Pickup adjustment
- Thread starter rocket88
- Start date
Walter Broes
Enlightened Member
Hey Johnny,
It was great meeting you in person in Austin two weeks ago, very nice!!
We're back in Austin now, playing San Antonio tomorrow, the Continental the day after.
Like you know, I don't have an X160 myself, but I do have experience with those DeArmond 2000 pickups, had them on a different guitar. To get the pickups more balanced out, you could try lowering the poles on the neck pickup, and if that doesn't help, remove the spacer from under it.
You could even try adding the neck pickup's spacer under the lead pickup, with low-to-medium output pickups like these it's worth raising the whole pickup instead of just the poles, it makes for a fatter tone. Also, getting a DeArmond type pickup's poles too close to the strings will pull the treble strings out of tune, the poles are magnets.
It was great meeting you in person in Austin two weeks ago, very nice!!
We're back in Austin now, playing San Antonio tomorrow, the Continental the day after.
Like you know, I don't have an X160 myself, but I do have experience with those DeArmond 2000 pickups, had them on a different guitar. To get the pickups more balanced out, you could try lowering the poles on the neck pickup, and if that doesn't help, remove the spacer from under it.
You could even try adding the neck pickup's spacer under the lead pickup, with low-to-medium output pickups like these it's worth raising the whole pickup instead of just the poles, it makes for a fatter tone. Also, getting a DeArmond type pickup's poles too close to the strings will pull the treble strings out of tune, the poles are magnets.
matsickma
Senior Member
Hi Walter,
I picked up a set of the re-issued dynasonics with the large Alinico V magnets a few weeks ago. I was playing around with them tonight and compared them to a set of 2000 and a set of 2k's. I was suprised how much more powerful the magnets on the re-issue dynasonics are.
I have a metal work bench with a formica covering. The re-issued dynasonics grabbed hold of the table from over 3/8 inches away! The 2000 and 2k's had to almost touch the table to show any pull.
It got me thinking about the impact this will have on the strings and how I may need to adjust height to prevent string pull. Seeing this post was very relevant to my experiment.
Do you have any suggestions or experiance with the re-issued dynasonics?
Tnx,
Mike
I picked up a set of the re-issued dynasonics with the large Alinico V magnets a few weeks ago. I was playing around with them tonight and compared them to a set of 2000 and a set of 2k's. I was suprised how much more powerful the magnets on the re-issue dynasonics are.
I have a metal work bench with a formica covering. The re-issued dynasonics grabbed hold of the table from over 3/8 inches away! The 2000 and 2k's had to almost touch the table to show any pull.
It got me thinking about the impact this will have on the strings and how I may need to adjust height to prevent string pull. Seeing this post was very relevant to my experiment.
Do you have any suggestions or experiance with the re-issued dynasonics?
Tnx,
Mike
Hi Walter,
Indeed nice to see you too. Hope everything is working out fine for you guys over there. I had a great time in Austin and I bet you will too.
What do you consider as "too close"? With filtertrons you should have the pups very close according to Mr TV Jones. Can you tell me a measure that would be a "good start"?
Right now the pole pieces in the neck pickup is all down. And the bridge has them about 5 mm up. But shouldn't these pickups be without hum in the middle pos ? Think I read somewhere that some of these guitar where wrong wired? Mabe I should check that too.
Johnny
Indeed nice to see you too. Hope everything is working out fine for you guys over there. I had a great time in Austin and I bet you will too.
What do you consider as "too close"? With filtertrons you should have the pups very close according to Mr TV Jones. Can you tell me a measure that would be a "good start"?
Right now the pole pieces in the neck pickup is all down. And the bridge has them about 5 mm up. But shouldn't these pickups be without hum in the middle pos ? Think I read somewhere that some of these guitar where wrong wired? Mabe I should check that too.
Johnny
Walter Broes
Enlightened Member
The set I had was RW/RP indeed (humcancelling in the middle position), but maybe they're not all like that, I don't know.
When the polepieces are too close to the strings, you'll notice it, with Dynas as well as with 2000's, the guitar will lose sustain, and the treble strings will sound weird and out of tune.
Filtertrons are a whole different thing, they have the magnets at a much bigger distance from the strings, under the pickup's coil, like P90's and Gibson style humbuckers. With the DeArmond pickups, you'll get the fattest sound with the pickup coil, "body" close to the strings, even if you have to drop down the polepieces a little. For an out of balance neck pickup, I'd lower the neck pickup entirely (not just the poles), and raise the entire bridge pickup with a spacer, that should work.
Matsickma, no experience with Dynasonic DeArmond RI's, but I do have a guitar with old ones, and the power of those magnets is enormous indeed. Experimenting is the key, and even more than with the 2000's, don't get over-enthousiastic raising those poles, and trust your ears. Good luck.
When the polepieces are too close to the strings, you'll notice it, with Dynas as well as with 2000's, the guitar will lose sustain, and the treble strings will sound weird and out of tune.
Filtertrons are a whole different thing, they have the magnets at a much bigger distance from the strings, under the pickup's coil, like P90's and Gibson style humbuckers. With the DeArmond pickups, you'll get the fattest sound with the pickup coil, "body" close to the strings, even if you have to drop down the polepieces a little. For an out of balance neck pickup, I'd lower the neck pickup entirely (not just the poles), and raise the entire bridge pickup with a spacer, that should work.
Matsickma, no experience with Dynasonic DeArmond RI's, but I do have a guitar with old ones, and the power of those magnets is enormous indeed. Experimenting is the key, and even more than with the 2000's, don't get over-enthousiastic raising those poles, and trust your ears. Good luck.