Lipstick Pickup Help

[cmac]

This is somewhat of an obscure thought, but something I’m also very intrigued in.

If properly routed, could 4 or 5 vertical lipstick pickups (or rail pickups) placed side by side produce an acceptable pickup sound in a guitar?

I feel like this would make a visually interesting looking guitar, but does anyone have insight on how this might sound?

Thank you!

 

[Mincer]

You mean to cover more than 6 strings? Like for an autoharp?

 

[cmac]

No I was thinking a traditional six string although it may be a low cost option for 7-8 string guitars.

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^the tube pickups will be arranged like that, or maybe a tube pickup vertical for each string

 

[jeremy]

so parallel to the strings? not sure how well that would work but ive never tried it

 

[cmac]

so parallel to the strings? not sure how well that would work but ive never tried it

Yes indeed! Parallel to the strings, with 4-6 pickups to cover the max string spacing, I’m uncertain how it would sound either, but it seems like a fun project to undertake. Single lipstick pickups can be found pretty cheap!

 

[jeremy]

it could work as long as you have enough of them. might be a bunch of magnetism on the strings though since each has a bar magnet. the originals used alnico6

 

[PFDarkside]

Depending on the spacing you may have uneven string magnetism and therefore unbalanced output string to string.

 

[cmac]

Depending on the spacing you may have uneven string magnetism and therefore unbalanced output string to string.

I’m planning to have them butted up next to each other as close as possible to try and cut down on this, if and when I get to that build I’ll try and upload a sound sample

 

[beaubrummels]

Has been done before.

Golden Age
https://www.stewmac.com/electronics...uitar-pickups/golden-age-lipstick-pickup.html

GFS
https://www.guitarfetish.com/GFS-Pr...r-Pickup-Cool-Chimey-Tone-Chrome_p_21831.html

Dragonfire
https://dragonfireguitars.com/Lipstick-Hummers-Alnico-5-A5-AV-Specialty-Humbucker-Pickups-12096.htm

The Curtis Novak variant doesn't preserve the look, however
https://www.curtisnovak.com/shop/lipstick-hmb/

 

[ICTGoober]

Has been done before.

The OP can correct me, but I think he means 1 pickup for each string, running under the strings the length of the pickup.

 

[jeremy]

right, parallel to the strings rather than perpendicular. i feel like it might cause some weird magnetic field properties

 

[Mincer]

I am guessing they would be wired in parallel. It would be cool if you had a little mixer to send each pickup to a breakout box.

 

[beaubrummels]

The OP can correct me, but I think he means 1 pickup for each string, running under the strings the length of the pickup.

Nearest thing to that is Zex Coil or Ubertar. Not sure why anyone would want to to this with lipstick pickups. I don't believe they could fit side-by-side like that and pickup each string individually. The pickup 'sensing window' along just one string would be as wide as the neck. Not sure if there would be any clarity with that.

 

[idsnowdog]

Having more lipstick tube pickups doesn't make them any better.

 

[Mincer]

Having more lipstick tube pickups doesn't make them any better.

This is true...I am not a fan of the tone, either. But their lower power might be a plus if they were mounted vertically. Is there a problem you are trying to solve by doing that, or is it just a 'wouldn't it be cool' idea?

 

[idsnowdog]

This is true...I am not a fan of the tone, either. But their lower power might be a plus if they were mounted vertically. Is there a problem you are trying to solve by doing that, or is it just a 'wouldn't it be cool' idea?

That idea is more on the supply side of problems.

 

[cmac]

The idea for me is just a more of a, could it work sort of thing, and it might be a fun way to test parallel and series switching. Or to run a traditional pickup in parallel or series with the 5-6 tube pickups

 

[freefrog]

One lipstick PU per string and parallel to it = 0.64' (width of the baseplate). Six of them would take 3.84' = 9.76cm.

String spacing in my Strat with lipsticks is of approximatively 5cm under the mid PU. It leaves enough space for 3 lipstick PU's, not six. i'd rather think to 3 rails PU's with one blade per string.

Regarding the "sensing windows": the effect of its width would be a drastic diminution of harmonics, as shown in the simulation below (black line = fundamental & harmonics of a neck PU perpendicular to strings. Blue line = the same with PU parallel to strings. Thx to don Tilman for his useful applet allowing to do this : http://www.till.com/articles/PickupResponseDemo/).



It would sound very muddy and with lipsticks, mud would be aggravated by Foucault currents. Unless the PU's would be wired in parallel, in which case they would sound very weak - without solving potential problems with "stratitis" and shortened sustain due to magnetism.


Regarding lipsticks in general: they are low inductance pickups whose response is softened by Eddy currents. Their interest is in their chime IMHO and IME. Anybody who would find them too soft and/or weak can pair them with a 500k volume and a no load pot: that's what I have and my Strat with lipsticks does not sound weak (at least its lipsticks are not weaker than its CS69 bridge PU). If it's too bright, just add a low value cap (470pF to 1nF) from ground to hot - or plug the guitar through a long cable...

FWIW: morning post before coffee. Have a nice day!

 

[cmac]

One lipstick PU per string and parallel to it = 0.64' (width of the baseplate). Six of them would take 3.84' = 9.76cm.

String spacing in my Strat with lipsticks is of approximatively 5cm under the mid PU. It leaves enough space for 3 lipstick PU's, not six. i'd rather think to 3 rails PU's with one blade per string.

Regarding the "sensing windows": the effect of its width would be a drastic diminution of harmonics, as shown in the simulation below (black line = fundamental & harmonics of a neck PU perpendicular to strings. Blue line = the same with PU parallel to strings. Thx to don Tilman for his useful applet allowing to do this : http://www.till.com/articles/PickupResponseDemo/).



It would sound very muddy and with lipsticks, mud would be aggravated by Foucault currents. Unless the PU's would be wired in parallel, in which case they would sound very weak - without solving potential problems with "stratitis" and shortened sustain due to magnetism.


Regarding lipsticks in general: they are low inductance pickups whose response is softened by Eddy currents. Their interest is in their chime IMHO and IME. Anybody who would find them too soft and/or weak can pair them with a 500k volume and a no load pot: that's what I have and my Strat with lipsticks does not sound weak (at least its lipsticks are not weaker than its CS69 bridge PU). If it's too bright, just add a low value cap (470pF to 1nF) from ground to hot - or plug the guitar through a long cable...

FWIW: morning post before coffee. Have a nice day!

I don’t think I was quite ready to learn all this LOL, but thank you!

 

[Artie]

I think freefrog hit the main points of the problem, but you could do three angled so that each pup covered two strings, at a slight angle.

I like my Lipstick equipped Squier Surf Strat, but I usually run it through my SFX-01 to give it a bit more girth. Nice jangly tone. Especially the notch positions.