do you plan out your different guitar's pickups?

[strangegrey]

Hey folks,

I'm curious. How many of you load particular pickups in your guitars in an effort to either match your other guitars or get different/unique tones from each axe...

or do you just search for the optimal pickup for each particular guitar?

I'm about ready to start operation duncanize, as I'm feeling my strat needs a bucker...and my Les Paul needs to lose the burstbuckers (something I've been putting off for months)...

I'm waffling between focusing on each guitar as a seperate entity...and trying to focus on all the guitars at once and how they would each get different or similar tones...

Is this too anal? how many of you guys take your other guitars into consideration before updating the pickups of one?

-Frank

 

[TheArchitect]

Re: do you plan out your different guitar's pickups?

Each guitar is its own thing. I pick pups to fine tune what I want out of the guitar ie brighter/warmer or whatever. I don't woory about differentiating one from another as they will do that naturally. Make each sound as good as it can. If two sound that similar then move it and find another.

 

[Zerberus]

Re: do you plan out your different guitar's pickups?

For me, f it sounds good, it stays. There is no master plan :laugh2:

 

[Alvin Lee Fan]

Re: do you plan out your different guitar's pickups?

No plan here either. Sometimes I put p'ups in a guitar just to hear what it sounds like. Combos come and go, the better sounding ones stick.

 

[Luke Duke]

Re: do you plan out your different guitar's pickups?

I know what I like, and what I don't. So I have a certain range of pups I do look at, and a range of pups I don't look at.

I listen to sound clips.

I'll play the guitar with what is in it currently and ask myself what I do, or do NOT like? how could I improve on it?

I'll play the guitar accoustically and figure out the wood's natural voice as well.

I then throw all that in the blender that is my brain and come up with my combinations.

Luke

 

[frankfalbo]

Re: do you plan out your different guitar's pickups?

This is kind of embarassing, but I have an Excel spreadsheet with a complete breakdown of all my guitars (30-40) and all the specs. It includes all the woods, hardware, and yes, pickups. I found it to be one of the most valuable tools (and time wasters) I could have come up with. So I can see things like "I already have a PAF style pickup in Alder and Mahogany" and "If I move that bridge pickup there, I can use this one here" etc.

It's a blast. And yes to answer the question I do have a "master plan" of sorts. Don't get me wrong, I'm always moving stuff around to accomodate new and revised master plans but I might sell or buy one pickup knowing it will have 4-5 guitar ramifications. Sometimes when I get a new pickup or guitar I feel like it's a "break" in a billiard game that sends pickups, knobs, and switches everywhere! That's why I need the spreadsheet.

 

[zionstrat]

Re: do you plan out your different guitar's pickups?

Jeeps Frankfalbo, I thought I was pretty detailed- You've taken this to the next step and I just might try your xl method

Streangergray- I almost always start with a quest in mind- About 10 years ago it was my perfect strat for what I play, hence the handle- About 2 years ago it was a sligthly broader stage guitar that could get much of the sounds of my strat + my PRS and after quite a bit of work, my parker nitefly allows me to keep the other 2 at home.

Just finishing up my "Febson" project designed to hopefully get the best out of Gibson and Fender P90 designs-

Next, I'm playing around with a very low sustain 6 or 12 string idea- See the thread on the guitar page-

In other words, I try to match all of the characertics of desighn, wood, pups, hardware, and tweak for a bit- But once I get a winner I 'freeze' development- Haven't had the pickgaurd off the zionstrat in 5-6 years

 

[Lewguitar]

Re: do you plan out your different guitar's pickups?

For me, f it sounds good, it stays. There is no master plan :laugh2:

Me too...it's just trial and error.

Although I do tend to like alnico 5 single coils for the neck and middle and alnico 2 for the bridge single coil.

And I tend to like alnico 2 for the neck pickup when it comes to humbuckers...but I can go with alnico 2 or 5 or ceramic for the bridge.

Lew

 

[Artie]

Re: do you plan out your different guitar's pickups?

I'm curious. How many of you load particular pickups in your guitars in an effort to either match your other guitars or get different/unique tones from each axe...

or do you just search for the optimal pickup for each particular guitar?

I don't see those two statements as being conflicting. I seek the different/unique tones . . . that are optimal for each guitar.

I don't really have a plan though. Other than your basic eternal search for tonal nirvana.

Artie