Pickup winding preference question

Lane Gray · From: Topeka, KS

OK, it appears that most of us both: accept the current fairly hot pickups and; find we like the bark of a much lighter pickup better.

1) Do I have this correct, or do I just egomorphize the lot of us?

2) If I have it correct and it ain't just me, why is Jerry Wallace the only one selling tapped single coils and a single model of George L the only tapped humbucker (plus the Pentad, only on Emmons, last I knew)?

3) If I have it correct, why don't more folks buy custom lighter pickups, since they don't cost extra?

I like both tones, but generally prefer the barkier.
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2 pedal steels, a lapStrat, and an 8-string Dobro (and 3 ukes)
More amps than guitars, and not many effects

Craig Schwartz · From: McHenry IL

Lighter meaning brighter ?
If So:
I sat next to an 80 year old gentleman at the St Louis show and he could`nt stand the brighter sound of of some of the great players playing older songs, I think it hurt his ears, but it didnt effect me and I kinda liked the brighter generic sound as it came through very clean,
As each pickup has its own character , I seem to like a generic sound like wallace more,especially with a freeloader after the pickup.
I this what you`re talkin about Lane ?
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SO MANY LURES, SO LITTLE TIME....

Lane Gray · From: Topeka, KS

I was referring to the thinner/twangier/brighter sound common in the earlier steels, like Sho-Bud and ZB and Fender.
Their pickups were wound to lower values than is the current style, and as you lower the windings, the sound gets a bit thinner, and the envelope seems to change: the attack seems to have a bark to it.
Sho-Bud used to have a tap so that you could use even less of the pickup. When I played the borrowed LDG, I rarely used the full pickup, liking the tone better at the tap.
I leave both necks hot on my Zum to approximate the same effect
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2 pedal steels, a lapStrat, and an 8-string Dobro (and 3 ukes)
More amps than guitars, and not many effects

Kevin Hatton · From: Buffalo, N.Y.

I fully agree Lane. The ZB pickups have 3 wide ranging taps. I much prefer the 16.5 tap. I would never play a pickup that was wound to more than 16.5. They start to get too dark, which is the predominent sound of today's modern guitars.

Lane Gray · From: Topeka, KS

I don't mind dark (if you've read my posts, I've complained about my overly bright right hand on here since 96).
Hot pickups are blunt: the opposite of sharp.
It's that thin-edged bite that I miss, and that Tele bark.
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2 pedal steels, a lapStrat, and an 8-string Dobro (and 3 ukes)
More amps than guitars, and not many effects

James Quackenbush · From: Pomona, New York, USA

I think that a lot has to do with what steel you're putting the pickup in ......My favorite pickup is a 17.5 in an Emmons PP ..... I also really like the Truetone 17.5 but will also have Jerry tap it at 15.5 or there abouts because I really like that "whispy" tone that you get from the less powerful pickups ..... I put a 17.5 Truetone in an older Russler ,and it sounded very FULL as opposed to bright and punchy like it did in an Emmons PP...... Then too , you can throw that entire theory out the window when you start seeing the stat's on Bill Lawrences pickups ..... I also like the additional harmonics that can be coaxed out of less powerful single coils ......Jim

Chris Johnson · From: USA

I discussed something like this on the forum a while ago and how most players glorify and chase the sound of yesteryear but use pickups wound to 20 kajillion.

I like lighter wounded pickups too (TrueTone @ 17.0K). Although a little thinner, they seem to lose that honky flat midrange that I can't stand which in turn gives the pickup more punch and deeper bass response

4 digit windings were commonplace in the really old steel guitars and they had tone-to-the-bone.

Donny Hinson · From: Glen Burnie, Md. U.S.A.

I find that with the right amp and right hand technique, I can get a pretty good sound regardless of the pickup I use...but that's just me! Shocked

YMMV of course. Oh Well

Chris Johnson · From: USA

Of course!!! If only our amps and technique were half as good as Donny's, it wouldn't matter what our pickups were wound to and we wouldn't be having this nonsensical discussion Oh Well

Michael Hummel · From: Ottawa, Ontario, Canada

You guys are confusing the hell out of a new player (3 months) !

I want my Sho-Bud to sound like what I hear on new country records (and some "classic" country records too). I have several amps (and modelling processors) at my disposal. At the moment I am fairly happy with my Line6 AX2-212 with the Roland Jazz Chorus model when I'm playing with the band. At home I use a Fender Princeton Recording.

I am constantly wondering if I should change pickups to something newer (on another thread someone told me I still have the more-or-less original pickups) or whether changing the amp settings will make just as much if not more of a difference.

Believe me, with my 6-string guitars I can hear and am very fussy about pickups and amps, but I haven't played steel long enough to 'get' the sound I am hearing in my head.

Mike
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MSA Classic 5+4
Too many 6-strings and amps to list

Philip Mitrakos · From: The Beach South East Florida

Pickup height ....
Start with a quarter between the string and pickup for height...
Listen....add a dime to the quarter for height...listen....
then stack 2 quarters for height and listen....
you have just tried 3 different pickups all sound different...
Way too much effort is put into trying pickups ..,amps.., cords..
effects...speakers...
Please ....just come back to reality and back to just the basics...
Of simple sound...
The all elusive sound is in the way you touch the strings
And you cant buy that at any price...

Lane Gray · From: Topeka, KS

Michael, I'd contemplate sending the pickup to Jerry Wallace for rewinding. He can put in a tap so you could have both the Sho-Bud tone and a modern 17.5K sound
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2 pedal steels, a lapStrat, and an 8-string Dobro (and 3 ukes)
More amps than guitars, and not many effects

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