Stacking a ceramic and alnico magnet in a Custom?

[Top-L]

I have swapped my Custom 5 with a ceramic from an old Ibanez pickup and like it much better. The donor magnet is the exact same size as the magnet that came in the Custom 5.

I read that its possible to have both a ceramic AND alnico magnet in a pickup. Do you just stick them to each other and put them in the same space? Then try to sandwich the back plate on there even though it wont be flush anymore?

Is this what happens when you put a thicker ceramic magnet in there? I am just wondering if stacked magnets would increase the output, instead of having to find a thick ceramic.

 

[Rex_Rocker]

I think the Ceramic would degauss the Alnico.

 

[jeremy]

i dont think youd want to put an alnico bar on a ceramic bar. ive put ceramic side magnets in a pup with an alnico bar and the guy loved it.

 

[Mincer]

I've never done it, but I didn't think it was a good idea to mix magnets like that. I would ask what you are trying to accomplish with the sound, and see if there are other ways to get there.

 

[Juanhanglo]

I've never done it, but I didn't think it was a good idea to mix magnets like that. I would ask what you are trying to accomplish with the sound, and see if there are other ways to get there.

The gibson iommi pickups had ceramic helper mags flanking an a2.

I always wanted a set, but the price kept me away.

 

[Top-L]

I've never done it, but I didn't think it was a good idea to mix magnets like that. I would ask what you are trying to accomplish with the sound, and see if there are other ways to get there.

I want higher output. Someone said a custom with a thicker ceramic sounds great and is like another kind of Distortion.

What kind of magnet should I buy to do this?

 

[jeremy]

a double thick c8, or add c8 side magnets to the existing bar magnet. youll need to orient them like on a p90

 

[amdkj]

You can buy magnets in all kinds of thicknesses. Off the top of my head, the standard magnet thickness is around 3mm and the Distortion uses around 5mm.

A Custom with a thicker magnet probably won't sound much like a Distortion. I haven't tried it myself, but the Custom and Distortion use different coil wire; 14k of 43 vs 16k of 44. So the Custom is actually a fractionally hotter coil, mostly in the treble. Putting a Distortion's magnet in there should, at least on paper, result in something even louder and brighter than the Distortion, which is already somewhat on the harsh side.

In general, when you use a thicker magnet, you do get more output, but you especially get an increase in the very highest and lowest frequencies. It's not like just turning on a flat boost pedal or increasing your amp's preamp one notch. (Which is honestly what you should probably be doing, anyway; I doubt you actually need more output than a Custom already gives, unless you're trying to play death metal on a tweed Bassman without pedals.)

If you like the tone of the Custom but are dead set on making it louder, I've found adding ceramic spacers increases output with less of an EQ shift than a thick magnet does. But at that point you should probably just buy a 500T, or consider moving to active pickups or adding a flat boost pedal to your rig.

 

[Mincer]

If you like the tone of the Custom but are dead set on making it louder......

The Pickup Booster pedal is made for this....

 

[amdkj]

Well yeah, hence what I said directly before that

 

[jeremy]

i think he was just agreeing with you and giving the duncan option for said boost

 

[Mincer]

jeremy gets me.

 

[Chistopher]

 

[ehdwuld]

I think the magnets have poles left and right edges

Like poles repel

If they stack neatly as they would have to to sit in the humbucker

The like poles would be forced together

The ceramic would quickly reverse the poles on the alnico

Canceling out the field

You would have a north and south pole on each coils slug/screw

No field

I could be wrong

Probably have something but not the additive thing you expect

 

[Rex_Rocker]

Putting a Distortion's magnet in there should, at least on paper, result in something even louder and brighter than the Distortion, which is already somewhat on the harsh side.

In general, when you use a thicker magnet, you do get more output, but you especially get an increase in the very highest and lowest frequencies.

Not my experience with the Custom. Adding a double thick magnet made it fatter, and did not increase the treble. I swapped magnets in the Custom trying to get rid of the thuddy low end, and every magnet swap I tried just made the issue worse, double thick Ceramic included. Double thick did not make the EQ wider. It just made it fatter in the lows and mids, IME.

I think someone on this forum mentioned it kinda gives it kind of a Super Distortion (not Duncan Distortion) vibe, and I agree.