upgrade pickup for MSA Classic?

Tommy Boswell · From: Virginia, USA

I'd like to upgrade the pickup in my MSA Classic S10. It's got a single coil now, probably original. It sounds very hot and harsh to me. Just looking for recommendations to sweeten up the tone.

Dave O'Brien · From: Florida and New Jersey

I'd suggest you try a George L 10-1- easy to install and sounds great.
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Bill Duncan · From: Lenoir, North Carolina, USA

I have E66's on my MSA D10 Classic, and they sound very good. The Super Sustain humbuckers that came on it were not potted and were microphonic.

In my experience the type of pickups don't make all that much of a tone difference, unless they go microphonic. The amplifier and amplifier settings and peripherals such as RV3 or other effects can make much more of a difference.
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Lane Gray · From: Topeka, KS

ToneAligner. with the adjustable pole pieces, you can balance it per string, and there's a tonal difference between the two coils (probably due to one being farther from the bridge).
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David Higginbotham · From: Lake Charles, Louisiana, USA

Tommy, is your MSA a lacquered or mica guitar? The mica steels in the early 70's have a brighter tone in General and those pickups were wound really light like in the 12K DC ohm range. If this is the case, having the pickup rewound to 18k or so would help a great deal. As for the lacquer models, I've had many and tried many pickups with good results with the 10-1, better with the SS-10, and of course really good with an original 705. But, I've found the perfect pickup for my ears using Emmons single coil wound to 19.5K DC ohms. In fact that's what I also use in my GFI.
Dave

Mike Perlowin · From: Los Angeles CA

My former green lacquer classic (shown in my avatar) had (and presumably still has) a George L 5 position pickup. Perhaps all 5 sounds are distinguishable on other guitars, but on that one, 4 of them sounded almost identical, except that 2 of the positions produced a 60 cycle hum. I felt the pickup had 2 good usable sounds.

My former white mica classic was retrofitted with the Sierra modular system. I has 2 pickups for it. A True Tone and a George L humbucker. I'm not sure which model.

The True Tone was much brighter and crisper, but being a single coil, produced the 60 cycle hum. The George L wax dead quiet, but didn't have the punch of the True Tone.

Side note: I think all steels should have modular pickup systems. The idea is not so much to have a lot of different pickups, but rather to be able to try them out and compare them and find the one you prefer.

I have tone aligners in my 2 Millies. I want to try an alumitone and some of the new Telonics pickups, and may switch if any of them are more to my liking.
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David Nugent · From: Gum Spring, Va.

The term, "hot and harsh" sounds like your describing the pickup in one of the early models, e-mail sent.

Tommy Boswell · From: Virginia, USA

Thanks for all the tips.

It's a mica model, probably mid-seventies? The pickup has 10 pole pieces visible. It measures 1 and 1/8 inch wide, with no room to spare for a bigger one.

Mike Perlowin · From: Los Angeles CA

David Higginbotham · From: Lake Charles, Louisiana, USA

Tommy as Mike mentions, the neck can be routed to accommodate a larger pickup. You can also take that pickup out and send it to Jerry Wallace or someone else that makes pickups and have them wind it to a heavier resistance. I've done both on two 73 models and I was happier with the tone. But, I would suggest familiarity with routers and wood working before attempting to route the neck. Easy to make a mistake that will show! Winking

Dave

Tommy Boswell · From: Virginia, USA

If this were my only guitar, I'd probably let a technician do the upgrade.

But as it turns out, I have learned how to get good sound out of the MSA as is. The mistake I made was thinking I could unplug my ETS guitar, and plug in the MSA without changing anything else. Wrong! They are completely different animals. I had to change everything, buffers, effects, amp settings, etc.

Thanks again for all the tips.

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