New Duncan stacks

[St_Genesius]

Re: New Duncan stacks

Don't think for a second that I meant to include the JB Jr., Lil 59, or any of the other models likely indicated by your "etc." in my list of pickups that this new model seems likely to replace (though I might also include the Classic Stack series, but those don't have the cool look to them that inspired my first post). It's my understanding, based both on the actual sound of the pickups and every single bit of description I've seen come from the SD camp about the Duckbucker and Vintage Rails that those two pickups are designed to to offer classic, single coil sound in a noiseless package. Also, I may be wrong, but wasn't it you who said that you expected Jennofer Batten to switch over to the new stacks once they were available because they were going to replace her Duckbuckers as the best choice for getting noiseless, classic Strat sound? Maybe that was someone else...

I don't think that will be the case at all. The Duckbuckers, JB JR, Little 59, Vintage Rails, etc. have thier own thing going.

The goal with the new Stack pickups seems to be to achieve as accurately as possible the tone of a vintage Strat single coil in a noiseless pickup. I didn't think Duncan could get any closer than the first version I tested because they blew me away. But the tone was just slightly thicker and cloudier. The new version seems to be just a bit more transparant and even more single coil like though.

 

[Lewguitar]

Re: New Duncan stacks

I probably did say something like that. :smack: I said it because I read an interview with her and she said something like: "I love the way a Strat sounds except for the horrible hum."

That's why she uses mini-humbuckers in her Washburn.

I think anyone looking for the sound of a vintage '62 Strat pickup in a noiseless pickup will love the new Stack and will find it to be the closest thing in tone to a pickup like the Surfer or a '62 Strat single coil that there is.

Up until now, I haven't found any noiseless Strat pickup that I would use myself...I'm just to locked into the tone of real single coils. I've owned my '63 Strat for about 30 years and unless a pickup sounds as good to me as the pickups in that guitar I just can't be satisfied by it. I just can't live with the tonal comprmise.

But the new Stacks I've been testing are right there in that same ballpark, IMO, with the Surfers and my orginal vintage Strat pickups. They don't sound identical to the pickups in my '63 but the tone is extremely close and totally satisfying and totally musical. When I play them I don't feel like I'm missing anything...I just play and enjoy it, and that is not the case with any other noiseless Strat pickup I've tried.
But don't you agree that the Vintage Rails, Duckbucker and Cool Rails all have thier own thing going tonally? They don't all sound identical to each other and some players will undoubtably still prefer one of those...especially rockers.

The Stack is not a side by side mini-humbucker like those: it's a stack with one coil on top of the other and fixed polepieces like a vintage Strat pickup and that gives it a differant tone quality than the side by side mini humbuckers with adjustable polepieces or rails that you mentioned.

I don't see it replacing the side by side mini humbuckers in the Duncan line anymore than the original Stack replaced them.

 

[St_Genesius]

Re: New Duncan stacks

Cool Rails is in another category entirely to me, so let's set that aside.

As for the VR and DB, I find them to sound pretty similar, though the DB sounds a bit more open and transparent to me. Neither of them sound exactly like SCs to me, but that certianly seems to be the sound that they are attempting to achive -- something that can't be said of any of the other side-by-side sc-size HBs. And honestly, I think they do it better than the Classic Stack..but that's perhaps just me.

And if that's what they're attempting, and that's what these new Stack+'s are attempting, but they do it better...then...well we're back to my first comment.

You may be right that the VR and DB will continue to have an audience (if that's even the right word...) but I can't imagine that it will continue to be the audience they have now, since anyone currently looking at those models is probably looking for a noiseless pickup that comes as close as possible to sounding like a SC. And at the moment, *I* think the DB and VR are it. But if what you and others have said about the Stack+'s is right, they're not going to hold that title for long. And in that way, for those people, the DB and the VR will be rendered superfluous...assuming the pricing for the new model isn't astronomical.

But don't you agree that the Vintage Rails, Duckbucker and Cool Rails all have thier own thing going tonally? They don't all sound identical to each other and some players will undoubtably still prefer one of those...especially rockers.
.

 

[Lewguitar]

Re: New Duncan stacks

As for the VR and DB, I find them to sound pretty similar, though the DB sounds a bit more open and transparent to me.

Well there you go...they do sound subtley differant and there's an audience for both tones however subtle it might be.

Neither of them sound exactly like SCs to me, but that certianly seems to be the sound that they are attempting to achive -- something that can't be said of any of the other side-by-side sc-size HBs. And honestly, I think they do it better than the Classic Stack..but that's perhaps just me.

And that is where the new version of the Stack comes in. As excellant as the current version is (excellant enough to satisfy Brent Mason who I believe uses one in his Valley Arts guitar) the new version of the Stack is even closer to the sound of a vintage Strat pickup than the current version, IMO.

 

[the guy who invented fire]

Re: New Duncan stacks

So is this just a 'Classic Stack' with a different name?

that would be a big NO!

 

[Lewguitar]

Re: New Duncan stacks

that would be a big NO!

That's right. It's a new design. The coils in the new Stack pickups we've been discussing are actually individually tuned. I don't know exactly how, and if I did I wouldn't give away the secret...but they're a differant deal than the Classic Stacks. I'm starting to feel like I've probably said to much already so I'm going to stop talking about them until I know it's OK. Lew

 

[the guy who invented fire]

Re: New Duncan stacks

That's right. It's a new design. The coils in the new Stack pickups we've been discussing are actually individually tuned. I don't know exactly how, and if I did I wouldn't give away the secret...but they're a differant deal than the Classic Stacks. I'm starting to feel like I've probably said to much already so I'm going to stop talking about them until I know it's OK. Lew

Me too...I have tried real hard not to say a lot about them except about the tone, which is IMO amazing!

 

[FireBros.]

Re: New Duncan stacks

At the UGD the SD engineers showed us some pretty detailed drawings of the new Stacks, and they explained about the tuning of the coils and stuff. The level of thought and real engineering that they have put into these pickups appears to be far beyound anything that has ever been done before, by any manufacturer, SD or otherwise. I've heard a lot of rave reviews over the Kinmans, and most have considered them to be the "noisless single coil" standard, as far as tone goes. IMO Seymour and his team have taken notice of the outstanding level of sophistication that Kinman brought to the market, and have decided to overwhelmingly raise the bar.

 

[báratta]

Re: New Duncan stacks

I sent Christian (The Guy Who Invented Fire) my set to try and he told me he liked them even better than the Kinmans he compared them to. I've never heard the Kinmans so I can't comment. I will say that either model of the new Duncan Stacks are the best Noiseless single coil size pickups I've ever heard though. Lew

It’s a shame that our vintage single coil expert (Lew) has not been able to test the benchmark Kinmans. I greatly desire a back to back shootout between the new stacks and the Kinmans. Until then, I will be sticking with the surfers in my strat and the SSLs in my Pacifica.

 

[Evan Skopp]

Re: New Duncan stacks

Has anyone heard any info on what price point these will come in at? Will they be more or less, "normal" priced, or more like Antiquity pricing?

Thanks.

In the USA, the retail price will be $10 higher than the old Stacks. Which still puts them lower than Antiquity single coils. They'll be very close to the Duckbuckers and Vintage Rails (which we have no plans to discontinue, btw).

 

[Artie]

Re: New Duncan stacks

In the USA, the retail price will be $10 higher than the old Stacks. Which still puts them lower than Antiquity single coils. They'll be very close to the Duckbuckers and Vintage Rails (which we have no plans to discontinue, btw).

Thats great news Evan. I just may have to try a set of these myself.

 

[Zerberus]

Re: New Duncan stacks

In the USA, the retail price will be $10 higher than the old Stacks. Which still puts them lower than Antiquity single coils. They'll be very close to the Duckbuckers and Vintage Rails (which we have no plans to discontinue, btw).

Evan, this implies that the current Classic stacks will be "replaced" by these new Stacks? Am I reading too much into this or is that the actual plan?

 

[the guy who invented fire]

Re: New Duncan stacks

It’s a shame that our vintage single coil expert (Lew) has not been able to test the benchmark Kinmans. I greatly desire a back to back shootout between the new stacks and the Kinmans. Until then, I will be sticking with the surfers in my strat and the SSLs in my Pacifica.

I did do a back to back shootout with the Kinmans, and in fact the Kinmans are in a friend of mine's Jimmy Vaughan Strat and the Stack Plus proto's were in my Jimmy Vaughan Strat, so with the same guitar I was able to do an A B test...I like the Duncans better!

 

[the guy who invented fire]

Re: New Duncan stacks

I can't speak for Evan, but I am under the impression that the other Stacks will remain part of the Duncan line!

Evan, this implies that the current Classic stacks will be "replaced" by these new Stacks? Am I reading too much into this or is that the actual plan?

 

[Evan Skopp]

Re: New Duncan stacks

The new pickup will be called the STK-S4 Classic Stack Plus (sorry, TGWIF) and will eventually replace the current STK-S1 Classic Stack. The STK-S2 Hot Stack will remain in the line. For now...

 

[Nite_Maresz_25]

Re: New Duncan stacks

is there an STK-S3???

 

[Artie]

Re: New Duncan stacks

is there an STK-S3???

I'm going to take a wild a$$ guess, and say that the STK-S3 was the first version, which is going into the Nuno Bettencourt Washburn.

 

[báratta]

Re: New Duncan stacks

I did do a back to back shootout with the Kinmans, and in fact the Kinmans are in a friend of mine's Jimmy Vaughan Strat and the Stack Plus proto's were in my Jimmy Vaughan Strat, so with the same guitar I was able to do an A B test...I like the Duncans better!

Christian, I did notice that you had tested both sets. However, would you be able to provide a little more description for that sake of comparison?

-Which set had more chime and quack?
-Which set had the most believable vintage characteristics?
-Could you elaborate on “more punch”? (midrange? output?)

Samuel

 

[kallsop]

Re: New Duncan stacks

The new pickup will be called the STK-S4 Classic Stack Plus

We now have the model number and approximate pricing. When can I order

 

[shredaholic]

Re: New Duncan stacks

How do they, uh..."stack" up against Kinmans?

:laugh2: