humbucker: alnico 5 on neck and 2 on bridge?

whitewave

New member
Hi,

on a PRS CE-22 maple top that was a bit too bright for my tastes I installed two Seymour Duncan pus and made some mods to wiring.
Now it has the 50's wiring with RS Hovland cap (I A/Bed it with a Mallory 150 and an Orange Drop same value, no contest at all) and a 250k CTS POT for volume (but I'm thinking to come back to the original 500k less stiff PRS pot).

On bridge there is a Custom Custom, I simply love it, really excellent in this guitar, modern but not harsh, defined but not ice picking. As you know it has Alnico II magnet.

On neck I put an Alnico II pro that I don't like, maybe it need more mahogany.
It doesn't have the bite, it isn't clear on a single note as I want from a PAF, it's a bit on the muddy side, warm but too dark and moderate output.
I want to give a try to a classic '59 SH1n.

Do you think I will have a volume drop between neck and bridge pus?

Thanks.
 
Re: humbucker: alnico 5 on neck and 2 on bridge?

Remember, there's a lot of factors that determine pup output. The CC has nearly double the windings of the 59. As Jeremy says: you'll be fine.
 
Re: humbucker: alnico 5 on neck and 2 on bridge?

That neck pickup sees WAY more string vibration that the bridge. Unless you're putting a single coil in the neck against a really hot bridge bucker, you shouldn't have any problems with Duncan's stuff, especially if you're using overdrive of any type.
 
Re: humbucker: alnico 5 on neck and 2 on bridge?

thanks a lot to everyone.

As for bypassing controls, a friend of mine has a Framus Panthera which have a switch to bypass everything between pickup and output jack. It's perfect to go to heavier land, more volume, power, direct in your face type of sound, I love that switch infact I was thinking about putting a push/pull tone pot in order to do that thing, but I can't live with a standard neck pickup with no tone control on it. It should be an option, not the standard setting.
 
Re: humbucker: alnico 5 on neck and 2 on bridge?

Try the PG. It's still alnico II, but it has more bite and spank than the APH.
 
Re: humbucker: alnico 5 on neck and 2 on bridge?

Hi,

on a PRS CE-22 maple top that was a bit too bright for my tastes...

On neck I put an Alnico II pro that I don't like, maybe it need more mahogany. It doesn't have the bite, it isn't clear on a single note as I want from a PAF, it's a bit on the muddy side, warm but too dark and moderate output.
I want to give a try to a classic '59 SH1n.

Do you think I will have a volume drop between neck and bridge pus?

Thanks.

The A2Pro neck is warmer than the PGn - I have both. The PGn will make your PRS even brighter than the A2Pro, IMO.

For a warm pickup, the A2Pro has an amazing amount of cleanliness. I have yet to find a pickup with this MUCH warmth AND clarity. I have pups with more warmth (but less clarity), and I have pups with greater clarity (but less warmth). When the tone is rolled down, the A2Pro neck just have this clear, thick and fluid singing voice.

I no longer own a '59 and not that familiar with it now. But from past memory and from reading the threads in this forum, it seems to have the characteristics of a 1960's T-top. And I currently have a bunch of T-tops.

The 60's T-tops (A5 magnet) will give you "sharper/glassier/crunchier" and BRIGHTER notes, but you will get a scooped mid with more bass. Under certain circumstances, A5 can make your guitar more "boomy" especially in the lower frets.

Personally, I prefer A2 neck and A5 bridge for a wider tonal range.

No - there will not be a noticeable drop on volume between the bridge and neck if you adjust the heights accordingly.
 
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Re: humbucker: alnico 5 on neck and 2 on bridge?

Several of my guitars have A2 bridge pickups with A5 neck pickups. I sometimes find that A2 pickups are too muffledi in the neck.

Also, I find the A2pro to be brighter than than the PGn in a glassier sort of way. To me the PGn sounds more muffled, yet more raunchy. Maybe it's the raunch that some people call bright.
 
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