banner

Announcement

Collapse
No announcement yet.

New pickups strong enough to affect string vibration, not sure how to proceed

Collapse
X
 
  • Filter
  • Time
  • Show
Clear All
new posts

  • New pickups strong enough to affect string vibration, not sure how to proceed

    Hey guys, so I recently swapped out the stock pickups in my Ibanez RG450DX with two Duncan Distortion pickups that I took out of my ESP (I'm putting the EMGs back in) and a Hot Rails Strat neck pickup to replace the single coil.

    Although my goal of drastically increasing the output of the guitar was achieved, I had no idea that putting 3 high output humbuckers in a guitar would pull hard enough on the strings to noticeably affect sustain, and cause a warbling sound past the 12th fret on the bass strings.
    I've been messing with the pickup height, and if I lower the pickups enough to stop the warbling, the output is so low that the guitar sounds about as dead as it did before I swapped the stock pups. If I have one pickup high enough to sound decent, I have to completely bottom out the other two pickups.
    I like the tone I'm getting with the pickups set to where they should be, but I'm assuming the problems aren't fixable without changing the pickups again. I don't even have another guitar with a single coil to put the Hot Rails into, and I bought it (and a soldering iron) just for this guitar, so that would suck.

    Any suggestions?

  • #2
    Re: New pickups strong enough to affect string vibration, not sure how to proceed

    Change the mags. Each DD has a double thick ceramic which are insanely strong. This will also improve the tone. I recommend A5 for the neck and A5 or A8 for the bridge in either standard or double thickness.
    The things that you wanted
    I bought them for you

    Comment


    • #3
      Re: New pickups strong enough to affect string vibration, not sure how to proceed

      buckers dont pull on strings like strat pups... ive never had buckers pull on strings like you are saying

      Comment


      • #4
        Re: New pickups strong enough to affect string vibration, not sure how to proceed

        Yeah, this is strange. The magnets are far enough away that they shouldn't be causing this. You can try lowering them really far, and slowly moving them up to see if this is what is actually happening. What are your strings made of?
        Administrator of the SDUGF

        Comment


        • #5
          Re: New pickups strong enough to affect string vibration, not sure how to proceed

          distance is one thing but the orientation of bucker magnets is such that they dont pull directly on the strings... the hot rails have a tiny magnet so i say with confidence that even if it was almost touching the strings, it wouldnt cause issues. the physical location of bridge pup means that it also wont cause much sustain loss even set very high. the neck pup is usually the culprit on a strat but i havent had the issues you describe, even with the pups you describe, set close to the strings. you had these pups in another guitar, i assume you didnt have these issues there, correct?

          Comment


          • #6
            Re: New pickups strong enough to affect string vibration, not sure how to proceed

            I’ve never had 3 humbuckers that high output in one guitar, but I can see that generating some string pull. If you find yourself not using one of the pickups, dropping that one down pretty far should help. Weaker magnets seem like an option, though it will impact the tone and feel of the pickups, and whether that’s a bad or a good thing is up to you and your ears. The half air mod is supposed to reduce string pull, right? I’ve never done it myself, but it might be worth looking into.

            Good luck.

            Comment


            • #7
              Re: New pickups strong enough to affect string vibration, not sure how to proceed

              buckers dont pull on strings like strat pups... ive never had buckers pull on strings like you are saying
              Wrongo. Ever tried a DiMarzio X-2N? Get the strings too close to the unit and they'll weld themselves to it.
              aka Chris Pile, formerly of Six String Fever

              Comment


              • #8
                Re: New pickups strong enough to affect string vibration, not sure how to proceed

                No, you guys they absolutely do. The double thick ceramics are super strong. I had some warble once with a double thick A8 in the bridge and a regular A8 in the neck. 2 double thick ceramics plus 1 extra pup (which shouldn't pull that much on its own) equals a good deal of string pull. Change the mags to alnico. The string pull should drop to a manageable level. There may be some warble above the 12th fret on the 6th string but it won't be unplayable. It will also improve the tone.
                Last edited by Clint 55; 03-26-2020, 11:56 AM.
                The things that you wanted
                I bought them for you

                Comment


                • #9
                  Re: New pickups strong enough to affect string vibration, not sure how to proceed

                  Originally posted by ICTGoober View Post
                  Wrongo. Ever tried a DiMarzio X-2N? Get the strings too close to the unit and they'll weld themselves to it.
                  the duncan diablo as well but that construction isnt the same as the dd set. i have a set of dd and have used them for years, never had this issue. try setting the bridge and middle pups where you want and the neck pup super low and let us know what you find

                  Comment


                  • #10
                    Re: New pickups strong enough to affect string vibration, not sure how to proceed

                    Yeah he doesn't have HH tho, he has HSH. HSH can have a lot of pull especially with double thick ceramic.
                    The things that you wanted
                    I bought them for you

                    Comment


                    • #11
                      Re: New pickups strong enough to affect string vibration, not sure how to proceed

                      the hot rails has very very little string pull, i have a handful of them and have used plenty of hsh setups over the years

                      Comment


                      • #12
                        Re: New pickups strong enough to affect string vibration, not sure how to proceed

                        So 'he's doing it wrong' is the easiest explanation for you when he said he's already adjusted heights several times and other people say they've had the same experience and with weaker and fewer magnets?

                        Op: A pair of A5s will sort you. Although double thick alnico in the bridge is great.
                        Last edited by Clint 55; 03-26-2020, 04:29 PM.
                        The things that you wanted
                        I bought them for you

                        Comment


                        • #13
                          Re: New pickups strong enough to affect string vibration, not sure how to proceed

                          i asked him to lower the neck pup all the way, set the hot rails and bridge where he thinks they sound good and report back.

                          have you seen a hot rails magnet clint? your double mustang neck pup you made has more direct string pull than the sh6. i have not once said he is doing it wrong. ive said this isnt behavior ive seen and asked questions

                          Comment


                          • #14
                            Re: New pickups strong enough to affect string vibration, not sure how to proceed

                            Any progress?
                            The things that you wanted
                            I bought them for you

                            Comment


                            • #15
                              Re: New pickups strong enough to affect string vibration, not sure how to proceed

                              After tinkering with the height of the pickups over a few days to give my ear time to re-evaluate the sound, I found a good mix of output/tone, balance across the strings, and minimal warbling effect. The sound is unnoticeable unless I'm holding out a note higher on the fretboard without vibrato, which doesn't really happen in normal playing, so I think I'm going to leave the magnets alone. It's good to know that that's an option if I ever have this issue again, though.

                              Comment

                              Working...
                              X