JB Mag Swap Question

njstoehr

njstoehr

New member
I have read a lot about doing mag swaps, specially on the JB but I haven't found quite the answer I am looking for so I would really appreciate a little feedback/advice.

I have a '59 and JB in a Chris Shifflett Signature Telecaster Deluxe. I am really happy with the '59 in the neck. The JB is almost there but I am hoping that I can get a little more out of it with a mad swap, so here we go.

The guitar is a tad on the bright side. It is your typical telecaster makeup (alder body, maple neck, rosewood fret board). I like the "output" of the JB but the EQ is a little to high-middy for me in this guitar. I would like to get a little more of the mid to low-mid out of this pickup while still keeping good articulation. Basically, I want to round out the highs a little. I have an A2, A5UO, A8, and a standard sized ceramic mag waiting to go in. Just need a little advice on where to start.

Additional comments: I am more of a punk/hard rock player and primarily play rhythm. I use a VOX AC30 primarily for dirty tones and a Twin Reverb for cleans. I want a reasonably tight low end with OD, and want the cleans to be warm with enough sparkle to stand out without getting lost in the mix. Not really interested in swapping pickups as I can make the JB work as-is if I have too, just wondering is a mag swap will allow me to fine-tune the JB.

Thanks.
 
Re: JB Mag Swap Question

I use an A2 modded JB in one of my guitars tuned to C#. Definitely moves the resonant peak down the sonic spectrum a bit.

I'm using a roughcast A2 modded JB here (plus Dirty Deed distortion pedal).

 
Re: JB Mag Swap Question

Thanks to both of you. I was leaning toward the A5UO but after the sound clip zenmindbeginner posted, I may start with the A2. One additional question, my A2 is polished. How exactly does the Polished/Rough Cast differ? Little more clarity from the polished?
 
Re: JB Mag Swap Question

I have an old SD Allan Holdsworth sig HB in a Fender Am Dlx Stratocaster. Not exactly a JB2 but close enough. I run this with A500k pots and a .022uF cap.
 
Re: JB Mag Swap Question

Has. A polished with be a little more clear or bright or focused or what ever other term works. A roughcast will be a wee but smoother. Remember to give the magnet a few days for the swap to totally set in.


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Re: JB Mag Swap Question

darthphineas said:
Has. A polished with be a little more clear or bright or focused or what ever other term works. A roughcast will be a wee but smoother. Remember to give the magnet a few days for the swap to totally set in.
Click to expand...

Thanks darth. When you say "give the magnet a few days for the swap to set in" is this a function of time or is it a function of playing (like breaking in a speaker)?

This is my first mag swap so forgive me if I ask otherwise elementary questions. Just want to make sure I know what to expect and how to get the most out of the exercise.
 
Re: JB Mag Swap Question

Sometime you can hear a difference right away. But the simple approach is that you're changing the magnetic field and it might take minutes or hours or a day or so for the affect to totally sink in to really hear the finished transformation. I think the stronger magnets set in quicker


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Re: JB Mag Swap Question

Some people say it doesn't matter the strength of the magnet for the wait time for it to set in.

Some say it does. Swapping in an A8, for me, the difference was night and day, just because the A8 is a strong magnet, I could hear a change instantly.

I was going to say a JB8 if you want more and a shift in the mids to drop towards the lower mids.

Never played a JBUOA5. But it will put you a little closer to a vintage flavor
 
Re: JB Mag Swap Question

njstoehr said:
Thanks to both of you. I was leaning toward the A5UO but after the sound clip zenmindbeginner posted, I may start with the A2. One additional question, my A2 is polished. How exactly does the Polished/Rough Cast differ? Little more clarity from the polished?
Click to expand...

Personally, I like to think of it as the roughcast magnets introducing some unpredictability to the tone... makes it a little bit more unique than a polished magnet since the roughcast more or less retains the sand texture that it had when pulled from the mold or cast. Frank Falbo described it as "like a snowflake" in that the particle dispersion of the sand is not uniform or predictable in any way... that's why they are polished (for consistency).

I use the roughcast A2 in that guitar because it is all mahogany and it's tuned down to dropped B. The lower tuning and warmer wood seemed like a better match for a lower resonant peak of the JB... the A2 gets it lower and the roughcast magnet rounds the upper mids (as well as adds a little chaos to the recipe). I wanted to loosen up the JB's midrange and sort of bump up the low midrange presence a bit... gave the low end a beef injection too.

Very cool mod to do to a JB.
 
Re: JB Mag Swap Question

Just wanted to say thanks again for the replies and advice. I haven't actually done the mod yet to the guitar mentioned, but I did do a swap on a JB in a Strat that I modded. I put an A8 in and all I can say is WOW! During initial testing, admittedly at low volume and immediately after the mad was swapped in, the guitar sounds amazing. It's like a JB and a Distortion got together and had a little PUP. I love it. I plan to let it settle in a bit and hopefully get the wife and kids out of the house for a few hours so I can crank it up, but so far so good.

I will be swapping out the A5 in my tele with an A2 to start. If that doesn't do it, the A5UO is patiently waiting on deck. Thanks again guys, I will keep you posted.

By the way, I think I may have created a monster with all this mag swapping stuff. I feel like swapping mags out in stuff I am really happy with just to see what it sounds like. Oh well, mags are much cheaper than new PUPs.
 
Re: JB Mag Swap Question

njstoehr said:
Just wanted to say thanks again for the replies and advice. I haven't actually done the mod yet to the guitar mentioned, but I did do a swap on a JB in a Strat that I modded. I put an A8 in and all I can say is WOW! During initial testing, admittedly at low volume and immediately after the mad was swapped in, the guitar sounds amazing. It's like a JB and a Distortion got together and had a little PUP. I love it. I plan to let it settle in a bit and hopefully get the wife and kids out of the house for a few hours so I can crank it up, but so far so good.

I will be swapping out the A5 in my tele with an A2 to start. If that doesn't do it, the A5UO is patiently waiting on deck. Thanks again guys, I will keep you posted.

By the way, I think I may have created a monster with all this mag swapping stuff. I feel like swapping mags out in stuff I am really happy with just to see what it sounds like. Oh well, mags are much cheaper than new PUPs.
Click to expand...

Nice and congrats! Ya magnets were a whole new world of tweaks for me. It's crazy cuz it's a cheap and effective solution to a lot of tone conundrums.
 
Re: JB Mag Swap Question

throwing a regular/thin/small ceramic in that JB would also interesting.

that would be a ceramic the same size as the regular alnico already in there....as opposed to the thick ceramic in a DD.
 
Re: JB Mag Swap Question

I use a JB8 in my So-Cal and it works a treat. Just more smooth than standard but also with that bit more gain. Really good for the kind of high powered blues rock I indulge in, possibly not so good for punk stuff.
 
Re: JB Mag Swap Question

zenmindbeginner said:
Personally, I like to think of it as the roughcast magnets introducing some unpredictability to the tone... makes it a little bit more unique than a polished magnet since the roughcast more or less retains the sand texture that it had when pulled from the mold or cast. Frank Falbo described it as "like a snowflake" in that the particle dispersion of the sand is not uniform or predictable in any way... that's why they are polished (for consistency).

I use the roughcast A2 in that guitar because it is all mahogany and it's tuned down to dropped B. The lower tuning and warmer wood seemed like a better match for a lower resonant peak of the JB... the A2 gets it lower and the roughcast magnet rounds the upper mids (as well as adds a little chaos to the recipe). I wanted to loosen up the JB's midrange and sort of bump up the low midrange presence a bit... gave the low end a beef injection too.

Very cool mod to do to a JB.
Click to expand...

+1. An A2 makes a JB a whole new PU, and suited for genres it may not normally be. Like Zhang, I also have roughcasts in most of my bridge PU's (HB's and P-90's) as I like the more complex high-end.
 
Re: JB Mag Swap Question

Darth: I have a standard sized ceramic. I was seriously considering that in the strat but opted for the A8 to start. I may swap in in a few weeks just for grins (make a JB+/Distortion Lite if you will) but I want to see how this A8 things works out. So far I love it.

UK Ant: I am definitely more of a "punk" rhythm type of player. I have to tell you, at least with my setup, the A8 pretty well nails the tone I am seeking (at least in the strat). Darth mentioned using a standard sized ceramic which may nail it even better, but again, so far I am digging it so I will play it a while and see what happens.

blueman335: Turns out that the A2 I have on hand is in fact a rough cast A2. I am looking forward to swapping that into the JB in the Tele that I originally posted about. I can see that in that guitar an A8 may be a little too much. I am hopeful that the A2 will turn the Tele Deluxe into a Tele Paul. You know, all of the tele vibe with the warmth and smoothness of a Les Paul. Slowly but surely getting there. Best of both worlds!
 
Re: JB Mag Swap Question

njstoehr said:
Just wanted to say thanks again for the replies and advice. I haven't actually done the mod yet to the guitar mentioned, but I did do a swap on a JB in a Strat that I modded. I put an A8 in and all I can say is WOW! During initial testing, admittedly at low volume and immediately after the mad was swapped in, the guitar sounds amazing. It's like a JB and a Distortion got together and had a little PUP. I love it. I plan to let it settle in a bit and hopefully get the wife and kids out of the house for a few hours so I can crank it up, but so far so good.

I will be swapping out the A5 in my tele with an A2 to start. If that doesn't do it, the A5UO is patiently waiting on deck. Thanks again guys, I will keep you posted.

Yes, mag swapping is an addiction. They have special programs you may need to admit yourself into if you can't handle it on your own.
Click to expand...
 
Re: JB Mag Swap Question

Like I said in your other thread, the UOA5 may be a better choice for that Tele than the A2. I think you'll lose too much snap.
 
Re: JB Mag Swap Question

GuitarDoc: I do believe I agree. I swapped the A2 in last night. It sounds better than the standard A5 for sure, but it seems to be a little on the flabby side. Overall tone is about right (frequency spectrum) but it isn't quite as tight as I would like. Going to give it a little time to "settle in" and play it at higher volume, but right now, I am thinking the A5UO may be the better fit.
 
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