Rio Grande Barbeques on a H150 LW

[MartyGrass]

I've used these pups for a while now and like the sounds.

 

I hate to state what has been said a billion times, but I keep finding this to be true. Most good pickups are simply good pickups. They sound different, not better or worse. To believe otherwise is tantamount to arguing which color is best for a shirt or a car.

 

The Barbeques are peppier than the 59s. They are not muddy. I can achieve a rich, warm, articulate tone through my Bassman with a little tweaking.

 

The bridge doesn't seem much hotter than the SD Custom Custom. They don't drive nearly as hard as the Super Distortions.

 

Rio Grande recommends adjusting the pup to as close to the string as possible. They don't say why. Is that to capture overtones and harmonics?

[DetroitBlues]

I've used these pups for a while now and like the sounds.

 

I hate to state what has been said a billion times, but I keep finding this to be true. Most good pickups are simply good pickups. They sound different, not better or worse. To believe otherwise is tantamount to arguing which color is best for a shirt or a car.

 

The Barbeques are peppier than the 59s. They are not muddy. I can achieve a rich, warm, articulate tone through my Bassman with a little tweaking.

 

The bridge doesn't seem much hotter than the SD Custom Custom. They don't drive nearly as hard as the Super Distortions.

 

Rio Grande recommends adjusting the pup to as close to the string as possible. They don't say why. Is that to capture overtones and harmonics?

 

Just to get maximum output. However, setting them too close will cause them to pull the strings and cause a magnetic warble effect. Typically, when I put in a pup, I have the pup as close to the body as I can then slowly raise one side at a time while playing the guitar through an amp on a clean setting. I stop raising the pup when I like the tone I get.

[MartyGrass]

They mention what I think you refer to as warbling but say that generally occurs with single coil pups.

 

I suspect you lose some high frequencies or sustain when the string gets too close to the magnet.

[NoNameBand]

I've used these pups for a while now and like the sounds.

 

I hate to state what has been said a billion times, but I keep finding this to be true. Most good pickups are simply good pickups. They sound different, not better or worse. To believe otherwise is tantamount to arguing which color is best for a shirt or a car.

 

The Barbeques are peppier than the 59s. They are not muddy. I can achieve a rich, warm, articulate tone through my Bassman with a little tweaking.

 

The bridge doesn't seem much hotter than the SD Custom Custom. They don't drive nearly as hard as the Super Distortions.

 

Rio Grande recommends adjusting the pup to as close to the string as possible. They don't say why. Is that to capture overtones and harmonics?

Maybe they use weakened magnets. Otherwise, there could be too much string pull. To your other point of pup manufacturers, so many boutiques all with a good story and I'm guilty of getting caught up in it as well. However, one thing that should not go overlooked, Their are 2 old Gibson pup winding machines ('59-'60) in use today, 1 is with the pup company that Brent has been spending his allowance with and the other is Seymour Duncan who also had Seth Lover working with him for a few years. SD '59s, Pearly Gates and Antiquity's are all made on the same winder as the much more expensive pups. Also, Seth Lover certainly knew how to build a humbucker and he did it for Gibson & Seymour Duncan. None of the boutiques can make that claim. For the money, you can't beat Seymour Duncan pups. I'm sure this is why Heritage uses them as well along with tons of great guitar players. For those of us who suck at playing guitar, the best pups in the world won't make us sound any better until we learn how to play.

[squawken]

I like em too. I have the Texas in the neck in my goldtop. Really like the sound of that one

[DetroitBlues]

They mention what I think you refer to as warbling but say that generally occurs with single coil pups.

 

I suspect you lose some high frequencies or sustain when the string gets too close to the magnet.

 

Pickups are magnets, humbuckers will pull just as much as a single coil, if not more. Great thing with humbuckers is you can get it rather close using the height adjustment screws, but you can fine tune the height with the screws in the pole pieces.

[bobmeyrick]

Pickups are magnets, humbuckers will pull just as much as a single coil, if not more. Great thing with humbuckers is you can get it rather close using the height adjustment screws, but you can fine tune the height with the screws in the pole pieces.

In a single coil pickup, there is only one set of pole pieces, but in a humbucker there are two sets with opposite polarity, so the magnetic force from each set will sort of cancel out. I reckon that the magnetic field (lines of force) from the single coil pickup would be at right-angles to the string and so pull the string towards the pickup. With the humbucker the field would be mainly parallel to the string, resulting in less pull. I've attached a quick sketch (photographed with my phone) which hopefully explains it.

[Trouble]

Maybe they use weakened magnets. Otherwise, there could be too much string pull. To your other point of pup manufacturers, so many boutiques all with a good story and I'm guilty of getting caught up in it as well. However, one thing that should not go overlooked, Their are 2 old Gibson pup winding machines ('59-'60) in use today, 1 is with the pup company that Brent has been spending his allowance with and the other is Seymour Duncan who also had Seth Lover working with him for a few years. SD '59s, Pearly Gates and Antiquity's are all made on the same winder as the much more expensive pups. Also, Seth Lover certainly knew how to build a humbucker and he did it for Gibson & Seymour Duncan. None of the boutiques can make that claim. For the money, you can't beat Seymour Duncan pups. I'm sure this is why Heritage uses them as well along with tons of great guitar players. For those of us who suck at playing guitar, the best pups in the world won't make us sound any better until we learn how to play.

I love 'em too. I've never played through a duncan pup that I didn't like for one reason or another. On the flipside, I really have bever played a DiMarzio that I liked, although Im sure there probably are a couple models I would be happy with, just haven't played them.