I know you just talked about the fact that it's the whole pickup design that's important; i'd just like to know more is all.

[@jessehutchings]

Reminder that fussing about this stuff never resulted in an amazing song. Amazing songs are created by playing and recording. If you compose an amazing song it will probably be amazing no matter what your guitar had in it

[@nocturnal101ravenous6]

I would disagree, every genre and every song from every band has a specific sound, tone plays a part into manipulation of a person's psyche and Emotional state, both Marilyn Manson and Rob Zombie have had published works based on this. Paint it Black would not even remotely sound the same without that shrill high end of the highs played by Richards, or a band like Korn that used a 7 string that gave them a very very unique sound. Lets go back to early telecaster days would those songs have sounded right if they didn't sound overly compressed, how about Sevendust and the guitarists story about using a small shitty amp and when it didn't sound right in the studio with all that high end gear he ended up recording with his little Roland amp that gives them that weird heavy sound he has. Or what about U2 and the Edge. How about Brian May would We will rock you sound better or worse if he didn't fuss over that solo bit he does giving way to one of the greatest rock anthems ever made. How about the Kinks. I mean I would argue strongly against your statement because that as a guitarist is what makes you you and is what makes you stand out in the mix versus everyone else. I could compose a masterpiece but the song would be complete crap if not done by the right people in the correct way, there are countless examples of people butchering music. I can take a poorly composed piece and make it sound better, I cannot take a masterpiece and make it sound better than it has already been done and in the off chance I can it would be the exception not the rule.

[@Letterspeed]

This one's for the mechanics not the race car drivers

[@odysseyxcycle]

Jimmy page paid people fuss about the tone. Joe walsh fussed about the tone, jimi hendrix fussed about the tone

[@danielserrano343]

Loved this video! Thanks for the technical explanations to throw some light on it but without going too deep to lose the focus! Really enjoyed!

[@rogerw4024]

Just found your channel, I love your content and true talk about things. This is awesome

[@goodknight37]

Just discovered this channel and loving it. Great topic here👍

[@violadude85]

Def would love to see the ceramic vs alnico vid! Love your channel and your helpful info makes cutting through a lot of the bs out there easier. Thanks man

[@alexwood8555]

Dude I'd love the ceramic vs alnico test. I appreciate the takes in this video man, love the honesty.

[@Trenchant463]

No one ever told me Ceramic pickups are cheaper/lower quality than Alnico. Just different. I agree both sound great and a pickup’s performance is sum of its design and materials, not just the magnet. Same with speaker mags.

[@LRHutch]

Great video Dylan. I didn't do a video but I record audio a couple months ago 2 tracks with 2 Telecasters, One panned left the other panned right. First one a Squier with ceramic bar magnets, Second one had vintage 65 Fender Jazzmaster alnico 5 pole magnets. One on the left the other on the right channel. All the settings were the same when recording both tracks. Now you know the difference in the size of the coils, so I thought there would be a lot of difference. I could not tell the tone difference between the two. I let ten other people listen to the tracks and they couldn't tell any difference either in the tone. Output was a bit higher with the Jazzmasters. Have a good one Dylan.

[@karlsonkab51]

Artec advertises two versions of their "Big Pole" Tele bridge pickup with identical coil spec of 6.25K dcr and 2H inductance. The lower priced version uses steel pole pieces energized by a bottom-mounted ceramic magnet. The alnico version appears to use alnico rod magnets as the poles. Would the inductance be that close for steel vs alnico within two "identical coils"? What might be their performance differences? Do bar and single rail pups exhibit different attack than separate pole piece type? What tonal advantage for single rail?

[@karlsonkab51]

One thing I'm trying to get at on the comparison of the two Artec pups - is the primary difference from using a bottom mounted magnet with steel pole pieces vs using rod magnets as the poles? Are ceramic magnets available in the same rod size as the alnico rods?

[@markmccarron-fraser4160]

Thanks Dylan! I think a lot of us want a single meaningful number. And of course, pickups sound different on different guitars, especially with different scale lengths. I know what I like, but it’s best to try stuff out. 👍

[@Jacobus-or6vf]

Would love to see the Ceramic VS. Alnico vid. I have yet to find a Ceramic Tele or Strat pick up set that i like.

[@shadowminister4090]

Thanks, Dylan, for the nerdy stuff; very interesting.

[@mehAudio]

The G&L MFDs are ceramic, too. I definitely rate them higher than a lot of non-ceramics…

[@lazvt8469]

wow...didn't know...and they are truly exceptional pups!

[@iantomsic4686]

Being unbiased and listening objectively with our ears is as much a challenge as guitar playing.

[@FrioGamingOverwatch]

I love this video this cleared up a lot of doubts that I have and questions that I had of pickups and its anatomy

[@andrewhouse3246]

Definitely do the ceramic vs video. I will super chat it Thursday. I love ceramic, maybe cuz I'm a metal kid from the 80's , but ur right, Both are worthy.

[@JustinQuinn-r5m]

Excellent video, lots of pertinent info to de-mystify this subject. I’d be interested in a discussion of the different qualities of the various Alnico magnets and how they are used in specific applications. The same with ceramic, too. Are there various types of ceramics that go into pickups or is it one type of material? Thanks, good stuff!

[@shaalis]

I love these mythbusting episodes. Very helpful!

[@stevebleetstein79]

Thank you for sharing your experiences and knowledge.... the best

[@AAAA-lt9hq]

This is interesting. The point about the magnet strength not noticeably decaying with time really made me reconsider the relic'ed/aged pickup fad. They do seem a little softer in the highs but that is about it. Also, I would love to see a discussion about the vintage Fender Wide Range pickups from the 70s, their CuNiFe magnet design, and whether modern reproductions come close (it is my understanding that vintage CuNiFe is no longer made). It is also my understanding that the Wide Range sound cannot be reproduced in standard sized humbuckers because the larger size bobbins are needed to create the Wide Range tone. I am curious if modifications could be made to make the Wide Range sound in a standard humbucker in the same way that P90 sounds can be put into standard humbuckers. Thank you.

[@juandelhombre]

People get salty when you challenge their “beliefs “ with science. Don’t EVER stop doing that

[@dw7704]

Well music is more an art than a science, so sometimes it doesn’t fit science, it depends on feelings. So things like pickups can sometimes be perceived to make differences that science won’t support But of course thee are still many myths that people won’t let go And these kinds of videos can still be cool

[@endajd.]

@@dw7704 pickup is not a music. it's technology

[@dw7704]

@@endajd. but it’s used to make music. It’s part of the process of what we hear, which is why they exist. Yes you can use science to explain how they do what they do, but the results are not necessarily science They are music

[@ramencurry6672]

Agreed. Science is important if you want to avoid malfunctions, fighting noise, DIY, etc. if you have a hired handyman then it’s probably not that necessary

[@endajd.]

@@dw7704 have people invented music or is music older than people?

[@UncleDansVintageVinyl]

Awesome! Thank you! I love vintage tones, but I also know that there ain't no magic nowhere! Thanks for being so clear-sighted and honest!

[@corycardenas767]

Awesome info Dylan! Thanks again, and yes, we want that comparison video. Our friends don't believe us, lol. 👊🤠

[@axilleas]

The only argument regarding 2 vs 4 conductor wiring that might have some merit would be the noise. Generally speaking the more wire you have the higher your noise potential. Then again I can't say I have ever noticed a difference in real world use. P.S.: The Duncan JB is A5, you were thinking od the Distortion, same wind but ceramic magnet.

[@BlackReaperMetal]

This is my favorite type of video you do. It would be great to learn how each aspect affects tone and by how much using clips and maybe even freq response graphs. A lot of work but i believe your are the guy qualified to do something like that.

[@dcamp671]

I’m planning on ordering a set of matched P-90’s from you at the end of June. Love to hear your opinions on how to pick the right wire/magnet alloy/wind number to achieve the tone I’m looking for.

[@deanallen927]

I love a nice A5 or ceramic pickup, I use all kinds. P-90, Duncan and DiMarzio HB's, strat, true single coil and HB. The DiMarzio Super Distortion is just a superb pickup and my current fave.

[@BorisRozavilovsky-Levit]

Hi Dylan! Grate and very informative video. I have a question. If you wiring pickups and guitar instead of coper wire but with silver wire. How it will affects on quality and strength of the sound ? Thanks in advance for the answer.

[@workrmtly5582]

Great vid. May I ask, which magnetizer are you using?

[@paulmcnary4277]

GREAT VIDEO DYLAN ! For the few inches of copper wire used to hookup to a pickup in a guitar, like you said is is soooo imperceptible. Then includes think about all the copper used in the windings. The speed of electricity through a copper wire is approximately 98-99% of the speed of light in a vacuum, which equates to about 300,000,000 meters per second or 186,000 miles per second.

[@Chucksguitargeekery]

In my experience, cheap ceramic pickups are overwhelmingly underwhelming. But, name brand ceramic pickups are usually good. However, cheap alnico pickups can be pretty good sometimes.

[@BrianGay57]

Thanks Dylan, I ❤ science and guitar!

[@RichardHazzardEsq]

Love to see the swap using pickup designed for ceramic (like JB), then using pickup designed for alnico like PAF. Thanks for great videos.

[@coffeerocker1429]

This was very insightful. Loved it. Cheers

[@rendyandrian7149]

You answer many of my questions about pickup. My next question. Besides buying and put it in our guitar, how can we guess pickup sound ?

[@leagueofsoniccuriosity5376]

Yes! Please do the ceramic vs alinco pickup vid!

[@chrisegg7936]

I have more guitars than I generally like to admit to a stranger, and one of my FAVORITE pickups out of all of them is a presumably cheap ceramic humbucker in the bridge of a cheap fender prodigy from the early 90s.

[@benebluesman]

Love to see ceramic vs alnico. I've been pleased swapping ceramic bar for alnico poles in a pbass pickup.

[@andrewsmith1520]

I would love to see/hear the Alnico/Ceramic video, especially taking into account different types of each that are counter parts. Like Alnico 2 5 and 8 and anything comparable on the ceramic side. Etc.

[@RudeRecording]

Good info! Have there been any attempts at a pickup design using a Neodymium magnet?

[@charleswallace5818]

Thank you for sharing. I would enjoy the video about magnets. You mean your name on it doesn't put the magic in my pickups. I will need a minute to process......lol. still playing more now. Words can not begin to say how good it is. Thanks again

[@robertmartinsenlb8ci]

Agree 100%. Would be cool to see a video where you compare how different pickups sit and cut through in the band mix.

[@CaptainErn]

This is the content I subscribe for! Definitely do the Alnico v ceramic video

[@moparbryan]

Duncan’s JB is an Alnico 5 magnet

[@DylanTalksTone]

Yes!!! I misspoke. JB jr is ceramic

[@carlodevivomusicontent2138]

I don't need that video to believe you, but I would love it because it's so interesting knowing things

[@ricklodewell6012]

My favorite videos of yours have always been the ones which are more scientific in nature. Especially the white board ones. I go back and watch 5 year old videos occasionally.

[@dexterj5615]

As a fellow Dylan i can say we were made to ruffle the feathers and I for one subbed for logical and scientific information which you are a wealth of.

[@danedearmond4905]

I enjoy guitar tinkering and modification. I've played cheap ceramic pickups from Amazon that sounded great, I've played on vintage higher end pups that didn't sound so great. I've played single-coils, P90's, Hot rails and humbuckers. Beyond build design playing a factor (like single-coils, P90's, Hot rails, and humbuckers), with the right equipment you can tweak tones in so many ways that the pickup materials themselves become such a small part of the overall equation that I would dare say it's almost irrelevant. Is there impact? yes. If you a/b different pickups side-by-side you will often hear a tonal difference. But if you do a blindfold test of multiple types of pickups (of the same style), they become VERY difficult (if not impossible) to tell apart.

[@GhostpainOG]

Exactly. It's like pedal snobs, especially the ones that used to diss on Boss. Like bro, before there were boutiques there was Boss. You make good music with the tools you have. If you can't, that's on you. Not the tools.

[@stratoscorp7]

Yes please, ceramic vs alnico comparison with all other parameters remaining the same. Thanks Dylan.

[@GlennTepper]

I appreciate that you "squashed" all the "voodoo" I've encountered over the decades. I'm pretty much set with the guitars and their pickups that I now have - which includes a set of your P90s. So, thanks.

[@JohnnyBGoode634]

I loved this video. Given that guitar output is an important dimension of my overall chain, is there a reliable way to measure the actual output of a guitar? OR is DC resistance “close enough” as a relative value to help predict what might happen when swapping guitars?

[@curtisprice9806]

I HAVE SEYMOUR DUNCAN PAF ANTIQUITYS. I SWAPPED THE BRIDGE PICKUPS ALNICO MAGNET WITH A DIMARZIO SUPER DISTORTION CERAMIC MAGNET...VOILA!!! MORE UMPH AND POWER!! SOUNDED THE SAME, JUST MORE GAIN!!

[@DylanTalksTone]

Why are you yelling

[@Ryan-kw7gj]

Definitely do ceramic vs. alnico. Years ago I ordered a set of PAFs from ThroBak. The set I settled on came standard with alnico 2 magnets, but I asked for a "short alnico 5" for the bridge. It sounds great but I've always wondered if it was the right call. I've thought about having a tech switch the magnets just to see.

[@sea-tramp]

Rumor has it that a shorter magnet can sometimes be a little more punchy than a longer magnet. You can switch them yourself, just watch the north & south poles.

[@nlanni]

I would like to see the comparison. What is the formula for a less bright PU. The high E string, and the G and B strings have ringy sound when I just struming or plaing open cords. It drives me crazy. I installed Epiphone coil split ALNICO 2 Probuckers, better pots, etc. It didn't reduce the ringiness but made it clearer compared to the manufacturers cheap PU's. I've since then bought a different guitar with higher DC resistance PU's and they the same ringiness. I've tried the ToneShapers kit using different capacitors (250k vs 500k) a treble bleed kit, and 7 combinations of tone control capacitors.

[@matthewthompson1942]

I like gavitt cloth only because for me it’s easier to use. And it’s not terribly expensive for my use. Great video!

[@johngeddes7894]

I’m a big classic rock fan, and not having access to the JBL D120 guitar speakers, which boasted a whopping 12 lbs of alnico, is quite a missing link in terms of that early ‘70s or even late ‘60s PAF sound. We can still get close, and TBH, I could prolly be happy with the right transistor amp, and some well made transistor pedals, but to ceramic magnets on pickups, those have been most popular with the metal crowd. That real dense, compressed sound with no need of a fuzz pedal. Not the tone I’m chasing.

[@thewrongbike7709]

Thank you. I keep seeing people measuring the DC resistance of their pickups and it means almost nothing. The AC resistance might - at the operating frequency of a guitar string. I'd like to see a video about the effects that the different variables have. It would probably involve some math. At the end of the day though, unless you A-B compared the effects, the audience probably couldn't tell the difference and my fingers aren't impressive enough for anyone to care.

[@Megarobotsquadron]

One question I've always wondered about is about the quality of a split coil humbucker. If you have a Les Paul with split coils, are those pickups supposed to be anything? Or are they just a lesser version of each, a humbucker or single coil pickup? I've always come from the school of thought that a tool that tries to do two things, doesn't do either of them well. Does that apply to split coil pickups?

[@Viks021]

Always something interesting. Thank you.

[@Kabayoth]

The capacitance of the wire could change with the PVC coating, but the lengths found in guitars would make this a trivial detail.

[@GhostpainOG]

At that point it's the trivial details that add up to make it more than trivial. Or least that's what the marketing told me. :D I mean have you read anything about the late Ken Fischer of Trainwreck amps? Dude said he could hear the differences in wire coating in his amps/transformers. Seymour Duncan and Larry DiMarzio basically created an entire industry on paying attention to pickup construction. I liken it to putting together a signature wardrobe. The amp/speakers/pickups are the major pieces and from there you refine, refine, refine.

[@jordimateubartroli951]

Yes, but this capacitance is depending on the distance between wire coils. You can make the pvc coat thickness appropiate for the capacitance you need or want.