alnico 2 vs 3 vs 4 vs 5

[Maggot]

Re: alnico 2 vs 3 vs 4 vs 5

One thing I will say about A4 vs. A5, which I think you can hear a bit of in the sample video, is that A5 seems to prettify the leads - you hear a little less pick and less string noise and more complex harmonics. A4 has a more "just the facts" vibe. This is more apparent, obviously, the cleaner you play.

 

[Demanic]

Re: alnico 2 vs 3 vs 4 vs 5

A2 - Lots of mids, not much treble, loose low end, low output, and lots of vintage dynamics. Used in the bridge and neck.

A3 - Like an A2 but with more treble and less mids. Pretty much used in the neck slot.

A4 - Flat EQ, and for that reason some consider it bland. Lets the natural EQ of the guitar and PU come thru. Moderate output. Good in the neck or bridge.

A5 - Most popular alnico. Fairly high output, lots of treble and bass, scooped mids. Great in the neck slot, and can be thin in the bridge.

All of these can be found as 'roughcast' too (lumpy pitted surfaces), that smooth out the high end, probably due to a more complex magnetic field. RC's are probably used mostly in the bridge location.

A2, A3, and A4 are all unoriented. A5's are almost always oriented. Unoriented A5's (UOA5) became available recently from Addiction FX and sound like a blend of the best characteristics of A2's and A5's. They're much warmer than a typical A5, but with more treble than an A2. Lots of dynamics.

Uh, cough cough, the UOA5, which is somewhere between the A5 and the A2, and the A8 which is "Take it all and make it bigger." Or Neodymium, which makes the neighborhood dogs cringe...

 

[GuitarDoc]

Re: alnico 2 vs 3 vs 4 vs 5

Horrible chart, Davii (yeah I know it wasn't by you).

But the descriptions you guys have suggested are generally very good. I really like those offered by romainpickups.com posted by Darg1911.