CRISIS :: F Space Still NOT wide enough

P

prophetofthor

New member
(alt title, how my weekend got ruined)

i have a fender highway 1 strat. it came stock with 2 singles and 1 humbucker in the bridge. i did my homework and research and picked some pickups that i thought i would like. i picked the F spaced air zone. i start to install it and it is HORRIBLY MIS ALIGNED WITH THE STRINGS. it doesnt even line up under the high B string and BARELY touches the G string. i'm using the stock pickguard it came with. according to seymours/dimarzio's site FAQ's F space/trembucker is 2.1". upon comparing the F spaced Air zone to the stock fender humbucker, the poles/screws are almost 2.25". Fender has custom size humbuckers? (that didnt sound great btw)

i thought maybe dimarzio had a bad day at the factory and i somehow got a normal spaced humbucker with a "F" stamp on it, but there has been numerous discussion of trembucker spacing vs normal spacing. from what i've read most guys dont care that much if the bottom E string doesnt line up exactly with a normal humbucker spacing, but 2 strings are off? on a "wide" pickup no less.

when i was determining whether i needed f space/trem vs normal i just pulled out the ruler and it was over 2 inches. no brainer! now i actually get my hands on it in the real world and its a Titanic. i'm astounded that there is now a shadow super sized wide humbucker that fender came up with.

gawd im pissed.:mad::mad::mad::mad::mad:

now i gotta dick with returning the dam thing and suffering a single coil sized humbucker (which I DID NOT WANT).

i MAY post pics, but right now i'm pissed/frustrated and gonna do something else (but not play guitar because its guts are ripped out).
 
Re: CRISIS :: F Space Still NOT wide enough

I know when I had my Highway 1 Strat it was the one guitar where a SD Trembucker was always off on alignment. Every other guitar that I`ve had or have I never had that problem with a Trembucker in a Strat style bridge. Never tried a Dimarzio in the Highway 1 so I`m no help there but maybe it`s jsut something about those Highway 1 bridges.
 
Re: CRISIS :: F Space Still NOT wide enough

Before panicking any further, how does it SOUND? Don't freak out about how it looks, it doesn't have to line up perfect to sound perfect.
 
Re: CRISIS :: F Space Still NOT wide enough

i'm not even going to bother to put it in. back to the factory. its off , horribly off. i'm not an electrical engineer, but the reason they put 6 magnets in a guitar pickup is that is supposed to be somewhat under the strings. the G string is BARELY over the magnet. the B string is between pole pieces and the E string is in no where land.

i'm ranting, but i hope i can stop someone else from falling into this hole.

now i get to pick/ponder the fast track 2/super dist S/ or the tone zone S.
 
Re: CRISIS :: F Space Still NOT wide enough

Are you sure you`ve got a F spaced Dimarzio? It might say so on the box but it`s possible you`ve got a standard spaced pickup. The Trembuckers I had in my Highway 1 were never off alignment so much that I worried about it and sound quality was never a factor.
 
Re: CRISIS :: F Space Still NOT wide enough

How did the stock humbucker lineup? I`m pretty sure Fender uses standard spaced humbuckers.
 
Re: CRISIS :: F Space Still NOT wide enough

The magnet will cover the range nicely....only have one bucker with F spacing....all the rest are normal.
Does not make strings drop off, they are all quite even sounding.
 
Re: CRISIS :: F Space Still NOT wide enough

If alignment is your only concern, go an get a Bill Lawrence Pickup or a SD Dimebucker.
 
Re: CRISIS :: F Space Still NOT wide enough

51501984 said:
How did the stock humbucker lineup? I`m pretty sure Fender uses standard spaced humbuckers.
Click to expand...


F spacing was designed for FENDER guitars as they are wider than Gibson or used to always be,not so much the case these days. I have never seen an F spaced dimarzio not align at least almost perfectly
 
Re: CRISIS :: F Space Still NOT wide enough

sorry, i meant pole pieces, not 6 "magnets". i was referring to pickups in general. strat single coils have 6, and humbuckers have 12 "poles" to account for 6 guitar strings. so at some point that have to line up for some reason.

i wouldnt mind if it was closer. like a normal humbucker in a normal strat. however this is not the case. the B string goes between pole pieces!?!

i'm gonna post pics, so prepare to be amazed, stamped "F" and all.

anyone use the Super Dist S in a strat?
 
Re: CRISIS :: F Space Still NOT wide enough

hey dude, i have a highway strat with a JB trembucker i the brige and the pole pieces are off allignmenbt but the same as my friends strat with one in the bridge (i prefer the sound but thats not to do with the allignment)

i dont know alot about magnets and how the pickups work, i oly know the basics, but they sound the same to me...and everyone else ive played my strat in front hasnt coimplained and has only ever complimented how much better it sounds with the JB in the bridge.
 
Re: CRISIS :: F Space Still NOT wide enough

If you're not pleased with it cosmetically, then send it back. However, even if they don't line up perfect, there shouldn't be a difference in sound. My standard spaced demon worked fine in my floyd rose equipped trem and it sounded no different than a F spaced pickup.
 
Re: CRISIS :: F Space Still NOT wide enough

Saw it, it's not the pickup's fault..its your vintage style bridge that is too wide. If you buy a duncan trembucker..its still not going to match the strings. Even rail style pickups aren't wide enough to match the high E and low E for that bridge..lol I'd install the pickup, but remember..once its installed and soldered..most likely you can't bring it back.
 
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