Optimum pickup height?

[Dave Sloven]

Raising the pole pieces does make a difference on my SG mainly because of the neck angle.  If you look at the neck angle on your guitar and it is similar relative to the pickups I would suggest it.  I think I said elsewhere that I haven't bothered on my Explorer, or rather that there was no need for the front to be higher than the back.  I'm going to experiment with pole piece and pickup heights again when I put them back in, but I suspect that the front will be relatively close to the ones at the back.

As for the radius thing, yeah, I have given it a go, only a half turn or so on D and G.  Not sure if it's made a difference.  Lifting them all a couple of turns did though, especially with the neck pickup reversed like that.  Took the 'woof' out of the neck somewhat to drop it while raising the poles.

[Lucas]

To be accurate, I`ve ordered those 'understring radius gauges'. Delivery takes about 2 weeks from USA to the UK, but Im patient 8) Will give it a go as well to see if it really works. On the other hand, it does make sense to make some adjustments to the bridge saddles as well to match them with the radius, but adjustments on the tune-o-matic bridges are very limited.
You can rise it up only on the sides. How to overcome that issue?

[Philly Q]

On the other hand, it does make sense to make some adjustments to the bridge saddles as well to match them with the radius, but adjustments on the tune-o-matic bridges are very limited.
You can rise it up only on the sides. How to overcome that issue?

Most tune-o-matics have a 12" radius.

To try to match precisely with a different radius all you can do is file the saddle slots to different depths.  Tricky job, probably best done by a pro.

Or you could not bother. 

[Lucas]

Cheers.

And what about compound necks where radius changes across the freatboard from 10 to 16 like on the Warmoth Vintage Modern/Pro necks?

[Dave Sloven]

I would say that if you can't pick the improvement by ear just winding the pole piece up and down then it's not worth worrying about

[Philly Q]

And what about compound necks where radius changes across the freatboard from 10 to 16 like on the Warmoth Vintage Modern/Pro necks?

In that case, you'd want to match the radius of the bridge saddles with the higher frets.  The nut takes care of the lower frets. 

So the nut slots would have a radius of 10" and the bridge saddles would have a radius of 16" - or in fact even flatter than that, because if the compound-radius neck ran all the way up to the bridge, the radius would keep getting bigger and bigger.

[AndyR]

I would say that if you can't pick the improvement by ear just winding the pole piece up and down then it's not worth worrying about

Brilliant! :lol:

That's not exactly what I was trying to say, but it perfectly summarises the way I feel about polepiece heights nowadays.

Pickup heights, yes, very important but they have to be done by ear. Recommendations like 2mm etc are just recommendations as good starting points. Listen to what it does to your sound. If it sounds best at something that turns out to be 7 mm if you bother to measure it, then that is what's right for you on that guitar... there is no general right or wrong rule except "if it sounds right to you it IS right" (even if it sounds @RSE to someone else!! :lol:)

Polepiece heights, I'm not really sure I can detect much difference or, more importantly, whether I prefer it one way or the other. So I just set them up to look tidy.

But, I do have to admit, to get to this way of thinking, I did have to go through hours and hours of fiddling with it over the years... It almost feels like you have to put in the fiddling and obsessing time just to rule stuff out and find out what you really want to do :lol: