Anderson H1 and H3 review with a pic (long)....

Sludgenutz

New member
After getting tired of the original Dirty Fingers set, I decided on a high output Anderson H3 for the bridge (ala Pepper Keenen of COC), and and an acccompanying H1 for the neck position in my 335-S.

I do thank you all for the open-minded feel of this board, as I have talked of other pickups in the past with no static. I have bought Duncan in the past, but there seems to be a "gap" in the offerings between the Duncan Distortion and the Invader.

The Anderson H3 turned out to just what I wanted in the bridge, and the H1 just blew me away.

Both of these pickups appear to be F-spaced. Both are very cleanly manufactured. The fabric taping around the coils are smooth, and there was not a hint of extra wax left on the pickups The bases and bobbins are heavy/thick black plastic. One nice advantage of the package is that you can instantly identify which coil is the coil too be "split" by flipping the pickup over, and identifying the proper colors of the wiring harness to the bobbins.

10003566fe.jpg


These pickups are not packed with springs, but small diameter silicone-y (not weak/decomposible prone surgical latex) tubing. I ended up using the Gibson springs out of habit. Also, the screws were black, and slightly larger in diameter than stock Gibson screws. Both pickups have 12 large polepieces, and are said to spread out the magnetic field. This does seem to be the case.

These pickups cured a problem I had with my 335-S's weak/thin E string repsonse with the Dirty Fingers. The guitar's response on the low E was very thin, lacked volume, and punch...and at worst case scenario...thought this may have been caused by being a double-cutaway, with less "waist" width than an SG, and less thickness than a Les Paul. Not to mention, this guitar is a Norlin era product.

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The H1 measured a light 6.26 K. It is really awesome sounding in that it is not woofy in the humbucker mode, and syncs nicely with the H3 when played as a pair. What really got my rocks off was a very "airy" acoustic tone. It sounds so good, it is actually better sounding than I can play. There are so many other players that could put this pickup to use. I have never heard a split humbucker sound like this before.

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The H3 measured 14.48 K, and sounds just like I was hoping. This pickup is thick, with no particular spikes across its powerband. The highs are there (just have to grab a little more treble on amp) to get the same presence as the Iommi pickup, but natural "balls" on the lower end of the spectrum are looser/bigger. Not bad at all, just different from the tighter sounding Gibson Iommi. The spike-free highs are there, no doubt...and harmonics are there if you want them, just not "bucketloads of darts" like some pickups.

This pickup is loud!! This pickup has NFL linebacker-like shoulders, and is perfect for downtuned metal/stoner rock that I tend to gravitate to. If you want a good idea of how this pickup sounds, give a listen to DOWN's Southern metal tone on NOLA (New Orleans, Louisiana), "Loosing All" and "Stone the Crow" come to mind.

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/t...bs_b_2_1/104-5664123-8447149?v=glance&s=music

Thanks for your time.:13:
 
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Re: Anderson H1 and H3 review with a pic (long)....

good review. makes me wanna try the H1. im a lot more slow to buy new neck pickups though
 
Re: Anderson H1 and H3 review with a pic (long)....

Nice review bro, you got me drooling.

Last time I saw COC Pepper used 2 of his H3 loaded guitars when they played "Albatross and Clean my wounds". I did see that when he switched to one of his baritone viper's he had Duncan bridge pup ( yep, I was that close). It wasn't an Invader like woody uses, so I imagine it was either a Distortion or Custom.
 
Re: Anderson H1 and H3 review with a pic (long)....

Thanks Guys! I finally got around to getting a photo of the pickups with the strings on. I can now verify after measurement that these pickups are F-spaced...yet the neck pickup volume does not suffer on the E's (tuned to D).

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Re: Anderson H1 and H3 review with a pic...ADDENDUM:

Re: Anderson H1 and H3 review with a pic...ADDENDUM:

The Anderson H1/H3 set was VERY SWEET in the mahogany/ebony boarded 335-S...but I was itching to hear this pickup set in my Epi LP. This Epi is a very dark honeyburst...and not so garish compared to most lighter examples..

http://doomsleep.zoto.com/user/imag...be2f9053738837-_CAT.0/date_uploaded-desc/0-30

The result is a mixed bag, but is an overall positive!

The H1 neck pickup (6.26K) still sounds lighter than a roundy PAF-y, but this guitar has no splitter-switch option at this time. This pickup sounds fantastic split. I usually use soo much drive, this is a moot point.

And now, the star of the show...the Anderson H3! This pickup picked-up a tighter bottom end than in the Gibby 335-S!

This pickup in the rear of my Epi LP is dead on Southern stoner guitar-god Pepper Keenan "Down II"! The highs are not as crisp as the Gibby Iommi...but what the heck is! Surprisingly, the H3 has more easily grabbed harmonics than the Gibson Iommi. This pickup is likely a versatile bridge pickup for many guitars.


The important thing to me is that I do not "have" to buy another guitar.:dance: I was thinking of another Epi SG...but then again...it really does no one any good to have lots of import goodies, and not enough USA gear with that intangible quality.
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The Gibby 490R / Gibby Tony Iommi from the Epi LP is going into the 335-S. :amish:
 
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Re: Anderson H1 and H3 review with a pic (long)....

cool. i might get a new neck pickup to pair with my H3. i was thinking of a PG, but i think the matte plastic of the H3 and the glossy plastic on the PG might look weird. might give the H1 a try
 
Re: Anderson H1 and H3 review with a pic (long)....

ex-250 said:
cool. i might get a new neck pickup to pair with my H3. i was thinking of a PG, but i think the matte plastic of the H3 and the glossy plastic on the PG might look weird. might give the H1 a try

I have a personal problem with neck pickups! I do not use them much...but when I do...I am a cork-sniffing Grandma. So many of them sound unsatisfactory when used as a pair with the bridge pickup (like the Iommi set in anything but an SG body). I would rather have the mix (neck pickup AND the bridge pickup) sound better than just the neck pickup alone.

If one were to play "clean", the "split" H1 is beyond the expression in my fingertips. So many players would find the Anderson H1...or H1- an ultimate pickup, in the neck.

I need more time to figure this set in the middle position in my Epi LP. My next move is to dump the import electronics, because these pots are awful for mixing a pair of humbuckers.
 
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Re: Anderson H1 and H3 review with a pic (long)....

I had this same set in a Les Paul once and it did nothing for me. I found it was EQ'd very flat and reminded me of a passive version of an EMG. Not that they aren't good pickups, Pepper and Billy Howerdel from APC make them sound great, they're just not for me.
 
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