Bare Knuckle Pickups Forum

Forum Ringside => Guitars, Amps and Effects => Topic started by: Spat on August 17, 2008, 07:59:35 PM

Title: Swaping a strat bridge humbucker to a single coil.
Post by: Spat on August 17, 2008, 07:59:35 PM

I've recently got hold of a Mexican HSS Fender strat and I'm thinking about puting an Irish Tour set into it.
 Will puting a single coil into a bridge space that has been routed out for a humbucker have a detrimental effect on the tone and output of the new pickup.

Title: Re: Swaping a strat bridge humbucker to a single coil.
Post by: Sifu Ben on August 17, 2008, 08:03:34 PM

When you take your scratchplate off you may well find that the neck's routed for a humbucker as well. Because the strat pickups mount on the scratchplate loads of manufacturers just make all their bodies H-S-H and then put the relevent scratchplate on. That is of course if they haven't got the dreaded "swimming poolW rout.

Title: Re: Swaping a strat bridge humbucker to a single coil.
Post by: Philly Q on August 17, 2008, 08:04:59 PM

And no, it won't affect the tone of the new pickup at all!  :)

Title: Re: Swaping a strat bridge humbucker to a single coil.
Post by: Woogie on August 17, 2008, 08:16:18 PM

Unless you're Eric Johnson

Title: Re: Swaping a strat bridge humbucker to a single coil.
Post by: WezV on August 17, 2008, 08:19:49 PM

i think even he would struggle to hear that one :)

Title: Re: Swaping a strat bridge humbucker to a single coil.
Post by: Ted 'N' Leo on August 17, 2008, 09:02:22 PM

Quote from: Sifu Ben on August 17, 2008, 08:03:34 PM

That is of course if they haven't got the dreaded "swimming poolW rout.

Is there something wrong with this style of rout? Just wondering as I was gonna get a warmoth strat body made when i get the money and i considered this one.

Title: Re: Swaping a strat bridge humbucker to a single coil.
Post by: Philly Q on August 17, 2008, 09:27:00 PM

There are some who think you should remove the least possible amount of wood from the body for the best tone, but I've also seen it claimed that the large "swimming pool" routing ads a bit of hollow-body-like additional resonance.  I remember in the '80s Allan Holdworth had his Charvel Strats routed out under the scratchplate, even though he only used a single bridge humbucker.

I think the truth is that Fender did it to save the costs of having to make different bodies for different pickup configurations, and maybe also to keep the weight down a bit.  And now they're basically doing the same with HSH routings. 

Title: Re: Swaping a strat bridge humbucker to a single coil.
Post by: WezV on August 17, 2008, 10:20:08 PM

i dont like the swimming pool route because if you consider on a guitar with a trem  you have effectively removed most of the wood between the bridge and neck and that does not seem like a good idea

in real terms, if you think you might want to change to different types of pickups then the swimming pool has some benefit that makes it more worthwhile.   if you know what pickups you will have then route for those

if i want extra hollow body ish resonance the best way is to make it chambered and put the chambers in less structurally significant positions