Wire Guage On SD models and More?

H

HM_Stratocaster

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Hey guys, I have done a ton of magnet swapping amongst many models of SD pickups, a few DiMarzios, and I'm coming very close to a conclusion of what I'm going for, but to be certain. I really have to know what gauges are being used in the SD models. Does any know or have a cheat sheet on the wire gauges used in the SD models and maybe the DiMarzio Super Distortion? I heard the Customs are something like 43AWG the JB and the DD are something like 44AWG, but can anyone confirm? What about models like the Parallel Axis and the Nazgul? Thanks in advance!

-HM
 
yeah, id be surprised if the super distortion was #44. i have an old one but i havent pulled it apart, i always assumed #43
 
frankfalbo said:
Where are you getting this information? It’s not accurate.
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Because I wind pickups? You can only fit so much wire on a bobbin.

Plus wind one yourself and see what the resistance and weight of the bobbin is.

I’ve been doing this a long time Frank.


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you can only fit so much on a bobbin, but you can fit 14k of #43 on a pair of bobbins. if you worked there and say they use #44 on the sd, youd know better than i
 
jeremy said:
you can only fit so much on a bobbin, but you can fit 14k of #43 on a pair of bobbins. if you worked there and say they use #44 on the sd, youd know better than i
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You have to remember that thinner wire has a higher resistance. But no one winds to resistance anyway.

A SD is 6,500 turns of 44 on each bobbin. Can you fit that much 43 on a bobbin? Maybe. But the resistance will read lower.


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There are plenty of popular pickups with a DCR higher than 14k that are wound with 43AWG. A blanket statement like this is just flawed information. Suggesting that I “wind one myself” is interesting, I’ve wound and designed plenty of pickups in my time.

Did you wind pickups for Dimarzio? Or is the 6500/44 something from an online calculator? If that’s their real number I would have assumed it was covered by an NDA for former employees, they seem to be pretty tight with their IP. But that’s cool if you can share it.
 
frankfalbo said:
There are plenty of popular pickups with a DCR higher than 14k that are wound with 43AWG. A blanket statement like this is just flawed information. Suggesting that I “wind one myself” is interesting, I’ve wound and designed plenty of pickups in my time.

Did you wind pickups for Dimarzio? Or is the 6500/44 something from an online calculator? If that’s their real number I would have assumed it was covered by an NDA for former employees, they seem to be pretty tight with their IP. But that’s cool if you can share it.
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First off I just want to start by saying let's keep it civil guys. I'm pretty sure the magic of the Super Distortion is in the fact that the two coils are not wound exactly the same. That's been pretty well documented. Also from what I've read on some other forums/blogs is that the Super Distortion is a 43AWG. Honestly, I would just pull out my digital calipers and measure it, but that would potentially ruin the pickup in the process and after wax potting/finishing the wire how accurate would that be. I'm still gonna leave this open for anyone who might know.
 
HM_Stratocaster said:
Hey guys, I have done a ton of magnet swapping amongst many models of SD pickups, a few DiMarzios, and I'm coming very close to a conclusion of what I'm going for, but to be certain. I really have to know what gauges are being used in the SD models. Does any know or have a cheat sheet on the wire gauges used in the SD models and maybe the DiMarzio Super Distortion? I heard the Customs are something like 43AWG the JB and the DD are something like 44AWG, but can anyone confirm? What about models like the Parallel Axis and the Nazgul? Thanks in advance!
-HM
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What good is knowing the wire gauge? If you wanted to clone those pickups, you'd be better off knowing the inductance, because if you match the inductance, it's going to sound like that pickup with 43 or 44 AWG.

That being said, the resistance of 43 AWG is about 1.3 times that of 42 AWG, and 44 AWG is about 1.6x the resistance of 42 AWG, so if you have a DC resistance of 16k ohms with 44 AWG and imagine it was wound with 42 AWG instead, the resistance would be around 10k ohms. That would make a for a "hot PAF" type of pickup. If it were wound much more than that, the pickup would probably become uselessly dark and muffled sounding, so I think, considering the math, it's most likely that they use 44 AWG for the JB and Super Distortion, in particular.
 
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PicoRiveraTele said:
What good is knowing the wire gauge? If you wanted to clone those pickups, you'd be better off knowing the inductance, because if you match the inductance, it's going to sound like that pickup with 43 or 44 AWG.

That being said, the resistance of 43 AWG is about 1.3 times that of 42 AWG, and 44 AWG is about 1.6x the resistance of 42 AWG, so if you have a DC resistance of 16k ohms with 44 AWG and imagine it was wound with 42 AWG instead, the resistance would be around 10k ohms. That would make a for a "hot PAF" type of pickup. If it were wound much more than that, the pickup would probably become uselessly dark and muffled sounding, so I think, considering the math, it's most likely that they use 44 AWG for the JB and Super Distortion, in particular.
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The reason I ask, is because it seems that what I'm going for is somewhere between the Duncan Distortion and the Duncan Custom. Only I want a little less mid and bass and a little more high. (slightly underwound) I prefer the output of the Distortion, but I like the tone of the Custom a little more. If you were to underwind the Custom a little bit to get that tone it would not longer be enough output for my preference, but if you underwound the Distortion it would be just right. So -theoretically- if I could confirm the Duncan Distortion was 44AWG and find another humbucker in the Duncan line that was 44AWG wound to say 15.xK ohms That'd be right on the money. Also it wouldn't really matter what the magnet was because they're pretty easy to swap.

Also: I really appreciate Frank stepping in to call out the BS. All I was trying to say in my follow up post was I agreed with Frank that the figures being given out about the DiMarzio and the generalizations of the Duncans seemed suspect, but let's not extrapolate the infighting and get back on track.
 
I always thought the Super Distortion was 43AWG. I know the coils are wound equally because I've measured. Just a tick over 7K each. Part of what makes that pickup so great though it is high output is the double-thick ceramic magnet with a lower wind than a typical high output pickup.

I'm pretty sure that Custom series (Full Shred, Custom, Custom Custom, Custom 5) are all wound with 43AWG.

BUT, wire gauge and DC resistance don't always equate to output. For a lighter Distortion, you could try the Distortion neck model in the bridge.
 
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I'm putting $20 on Falbo. But in the spirit of the playground, a law by which we must all abide....

Fight! Fight ! Fight!

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ErikH said:
I always thought the Super Distortion was 43AWG. I know the coils are wound equally because I've measured.
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I wonder if that would make an interesting hybrid. Two coils, wound to the same DCR. One with #43 and one with #44? :scratchch
 
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