HRW's or Duncan 59's for funk playing?

[craig]

Thankyou Guys for the knowledge. Now I know what a pigtail combo bridge/tailpiece is.

One more question if I may gleen your vast experiences?

Should i get duncan 59's or one HRW and one duncan, or two HRW pickups if I want to play funk with a lot of strumming and muting?

 

Thankyou.

Craig

[DetroitBlues]

That is purely a trial and error thing. Keep in mind there is a lot more then pickups to think about when it comes to town.

[Millennium Maestro]

HRW's .... by the way Heritage is no longer producing them too!

[Steiner]

HRW's .... by the way Heritage is no longer producing them too!

 

M², Did you talk to Ren?

[Guest HRB853370]

Thankyou Guys for the knowledge. Now I know what a pigtail combo bridge/tailpiece is.

One more question if I may gleen your vast experiences?

Should i get duncan 59's or one HRW and one duncan, or two HRW pickups if I want to play funk with a lot of strumming and muting?

 

Thankyou.

Craig

 

Craig, there is no specific pickup for funk playing. Most funky players that I can think of all played Stratocasters with single coils. I think that more treble sound is more desirable for funk playing (think James Brown) but you could probably dial it in with your amp settings regardless of the pups you are using. Instead of aiming your pickup choice towards the style you want to play, perhaps aim it at the tone you want to achieve!

[Guest HRB853370]

HRW's .... by the way Heritage is no longer producing them too!

 

What!!?? Where did you get this from?? When was that announced and is it documented?

[Blunote]

If you can get HRWs then I say go for it. they're great sounding and a heritage exclusive. Very creamy and sound good overdriven. Would be great for jazz, rock, or even bluegrass. Very articulate.

[Millennium Maestro]

M², Did you talk to Ren?

Yes, Limited supply and to timely to manufacture! So... as for now no more HRW's

[Millennium Maestro]

What!!?? Where did you get this from?? When was that announced and is it documented?

This week Straight from Rendall Himself!

[GRMJazz]

Two weeks ago via Ren: "We still have the bridge HRW's, if you don't mind the spacing variation and hotter wind" (paraphrasing). No more neck HRW's.

[pcovers]

I agree with whoever said that the funk sounds, as you describe, tend to be more associated with strats than a creamy full HRW tone. The 59s would certainly be closer to that thinner side of the HB spectrum.

[SouthpawGuy]

Thankyou Guys for the knowledge. Now I know what a pigtail combo bridge/tailpiece is.

One more question if I may gleen your vast experiences?

Should i get duncan 59's or one HRW and one duncan, or two HRW pickups if I want to play funk with a lot of strumming and muting?

 

Thankyou.

Craig

 

Neither .... Duncan P-Rails with 4 sounds per pickup. Series humbucker / parallel humbucker / P-90 / single coil.

 

Plus the pickups when on together can be combined in any manner, neck P-90 with bridge single coil, neck in series with bridge in parallel etc. etc. I have them in a Heritage 535 and 170 and also a Carvin CT6.

 

 

On the 535 pictured they are combined with Duncan triple shot mounting rings, a sort of stealth switching system.

 

http://www.seymourduncan.com/products/electric/humbucker/triple-shot/triple_shot_swi/

 

With this setup the 535 can go from an uber fat neck humbucker tone to a slinky single coil sound at the bridge with the flick of a switch.

[craig]

I agree with whoever said that the funk sounds, as you describe, tend to be more associated with strats than a creamy full HRW tone. The 59s would certainly be closer to that thinner side of the HB spectrum.

Thanks pcovers. You're the only one who stuck with the full question.

You must like playing rhythm guitar.

[JeffB]

The player is either funky or not.

If you want that thin hifi sound of the 80's maybe a single coil and a lot of compression.

If you mean fat throaty more modern funk chose the gear that best suits you.

With the slightly scooped mids of the 59 maybe it might be your thing. The 59 splits and is quite thin sounding when it is so that would work if its what you are after.

I would more likely to want to use a strat.

When you say funk who do you have in mind?

[Gitfiddler]

Hi Craig, my name is Gitfiddler. I'm old school and play funk. Funk, funk, funk and a lot of RNB.

 

I have HRW's in my 150 and 555.

My Strat stays home when I play funk out.

[big bob]

Neither .... Duncan P-Rails with 4 sounds per pickup. Series humbucker / parallel humbucker / P-90 / single coil.

 

Plus the pickups when on together can be combined in any manner, neck P-90 with bridge single coil, neck in series with bridge in parallel etc. etc. I have them in a Heritage 535 and 170 and also a Carvin CT6.

 

 

On the 535 pictured they are combined with Duncan triple shot mounting rings, a sort of stealth switching system.

 

http://www.seymourduncan.com/products/electric/humbucker/triple-shot/triple_shot_swi/

 

With this setup the 535 can go from an uber fat neck humbucker tone to a slinky single coil sound at the bridge with the flick of a switch.

Oh yea Baby, mine are on push pulls...

[JeffB]

Hi Craig, my name is Gitfiddler. I'm old school and play funk. Funk, funk, funk and a lot of RNB.

 

I have HRW's in my 150 and 555.

My Strat stays home when I play funk out.

Yep. The player is a funky player or hes not.

I went on a youtube soul and funk bender just recently. Most of the players were using semi's and hollow bodies. A few tele's and strats in there but predominantly big Gibsons with humbuckers.

[111518]

I've played a little funk in my time, and I think, like almost everything about guitar tone, that the larger context has to be taken into account. If you are working with a big group, as funk bands often are, esp. with a B-3 player or clav. or more than one guitarist competing for midrange space, then you have to choose where you are going to fit in the mix. As a kid, I played an es355 in a 7 (or more) piece soul/funk/jazz band cause the other guitar player I worked with played a strat and we usually didn't have an organ player. In the recent soul funk band I directed I played a tele, cause the band had two keyboards and another guitarist playing 'buckers. Rodney Jones, who plays Heritage hollow and semi-hollows on his jazz and solo stuff, plays a strat when he's playing with Maceo Parker's band (at least in the videos that I've seen.) He's playing with a B-3 and a 'bone and a tenor. The band doesn't need big wide 'bucker guitar sound.

 

Funk and soul are about different instruments playing distinct parts --Allan Slutsky, the guy who did the Standing in the Shadows of Motown book and film, calls it rhythmic counterpoint, or composite rhythm. You want the voices of the instruments, in most cases, to be distinct, and compact. (vs. rock, which tends to build in layers of sound). I think that tends (there are exceptions to every rule) towards guitars that have relatively short decay, like hollowbodies or single coil guitars --the classic funky guitar duo in my mind is the Stuff lineup of Eric Gale (Super 400) and Cornell Dupree (tele), both of whom also played on scads of soul/funk sessions. Very different attacks, different tone, but both effective and a great mix cause both players could find a part that contributed to the whole, just as their different tones did.

[pro-fusion]

I agree. Single coils work better for choppier funk rhythm playing in most situations, particularly in a big group. For a smaller group, you've got more options. One of my favorite funk players is Tony Maiden of Rufus, and he used a jazz box on a lot of the classic Rufus albums in the '70s, as well as a Tele. If you're talking hard-edged funk, then you need something that is good for riffing and screaming leads, too. Lot of strats being used by guys like Eddie Hazel and Ernie Isley, but Michael Hampton of P-Funk has used a lot of strats w/humbuckers and metal-oriented guitars like Jacksons to get his sound. In a smaller funk-rock group, you could probably go with a 150 or 157 if you dial in the amp correctly.

 

As to the original question, I think the HRW in the bridge would be an excellent choice for a humbucker funk sound. Probably a lot better than the '59, since the HRW has more of a "hi-fi" sound.

[Gitfiddler]

I agree. Single coils work better for choppier funk rhythm playing in most situations, particularly in a big group. For a smaller group, you've got more options. One of my favorite funk players is Tony Maiden of Rufus, and he used a jazz box on a lot of the classic Rufus albums in the '70s, as well as a Tele. If you're talking hard-edged funk, then you need something that is good for riffing and screaming leads, too. Lot of strats being used by guys like Eddie Hazel and Ernie Isley, but Michael Hampton of P-Funk has used a lot of strats w/humbuckers and metal-oriented guitars like Jacksons to get his sound. In a smaller funk-rock group, you could probably go with a 150 or 157 if you dial in the amp correctly.

 

As to the original question, I think the HRW in the bridge would be an excellent choice for a humbucker funk sound. Probably a lot better than the '59, since the HRW has more of a "hi-fi" sound.

 

 

Hey, another Tony Maiden fan here!! He also used an old Fender Mustang if memory serves. Great player who is a regular these days with Boney James. (He's also a really great guy!)

 

A lot of the old funk players went back and forth between humbucker and single coils gits. It all depended on the tone they were after...and what held up best on the road. In the studio it all depended on the song and what the producer was after. Bottom line is that the old players sounded great on whatever they used.