Jazz and 59 necks...really much difference?

[Mincer]

Re: Jazz and 59 necks...really much difference?

I was convinced, from all of the hype on the SD forum about the jazz neck, that the jazz neck was a benchmark for neck humbuckers. But after some youtube clip comparisons I'd rather use the 59.

I like the 59 better, too. But some don't like the neck pickup to have so much bass. I don't mind.

[JB6464]

Re: Jazz and 59 necks...really much difference?

All my neck humbuckers are Unpotted 59's with roughcast A5 mags .

[Lewguitar]

Re: Jazz and 59 necks...really much difference?

I like the 59 better, too. But some don't like the neck pickup to have so much bass. I don't mind.

I don't like all that bass. So I use the 59 with an A3 magnet instead of A5.

An A3 59 would be a good pickup for SD to market.

[JB6464]

Re: Jazz and 59 necks...really much difference?

A lot of people complain about the bass in the 59N but few take the time to actually dial in the height and poles .
You can change a lot of tone by simply spending time adjusting the pickup to what your guitar needs .
And for the icing , get an Unpotted neck pickup , it sounds more open like the Ants which are Unpotted as well .

[ArtieToo]

Re: Jazz and 59 necks...really much difference?

One of the reasons I prefer the 59n, is with a simple manipulation of the values in the de-mud mod, you can kinda dial it in to Jazz territory. But you can't dial a Jazz into a 59. So, a smidgen more versatility if you don't mind messing with stuff.

[Lewguitar]

Re: Jazz and 59 necks...really much difference?

One of the reasons I prefer the 59n, is with a simple manipulation of the values in the de-mud mod, you can kinda dial it in to Jazz territory. But you can't dial a Jazz into a 59. So, a smidgen more versatility if you don't mind messing with stuff.

That's why I like replacing the A5 magnet with a Roughcast A3 in my 59n. I get a jazzier sound out of a solidbody PRS SE Singlecut. Jazzy like Wes Montgomery playing his hollowbody L5.

Seems like there's a consensus that the 59n has a more pleasing tone to most of us than the Jazz n. But that the 59n has more bass than some of us prefer.

Artie's De-Mud mod or replacing the A5 magnet with a RC A3 or moving the pickup away from the strings or adjusting the polepieces will all thin out the tone of the 59n somewhat and get rid of some excess bass.

Pick your flavor!

I've never been happy with the tone I got by just adjusting the ht. and polepieces. Peter Green turned his neck humbucker around so the polepieces were closer to the bridge.

For me the A3 magnet swap gives me what I want from a neck humbucker. A little more breath and a pleasant "pop" when I pluck the strings. Articulate and clear, but smooth, breathy and warm.

That's not the sound I want from a bridge humbucker though!

I like Eric Clapton's Cream tone and for the way I play, replacing the polished A5 magnet with a roughcast A2 magnet in a 59B makes getting that sound easier.

[ArtieToo]

Re: Jazz and 59 necks...really much difference?

Thanks Lew. I'll have to try an A3. I haven't messed with mag swaps much. Just getting ready to try my first A8 today. Film@11.

[Lewguitar]

Re: Jazz and 59 necks...really much difference?

Thanks Lew. I'll have to try an A3. I haven't messed with mag swaps much. Just getting ready to try my first A8 today. Film@11.

Try a roughcast A3 Artie. A little more complexity to the tone.

[ArtieToo]

Re: Jazz and 59 necks...really much difference?

Cool. I will.

[PFDarkside]

Re: Jazz and 59 necks...really much difference?

One of the reasons I prefer the 59n, is with a simple manipulation of the values in the de-mud mod, you can kinda dial it in to Jazz territory. But you can't dial a Jazz into a 59. So, a smidgen more versatility if you don't mind messing with stuff.

Is that a cap in series for a high pass filter? It uses the volume pot resistance to calculate the frequency?

[dr.barlo]

Re: Jazz and 59 necks...really much difference?

I love a4 59N's... with a bit tamed highs and bass but overall with the same 59 character that I love. I've been using it for more than 15 years I think.

https://soundcloud.com/dr-barlo/sets/barlo-the-jammer

There are literally 100 jams that I have played over the years in that link. All of them are done with my warmoth walnut hardtail strat: (PATB-3 bridge + Fender Tx. Special middle 4 A4 59N)



Each of the recording has info about the stuff that I have used.

B

[dr.barlo]

Re: Jazz and 59 necks...really much difference?

According to my archives, the last ones that I've tested measured a resistance of 7.15k (SH1) and 7.03k (SH2) for an inductance of 3.63H (SH1) and 3.57H (SH2).

Yep, that's pretty close specs... but the coil coupling due to coils capacitance in each pickup was different enough to generate distinct tonal characters, with a less even response from the SH1 in the ultra high frequencies (coils capacitance being due to the wire insulation and how this wire has been layered, BTW).

The difference between the two PU's as I hear it is of the same kind than between a P.A.F. or Patent Sticker Gibson HB vs a T-Top : IME, some patent sticker T-Tops sound really close to a SH2n and conversely...

Great info freefrog!



One question. The H value of a 59N with an A4 mag would be higher or lower?

A4 feels like a bit cleaner so I would say that it'd be lower H. But then again that might be due to the bass of the a5... so I dunno what to expect. A4 feels like a bit cleaner to hear but also not as clear as a5 in the upper registers...

B

PS. I am talking about them shiny a5's, the oriented ones...

[ArtieToo]

Re: Jazz and 59 necks...really much difference?

Is that a cap in series for a high pass filter? It uses the volume pot resistance to calculate the frequency?

Yes, more or less. The first time I did it, I used a .01 uf cap in parallel with a 500k resistor. Then that parallel combo in series with either the red/white wire, (for convenience is it's a 4-conductor), or in series with the hot wire on a coax cable. It worked great, so I don't recall messing with other values.

[freefrog]

Re: Jazz and 59 necks...really much difference?

Great info freefrog!



One question. The H value of a 59N with an A4 mag would be higher or lower?

A4 feels like a bit cleaner so I would say that it'd be lower H. But then again that might be due to the bass of the a5... so I dunno what to expect. A4 feels like a bit cleaner to hear but also not as clear as a5 in the upper registers...

B

PS. I am talking about them shiny a5's, the oriented ones...

You're welcome. :-)

A4 increases the inductance a wee bit (hence the slightly warmer sound) but has typically less magnetic strenght - hence the cleaner sound with less bass, potentially... It seems to agree with what you hear. :-)

[dr.barlo]

Re: Jazz and 59 necks...really much difference?

Cool!

Thanks.

B