Something between alnico 8 an ceramic??

dvanburen

dvanburen

New member
This may be stupid and way off base but A8 mags are to supplement folks who want something between A5 and ceramic. who want more gain, power and low end compared to ceramic but still want the alnico sag, feel, bloom ect and organic nature of alnico. I get it. A8 does that well. But I still love ceramics for their power and low end. Is there any combo...ie pickup combo, mag or hybrid combo that can get between A8 pickups and ceremic? The reason I ask is that while the A8 sounds great and with its "organic' nature it is a very very usable and appealing mag for a pickup, but it is never as full and beefy as a ceramic. The low end is never the same to me. On the flip side, Ceramics are always colder and have less character than an A8 pickup. Has anybody experimented with a hybrid or any other combo that can meet in the middle? Im just asking because I know some guys on here have really done the research and come up with some really cool combos of pickups and mags. I hope this is a place to share. This is more toward the high gain folks out there but please, any of you guys that don't play that style share your opinions, we would all like to hear them. Please share your opinions I am dying to hear, as im sure others are too. Thanks
 
Re: Something between alnico 8 an ceramic??

The UOC8 you can get from AddictionFX has many of the tone attributes he's asking for but it lacks one for him important feature: power.

The UOC8 tone is like A5 without the scoop, but the output lies somewhere between A2 and UOA5.

The (for my ears) most interesting tone I got from'em was with a Seth Lover set and my take is that I like it a little better in the bridge than in the neck, but I'm extremely critical on neck p'ups's tone so maybe it's just me. The "chirp" is good but a little bit less present than say, A2/A2 due to the unusually high mids content.

I think this magnet will excel in P-90s, specially in the stock-wound bridge position with an underwound neck.

HTH,
 
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Re: Something between alnico 8 an ceramic??

Hey pepe, I remember you've mentioned that mag before. But yeah, if power is lacking then it wouldn't be up my alley. Good info though. Thanks
 
Re: Something between alnico 8 an ceramic??

Inder_Cine_Mann said:
Dont they make A9's?
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There's A1 thru A12, although some are rarely, if ever, cut into sizes that fit guitar PU's (I'm curious about A1's and A7's). Addiction had A9's at one point several years ago. Members here said they were surprisingly bright and not at all what they expected.
 
Re: Something between alnico 8 an ceramic??

blueman335 said:
There's A1 thru A12, although some are rarely, if ever, cut into sizes that fit guitar PU's (I'm curious about A1's and A7's). Addiction had A9's at one point several years ago. Members here said they were surprisingly bright and not at all what they expected.
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I find the A9 fantastic for clean work and with chorus effects. Perhaps with the way I wound the pickup, that's all it's good for. I put a video up for it up here.
 
Re: Something between alnico 8 an ceramic??

Inder_Cine_Mann said:
Are u asking for a specific PU or just general?

Dont they make A9's?
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AddictionFX still gets them in. I wound this pickup and this is what the A9 sounds like - https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?v=10153441050700284

This pickup was wound with 38SWG wire though so, using 42 or 43 AWG will make it louder and tighter I imagine. The pickup is also unpotted as yet which, may also effect the tone.
 
Re: Something between alnico 8 an ceramic??

Rob, Thanks for the video and good job on your pickup. The A9 is definitely not what im looking for im sure. I'm really just getting some opinions on guys that do mag swaps, combos, hybrids ect. I have not played every pickup combo or even come close. I'd prefer to stay within the duncan line. I'll use an example. When it comes to A8 pickups i always use the Custom 8 as the standard. When we are talking ceramic, the DD is the standard for me in that side of it. So, I read about the Custom with the big ceramic from the distortion. I tried that and loved it. It was probably my new favorite ceramic pickup. I always go back to the Custom 8 characteristics because I think im just an A8 fan for the bridge position. Ive tried pairing the custom with jb and DD in a hybrid with the A8 and while very cool, still not quite what im looking for. If I could take the power from the custom/big ceramic mag and blend that with the custom8 characteristics I think I would have my perfect pup. I'm not wishful thinking or trying to ask for something I cant have, I'm just trying to paint a picture sonically of what I'm picturing out of a pickup. Ive heard of guys doing custom/demon A8, and patb1/patb2 A8 and other cool combos. Those sound cool. Or any other suggestions you guys may have experimented with that may do what im picturing.
 
Re: Something between alnico 8 an ceramic??

dvanburen said:
Rob, Thanks for the video and good job on your pickup. The A9 is definitely not what im looking for im sure. I'm really just getting some opinions on guys that do mag swaps, combos, hybrids ect. I have not played every pickup combo or even come close. I'd prefer to stay within the duncan line. I'll use an example. When it comes to A8 pickups i always use the Custom 8 as the standard. When we are talking ceramic, the DD is the standard for me in that side of it. So, I read about the Custom with the big ceramic from the distortion. I tried that and loved it. It was probably my new favorite ceramic pickup. I always go back to the Custom 8 characteristics because I think im just an A8 fan for the bridge position. Ive tried pairing the custom with jb and DD in a hybrid with the A8 and while very cool, still not quite what im looking for. If I could take the power from the custom/big ceramic mag and blend that with the custom8 characteristics I think I would have my perfect pup. I'm not wishful thinking or trying to ask for something I cant have, I'm just trying to paint a picture sonically of what I'm picturing out of a pickup. Ive heard of guys doing custom/demon A8, and patb1/patb2 A8 and other cool combos. Those sound cool. Or any other suggestions you guys may have experimented with that may do what im picturing.
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Thank you, mate :)

When I can get hold of all the magnet types that are usable, I'm looking to do a test with a JB pickup. All the magnets wil be a standard size (I hope) 50x12.5x3mm or as close to that as they come. That might help people a bit.

I've come up with a load of custom hybrid models but, just can't afford all of them at once - one I've got coming in maybe a week is a custom P-90 humbucker sized (it's not a Phat Cat anymore) and another to follow perhaps around Christmas - that one depends on postage.

Try these; Distortion/Full Shred hybrid, Custom/Distortion hybrid, Invader (with Full Shred type poles)/Custom 5 hybrid, Distortion/Custom 5 hybrid or even a Custom/Jazz (both using Invader poles) - then go with the magnet that suits your taste.

It's when you think outside the box and look at what can be modified in any given pickup, that you see just how many variations there are in what is possible.

I'm even going for an active hybrid build next year so, watch out for that one.
 
Re: Something between alnico 8 an ceramic??

good suggestions rob. Please do share your experiences with your projects and different mags, we'd love to hear them. I'm with you and cant afford all of them at once so it's baby steps for me too man. Hybrids have been a hot topic lately and more and more people are getting on board with in because of the total customization factor. Ive been wanting to try a full shred hybrid for a while. Its a tighter version of the custom right? Iv'e never tried the hex poles on a pickup. I know it tightens it up a good bit, what other tonal factors do they bring?
 
Re: Something between alnico 8 an ceramic??

The only time I've ever used hex poles are with the A9 I finished on Sunday - I've got about 25 minutes experience with them thus far.

With a Full Shred - I watch Keith Merrow's videos for 6 and 7 string metal applications. I hope it won't be too long before they make an 8 string Full Shred.

His 8 string video is pretty good and from what I can tell from that particular video is that the Nazgul sounds like a balanced mix between Invader, Distortion and Blackouts in EQ, output, headroom and aggression.

I've got a hybrid in mind for the Nazgul but, that's something a friend is looking into and he doesn't want the beans spilled just yet.

After that, it's going hybrids with other pickup makers in step with SD. I'll throw an El Diablo/X2N hybrid out there... Maybe a Crunch Lab/Custom 5 - go from there.
 
Re: Something between alnico 8 an ceramic??

DeathMetalRob said:
AddictionFX still gets them in. I wound this pickup and this is what the A9 sounds like - https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?v=10153441050700284

This pickup was wound with 38SWG wire though so, using 42 or 43 AWG will make it louder and tighter I imagine. The pickup is also unpotted as yet which, may also effect the tone.
Click to expand...

That sounds like it would be great for a neck pickup.

What about a ceramic mag with A8 spacers?
 
Re: Something between alnico 8 an ceramic??

you guys mean magnet spacers instead of the plastic ones that come stock? where do you get them and what kind of sound does it impart?
 
Re: Something between alnico 8 an ceramic??

Johnny the Kid said:
That sounds like it would be great for a neck pickup.

What about a ceramic mag with A8 spacers?
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It almost has the perfect tone I'm looking for from a pickup idea that I've had - that and combination from the strat I'm selling (HWS and PATB-3). They just about have it. I need to get THAT tone from a single coil blade pickup though - to match the look, you understand.

As to multi-mags, I've got a hex coil on one side, using Neo52 magnets as centre and spacers, with a 9.5mm AlNiCo 5 poled slug coil.

It looks pretty beefy but, I've got no idea how it'll sound just yet - pretty powerful if looks are anything to go by.
 
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