curious on A5-A4 mids question.

[SJ318]

Hi-
Probably very old to you guys but- I always go about how I love my S.Lover bridge w/A5 mag. I Read a long thread about A5 mags not having much mids. The original A2 was to warm, the A5 gave me the crunch I needed, never looked back. Thing is, I love mids. Am I missing out on mids so I can get my S. Lover's edge? Would an A4 give me the same edge but with more mids. If that is a fact I would very much like to try it. Or A3. As noted -A2 is to soft for my taste and gear.
Gentlemen geniuses, I would love an opinion or hard answer to this. Pretty please with free strings on top!
Steve Buffington -yes, I bookmarked the page w/the magnet type and sounds, but can't find it.

 

[AlexR]

Re: curious on A5-A4 mids question.

Truly the only way to know would be to try.

Technically the A5 has pushed lows and highs, and the A2 muted/soft highs and lows. Whether the mids in A5 are actually more than an A2 is really unknown - but also you have to factor the magnet strength and the way the mag works with the wind, the guitar and your rig.

 

[ItsaBass]

Re: curious on A5-A4 mids question.

I don't know if A4 gives you more mids than A5 on an absolute level, but it certainly does on an relative level. That is, you may not get more mids, but you do get less bass and less treble. I think of them as a "Diet Alnico 5." IMHO, A4's are the perfect alternative for A5's. They give you all the good aspects of A5 (power and punch), and take away all the bad ones (clatteriness, lack of warmth, and an overbearing low end).

You also might like unoriented A5, or even A3 if you can deal with much lower output. In the same way that A4 is a Diet A5, A3 is like a Diet Caffeine Free A2 to me. Same basic tone as A2, but far less output, so sounds quieter, brighter, and cleaner at a given amp setting. Very good magnets if you love the tone of A2 pickups, but they tend to hit your low-wattage amp too hard, causing too much breakup and mud too early.

 

[King IzzO)))]

Re: curious on A5-A4 mids question.

A4 is really vintage sounding to me, in a good way, but it doesn't work for everything.

 

[SJ318]

Re: curious on A5-A4 mids question.

To all-thanks,
To ItsaBass-That "Diet Alnico 5" line is pure genius funny. If you made that up you should take great credit, I don't think I've ever laughed out loud in these forums before. I very much don't care for a lot of low end, but I would hate to lose that "sparkle" that the A5 gives. I understand that relative weakness in low and high by laws of physics would = more mids, but we must communicate with words, or similies, so by clateriness I guess you must mean "harsh" high end as opposed to "singing" high end? Thanks and back to you, loss of a little power means nothing to me, as long as the start tone is good, you can push it up in a thousand different ways, one look at a "pedal" issue of any guitar mag proves that point.
Thank you guys,
Steve Buffington time I added-loves=S.Lover w/A5, Jazz neck & bridge, to my profile.

 

[J E C]

Re: curious on A5-A4 mids question.

One thing you could try is an UOA5.