Neal Schon "polepiece snip" mod? Has anyone...

YHWH

YHWH

New member
... done this to their pup? How much a high-end boost does it give... notably for a PAF? I've been thinking of trying that w/ a Custom 5, or the "new" DiMarzio PAF X Bridge, or whatever their calling it nowadays. I know I'll void the warranty if I do it... not to mention perhaps destroy the windings (according to what Seymour himself told me) if I adjust the polepieces back up... so is it worth it?

Anyway, whichever pickup I choose to do that with... it will eventually be going into a basswood/maple, Drop Top-style Strat (H-S-S) w/ a maple neck and Floyd Rose. Looking for an early 80s, 'Fair Warning'-era EVH... and/or an 'Escape'-era Neal Schon vibe with the tone. I just feel I need a warm and bright, edge-y, maybe "snappy" sounding pup... not gritty, piercing or screechy... I mean... :kabong:
 
Re: Neal Schon "polepiece snip" mod? Has anyone...

I'm not sure what exactly you are talking about, but apparently using shorter screws in a CC will tighten the bass. Don't know what it would do on the top three strings...
 
Re: Neal Schon "polepiece snip" mod? Has anyone...

Aceman said:
I'm not sure what exactly you are talking about, but apparently using shorter screws in a CC will tighten the bass. Don't know what it would do on the top three strings...
Click to expand...
Basically back in the day, Neal set the screw polepieces flush with the top of the bobbin of his old PAF, then he clipped them off the bottom of the pickup to increase the highs... somewhat. I suppose removing the existing screws then replacing them with shorter screws would also work... then I'd have to find screws the the exact same thread and length to match the thickness of the bobbins and the mounting plate. :33:
 
Re: Neal Schon "polepiece snip" mod? Has anyone...

I've snipped the polepieces several times on my neck pups. It does brighten the pup, and possibly tighten it a bit, but don't expect a huge difference. It's well worth playing around with, and easily reversible if you don't like it. I've not done it on a bridge pup, but I've always thought it would be a good tweak to try on the CC.
 
Re: Neal Schon "polepiece snip" mod? Has anyone...

ive done it on a few neck pup's low e string pole to tighten up the response from that string and it helps. like lemonman said, not a huge difference but noticable
 
Re: Neal Schon "polepiece snip" mod? Has anyone...

YHWH said:
... done this to their pup? How much a high-end boost does it give... notably for a PAF? I've been thinking of trying that w/ a Custom 5, or the "new" DiMarzio PAF X Bridge, or whatever their calling it nowadays. I know I'll void the warranty if I do it... not to mention perhaps destroy the windings (according to what Seymour himself told me) if I adjust the polepieces back up... so is it worth it?

Anyway, whichever pickup I choose to do that with... it will eventually be going into a basswood/maple, Drop Top-style Strat (H-S-S) w/ a maple neck and Floyd Rose. Looking for an early 80s, 'Fair Warning'-era EVH... and/or an 'Escape'-era Neal Schon vibe with the tone. I just feel I need a warm and bright, edge-y, maybe "snappy" sounding pup... not gritty, piercing or screechy... I mean... :kabong:
Click to expand...
Why not make a Custom/59 hybrid for your 'Fair Warning'-era EVH type tone. It really does nail that tone
 
Re: Neal Schon "polepiece snip" mod? Has anyone...

Thanks for the info, guys... appreciado mucho! :)

About the Custom/'59 hybrid Alba44... right now I'm on a limited budget and can only afford one pup that'll do the job for the guitar that it's going in. I suppose later if I can muster the $$ for two pickups I'll definitely give the hybrid a try!! ;)

BTW... probable stupid question - can doing that Custom/'59 mod eventually leave you with two working pickups, or will only one set of bobbins work to get the 'Fair Warning' tone. If so, what do you do with the other bobbins... make a pickup that will sound like VH III? :D
 
Re: Neal Schon "polepiece snip" mod? Has anyone...

How do you SNIP the screws ?

Is it just a case of a heavy pliers, but there's not a lot of room between each.

Or, do you remove them 1st ??

:thanks:
 
Re: Neal Schon "polepiece snip" mod? Has anyone...

I actually cut mine with a Dremel, it's easier and you don't have to worry about bending the polepiece.
 
Re: Neal Schon "polepiece snip" mod? Has anyone...

YHWH said:
Thanks for the info, guys... appreciado mucho! :)

About the Custom/'59 hybrid Alba44... right now I'm on a limited budget and can only afford one pup that'll do the job for the guitar that it's going in. I suppose later if I can muster the $$ for two pickups I'll definitely give the hybrid a try!! ;)

BTW... probable stupid question - can doing that Custom/'59 mod eventually leave you with two working pickups, or will only one set of bobbins work to get the 'Fair Warning' tone. If so, what do you do with the other bobbins... make a pickup that will sound like VH III? :D
Click to expand...

Yes, two perfectly good working pickups
 
Re: Neal Schon "polepiece snip" mod? Has anyone...

YHWH said:
Thanks for the info, guys... appreciado mucho! :)

About the Custom/'59 hybrid Alba44... right now I'm on a limited budget and can only afford one pup that'll do the job for the guitar that it's going in. I suppose later if I can muster the $$ for two pickups I'll definitely give the hybrid a try!! ;)

BTW... probable stupid question - can doing that Custom/'59 mod eventually leave you with two working pickups, or will only one set of bobbins work to get the 'Fair Warning' tone. If so, what do you do with the other bobbins... make a pickup that will sound like VH III? :D
Click to expand...

The two sound Virtually the same...

EXCEPT...

In a slanted pickup guitar like the Baretta... I prefer the response of the one with a Custom Screw and a 59 Stud...

The coils sense the lower and higher strings differently when the pickup is slanted... it makes a subtle, but noticeable difference...
 
Re: Neal Schon "polepiece snip" mod? Has anyone...

BachToRock said:
The two sound Virtually the same...

EXCEPT...

In a slanted pickup guitar like the Baretta... I prefer the response of the one with a Custom Screw and a 59 Stud...

The coils sense the lower and higher strings differently when the pickup is slanted... it makes a subtle, but noticeable difference...
Click to expand...
...kewlness. Thanks for that info! :)

Funny you should bring that up about the slug coil... I've been thinking about how a double slug coil pup would sound... would it be smooth... or just dull with no bite? The original SD Holdsworth custom shop pickup has the two bobbins w/ screw polepieces... and that sounded pretty smooth with all the screws... but a dual slug coil up... hmmmm... I wonder how that'd sound with an A8 or A2... and asymmetrical coils (????!).

Sheesh...another pickup model for Duncan to consider creating.:kabong: If they do... I hope they send us one to "beta test"! :D
 
Re: Neal Schon "polepiece snip" mod? Has anyone...

Use a bandsaw -- but be careful. In my experience, this mod adds snap and upper mid bite. As others have said, not a huge difference but very noticeable.
 
Re: Neal Schon "polepiece snip" mod? Has anyone...

Zhangliqun said:
Use a bandsaw -- but be careful. In my experience, this mod adds snap and upper mid bite. As others have said, not a huge difference but very noticeable.
Click to expand...
Yikes! I haven't used a bandsaw since my 10th grade wood shop class! :D
 
Re: Neal Schon "polepiece snip" mod? Has anyone...

Nice thing about it - you don't like it, just get a new set of screws and you're back to start
 
Re: Neal Schon "polepiece snip" mod? Has anyone...

My method (with said bandsaw) is to screw the poles through a P90 bobbin or a block of wood and have the ends protruding about the amount you want to cut off. Then you just have to slide the block of wood to cut the poles, thus keeping the poles nice and steady and keeping your hands out of harm's way.

I have a mini-bandsaw that's pretty handy for such things.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top