Difference with older Duncan JBs???

papersoul

New member
I hear this a lot from guys who have been playing for years that the older JBs had something different in its tone and output. Are there any here who have experienced this? Were the older JBs hand wound? Lower output? I have heard some measuring in the 14k range.
 
Re: Difference with older Duncan JBs???

papersoul said:
I hear this a lot from guys who have been playing for years that the older JBs had something different in its tone and output. Are there any here who have experienced this? Were the older JBs hand wound? Lower output? I have heard some measuring in the 14k range.


wouldnt they have seasoned magnets?
you know a aged magnet to change the tone?

1984 JB= 21 year old magnet
2005 JB = brand new magnet

???????
 
Re: Difference with older Duncan JBs???

That is a good point and maybe that is why some like the old JBs they find rather than new ones.
 
Re: Difference with older Duncan JBs???

papersoul said:
That is a good point and maybe that is why some like the old JBs they find rather than new ones.

I also heard from some that the older duncans in general sound slightly different becuase duncan had a different wire supplier?
not that the guage change but the maker did :)
i guess it is like the older original paf's everyone and thier mother clones them but no one ever nailed it? why?
why in the world cant say duncan or even dimarzio just take a old original disect it and dupe it and wind up with the same exact tone???
maybe the wire used back then was a lot different? or the magnet was a different composite?
i dont really know i am just taking guesses?
 
Re: Difference with older Duncan JBs???

roadstar II said:
i guess it is like the older original paf's everyone and thier mother clones them but no one ever nailed it? why?
why in the world cant say duncan or even dimarzio just take a old original disect it and dupe it and wind up with the same exact tone???
maybe the wire used back then was a lot different? or the magnet was a different composite?
i dont really know i am just taking guesses?

The problem with PAF's is there are so many styles to clone. Gibson was everything BUT consistent with the originals. So you've got to ask:

What magnet?

What resistance?

What wire gauge?

To YOU the perfect PAF might be a A5 neck pup wound to 8.0K with 42 gauge formvar wire

but....

To ME the perfect PAF is an A2 neck pup wound to 7.5 with 41 gauge wire.

Luke
 
Re: Difference with older Duncan JBs???

Luke Duke said:
The problem with PAF's is there are so many styles to clone. Gibson was everything BUT consistent with the originals. So you've got to ask:

What magnet?

What resistance?

What wire gauge?

To YOU the perfect PAF might be a A5 neck pup wound to 8.0K with 42 gauge formvar wire

but....

To ME the perfect PAF is an A2 neck pup wound to 7.5 with 41 gauge wire.

Luke


and my perfect paf is the one that has the classic mojo tone but more drive and harmonics?
vitrual hot paf?
paf pro?
breed neck?
demon?
duncan blues model?
pearly gates?


damn i wish i had the cash to buy them all! :)
 
Re: Difference with older Duncan JBs???

roadstar II said:
and my perfect paf is the one that has the classic mojo tone but more drive and harmonics?
vitrual hot paf?
paf pro?
breed neck?
demon?
duncan blues model?
pearly gates?


damn i wish i had the cash to buy them all! :)

Have you looked at the boutique guys? :beerchug:
 
Re: Difference with older Duncan JBs???

Alnico magnets lose some of their magnetism over time as opposed to ceramic mags, so that's the reason some older pups with Alnico magnets sound mellower over time.
 
Re: Difference with older Duncan JBs???

I never played a new JB but I happen to love my old, no logo 16.91ohm JB :)
 
Re: Difference with older Duncan JBs???

roadstar II said:
wouldnt they have seasoned magnets?
you know a aged magnet to change the tone?

1984 JB= 21 year old magnet
2005 JB = brand new magnet
That would be the difference. They talked about at the UGD about how they specially age some pickups. But I would say it is the age of the pickup magnet also.
 
Re: Difference with older Duncan JBs???

may be my ears but i find my early 90s jb sound just a slight tad rounder than my '04 jb while output is similar though. fwiw, both pickups was installed in the same guitar and recorded with the same amp settings. only difference is one is a trembucker and the other normal-spaced.
 
Re: Difference with older Duncan JBs???

dani said:
may be my ears but i find my early 90s jb sound just a slight tad rounder than my '04 jb while output is similar though. fwiw, both pickups was installed in the same guitar and recorded with the same amp settings. only difference is one is a trembucker and the other normal-spaced.

So, slight difference. Thanks.
 
Re: Difference with older Duncan JBs???

duncans that are from say 1984 were different in many ways
the wire was by a different maker, the magnets also were as well

you guys have to remember that along with the aging of the mag the wire ages as well
it is a metal alloy and like other alloys it is suseptical to aging
i also thing that the trembucker vs regualr spaced pups sound different from one another
this is simply because the trem soaced ones have a hotter resistance by a small margin
like a regular spaced JB is at 16.4K but a trem version is at 17K-17.3K
many players i know agree with this :)
 
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