how does one measure balance ?

[DanteG]

In a prior thread, I exposed myself as a clueless newbie. I now have a glimmer of a clue, thanks to members of this forum. You know what they say about "a little learning being a dangerous thing?"



My plan is to swap out the stock hums in an Ibanez AX120 with a hum at the neck & a Phat Cat at the bridge. I was advised to make sure that the output balances are matched. What values should I use when checking the SD page spec list ? At what point does a disparity become a practical problem ?


Your help and input appreciated.

[STRATDELUXER97]

Re: how does one measure balance ?

In a prior thread, I exposed myself as a clueless newbie. I now have a glimmer of a clue, thanks to members of this forum. You know what they say about "a little learning being a dangerous thing?"



My plan is to swap out the stock hums in an Ibanez AX120 with a hum at the neck & a Phat Cat at the bridge. I was advised to make sure that the output balances are matched. What values should I use when checking the SD page spec list ? At what point does a disparity become a practical problem ?


Your help and input appreciated.

I've used something like a C5,CC,Or the Hybrid rated for 11k or so and i've always been able to match it with something in the low 8k ranges like a 59 in the neck or a PG...Normally the neck position pickup gets adjusted almost flush with the ring on a Les Paul for example...I usually try to adjust my bridge pickup where I want it and then I'll adjust the neck pickup...I want my bridge pickup up high enough where I can get beefy tone and harmonics etc..I then adjust until the neck balances right while playing and using the switch back and forth and listening...That's how I do it...

John

[tone4days]

Re: how does one measure balance ?

yeah, balance tends to be a more subjective thing, determined by ear rather than by consulting a spec sheet .. and remember, that is only if balance is important to you .. many players are perfectly content with one of their pups being hotter than the other because it suits their style ... additionally, imbalance can be 'managed' with adjustments to pickup/polepiece height, a pickup booster pedal, and/or different amp channel settings ...

that being said, some guys prefer to use pups with the same mag type as a way of achieving .. DC resistance spec is a rough way of gauging output too, with higher resistance roughly being proportional to greater output ... but remember, when comparing a bridge to a neck pup, things like scale length and number of frets comes into play because the neck will 'see' greater signal content than the bridge pup

i hope that this isnt too confusing .. perhaps some of the cogniscenti will be along to make this a bit clearer .. in rereading this post, i see that it might be accurate, but i fear it is short on assistance - sorry
good luck
t4d

[DanteG]

Re: how does one measure balance ?

.. perhaps some of the cogniscenti will be along to make this a bit clearer ..


Thanks for your answer, T4D. Anyone else care to jump in ? My thoughts at this time are to use a SD Jazz at the neck ( I just like the tones I've heard on the site). Is there a better choice ?

Also, the site FAQ shows that the Jazz is available w/ a cover. The specs for the Jazz don't show this. Are any of the SD Gods of Tone available for clarification ?