Alnico 3

[RayBarbeeMusic]

Who has swapped one in and in what? I've only used it swapping for A5 in a 9.5k PAF, and it was the perfect solution to remove the harsh. I'm curious if it works in other situations for the same thing. I've never liked A2 in anything wound hotter than 8.5k with 42ga wire, but A3 seems to work much better with higher winds.

[the guy who invented fire]

Re: Alnico 3

I have a set of A3 59s.

Love 'em!!!

Warm and punchy, articulate with a upper midrange cut to them.


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[idsnowdog]

Re: Alnico 3

They are bright, clear, focused and sweet sounding magnets. They are better in the neck than in the bridge position because they are weak. They are very dynamic, so you can dig in hard without them turning to mush. They have a strong treble focus without much midrange/bass, but that treble is more round and clear than A5's.

[RayBarbeeMusic]

Re: Alnico 3

I found that it cut out the harsh treble and seemed to boost vocal mids. I didn't mind that they are not strong; in an HSS format they make the 9.5k bridge PAF not much louder than the neck/middle singles, but still fat sounding. To me, for HSS, that is actually an advantage.

Not sure if that is the common reaction though.

[ItsaBass]

Re: Alnico 3

A2's basic tonal character, but without the excessive output that can make A2 mushy at higher volumes. They are the best magnets IMHO.

[Brow]

Re: Alnico 3

I have a set of AIII 50s style Strat pickups and really like them.

[Laughing Kookaburra]

Re: Alnico 3

I'm using some A3s in a Tele. They're Rumpelstiltskins, great sounding pups. The bridge is warmer than your average A5 mag pup, which I like for the blues rock that I've been playing. However, I find the neck pup a wee bit warm for my tastes. I like the stock A5 neck pup in another Tele more. Just a bit more cut on the treble end.

I have an uncovered A5 neck pup ordered from Zhang to remedy the situation!

[FuseG4]

Re: Alnico 3

I tried A3 in the duncan custom and thought it was too bright and weak.

[CTN]

Re: Alnico 3

roughcast A3 in the Custom = my favourite version of the Custom.

[LtKojak]

Re: Alnico 3

A3 is just an ingredient of the whole recipe.

It works great in some, not so great in others.

In PAFish p'ups, it's my choice for 2nd best mag for the neck p'up (FWIW, A4 is 1st in *my* book), and 1st choice for "Vintagize" too modern neck p'ups.

A3s sound excellent in the following neck p'ups: '59n, JazzN, APH1N, SethN, AntN. Plus, it makes the 490R usable.

HTH,

[SJ318]

Re: Alnico 3

Pepe,
What mag is your favorite for PAFish BRIDGE pickups? I didn't care for the A2 or the UOA5 and still like the A5, and the A4 seems close. I'd just like to hear your opinion. Thanks,
SJB

[LtKojak]

Re: Alnico 3

Pepe,
What mag is your favorite for PAFish BRIDGE pickups? I didn't care for the A2 or the UOA5 and still like the A5, and the A4 seems close. I'd just like to hear your opinion. Thanks,
SJB

I choose the mags in function of the set. That's the concept behind my "Whisperer™" line of mag combos. As I don't wanna spam, I'll send you a PM.

Deal?

[jimijames]

Re: Alnico 3

I may have ordered some A3 rod mags, .187" diameter, and cut them down to a size that would work in a humbucker (just a smidge over .490" because I cut them with a grinding wheel and a dremel tool... so, yeah. Takes forever, not really recommended unless you're doing just one pickup)

I've also tried roughcast A2, roughcast A3, and polished A3 in that pickup.

IMO, A3 is like a clearer version of A2, with a very rich, almost piano-like bass, but there isn't as much 'push' to the upper mids and highs, so it doesn't "sing" in quite the same way as A2. They're very close to one another however.

I ended up keeping the A3 rods on the bass strings, and slugs on the treble side on the slug coil, with a roughcast A2 magnet. That seemed to be the best compromise in terms of keeping a consistent output, while still having that sing-y sound on the plain strings. In series, it's not as tight as having just the A3 bar magnet, but it's not a huge difference. Split, the slug coil is very close to a true single coil, and in parallel the sound is very 'woody' - almost like a jazzbox or something. Very low output as well.

FWIW a ton of people like A3 in single coils too, but I haven't had the chance to try them so I can't say so myself.