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Permalink Reply by Dan Sleep on November 13, 2015 at 7:38am

I suppose it will boil down to whether or not you are looking for a particular sound quality. Your two basic options are single coil and humbucker. Both have the advantages. Both will require you to cut an opening in the box, so depending on if you have the neck going all the way through the box, you may need to cut a notch in the neck to make room for the bottom of the pickup.

Gitty sells a variety of pickups and at a pretty good price, so you should be able to find something you like.

If you would prefer not to have to cut a hole for the pickup, there are other options available.

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Permalink Reply by Angry Rooster Guitars on November 13, 2015 at 8:35am

Thanks Dan. Notching the necks is no problem for mine. I'm hoping I get to a level where my guitars become stage quality guitars. I'm sure I have a lot to learn...but maybe not....I don't really have much to compare to since I'm new at this. Anyway, would you recommend going with the humbucker considering my goal?

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Permalink Reply by Dan Sleep on November 13, 2015 at 9:23am

A humbucker is going to be quieter and less susceptible to buzz or hum than a single coil. The ones I sell are very thin, less than .25 inches thick, and just slide under the strings and screw to the lid. No cutting needed, just a small hole for the connecting wires.

They are lower output than commercially made pickups, since they only have 4,000 winds of wire on them. So, if you plan on playing AC/DC power chords, they are probably not for you.

I have several videos on my page that show what they sound like.

www.humidorguitars.com

Any of the ones that Wayfinder listed are quality stuff.

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Permalink Reply by Angry Rooster Guitars on November 13, 2015 at 8:54am

Thanks Wayfinder! That's perfect!

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Permalink Reply by Cause the Blue rat on November 15, 2015 at 7:25am

With mags you kinda get what you pay for. There are some really good off brands. Mighty Mite, is one that come to mind. Can be ebay'd for $20 or less a pickup. Then there's the 'licensed by' pickups. They're replicas of pickups made by someone else. Used ones sell a lot cheaper than the originals. Aways get a kick out of hearing someone replaced a licensed by set for the original pickup maker. Spend and extra $200 to end up with the exact same thing.......

Totally agree with Wayfinder. There are plenty of folks who make really good hand made pickups on this site. Give your CBG an awesome look and deep roots sound. Gitty sells some cool looking pups. 

What's cool about a CBG is they can be easily modified. If you cut a hole you don't want later. stick an extra piece of wood over it. Just adds to the charm.

Wayfinder, the higher price of these pickups are based on two things. Materials used and quality control. It's very hard to guarantee one pickup will sound exactly like another. Not all magnets are alike. To much filed will actually slow down a strings vibration. Then there's the hype. I fell for it many years ago. Spent big bucks to to put a batterie in my guitar. The wonders of high output active pickups. Truth is I now have a $50 ten band EQ pedal that does so much more. And I can use it with every guitar I own. Not to mention I no longer have to take my guitar apart to change a batterie. All these high priced boutique pickups are nothing but hype. 

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Permalink Reply by Angry Rooster Guitars on November 15, 2015 at 4:28pm

Again, thanks guys! I don't think there is a question I could ask on here that I wouldn't get good answers for. I really appreciate it!!!

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Permalink Reply by Sean on November 24, 2015 at 3:56pm

If you list what kind of sound you're going for, level of gain/ distortion you use, tuning, other effects, I'm sure folks could recommend specific pickups too. There's a TON of great options in the $45-60 range, and another ton in the passable $5 and up range too. I used junk & parts bin pickups I had for my first two builds - a random Tele neck pickup I used on a one string bass, and a leftover Fender strat pickup on a three string guitar. They both still sound great, though I prefer humbucker or p-bass pickups now, for the 'stage ready' reason you mention. 

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Permalink Reply by Angry Rooster Guitars on November 25, 2015 at 3:30am

Thanks Sean! Seems like humbucker is a popular choice.

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