Really, is there ANYTHING that can be done about Dimarzio's double creme patent?

75lespaul

75lespaul

New member
:soapbox:

Goodness, whether you love or hate Dimarzio, Duncan, whoever, how the heck did Dimarzio get to patent COLORS??? I was talking with my wife about that today and she can't believe they got to do that. I was pissed because I really want to try an AP2 in one of my guitars, but it has to be a double creme. I don't have the money to get it custom made, and of course I haven't seen any for sale used so I'm SOL. I can only go to Dimarzio for double creme and...well, there are only a few Dimarzios I like and I don't think any will be good for this guitar.

Really, how did they patent the way a color is used. It's crazy. :banghead: I know some people are going to say "Just get a zebra." or "who cares about color, it's tone that matters" and while they are partially right, I'm older, set in my ways, and golly, I want double creme Duncans in this guitar but at standard price. Well, there's MY reason for hating Dimarzio. I still love the Super Distortion and Super II, but that patent thing has really kept me from trying any others, except the recent Mo'Joe just because I HAD to go to them to try something. Yep, I know that's why they did it, just wonder how it was allowed. It's like if Chevy patented triple black, so you could only get a Chevy with black interior, exterior and top. That wouldn't fly at all, so how did this.

Just lettin' off some steam dudes, thanks for listening. :beerchug:
 
Re: Really, is there ANYTHING that can be done about Dimarzio's double creme patent?

i completely agree man

the DiMarzio co are responsible for some real innovations in guitar pickups, but patenting a colour is just total bullsh!t

seen the big lebowski..?
this issue always makes me think "YOU SEE WHAT HAPPENS, LARRY?!"
 
Re: Really, is there ANYTHING that can be done about Dimarzio's double creme patent?

Double Creme and the name "PAF". :rolleyes: I do hand it to them for the mismatched coils.
 
Re: Really, is there ANYTHING that can be done about Dimarzio's double creme patent?

PFDarkside said:
Double Creme and the name "PAF". :rolleyes: .
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Over here in the UK, their double-cream patent does not have any validity...Bare Knuckles (do a search if you're not familiar with them; these are hand wound boutique pickups to order at very reasonable prices) will make you double-cream anything.

...that's assuming that they don't infringe on DiMarzio's patent by shipping them to the U.S, of course. But it's worth checking out...they are easily the equivalent of SD Custom Shop.

http://www.bareknucklepickups.co.uk
 
Re: Really, is there ANYTHING that can be done about Dimarzio's double creme patent?

I don't get how they can patent mismatched electromagnetic coils. Maybe the specific process of how they're made or materials they're made from, but the actual idea and application of it? It's absurd, to say the least.

Can I get a patent on telling jokes? Or on the act of making any audible sound? Being a cop? Being a politician? Having any job or profession or hobby?
Can I patent deafness and sue deaf people to make them stop being deaf?
Can I patent physical height and sue children to make them stop being so short?

Did anyone think to patent double-black pickups with evenly-matched coils? Hmmmm.
 
Re: Really, is there ANYTHING that can be done about Dimarzio's double creme patent?

I have a Seymour Duncan Jazz that has a nickle cover, but double cream underneath.
 
Re: Really, is there ANYTHING that can be done about Dimarzio's double creme patent?

Its a trademark, not a patent.

Back in the day, if you had double creams, you had Dimarzio pickups. The image of an all cream humbucker was synonymous with the Dimarzio brand. They trademarked that symbol as the symbol of Dimarzio.

Just like the Nike swoosh - you can't put out a sneaker with the swoosh no matter how much you whine and cry.
 
Re: Really, is there ANYTHING that can be done about Dimarzio's double creme patent?

FWIW, it's a trademark, not a patent. If a distinctive guitar shape can be trademarked, why not a distinctive pickup color scheme (prior use be d@mned)?

As for what can be done, I know of one pickup maker (name eludes me at the moment) who makes covered humbuckers with an easily removed cover. He's not selling double cremes per se but people are getting the look they want.

Personally, I'm not a fan of the look. Heck, I'm still not sure I particularly care for zebras...but that's a different topic for a different day.
 
Re: Really, is there ANYTHING that can be done about Dimarzio's double creme patent?

Grandturk said:
Its a trademark, not a patent.

Back in the day, if you had double creams, you had Dimarzio pickups. The image of an all cream humbucker was synonymous with the Dimarzio brand. They trademarked that symbol as the symbol of Dimarzio.

Just like the Nike swoosh - you can't put out a sneaker with the swoosh no matter how much you whine and cry.
Click to expand...

Ok, so did Dimarzio invent the PAF?
 
Re: Really, is there ANYTHING that can be done about Dimarzio's double creme patent?

check your PMs, 75lespaul.
 
Re: Really, is there ANYTHING that can be done about Dimarzio's double creme patent?

TSE said:
Ok, so did Dimarzio invent the PAF?
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Sure. They were the first company to create and market a pickup actually called a "PAF." Gibson didn't call their pickups PAF's - that was a term that came from the vintage market to reference Gibson humbuckers that had a "Patent Applied For" sticker on the bottom. Remember, once Gibson was awarded their patent, they changed to "Patent Number X" stickers.
 
Re: Really, is there ANYTHING that can be done about Dimarzio's double creme patent?

You can order double cream's under a cover from the custom shop so that's your best route because nothing can be done about the Dimarzio patent. So its you choice a small upcharge or a class action lawsuit.
 
Re: Really, is there ANYTHING that can be done about Dimarzio's double creme patent?

Grandturk said:
Its a trademark, not a patent.

Back in the day, if you had double creams, you had Dimarzio pickups. The image of an all cream humbucker was synonymous with the Dimarzio brand. They trademarked that symbol as the symbol of Dimarzio.
Click to expand...
... yes! Finally someone puts it in concise terms. As well, back in the mid-late 70s, double-cream colored bobbins AND the hex screws in DM Super Distortion pups were the other associative trademark which discerned DM from SD, Mighty Mite, and Bill Lawrence... all of whom were the main after-market pickup manufacturers of the day.

On a more "ironic" note, BL had originated the twin "blade" pup with the L500XL... but Duncan's Dimebucker is a near physical duplicate of that BL pup. So how was SD able to copy the BL pup almost to a T... yet any non-DM dual-bobbin pickup that resembles a certain COLOR... notably "cream"... would be considered an infringement of a DM "trademark". It just doesn't make any sense...:banghead:
 
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Re: Really, is there ANYTHING that can be done about Dimarzio's double creme patent?

YHWH said:
... yet any non-DM dual-bobbin pickup that resembles a certain COLOR... notably "cream"... would be considered an infringement of a DM "trademark". It just doesn't make any sense...:banghead:
Click to expand...

Its all about enforcement. If you don't stop someone from using your trademark - its not your trademark.
 
Re: Really, is there ANYTHING that can be done about Dimarzio's double creme patent?

It's the pincipal of the matter. Duncan stays competitive by selling great sounding pickups and Dimarzio does it through big money endorsments, shady patents, and litigation.
 
Re: Really, is there ANYTHING that can be done about Dimarzio's double creme patent?

TSE said:
It's the pincipal of the matter. Duncan stays competitive by selling great sounding pickups and Dimarzio does it through big money endorsments, shady patents, and litigation.
Click to expand...

I disagree. Dimarzio makes excellent pickups. Their classic pickups like the Super Distortion have probably been recorded and played live more than any other replacement pickup.

Now, if anything, Dimarzio's pickups are way out there on the cutting edge whereas Duncan makes more traditional style pickups. During the 90's, where there was a backlash against everything "shred," I think Dimarzio may have been labeled as the "shred" pickup. People were looking for more traditional sounds, and that when Duncan really picked up steam.

Anyway, both make great pickups - it just depends on what you're looking for.
 
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