Hunter pickup - George Lynch

[Overlord]

Some of my Duncan's have a hotter reading than what's stated on their website. But you can't expect them all to be exactly the same!
When I looked up the Pearly Gates Plus not too long ago, I thought they were surely F or Trembucker spaced since they were made for Fender!
They also seemed to have a DCR of around 9k from what I could tell. Which is why I thought they could be the same wind as the regular PG Trembucker bridge with just an A5 instead of an A2.

 

[Masta' C]

When I looked up the Pearly Gates Plus not too long ago, I thought they were surely F or Trembucker spaced since they were made for Fender!
They also seemed to have a DCR of around 9k from what I could tell. Which is why I thought they could be the same wind as the regular PG Trembucker bridge with just an A5 instead of an A2.

From a deductive perspective, that totally makes sense. Just goes to show that you can't rely too much on DCR values.

FYI...from Evan Skopp who helped design the PGP:

Mike Lewis, who was then head of Fender's guitar marketing (he's now running Gretsch) and I were the ones who worked on that pickup. Mike had a background in retail sales knew what the Pearly Gates sounded like and he wanted that tone for this Strat. But, he wanted around 6dB of boost over and above a regular Pearly Gates for the bridge pickup. According to Mike, "When you go into the bridge position, I want a noticeable boost. And the Texas Specials are already on the hot side." So we took a stock Pearly Gates, changed the magnet from an Alnico 2 to an Alnico 5, and added a few hundred more turns. And viola! The Pearly Gates Plus was born.

ALSO...

Adding a few hundred more turns will increase the d.c. resistance which bumps up the output a bit. But it will also lower the resonant peak. To account for that, we switched the magnet to an Alnico 5, which has a slightly sharper attack on the note; the effect to your ear is increased brightness. The result: the signature Pearly Gates tone with slightly more output.

 

[Masta' C]

...but I once got a '59B that read like 7 point something, and that sounded so puny.

I believe SD's tolerance is +/- 5%, so you could theoretically have a '59 Bridge that measures 7.8K directly off the shop floor and it would still be "within spec".

However, a "low" reading like that doesn't necessarily mean that it will sound different than one reading over 8K (not saying that yours did or didn't). There are lots of factors that can affect DCR when dealing with different wire lots, insulation types, tension, machine adjustments, etc., some of which can affect the sound and output more than others.

Furthermore, temperature has a huge effect on DCR readings...if you are measuring pickups in a cooler environment, the DCR may be lower than "standard". This is common for many of us during "Winter" months when our homes are kept a bit cooler than in the Summer months.

And if you are finding that many of your pickups are reading "low", part of the discrepancy might come down to your meter. Many of us never bother to have them calibrated and some lower-priced units simply can't be calibrated, so they tend to lose accuracy over time.

 

[Rex_Rocker]

Furthermore, temperature has a huge effect on DCR readings...if you are measuring pickups in a cooler environment, the DCR may be lower than "standard". This is common for many of us during "Winter" months when our homes are kept a bit cooler than in the Summer months.

And if you are finding that many of your pickups are reading "low", part of the discrepancy might come down to your meter. Many of us never bother to have them calibrated and some lower-priced units simply can't be calibrated, so they tend to lose accuracy over time.

Yeah, that too. But I've been nerding out over pickup's DCR and measuring both when I was in warm Mexico, or here in cold Canada now. And most of the Duncans have read consistently low. But it's never been a problem except in a couple occasions TBH.

Right now, for example, I have a BW-B, a 500T, and an X2N at hand, and both the 500T and X2N read slightly low for what they're supposed to, but not like the Black Winter which is reading lower than the 500T and X2N even (and I don't think it's supposed to?) at 15 point something. That Black Winter does sound fantastic (and is hotter than the 500T too), so no complaints there. I also had a new BBW I bought off Sweetwater which actually read higher than the regular BW, but for some reason, wasn't nearly as hot. I'm pretty sure it was not the way I wired it either, because it was the same case for both guitars I tried it in. So I'm honestly starting to feel Duncan's consistency is a bit all over the place sometimes. Or maybe I just had bad luck, who knows. Or maybe the BBW is supposed to be less hot, but I remember reading the only thing they changed with those is the poles?

I will admit, though, I have always been using cheapie multimeters, so that might be part of the reason things are going wrong with the readings for me.

But that one '59B I bought new when I lived in Mexico City measured really low (honestly, don't remember how low, but it must have been in the low 7's), and it sounded super bright, thin, and weak. I suspect it might have been a mislabeled '59N, but then again, that speaks of either Duncan's quality control or my bad luck with them.

I'm not trying to diss on Ducans. I won't stop buying them myself. 90% of the ones I've bough have sounded either incredible (the ones I liked) or at least how they're supposed to (the ones I didn't). It's just my experience with them has been a bit all over the place. I've not had THAT many, TBH. Probably around 20-24 total? But two bad ones out of a sample pool of 20 is kind of a lot.

 

[Masta' C]

...the Black Winter which is reading lower than the 500T and X2N even (and I don't think it's supposed to?) at 15 point something.

At +/- 5%, a standard Black Winter humbucker could read as low as 15.8K or well above 17K and still be "within" tolerance!

Production SD pickups are wound to a specific number of turns, not a specific DCR and, like I said, there are so many other variables surrounding the wire and winding process that help to explain why you might see one Black Winter humbucker at, say, 15.9K and another at 17.2K, both technically "within spec"!

This variation in DCR doesn't necessarily mean that one is "underwound" or "overwound" or that you will hear much difference between the two (although you might, depending on the specific cause of the variation).

As for your '59 model, when pickups sound blatantly different than expected, it is often the case that the magnet wasn't charged properly or got degaussed somehow (most common reason for a weak, thin, bright sound) or that the pickup was actually counterfeit (it happens). Just something to consider

 

[Rex_Rocker]

At +/- 5%, a standard Black Winter humbucker could read as low as 15.8K or well above 17K and still be "within" tolerance!

Production SD pickups are wound to a specific number of turns, not a specific DCR and, like I said, there are so many other variables surrounding the wire and winding process that help to explain why you might see one Black Winter humbucker at, say, 15.9K and another at 17.2K, both technically "within spec"!

This variation in DCR doesn't necessarily mean that one is "underwound" or "overwound" or that you will hear much difference between the two (although you might, depending on the specific cause of the variation).

As for your '59 model, when pickups sound blatantly different than expected, it is often the case that the magnet wasn't charged properly or got degaussed somehow (most common reason for a weak, thin, bright sound) or that the pickup was actually counterfeit (it happens). Just something to consider

Well the pickup was bought from a reputable dealer. But yeah, could've been that the magnet was degaussed too. But that would've made it too much of a coincidence that a pickup that's supposed to read 8.2, read 7.1-7.3 AND got its magnet degaussed at some point as well, no? I mean, it could happen. But how likely?

By then, I'm starting to get (and agree) with the FIshman marketing on how their pickups are consistent. Because I mean, 5% tolerance surely makes a difference, minute as it may be, especially among us nerds who obssess over the differences between a 35th Anni JB and a standard production one or how a Distortion with an A5 magnet doesn't quite sound like a JB, LOL.

 

[GrilledChickenSalad]

Tried to order hunter last year. Custom shop said George doesn't want them made any more.

 

[Masta' C]

I wonder if you can specify a "Dokkenbucker" (which was available before the Hunter)?

Or maybe just do a custom-spec pickup through the Custom Shop builder (here's a LINK) with same specs listed and say "voiced like the Hunter pickup" to get around the name thing? It just wouldn't say "Hunter" on it.

GL is an awesome guy, but his endorsement flakiness gets really old. The fact that he collaborates on such cool products, but then companies have to cease production entirely when he decides to jump ship a few months later is really unfortunate :/

 

[Demanic]

I wonder if you can specify a "Dokkenbucker" (which was available before the Hunter)?

Or maybe just do a custom-spec pickup through the Custom Shop builder (here's a LINK) with same specs listed and say "voiced like the Hunter pickup" to get around the name thing? It just wouldn't say "Hunter" on it.

GL is an awesome guy, but his endorsement flakiness gets really old. The fact that he collaborates on such cool products, but then companies have to cease production entirely when he decides to jump ship a few months later is really unfortunate :/

Just order a Distortion with a regular ceramic magnet. That should be a shop floor custom.

Sent from my SM-A115A using Tapatalk

 

[Sirion]

GL is an awesome guy, but his endorsement flakiness gets really old.

Should we suggest the name "Flakybucker" for future off-the-menu orders?

 

[Demanic]

Should we suggest the name "Flakybucker" for future off-the-menu orders?

That's already a thing.
But it's called the Fuglybucker.

Sent from my SM-A115A using Tapatalk

 

[eclecticsynergy]

I think he meant single "thickness" as in a "standard thickness" mag (rather than one "thick" magnet). Basically what some of us would refer to as a "Distortion lite"

I think you're right, he meant single-thick rather than a single thick mag. My mistake.

 

[Masta' C]

An anagram for "George Lynch Hunter" is the "Grouchy Lengthener"

:lmao:

 

[GrilledChickenSalad]

Tried to order hunter last year. Custom shop said George doesn't want them made any more.

Asked custom shop to make with different name. Was told NO.

 

[Overlord]

I was really wanting to try the Hunter too. Especially since the Duncan Distortion is one of my favorites. Guess that's not gonna happen now.

I have a few suggestions for you though if you want to try something else that might be similar:

Duncan Distortion neck - originally called the Seymourizer II and made for the bridge position
Seymour Duncan DD-1 Holeshot - supposed to be similar to a JB/Distortion with a tweaked EQ
Seymour Duncan Gus G Blackouts - active pickup modeled after the DD
Gibson 500t - also kind of similar to a DD, but it's own flavor
Dimarzio Evo2 - another great ceramic pickup that is close to what you're looking for
Wolftone Blisterbucker - some people say it's like a clearer, underwound DD
Bareknuckle Painkiller - BKP version of a DD

and also maybe the
Seymour Duncan PATB-1 Parallel Axis - this one has an A5 magnet instead of ceramic, but also a killer pickup with a similar sound

 

[Masta' C]

Seymour Duncan DD-1 Holeshot - supposed to be similar to a JB/Distortion with a tweaked EQ

The DD-1 Holeshot is a hot, thick beast. Had one that came stock in a DBZ Hailfire that absolutely ripped for aggressive metal rhythms. Lots of heat, but surprisingly smooth and not a lot of fizz.

Also had a couple leftover ones from DBZ/Diamond that I had been holding onto, but I just sold my last one a few months ago. That said, it looks like Franklin Guitar Works also got their hands on a few from back in the day.

They show a nickel one on their website, but it has the JB's description. The gold one they have actually says DD1: LINK and LINK

Good opportunity to grab one while you can and for a really good price. You could always remove the cover if you didn't want a gold pickup

 

[Rex_Rocker]

LOVE LOVE LOVE the 500T. Highly underrated heavy pickup.

 

[Sirion]

Asked custom shop to make with different name. Was told NO.

That is a dashed shame. Really glad I got one whilst they were available now.

 

[Masta' C]

I'd be VERY surprised if you couldn't order one off-label. I bet if I tried the method I suggested above, I could get one made. I mean, at that point, it's no different than any other custom-spec'd pickup.

 

[beaubrummels]

The DD-1 Holeshot is a hot, thick beast. Had one that came stock in a DBZ Hailfire that absolutely ripped for aggressive metal rhythms. Lots of heat, but surprisingly smooth and not a lot of fizz.

Also had a couple leftover ones from DBZ/Diamond that I had been holding onto, but I just sold my last one a few months ago. That said, it looks like Franklin Guitar Works also got their hands on a few from back in the day.

They show a nickel one on their website, but it has the JB's description. The gold one they have actually says DD1: LINK and LINK

Good opportunity to grab one while you can and for a really good price. You could always remove the cover if you didn't want a gold pickup

That's interesting. The DD-1 Gold description (and even your one-line description above) reads like what a Black Winter sounds and responds like, to me anyway. Kind of curious what they did different in the DD-1.