Humbuckers
The Dreaded Mudbucker
When a Strat or Tele or even a P90 just isn’t enough, there’s nothing like the gut punch of a humbucker to get your point across. On the other hand, a frequent complaint about humbuckers is they are muddy, they cancel out too much of the really high frequencies along with the hum to get good clarity. While a lot of this can be fixed by slight adjustments to picking technique*, there is some truth to the charge – the average humbucker really could use some more presence and detail to bring out its full potential.
*(Go back and forth between Strats and LP’s a few times over the course of a month or two and you’ll discover what a curious thing it is that suddenly every humbucker ever made is too muddy and every single coil too thin – til you naturally alter your technique a little.)
In most cases this problem is due far less to the humbucker’s nature than to bad design and manufacturing techniques: Overpotting or potting with wax mixed too thick, covers, baseplates, screws and slugs made of tone-killing alloys, or inattention to the importance of coil patterns are just some of the problems that contribute to the bum rap the humbucker often gets. Correcting these errors is easy enough, and it helps a lot. But there’s another level of humbucker tone even beyond that. I always thought humbuckers had the potential to be the ultimate pickup design for 3D complexity and sonic depth, because if you could get some of those cancelled high frequencies back and in just the right proportion, the humbucker would cover such a huge frequency range – like being able to look down from the top of a mountain and see all the way to the valley floor without any clouds or haze in the way. If only a humbucker could be made that combined its natural beef with P90 detail and clarity…
I’ve found a way.
One part of my recipe is coil mismatching (winding one coil with significantly more turns of wire than the other), which helps by releasing some of those high frequencies back into the signal chain, and without a noticeable increase in noise. My bridge humbuckers (aka Slugbuckers) are all wound with a stronger slug coil for more midrange grunt while my necks (Woodbuckers) are always wound with the screw coil stronger for a more bell-like tone.
The downside is that due to the mismatch, you will get a bit of hum on high gain settings, particularly with my bridge pickups which have a wider coil disparity than my necks. However it's nowhere near as bad as single coil so no worries, and the increased P90-like clarity and sizzle on top is well worth it.
Mismatched coils is hardly an original idea and I know of at least one winder who takes it to a greater extreme than I do. But my utilization of this concept and its combination with other ingredients is unique, at least as far as I know. I am probably the only winder who does this so exclusively; the formula works so well that outside of R&D I’ve never made a humbucker with even coils and so far I have no plans to ever do so.
The Dreaded Ice Pick
Another complaint about humbuckers, particularly vintage output models intended for the bridge position, is a midrange scoop that exaggerates the treble (the dreaded “icepick in the ear”). Such pickups usually lack the midrange warmth and guts to keep the treble from standing out so strong. In many cases they double down on this problem by emphasizing the most unpleasant combination of frequencies in the treble range.
This is often the result of a far too neat wind pattern, the kind that makes electrical engineers to salute and guitar players cry. It makes a pickup sound both harsh and 2-dimensional, like when your ears are plugged from a cold and you can’t tell if a sound is coming from right next to you or a block away. Often this problem is made even worse by the choice of materials – polepieces, slugs and keeper bars made of steel alloys that only sharpen that icepick. The result is a pickup that drives guitar players crazy as they constantly adjust their EQ in vain – because they are STUCK WITH A PICKUP THAT PARADOXICALLY SOUNDS BOTH TOO BRIGHT AND TOO DARK AT THE SAME TIME!
THAT is what got me into winding…
Handwound vs. Pure Handwound
There is a lot of confusion out there about what exactly constitutes a “handwound” pickup. There may be some disagreements out on the fringes of the winder community, but at least 90% of us consider a pickup handwound if the traverse of the wire back and forth on the spinning bobbin is hand-guided. It is still a handwound pickup if the bobbin is turned by machine. In fact, hand-guided/machine-turned is no subtype or exception; it is the essence of handwound. Probably 99.999% of handwound pickups are made with machine turned bobbins. Anyway, by this definition, ALL of my pickups are handwound.
But I have a line of humbuckers that falls into that .001%. My Pure Handwound line differs from my regular wind in that the wire is wrapped on the bobbin ENTIRELY BY HAND. There is no machine used to turn the bobbin or anything else other than a clamp to hold the bobbin in place – my hands and the wire are the only moving parts. It’s a lot of work but the sound difference is worth it. The regular wind has great dynamics, harmonics, sparkle, clarity and detail, and is very sensitive to height and polepiece adjustments. The Pure Handwound significantly magnifies all these qualities and somehow even adds some sustain to the mix. The string separation is as good as it gets, which means you can strum a Pure Handwound neck pickup as hard as you want, mud-free. Faked double-leads, like when you play southern rock but you’re the only guitar player in the band, sound almost like two separate guitars.
I’d like to pretend I’ve studied all this in a lab with oscilloscopes and I could give you charts and graphs explaining it all, but I really have no idea why this works. It just does. I got the idea from opening up a Timbucker a few years ago and discovering a wind pattern that to my mind could only have been laid on the bobbin by hand. A machine turned bobbin couldn’t create this pattern, what I call the crop circle of wind patterns. Tim White, creator and purveyor of Timbuckers, has since called it quits and I’ve never talked to him about whether he did in fact lay the wire on by hand or otherwise independently verified that he did, although hand-wrapping would explain why his waiting list was nearly 2 years by the end (hand wrapping takes a lot of time). I also make no claim to be able to duplicate his pattern – I still don’t know how he did it.
What I do know is that, like his method, whatever it was, my hand-wrapping technique also creates patterns that can’t be duplicated with a machine turned bobbin and the results are extremely close to his, especially in terms of clarity, dynamics, detail and string separation, mine sounding maybe a touch smoother on top than his.
The regular wind is getting closer all the time and if I ever figure a way to get that sound with a machine-turned bobbin, you can kiss the Pure Handwound line goodbye because it would save you money and turnaround time and me a lot extra work. Til then, the difference is worth it. Humbuckers are so far the only type of pickup line where I offer the Pure Handwound option. I have made some PH Strat and P90 pickups and there is a difference, but not enough to be worth the extra work for me or the extra money for you. Part of the essence of the PH sound is single coil clarity in the treble, and single coils by definition already have that. But I reserve the right to change my mind if I can find a different PH pattern that further enhances single coils.
I strongly recommend your Pure Handwound be made with no cover because even the best covers shunt some of the PH magic to ground. Plus it’ll save you the cost of the cover.
Magnets
For humbuckers, I am pretty much married to roughcast Alnico 2 in the bridge (RCA2), and standard A2 or A3 in the neck for PAF-range pickups. There are exceptions that you can sometimes talk me into something else, depending on your needs. A5U (unoriented Alnico 5) is showing some promise for certain applications, particularly for P90’s. Roughcast A4 (RCA4) may well be used in some lower output humbucker winds. Both are still in R&D for now. Alnico 8 is available for higher output models and for other atypical applications.
Pricing:
Regular Wind....................... $80
Pure Handwound................ $150
Options:
Splat Option**............................................... $15 per pickup.
Nickel Cover.............................................. $13
Gold Cover................................................. $18
RS Relic Aged Nickel Cover........................... $23
12-screw “Sweet Heat” option..................... $5 – the effect is a bit sweeter/smoother sound, and – of course – even more adjustability.
4-conductor............................................... NO CHARGE
F-spacing ................................................... NO CHARGE
Widebucker (larger slugs -- see home page)..................$25
**The Splat is a means of getting a beefier option to the typical wimpy/slicey split humbucker tone. One coil is tapped part way so when you throw the switch you get all of one coil plus part of the other coil for a bigger "single coil" tone. For example, if you had an 8k pickup, instead of the 4k split that sounds like a mosquito on a good day, you could have 5.5k, 6.0k, 6.5k or anywhere in between. Though I will likely make some recommendations for what's best for what you want, the exact spec is up to you...
Models
T-Bucker
Bridge - 7.8k RCA2, Neck - 7.2k A2
DISCLAIMER: Yes, I know T-Tops were made only with Alnico 5. And no, I do not claim that this pickup duplicates the look of a real T-Top. (I don’t even use the shorter magnets!) This is just my take on the underwound sound of the T-top, nothing more.
This is a great set for your 335 or archtop or other naturally beefy axe. The numbers are small but the tone is BIG, and really clear and detailed. This pickup is at its best with the Pure Handwound option, but still great as a regular wind.
DISCLAIMER: Yes, I know T-Tops were made only with Alnico 5. And no, I do not claim that this pickup duplicates the look of a real T-Top. (I don’t even use the shorter magnets!) This is just my take on the underwound sound of the T-top, nothing more.
This is a great set for your 335 or archtop or other naturally beefy axe. The numbers are small but the tone is BIG, and really clear and detailed. This pickup is at its best with the Pure Handwound option, but still great as a regular wind.
Original Slugbucker
Bridge - 8.3k A2 or A4
BRIDGE: This was the spec of the first Slugbucker I ever made, though I didn’t have the roughcast magnets then. It’s for the more hollow, jangly end of the PAF spectrum, but will bark and grunt when you dig in.
BRIDGE: This was the spec of the first Slugbucker I ever made, though I didn’t have the roughcast magnets then. It’s for the more hollow, jangly end of the PAF spectrum, but will bark and grunt when you dig in.
Original Woodbucker
7.6k/A2
The neck mate for the Original Slugbucker but can work with just about any bridge I make. A nice balance between warmth and air, no mud on clean channel strums.
Pagey 2
Bridge - 8.8k A2 or A4, Neck 7.5k A2 or A3
BRIDGE: Plenty of early-Zep grunt and honk without losing the vintage hollowness and double-tones. This and the Brownbucker are my most popular bridge winds.
NECK: Plenty of flute and bell, fat when you want it to be, shimmer and snap at your command. It’s all in your touch. Killer Pagey twang in the middle position with bridge. 7.5k is the most popular spec for my Woodbucker winds.
(*Yes, there was once a plain ol’ Pagey 1 set, neck was pretty much the same and bridge was 8.5k. Everybody wanted a little extra in the bridge so the original was more or less discontinued, though I can easily bring it back just for you.)
BRIDGE: Plenty of early-Zep grunt and honk without losing the vintage hollowness and double-tones. This and the Brownbucker are my most popular bridge winds.
NECK: Plenty of flute and bell, fat when you want it to be, shimmer and snap at your command. It’s all in your touch. Killer Pagey twang in the middle position with bridge. 7.5k is the most popular spec for my Woodbucker winds.
(*Yes, there was once a plain ol’ Pagey 1 set, neck was pretty much the same and bridge was 8.5k. Everybody wanted a little extra in the bridge so the original was more or less discontinued, though I can easily bring it back just for you.)
Brownbucker
Bridge - 9.2k A2 or A4, Neck - 7.8k A2
BRIDGE: For the VH sound if you’ve got a Marshall modded that way. Otherwise a great all around overwound PAF sound. Not as hollow as the Pagey 2, fuller, more grunt, but the double tones are still there.
NECK: A little bit warmer and fatter than the Pagey 2 to keep up with the bridge, but a lot of customers prefer to stick with the 7.5k Pagey 2 spec. Like I said, it’s popular.
BRIDGE: For the VH sound if you’ve got a Marshall modded that way. Otherwise a great all around overwound PAF sound. Not as hollow as the Pagey 2, fuller, more grunt, but the double tones are still there.
NECK: A little bit warmer and fatter than the Pagey 2 to keep up with the bridge, but a lot of customers prefer to stick with the 7.5k Pagey 2 spec. Like I said, it’s popular.
Duanebucker
Bridge - 9.5k A2 or A4, Neck - 8.0k A2
Bridge and neck both on the fat and creamy side for some killer slide tones like you-know-who. Still very clear with great harmonics.
Neck is great for fat single note lines in general, though you might want to have me take a few turns off if you’re a hard strummer with neck pu’s.
Bridge and neck both on the fat and creamy side for some killer slide tones like you-know-who. Still very clear with great harmonics.
Neck is great for fat single note lines in general, though you might want to have me take a few turns off if you’re a hard strummer with neck pu’s.
Duanebucker Plus
9.9k A2 or A4
A Duanebucker with some extra turns for extra cream, especially if you go A4...
Crushbucker
Bridge 10.3k A2 / A4 / A8
This is the heavyweight of my 42 gauge humbucker line, and one for metalheads to seriously consider since it can be made with A8 to be a true high output pickup. Plenty of clarity for harmonics and cleans up very well, but enough weight to crush any resistance from your preamp, especially A8 mag.
This is the heavyweight of my 42 gauge humbucker line, and one for metalheads to seriously consider since it can be made with A8 to be a true high output pickup. Plenty of clarity for harmonics and cleans up very well, but enough weight to crush any resistance from your preamp, especially A8 mag.
O-Bucker
Bridge 10.6k A3
This was originally a special pickup made for a friend by the name of Olin (hence the name) way back when. It is my own take on the “hybrid” craze among DIY players, where a coil from a high output pickup is paired with a vintage output coil to get vintage clarity with more beef. Not a bad idea…
So accordingly, the slug coil is wound with 43 gauge wire (screw coil with 42) which means the 10.6k spec is misleadingly high. In terms of output, it’s more or less equal to the Brownbucker. Very sweet, detailed top end that’s further enhanced with an Alnico 3 magnet. When I first tested it, I just wanted to play slowly picked shimmering chords on it all day. Would pair well with a T-bucker or Original Slugbucker neck.
This was originally a special pickup made for a friend by the name of Olin (hence the name) way back when. It is my own take on the “hybrid” craze among DIY players, where a coil from a high output pickup is paired with a vintage output coil to get vintage clarity with more beef. Not a bad idea…
So accordingly, the slug coil is wound with 43 gauge wire (screw coil with 42) which means the 10.6k spec is misleadingly high. In terms of output, it’s more or less equal to the Brownbucker. Very sweet, detailed top end that’s further enhanced with an Alnico 3 magnet. When I first tested it, I just wanted to play slowly picked shimmering chords on it all day. Would pair well with a T-bucker or Original Slugbucker neck.
Woodbucker 24
Neck 8.3k A2
This is a hotter wound neck pickup designed for 24-fret guitars, most SG’s, or any guitar where the neck pickup is a bit closer to the bridge than usual. The extra turns are there to make up for the reduced vibration closer to the bridge.
This is a hotter wound neck pickup designed for 24-fret guitars, most SG’s, or any guitar where the neck pickup is a bit closer to the bridge than usual. The extra turns are there to make up for the reduced vibration closer to the bridge.
Telebucker
Neck 7.0k A3
As the name implies, a neck humbucker designed for Telecasters. Even the usual underwound humbucker can easily overwhelm a Tele bridge pickup. This one is designed to match up with Tele bridges with a little extra beef. If your bridge is much more vintage, see below…
As the name implies, a neck humbucker designed for Telecasters. Even the usual underwound humbucker can easily overwhelm a Tele bridge pickup. This one is designed to match up with Tele bridges with a little extra beef. If your bridge is much more vintage, see below…
Telebucker 2
Neck 6.5k A3
A neck humbucker designed for Tele’s as above, but this one is wound especially light to balance with vintage output Tele bridge pickups while still keeping the fullness you wanted a humbucker for to begin with. Spec can even be dropped as far down as the high 5’s – which you might need for those hardcore low-6 Tele bridges.
A neck humbucker designed for Tele’s as above, but this one is wound especially light to balance with vintage output Tele bridge pickups while still keeping the fullness you wanted a humbucker for to begin with. Spec can even be dropped as far down as the high 5’s – which you might need for those hardcore low-6 Tele bridges.
Super Slugbucker
Bridge 14.5k A2
A mid-high output pickup for the player who loves metal, classic, and everything in between. Plenty of heat but Slugbucker clarity still rules.
A mid-high output pickup for the player who loves metal, classic, and everything in between. Plenty of heat but Slugbucker clarity still rules.
Chunkbucker
Bridge 14.2k A8
Alnico 8 high output pu with massive bass response for chunk-craving metalheads.
Alnico 8 high output pu with massive bass response for chunk-craving metalheads.
