Humbuckers - really - do we need the proliferation of all these different so called "voicings"

Travisthedog

I know nothing about building pick ups

But of late there seems to be a positive plague of what are essentially variations on the same theme.

I mean if you consider that really the vast majority of rock music (for instance) was recorded using what? 3, maybe 4 types of pick ups - why do manufacturers feel the need to suddenly flood the market with 3 million types of humbucker. I saw one advertised as "ideal for that 80's sound" What - itll make my guitar sound like stock aitken and Waterman?

Seriously - I'm sure rock guitarists in the 80's were playing guitars built in the 70's etc and those hair metal bands got much of that 80's tone from the amps/effects/ and production of the era.

I understand why there are lots of builders and long may that continue - but to have about 200 different types of humbucker seems daft..

Flame away

GuitarMonkey

No argument here

jd0272

It's all in the perception. Innit?

My fave HB was a SD Pearly Gates. Still lush. A really nice bitey pickup. Then I got the Shed Zepplin's. Phwoar. Just really raw. Love 'em. Underwound, overwound, who knows, who knew?

It's like owt else in the info age, all at your fingertips. 

richardhomer

Agreed.

In the 'old days', if you were tempted to replace the humbuckers your guitar came with you had a choice of a Di Marzio Super Distortion - or the tappable 'Dual Sound' which was a four conductor version of the same thing - or a Di Marzio PAF.

Life was much simpler as you had a pretty good idea of what sound to expect from your purchases.

cbilly22

Market economics is about the only answer, I think the demand is there and we do love to chop and change. Reckon it's much worse with the billions of Tubescreamer type pedals available, but I may be biased as I never liked the original to start with.

Going back to the pickup thing, I think a lot of the variations come about because we like everything to be a bit more this or a bit less that, or at least we convince ourselves we do. 

cbilly22

cbilly22 said:

Market economics is about the only answer, I think the demand is there and we do love to chop and change. Reckon it's much worse with the billions of Tubescreamer type pedals available, but I may be biased as I never liked the original to start with.

Going back to the pickup thing, I think a lot of the variations come about because we like everything to be a bit more this or a bit less that, or at least we convince ourselves we do. 

....and to prove it, I've just ordered an Oil City HB

Sassafras

It's called Free Enterprise, I think.

xSkarloey

Vive le difference!

There are far worse ways of passing the time after all.

rossi

I think its all down to too much bedroom wanking at low levels rather than belting it out live in a band .After a certain volume level is obtained no-one knows ,hears or cares whats in the guitar .its just the volumeI,man .Ther is just too much plain wankery pokery played through tiny tube amps .Corse I could be wrong ............

Maynehead

Why are breweries flooding the market with so many varieties of beer? After all it's all made with malt hops and yeast... After you get to a certain level of inebriation it all tastes the same!

But then again, the world would be a worse place if this was not the case.

richardhomer

rossi;514192" said:

I think its all down to too much bedroom wanking at low levels rather than belting it out live in a band .After a certain volume level is obtained no-one knows ,hears or cares whats in the guitar .its just the volumeI,man .Ther is just too much plain wankery pokery played through tiny tube amps .Corse I could be wrong ............

I think there's a lot of truth in this.

Want a brighter sound - turn up the treble on your amp. Less gain? Turn down the gain...

People these days seem to fine-tune their sound by throwing money at it.

It's absurd really....

impmann

richardhomer;514138" said:

Agreed.

In the 'old days', if you were tempted to replace the humbuckers your guitar came with you had a choice of a Di Marzio Super Distortion - or the tappable 'Dual Sound' which was a four conductor version of the same thing - or a Di Marzio PAF.

Life was much simpler as you had a pretty good idea of what sound to expect from your purchases.

Yes but DiMarzio buckers of that period were fucking horrible. In my opinion, natch ;-)

richardhomer

impmann;514227" said:

[quote="richardhomer;514138"]Yes but DiMarzio buckers of that period were fucking horrible. In my opinion, natch ;-)

Perhaps you are responsible for the proliferation in the market?

impmann

Maybe. I am a pickup whore. ;-)

AuldReekie

Find the range of humbuckers confusing and the product descriptions don't really help very much, however, I am also glad that there is a wide choice. In my Blade RH4, I have had 6 H/B in the bridge position, chronologically the stock p/up, then four SDS - Custom Custom, Pearly Gates, Jazz and Stag Mag. None of these caught what I was really looking for, namely that they had to produce a good coilt tapped sound in addition to humbucking. it is only now that I have a pick up that does this. Step forward Ash at Oil City and his Brass Knuckle

Skipped

My best Humbucker advice is borrow as many as you can.
And don't ask what they are.
Just use your ears.

If a so called hot pickup sounds amazing when you play Jazz....because you have a very light touch.....who cares if it has an embarrassing name?

Travisthedog

I must admit when looking I tend to look at makers like mojo, shed etc who offer maybe 2-4 humbuckers as (rightly or wrongly) they're doing that one thing bloody well and not spreading themselves thinly over 20 different designs all with ludicrous descriptions of what that should sound like....

It's just too confusing

meltedbuzzbox

richardhomer said:

People these days seem to fine-tune their sound by throwing money at it.

@Gassage :-P

richardhomer

meltedbuzzbox;514279" said:

richardhomer said:



People these days seem to fine-tune their sound by throwing money at it.

@Gassage :-P

It's not to fine tune his tone - it's to entertain us.

A pretty selfless act given how much it costs him....

meltedbuzzbox

you are on form tonight @richardhomer !!

10thumbs

I agree , but ,I`m as guilty as anybody , I`m currently agonising over where to put a matched set of BKP Stormy Mondays ,

a new set of SD Whole Lotta Loves and a couple of BKP Mississippi Queens .......

......... stupidly bought too many pickups  , for my "keepers". :-S

And there is already some decent pups in them .

One set will have to go , but which ones ???  :x

 Nice problem too have s`pose.  8-|