Alnico II or Alnico V with phat cat in the neck

[xntrick]

i recently put a Duncan phat cat in my xaviere SG and i am really enjoying the tone, very lively with great clarity for a neck pickup, the 60 cycle hum is very pronounced with a treble booster but this house has a lot of RFI for some reasn...i'd like to also change the bridge pickup as i don't like the ceramic pickups the guitar came with, i'd prefer to stay with a slightly hotter humbucker for the bridge as i have heard the bridge phat cat just doesn't have enough ouput..these are the 2 i am considering:

http://www.guitarfetish.com/GFS-professional-Series-Alnico-V-HOT-Humbucker-Nickel-Case-Bridge-Pickup_p_4155.html

http://www.guitarfetish.com/GFS-professional-Series-Alnico-II-Humbucker-Nickel-Case-Bridge-Pickup_p_4150.html

 

[Coma]

Re: Alnico II or Alnico V with phat cat in the neck

On a related not (mwahahaah, thread hijack), swapping the mag in a Phat Cat for an A5, yay or nay?

 

[LtKojak]

Re: Alnico II or Alnico V with phat cat in the neck

i'd prefer to stay with a slightly hotter humbucker for the bridge as i have heard the bridge phat cat just doesn't have enough ouput.

Not enough output for what? If you find the output and the tone of your PCn ok, the bridge PC will just balance in terms of both output and tone with it.

Unless you've forgotten to tell what the big picture is... what's gotta be?

A great bridge p'up matching well with the PC is the Seth Lover bridge, or a covered '59b, if that's what you're asking.

I have no experience with those GFS as they're relatively new on the market, but I can vouch for both of the SD ones. You can always buy'em used, if you're on a budget.

 

[LtKojak]

Re: Alnico II or Alnico V with phat cat in the neck

On a related not (mwahahaah, thread hijack), swapping the mag in a Phat Cat for an A5, yay or nay?

Hejsan!

Magnets. The PC has two alnico 2 bars.

I mix-and-match magnets depending on the particular instrument, and that design is the one allowing for the biggest possible mag combos.

In my case, the last swap I did for a client with an Epi LP was A3/A5 in the neck and A5/A4 in the bridge, with 500K pots and .022 PIO caps.

HTH,

 

[blueman335]

Re: Alnico II or Alnico V with phat cat in the neck

Put two A5's in your neck Phat Cat, and you won't need a treble booster. Neck P-90's should have an A5 or two (A5/A4 is vey good too). Twin A2's are too dark.

Put an A8/A4 in a bridge Phat Cat, and you get more output and a beefier tone. It won't get drowned out by the neck.

If you want a HB in the bridge, use a good PAF. You can get a used Duncan for about the price of a new GFS, and get a lot more PU quality for the money.

 

[open]

Re: Alnico II or Alnico V with phat cat in the neck

2 magnets per pickup,does the 2 magnets in question are regular humbucker magnet size?

 

[blueman335]

Re: Alnico II or Alnico V with phat cat in the neck

2 magnets per pickup,does the 2 magnets in question are regular humbucker magnet size?

Yes, same magnets used in both kinds of PU's. And in a P-90 they don't have to be two of the same kind, which lets you dial in your tone more precisely. Blend EQ's and outputs. 2 mags per coil in a P-90, 1/2 mag per coil in an HB. Mags are the key to P-90 tone. Use them to your advantage.

 

[open]

Re: Alnico II or Alnico V with phat cat in the neck

Yes, same magnets used in both kinds of PU's. And in a P-90 they don't have to be two of the same kind, which lets you dial in your tone more precisely. Blend EQ's and outputs. 2 mags per coil in a P-90, 1/2 mag per coil in an HB. Mags are the key to P-90 tone. Use them to your advantage.

Thank you.