Pickups

[João Paulo]

Whats the real difference between humbuckers and singlecoils?
I like play so much blues (like bb king, eric johnson, morse) and heavy metal (like symphony x, stratovarius....) and my guitar have two humbuckers, how pickup will be nice in my guitar for these styles?

Thanks :o)

[EricV]

Hi there,

a single coil has one single coil, hence the name. A humbucker has two of them, wired in combination. It therefore "bucks the hum", creating less humming and buzzing... this depends on how symetrical the coils are.
Usually, a humbucker sounds a bit... hotter, fatter, raunchier. A single coil works great for clean sounds, and Leslie West-style crunch sounds. It´s tough to put the sound-difference in words... both have their advantages and their tonal character... you might wanna experiment with it.
I can´t tell you which one would suit your music better, cuz it depends on the rest of your gear, and there are no rules what music to use a humbucker or single coil for.
But if you like the sound of Steve Morse, or the guys from Stratovarius, I guess a humbucker ( i.e. DiMarzio Super Distortion or Tone Zone ) might be appropiate.
For clean sounds, or Johnson-style sounds, I´d recommend a single coil. Eric Johnson often uses the DiMarzio HS2, which is a humbucker with stacked coils, so it sounds a lot like a singlecoil.
Hope this helps
Eric

[metallibeast]

I feel that a single coil sounds kinda nice especially if you play alot top 40 stuff, lots of strumming, funk i think sounds great using a single coil...my 2 cents.

I'm wondering exactly what's the diff between parallel and in series and out of phase?

-Beast

[Bongo Boy]

...and I just discovered that dual-mode pickups are made that allow switching from single- to dual-coil operation (EMG). I didn't know that.

[EricV]

Most companies offer humbuckers with that option, Bongo... it requires 4 wires coming out of the pickup, and a mini switch... the DiMarzio Dual Sound i.e. is basically a Super Distortion with the option to use it as a single coil... all you need to do is put a mini switch into your guitar and wire the pickup to it, according to the diagrams on the DiMarzio site...
Eric

[João Paulo]

Thanks...

Eric could you tell me the differences between Dimarzio Tone Zone and the Paf Pro? Wich one do you preffer?

[szulc]

www.guitarnuts.com

[EricV]

Originally posted by João Paulo
Thanks...

Eric could you tell me the differences between Dimarzio Tone Zone and the Paf Pro? Wich one do you preffer?

Originally posted by João Paulo
Thanks...

Eric could you tell me the differences between Dimarzio Tone Zone and the Paf Pro? Wich one do you preffer?

Hi there...

well, both do have that "open wah / vowel" sound, works great for lead guitar. The PAF Pro has less output though, less DC resistance. As a bridge-pickups, it works well if you combine it with single-coils, bt in general, I would use it as a neck-pickup in combination with a Tone Zone or Double Whammy at the bridge.

The Tone Zone has more output than the PAF Pro, it´s hotter, and to me, it has even more of that "open wah / vowel" sound, and a bit more bass and mid-range. I like that one a whole lot, and if you use that one or a Double Whammy in combination with a PAF Pro at the neck, it´s a really cool combination. ( Paul Gilbert-style )

SO, if you want some hot hard rock / metal sound, I´d recommend using a Tone Zone or DOuble Whammy at the bridge, and a PAF Pro in the neck-position.
If you want it a bit more mellow, or if you need some nice clean sounds, I´d probably recommend a PAF Pro at the bridge, and some single-coil or lower output humbucker in the bridge-position

Hope this helps
Eric

[João Paulo]

Help me a lot! Thanks!

Other problem its the money, here in Brasil, pickups, are very very very expensive!!

see ya

[szulc]

Have you heard of EBAY?
I just bought a bunch of pickups on there?

[João Paulo]

No....
Can you tell me more?

[szulc]

www.ebay.com

[João Paulo]

Thank you :D