Pick-up pole heights

[kpinks]

Are there any guidelines to setting up pick-up pole heights? My poles are too high and need to be lowered, but how do I know when the pole is too low? Is it a sort of adjust and then listen thing? I have a Peavey Wolfgang with stock EVH pick-ups that had the pick-up pole pieces raised because the high strings did not seem to have the attack of the low strings, but now I am getting that out-of-phase issue because the poles are too high?
Kev

 

[Zhangliqun]

Re: Pick-up pole heights

Pole pieces have nothing to do with "out-of-phase" issues. If you're getting the hollow, weak, nasal funky tone associated with reverse phasing, it's either a magnet or wiring problem.

There really isn't a "too low" or "too high", except to say that if the pole pieces are buried below the surface of the bobbin, it's probably too low for any sort of 'normal' sound (though some might prefer that). And if the head of the pole piece is completely above the the surface of the bobbin to the point where you can easily see the threads of the pole, it's too high, though again, though some might actually prefer that too.

As for the effect of raising vs. lowering: Raising the polepieces will increase the overall output but will also give it a brighter sound -- lowering will do vice
versa.

It's all ultimately a matter of taste but somewhere between the two extremes described earlier is where you find your conventional/classic guitar tones. I adjust according to the basic tone of the guitar -- if it's warm and dark, I set the poles kind of high for a little more brightness, and lower them closer to the surface of the bobbin if the guitar needs a little more beef. I also adjust on a string-by-string basis -- some strings may sound a little weak compared to the others and need a little help from a higher pole piece.

 

[Luke Duke]

Re: Pick-up pole heights

Pole pieces have nothing to do with "out-of-phase" issues. If you're getting the hollow, weak, nasal funky tone associated with reverse phasing, it's either a magnet or wiring problem.

There really isn't a "too low" or "too high", except to say that if the pole pieces are buried below the surface of the bobbin, it's probably too low for any sort of 'normal' sound (though some might prefer that). And if the head of the pole piece is completely above the the surface of the bobbin to the point where you can easily see the threads of the pole, it's too high, though again, though some might actually prefer that too.

As for the effect of raising vs. lowering: Raising the polepieces will increase the overall output but will also give it a brighter sound -- lowering will do vice
versa.

It's all ultimately a matter of taste but somewhere between the two extremes described earlier is where you find your conventional/classic guitar tones. I adjust according to the basic tone of the guitar -- if it's warm and dark, I set the poles kind of high for a little more brightness, and lower them closer to the surface of the bobbin if the guitar needs a little more beef. I also adjust on a string-by-string basis -- some strings may sound a little weak compared to the others and need a little help from a higher pole piece.

Yep, also Zhangliqun you might want to talk about the polepiece cutting.

Luke

 

[Kommerzbassist]

Re: Pick-up pole heights

Pole pieces have nothing to do with "out-of-phase" issues. If you're getting the hollow, weak, nasal funky tone associated with reverse phasing, it's either a magnet or wiring problem.

I think this is actually only an out-of-phase problem... when the mags are wrong, it'd hum... I think

Back to the height question the higher the polepiece, the stronger the sound, but too high = muddy, the lower the string, the clearer the sound, but too low = thin sound without character. Now find what you like best...

 

[Zhangliqun]

Re: Pick-up pole heights

Yep, also Zhangliqun you might want to talk about the polepiece cutting.

Luke

Have you tried it yet?

 

[Zhangliqun]

Re: Pick-up pole heights

I think this is actually only an out-of-phase problem... when the mags are wrong, it'd hum... I think

Humbucker magnets can only be wrong one way, and that's if they're flipped 180 degrees, which will throw the pickup out of phase with other pickup(s) in the guitar. They will NOT cause hum.

Back to the height question the higher the polepiece, the stronger the sound, but too high = muddy, the lower the string, the clearer the sound, but too low = thin sound without character. Now find what you like best...

If you raise the whole pickup too close to the strings, you will get a very harsh tone. Raising the poles will only make it brighter -- because it emphasizes one coil over the other and makes it a bit more single-coilish.