Ceramic Powered Seth?

[ItsaBass]

Title pretty much asks the question. Anyone tried it?

I was thinking that it might be quite nice on the neck model, but used in the bridge position, as a match to a standard Seth neck in the neck position. Those Seth neck coils are "tuned" so nicely in terms of e.q. balance, but it might be nice to give it some more push, and use it in the bridge position.

How about ceramic mags in low-wind pickups in general? They don't seem to be used very often in that application, but it seems it might be a nice combo, in theory, for those who like more brash and trebly sounding pickups.

 

[eclecticsynergy]

Re: Ceramic Powered Seth?

Ceramic in a low wind seems like a recipe for harshness. In fact, I think some of the dirt-cheap import ceramic humbuckers have been partly responsible for giving ceramic pickups in general a bad name in recent years.

I do remember one post years ago about swapping a ceramic into a 59b though - the poster called it a fire breathing monster.

IMO an A8 might be a better way to go. A few have have really liked the extra beef of an A8 in a PAF type wind. Some of the 1970s Ibanez humbuckers (Super70s maybe?) were made that way and they're very well-regarded.

If you really want ceramic, the Duncan Distortion neck was originally designed as a bridge pickup and called the Seymourizer. It's brash and bright but has some balls underneath. One of those might suit you better than modding your Seth.

 

[Discharged]

Re: Ceramic Powered Seth?

I'd make the analogy of putting chocolate on a T-bone steak.

Let it sink for a minute, then draw your own conclusion.

/Peter

 

[hamerfan]

Re: Ceramic Powered Seth?

Yep, what Eclectic said. A8 do well in brite bridge humbuckers like seth, 59 and my personal fave PG Bridge.

 

[Demanic]

Re: Ceramic Powered Seth?

I think cocoa powder on a T-bone would be quite tasty.

 

[hamerfan]

Re: Ceramic Powered Seth?

I think cocoa powder on a T-bone would be quite tasty.

Don't forget about a grain of chilli.

 

[jeremy]

Re: Ceramic Powered Seth?

i just had some chocolate covered bacon and it was delicious!

if you want a bright brash bridge pup, it could be cool. i put a ceramic in a 59n a while back when i was soloing a lot on the neck pup and it worked pretty well

 

[Demanic]

Re: Ceramic Powered Seth?

Chili and cocoa, I think that's called mole'.

Sent from my Alcatel_5044C using Tapatalk

 

[blueman335]

Re: Ceramic Powered Seth?

Ceramic in a PAF...blasphemy.

 

[Dave Locher]

Re: Ceramic Powered Seth?

I did not like the Super 70 in the Ibanez LP I had years ago, at least not in the bridge position, but right now I am really happy with a 9k paf that I put a rough cast A8 into. It has a lot of beef but still has clarity. Probably too thick in the low mids for some but I really like it and it still lets the character of the semi-hollow guitar come through, more so than a few other hot pickups I tried.

 

[freefrog]

Re: Ceramic Powered Seth?

To me, the problem is that AlNiCo bars contribute significantly to the inductance (and hence to the warmth) of low wind designs... For example, the simple fact to swap the stock A2 for an A5 in a bridge Seth already lowers its inductivity from 4.4H to 4.2H.

Let's add to it the stronger magnetic field due to ceramic, which promotes the resonant peak.

Not necessarily satisfying musically IMHO [unless the coils exhibit a high "stray capacitance", not desirable in itself but able to become a virtue when less brigthness is wanted).

It's possible to obtain a satisfying tone from a P.A.F. clone with a ceramic mag: Jackson J50BC is an example of that... But it's slightly overwound in order to obtain a beefy inductance of the coils (5.3H) , even when they aren't paired to any magnet.

Various ways to diminish the downsides of ceramic with a Seth would be to mount non magnetically transparent covers, to decrease the resistance of the pots used and / or increase the metallic content inside the coils, in order to keep a high inductance (that's what DiMarzio does with added slugs in various models).

FWIW - but if a Seth with a ceramic mag makes someone happy, I'll simply be glad for him, personally.

 

[hamerfan]

Re: Ceramic Powered Seth?

Chili and cocoa, I think that's called mole'.

Sent from my Alcatel_5044C using Tapatalk

Yep, mole' poblano is a kind of strange mexican sauce, maybe for our european taste.

 

[idsnowdog]

Re: Ceramic Powered Seth?

I have a ceramic in a Dimarzio PAF and it sounds great.

 

[audiocheck]

Re: Ceramic Powered Seth?

Ceramic in a low wind seems like a recipe for harshness. In fact, I think some of the dirt-cheap import ceramic humbuckers have been partly responsible for giving ceramic pickups in general a bad name in recent years.

I do remember one post years ago about swapping a ceramic into a 59b though - the poster called it a fire breathing monster.

IMO an A8 might be a better way to go. A few have have really liked the extra beef of an A8 in a PAF type wind. Some of the 1970s Ibanez humbuckers (Super70s maybe?) were made that way and they're very well-regarded.

If you really want ceramic, the Duncan Distortion neck was originally designed as a bridge pickup and called the Seymourizer. It's brash and bright but has some balls underneath. One of those might suit you better than modding your Seth.

The Alpha is an 8.2 Ceramic. Maybe try that in the bridge?

 

[eclecticsynergy]

Re: Ceramic Powered Seth?

I have a ceramic in a Dimarzio PAF and it sounds great.

Is it a recent one? I've sometimes wondered whether virtual vintage bobbins and/or air spacing might mitigate the stiffness of ceramic and give it a slightly more elastic feel, more like alnico. I actually inquired about this once over at the DiMarzio forum but that place is a ghost town compared to here.

Been toying with the idea of trying ceramic in an Air Norton.