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Again: Can a Bass Guitar Mag Pickup be used on a 4-stringer CBG with good results?

Posted by Rand Moore on November 14, 2010 at 3:31am in Building Secrets, Tips, Advice, Discussion
Hi All...


I have been wondering if I can use the 4-string magnetic pickups
designed for a Bass Guitar on a 4-stringer Cigar Box Guitar?  Would it
produce the same quality sound as for a 6-string guitar mag pickup?  Or,
is it designed to produce a lower bass range signal? I'm not looking to
make a Cigar Box Bass. Here's a link to something on E-Bay like what
I'm talking about: E-Bay Link



This one seemed reasonably priced.

-Rand.

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Tags: Bass, Magnetic, Pickups
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Replies

  • rockcity December 2, 2010 at 8:59am
    Absolutely...
  • GARAGE HERMIT December 1, 2010 at 1:20pm


    Scotty C. said:
    That is
    BADASS. What did you use for the body frame???


    GARAGE HERMIT said:
    a piece of 1/2" thick alloy plate i found in my garage, left over from when i was customising my hd shovelhead,

    used an old bass p/u on this 3-stringer, sound's just fine,,


  • Mister Scott December 1, 2010 at 9:50am
    That is
    BADASS. What did you use for the body frame???


    GARAGE HERMIT said:
    used an old bass p/u on this 3-stringer, sound's just fine,,


  • GARAGE HERMIT December 1, 2010 at 8:50am
    used an old bass p/u on this 3-stringer, sound's just fine,,

  • Mister Scott December 1, 2010 at 2:34am
    She's a sharp lookin one, John! Hows the sound, acoustically vs electrically?

    John Drake said:
    Another view. I didn't make it clear in the above discussion that I cut off and used the ends of the bracket using an angle grinder. Not the whole bracket or angle.
  • John Drake November 30, 2010 at 7:19pm
    Another view. I didn't make it clear in the above discussion that I cut off and used the ends of the bracket using an angle grinder. Not the whole bracket or angle.


  • John Drake November 30, 2010 at 7:00pm
    Hi Scotty,

    I just used a plated angle bracket from a hardware store. Get one to match the desired width. For 4 string about 40 mm wide. I think the bracket was about 50x50 x 3.5 thick and 40 mm wide. For sitting over a 6 string pickup you will need a bit wider - but you might be able to find a length of bar that you can cut it out of - use an angle grinder with a steel cutoff disk. You don't have to have the fancy rounded internal corners - infact probably easier to fit if you cut square. Don't forget that aluminium (aluminum in US) is not magnetic so it doesn't work!

    Here is photo of another one of mine which does have a 6 string pickup but I still kept to a 40 mm wide bar (cut off a bracket) so it only sits across the middle four poles of the pickup. It works well. The pickup was one of those cheap Ebay purchases from China. Complete with volume and tone control and fully wired for less than $ 10 delivered.


    PS Got my first batch of jack plates and jacks from China. Look good. $ 3.80 for jack and plate together including delivery. About 7 days to deliver to Australia. See earlier post in this discussion. John D
  • Mister Scott November 30, 2010 at 1:24pm
    I really love this idea. But it begs the question: where do I get a steel slab like the bottom one?


    John Drake said:
    Can also use a steel bar to create a narrower field. Use one of the cheap Ebay 6 string pickups, but instead of mounting at an angle on the top of the box, mount under the top with a steel bar of required width as shown in diagram below. If you want to engage all six poles then have wide base to bar and narrower top, but probably easier to just have the bar spanning across the centre 4 poles.

  • carverman November 22, 2010 at 12:07pm
    Thanks for giving the full info..it puts an end to speculation, but shortens the discussion
    and I always find the discussion of pickups facinating.

    I remember an interview that was typed up and put on a website (sorry I've lost the link),
    but in it SD discusses the origin of the Gibson hbucker
    When SL indicated that the main purpose of the magnet was to magnitize the string
    area above the pickup, I did some research on it and captured a few pics of the iron filing pattern around that portion of the strings. Very interesting.

    As far as any "magic", no there isn't any.. as coil winding/no of turns/type of bobbin and magnet
    types/strengths are the key ingredients...but...some players swear there is some "mojo" associated withcertain pickups..so maybe ...that's good for the industry.
  • Don Thompson November 21, 2010 at 12:41pm
    http://www.fender.com/products/search.php?partno=0992046000
    They appear to be identical but they aren't. One is North polarity, one South polarity, one wound clockwise, the other counter clockwise. It clearly states they are humbuckers. According to legend, Billy Gibbons had copies of his favorite old PAFs duplicated by Seymour Duncan,these pickups are named Pearly Gates. They were measured electrically, magnets copied and then wound until they matched as closely as possible the originals. No magic involved, i can't find the article now but Billy refused to have them taken apart. But now he has backups in case the original PAFs crap out. These pro winders have it down to a science. They know how to get shimmering highs and low end grunt and it ain't magic. Good topic and conversation btw.
    Don




    carverman said:
    Ok then if they are wound as a stacked humbucker...otherwise one of the pickups need to be
    wound reverse with the magnet oriented that way to achieve hum cancellation. I've used
    SCs where the bridge p_up will be reverse wound with the magnet oriented in the opposite
    polarity to achieve noise/hum cancellation.

    As far as "magic" or "mojo"..there has to be some?..otherwise the custom pickup industry wouldn't
    flourish like it has. Magnet types, strengths, coil winding techniques and perhaps other
    "black arts" allow each pickup type to have a unique "signature sound".



    Don Thompson said:
    These pickups are wound and magnets oriented to be in humbucker mode, or Noiseless as Fender calls them. No magic involved, just science.
    Don
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