Jazz Neck A4 magnet swap

[AZ Picker]

So about 2 weeks ago I decided to swap the alnico V magnet out of the jazz neck pickup on my '90 les paul studio for a polished alnico IV. I was a little weary of the "plinky" attack on the higher strings (I've got an ebony fretboard) and wanted to smooth that out and get some more midrange presence. At initial listen my thoughts were holy shixxx this is loud!! But I think it was just an easily perceived difference due to having at least some midrange now. After 30 minutes of playing and some tweaking of the height it seemed perfectly normal volume wise. Now about the tone, I think perfectly clean the stock jazz is a touch better, more sparkle maybe. But the 4 keeps most of the treble and seems fuller and still has solid bass notes. With light overdrive or full on distortion the A4 shines, you can actually play some distorted rhythm and chords and they don't get drowned out in bass overtones, and for leads it sings like an A2 but with a little more high end and less of that "cocked wah" tone a darker A2 mag neck pickup can get. A few weeks later I'm still liking it a lot!!! So if you want a little more treble out of your AII pro or a little less ping and bite out of your jazz, spend 5 bucks at AddictionFX on eBay and get a polished A4 and give it a shot. ( I'm wishing I had tried this on my slash A2P neck pickup before I gave up on it as too dark).

[SJ318]

Re: Jazz Neck A4 magnet swap

I recently put an A4 in my Seth Lover and it now sounds as strong and powerful as my '58-'59 PAF. Which helped me to finish a trade and sale just recently.
It changed everything, such a difference. Can't believe it. They should make one, market it.
Anyway, hear you loud and clear. I have a Jazz bridge I was thinking of using on a new guitar and I didn't consider an A4 in that pickup. Now I will, so thanks AZ Picker (Arizona picker?)
SJB

[AZ Picker]

Re: Jazz Neck A4 magnet swap

Yeah Arizona, not A*s but I guess that could apply sometimes!!

[Demanic]

Re: Jazz Neck A4 magnet swap

I put a roughcast A4 in a Distortion neck and a polished A4 in a '59 neck. The Distortion is in an agathis bodied Ibanez RG-120 and I LOVE it! The '59 is in a mahogany bodied Schecter baritone Blackjack and the top end is just too shrill for my tastes so I'm eventually going to swap it with another roughcast mag.

[blueman335]

Re: Jazz Neck A4 magnet swap

A4's were used in a lot of the original PAF's, and they're PU maker Lindy Fralin's favorite magnet. There's a lot more we can do with A4's, they're just not seen in PU's very often these days. BTW, A4's are unoriented.

[dvanburen]

Re: Jazz Neck A4 magnet swap

ive been running A4's in my neck hybrids. I love them. I love the jazz but a little cold and bland. I love the 59 but a bit boomy sometimes. my jazz/59 hybrid takes the clarity and chime of the jazz and the warmth and fullness of the 59. Pop an A4 in that baby and it evens out the eq so its not pushed one way or the other but the hybrid offers more than what each pickup has to offer on its own. Ive found the A4 works really good in the 59 neck by itself. It tamed the boominess of that pickup. Havent tried the jazz with A4 but I have a feeling it may be a tad more uneventful that the 59 with A4. just my thoughts

[orpheo]

Re: Jazz Neck A4 magnet swap

Sounds awesome! Should try it out. I really like the results I've gotten with the A4 in the Fugly.

[Demanic]

Re: Jazz Neck A4 magnet swap

I wonder if a UOA5 would let the Jazz keep it's sparkle while filling it out a bit. Hmmmmm...

[Chris of Arabia]

Re: Jazz Neck A4 magnet swap

I wonder if a UOA5 would let the Jazz keep it's sparkle while filling it out a bit. Hmmmmm...

Or a rough cast A5 for that matter...

[Demanic]

Re: Jazz Neck A4 magnet swap

I like the way that the UOA5 adds some mids.

[blueman335]

Re: Jazz Neck A4 magnet swap

I wonder if a UOA5 would let the Jazz keep it's sparkle while filling it out a bit. Hmmmmm...

Unlikely. UOA5's are almost as warm as A2's. A RCA5 might leave some high end sparkle, the wood's a factor there.

[LtKojak]

Re: Jazz Neck A4 magnet swap

Sounds awesome! Should try it out. I really like the results I've gotten with the A4 in the Fugly.

Don't forget to also give credit to the UOC8 used as rail... it makes up for 50% of the tone you're getting now, or even more, producing a stronger magnetic field to the string than the normal rail, which conducts the magnetic field directly from the A4 mag. I wish I could have a Gauss read of both bobbins, so I could calculate the difference of mismatch, which I think it'll be a lot greater than any commercial p'up wind out there.

HTH,

[jimijames]

Re: Jazz Neck A4 magnet swap

If it's bass you're looking for, A3 IMO has the best bass in a neck humbucker - very piano-like, almost like a single coil. Has a brighter treble that's still very sweet.

But A4 is probably the best sounding magnet in a neck humbucker if you want neck humbucker sounds. Warm and clear and very balanced eq-wise.

[Jermo3178]

Re: Jazz Neck A4 magnet swap

well, looks like I'll making that mod now..lol.

[SJ318]

Re: Jazz Neck A4 magnet swap

I am going to get some more A4's for my Jazz pickups, neck and bridge models. I like them very much, but could stand to back off a touch of the high end, and I think with the Jazz series, as it is not boomy in my guitars, it may even give the whole pickup a "push" or "jump" like it did with my Seth without adding any boom in the low end.
I think it will beef up the a large portion (section?) of the middle frequencies while taming the highs, thus moving the sound of the Jazz pups into the territory we all call "PAF". It is like the Supreme Court said-"We don't know what defines pornography, but we KNOW IT when we see it." Same thing could be said for all of us who have had the pleasure of hearing not just a real PAF, but a real "GOOD PAF". We all know it when we hear it.
So I'll re-re-iterate: When we A/B'd the PAF 8.1k with the Seth A4 8.2k we just looked at each other and both our eyes just bugged out.
SJ