Author Topic: Novel ideas for pickup design (or implementation) (Read 8072 times)

jimibt · « **on:** January 06, 2006, 09:58:36 AM »

hi all,

was just thinking about the hassle involved in refitting out a guitar after getting new pups when a thought occurred to me. i figured that a system with some sort of 'edge connector' on the pickup (with obviously the famale equivalent housed inside the pickup mounting plate) could be quite interesting and would allow you to 'change' the pickups on the fly by easing the pickup out of it's mounting and placing the new pickup in it's place. that way, you could have mules in your lp one night and crawlers the next etc, etc..

anyone think this would work??

also, any other novel thoughts on design and or implementation??

Skybone · « **Reply #1 on:** January 06, 2006, 10:39:09 AM »

EMG brought out some pickups with connector "blocks" on the wiring. Good idea, but limits the possibilities for tapping/phase wiring.

jimibt · « **Reply #2 on:** January 06, 2006, 10:43:41 AM »

Quote from: Skybone

EMG brought out some pickups with connector "blocks" on the wiring. Good idea, but limits the possibilities for tapping/phase wiring.

i was thinking an edge connector with 4 sockets (one for each of the 4 coil wires). i suppose if the design was clever on the 'pickup mounting plate', then small dip switches could be employed to setup the wiring in a limited number of ways.

just my tuppence worth :)

HJM · « **Reply #3 on:** January 06, 2006, 10:48:24 AM »

Remember that guitar with the modular pickup system in it??? What was it?

jimibt · « **Reply #4 on:** January 06, 2006, 10:52:26 AM »

Quote from: HJM

Remember that guitar with the modular pickup system in it??? What was it?

dan armstrong??

carlaz · « **Reply #5 on:** January 06, 2006, 11:23:13 AM »

There was a brief thread talking about "snap-in" pickup installation possibilities some months ago, I think. Fabulous idea, IMO, but unless manufacturers agreed on a standard mounting system, you'd end up with Beta vs. VHS -- or at best you'd be locked into using the BKP "FastFit Pickup Cradle" forever (which, actually, doesn't seem so bad :)).

Surely what prevents more players from buying more pickups is the hassle of installing them? It'd be so much more convenient to just buy new pups that you could slap in in moments (loosen up the strings at bit, I guess, and slide 'em under) rather than buying multiple guitars to load with multiple pickups. Then pickups would become basically like effects pedals: not so different in price and almost as easy to swap in and out of your rig.

Ah well. We can but hope for the future!

Ratrod · « **Reply #6 on:** January 06, 2006, 11:57:03 AM »

True, there was a topic about that once. I have to say that EMG's are vry easy to install. Two pickups, 4 pots, jack etc. in under 45 minutes!

NPH · « **Reply #7 on:** January 06, 2006, 01:51:56 PM »

Many years ago, I think I remember seeing an interview with Michael Schenkers guitar tech. This was back in the days when Metal Mickey was still in the land of the sane and sober and had half a solo career going on. :lol:
Any widdle, there were some pictures of a "test bed" flying V that MS used to test pickups. There were two channels cut out of the treble side of the body, so new pups could be slotted in under the strings with out re tuning. All the tech had to do was fit spade connectors to the wires to link up to the pots.
Of course this guitar sported the infamous black and white paint job like all his main axes.
I don't remember the mag it was in, maybe some other more "Mature" members could back up my fuzzy brain cells.

Ratrod · « **Reply #8 on:** January 06, 2006, 03:25:10 PM »

Dammit, I had a similar idea years ago but I never did anything with it. The problem was that the sound is also influenced by shape and material.

Absolue_Zero · « **Reply #9 on:** January 06, 2006, 05:28:46 PM »

Way back in the seventies, John Birch produced a guitar where the pickups were mounted thru the back of the body... with a variety of pups to choose from.

[edit] It was actually Tony Iommi's idea.
http://www.vintageguitar.com/artists/details.asp?ID=109

Ratrod · « **Reply #10 on:** January 06, 2006, 05:37:35 PM »

Great minds alike.

:gne:

Kilby · « **Reply #11 on:** January 16, 2006, 09:42:28 PM »

Regarding the John Birch modular pickup business if you head off to http://www.johnbirchguitars.com/index2.html and download the zipped catalogue page 15 shows some shots of the guitar in question.

Theres also some frankly scary pics of the controls on some of his instruments containing his multiflux pickups.

There I thought things where bad in the late 70s because of all the mini toggle switches.

Rob...

carlaz · « **Reply #12 on:** January 16, 2006, 10:05:06 PM »

Quote from: Kilby

There I thought things where bad in the late 70s because of all the mini toggle switches.

Push-pull is as far as I go on switch complexity! :) I can barely manage the pickup selector on my LP as it is .... ;)

I've got a push-pull that cuts a capacitor on my Rick 4001's bridge pickup -- a lot more low end with that sucker out of there! Though I hardly need the switch since I always keep that capacitor cut out. :)

_tom_ · « **Reply #13 on:** January 16, 2006, 10:05:22 PM »

I've been thinking about this for soo long! If there was a standard it would be great.

indysmith · « **Reply #14 on:** January 16, 2006, 10:24:40 PM »

Quote from: _tom_

I've been thinking about this for soo long! If there was a standard it would be great.

Dude it was my invention first; we've had this arguement, and i won, remember? 8)

Author Topic: ** Novel ideas for pickup design (or implementation) ** (Read 8072 times)

Author Topic: Novel ideas for pickup design (or implementation) (Read 8072 times)