Benjy_26
25's Nemesis
Hello all.
I've acquired an Epi Nighthawk Custom RI about a year ago and have been playing it in stock configuration (save for strings) since then.
Acoustically, it's a bright, lively guitar. This seems to translate into the electric realm as well. The stock pickups are relatively tight and give good split tones, dirty and clean. The mids and highs aren't as complex as they are with quality aftermarket pickups, but they are MUCH better than the humbuckers I remember in older Korean Epis.
I finally decided to change out the pickups. I installed a SM-1n in the neck, foregoing the split capabilities of the stocker, and obtained a Sentell S35 for the middle position.
I had not even opened the control cavity prior to this, and, to be frank, I was surprised. Epiphone lists the stock pickup set as having alnico II magnets. What they don't advertise is how hot they're wound. According to my multimeter, the neck mini humbucker is wound to 16.6k and the middle single is sitting at 7.75k. The bridge pickup is in the mid 17's.
I installed the SM-1n (6.6k) and the Sentell (7.5k; alnico rods) and had a hard time balancing these pickups with the bridge unit. I finally played around with the height enough to get them to sound good together, but I am left with a dilema: What would be a good humbucker to replace the original?
The one in there now isn't terrible, but I would like a little more push when distorted and a little more air and chime when split and clean. After seeing the resistance figures of the originals, I'm thinking that the slant 59b is not an option. Should I get the Nighthawk specific JB, or should I go with a shop floor Custom? Any other suggestions?
I've acquired an Epi Nighthawk Custom RI about a year ago and have been playing it in stock configuration (save for strings) since then.
Acoustically, it's a bright, lively guitar. This seems to translate into the electric realm as well. The stock pickups are relatively tight and give good split tones, dirty and clean. The mids and highs aren't as complex as they are with quality aftermarket pickups, but they are MUCH better than the humbuckers I remember in older Korean Epis.
I finally decided to change out the pickups. I installed a SM-1n in the neck, foregoing the split capabilities of the stocker, and obtained a Sentell S35 for the middle position.
I had not even opened the control cavity prior to this, and, to be frank, I was surprised. Epiphone lists the stock pickup set as having alnico II magnets. What they don't advertise is how hot they're wound. According to my multimeter, the neck mini humbucker is wound to 16.6k and the middle single is sitting at 7.75k. The bridge pickup is in the mid 17's.
I installed the SM-1n (6.6k) and the Sentell (7.5k; alnico rods) and had a hard time balancing these pickups with the bridge unit. I finally played around with the height enough to get them to sound good together, but I am left with a dilema: What would be a good humbucker to replace the original?
The one in there now isn't terrible, but I would like a little more push when distorted and a little more air and chime when split and clean. After seeing the resistance figures of the originals, I'm thinking that the slant 59b is not an option. Should I get the Nighthawk specific JB, or should I go with a shop floor Custom? Any other suggestions?
