Pickup Info and F.A.Q.'s
What are the various magnet staggers you offer, and what are their applications?
Here are the various staggers for Strat pickups that we offer.
Here are the various staggers for Strat pickups that we offer.
These different staggers are enough to offer each player a balanced sound from string to string. I do not recommend a vintage stagger because it was most optimal on vintage instruments using a wound 3rd string with a 7.25" radius fretboard. In later years, players did start using unwound 3rd strings with their vintage stagger pickups. You can use a vintage stagger to replicate that style, just be forewarned that the G will stick out in volume. The Low G stagger is most popular and is pretty much a modern stagger. It is just barely a step away from flat poles, to be honest. Good for 7.25"-10" radii fretboards and modern string gauges.
My pickups have different colored wire leads - which goes where?
Our Strat style pickups use black colored wire for the ground, and white for the hot. So black goes to the back of a volume pot for grounding the pickup, and the white goes to the switch just like the originals. Our Tele style neck pickup uses black for ground, white for hot and yellow for a separate cover ground. Simply ground the yellow cover ground to a pot with the black coil ground. The separate cover ground is there for convenient four way switch wiring. Our Tele bridge pickup uses black for ground and yellow for hot.
Our Strat style pickups use black colored wire for the ground, and white for the hot. So black goes to the back of a volume pot for grounding the pickup, and the white goes to the switch just like the originals. Our Tele style neck pickup uses black for ground, white for hot and yellow for a separate cover ground. Simply ground the yellow cover ground to a pot with the black coil ground. The separate cover ground is there for convenient four way switch wiring. Our Tele bridge pickup uses black for ground and yellow for hot.
What is magnet beveling?
Magnet beveling is taking the end of a pickup magnet and using a grinder to remove the edge of the magnet. Fender originally did this for a couple reasons. In my opinion, the first reason was to maintain a tighter fit in the flatwork. When you push a magnet with no bevel through a hole, the sharp edge of the magnet will remove material in its way, making the fit looser. Also, the holes in the earliest Fender pickups flatwork were quite a bit smaller than the magnets. When you bevel the magnet, it centers the magnet to the flatwork hole and helps it ease through without tearing out material. Thus a tighter fit is maintained.
The second reason, in my opinion, is to get to "fresh" magnet material when the edges were chipped. Magnets were apparently more crude back then, and due to casting and being brittle, there were chips in the magnet edges. Beveling was probably also good for maintaining a better appearance.
Does beveling magnets affect the sound?
In my opinion, no. If you look at images published where analysis was done of the magnetic field of a beveled magnet and a non-beveled magnet you will see a difference. Its slight. To my trained ear, there isn't a difference. There are many things of greater importance to a pickups sound. That is why I tell my customers that beveling is a cosmetic option. Trying to hear the difference between a beveled magnet and non-beveled magnet would take you further from the shores of sanity.
What does DC resistance mean for tone and output?
DC resistance is not truly an indicator of sound or output. There are much more important factors involved in a pickup's tone and volume. DC resistance is a very general, if not vague, indicator of a pickup. Rumpelstiltskin pickups are wound to approximate DC resistances and cannot be guaranteed to have a tighter tolerance than 5%. Even machine wound pickups vary in DC resistance. Temperature greatly affects resistance per foot of copper wire. Tension when winding also affects this, and while we take great care to create a consistent product, there is always slightly more tolerance when hand winding a pickup.
What are the differences between the various types of AlNiCo magnets?
The main alnico types we use are alnico 2, 3 and 5.
-Alnico 3 is the weakest magnet and contains no cobalt. It is a clear sounding magnet with a softer attack than alnico 2 and 5. The bass notes are sometimes referred to as more "spongey". Despite the weak gauss, it is still a bright sounding magnet.
-Alnico 2 is similar to alnico 3, but contains cobalt like alnico 5. It has a smooth top end and soft attack, although not as soft as alnico 3.
-Alnico 5 is the strongest of the three. It has a harder attack and tighter bass response. This is the most common magnet found in 1955 and later Fender guitars.
Magnet beveling is taking the end of a pickup magnet and using a grinder to remove the edge of the magnet. Fender originally did this for a couple reasons. In my opinion, the first reason was to maintain a tighter fit in the flatwork. When you push a magnet with no bevel through a hole, the sharp edge of the magnet will remove material in its way, making the fit looser. Also, the holes in the earliest Fender pickups flatwork were quite a bit smaller than the magnets. When you bevel the magnet, it centers the magnet to the flatwork hole and helps it ease through without tearing out material. Thus a tighter fit is maintained.
The second reason, in my opinion, is to get to "fresh" magnet material when the edges were chipped. Magnets were apparently more crude back then, and due to casting and being brittle, there were chips in the magnet edges. Beveling was probably also good for maintaining a better appearance.
Does beveling magnets affect the sound?
In my opinion, no. If you look at images published where analysis was done of the magnetic field of a beveled magnet and a non-beveled magnet you will see a difference. Its slight. To my trained ear, there isn't a difference. There are many things of greater importance to a pickups sound. That is why I tell my customers that beveling is a cosmetic option. Trying to hear the difference between a beveled magnet and non-beveled magnet would take you further from the shores of sanity.
What does DC resistance mean for tone and output?
DC resistance is not truly an indicator of sound or output. There are much more important factors involved in a pickup's tone and volume. DC resistance is a very general, if not vague, indicator of a pickup. Rumpelstiltskin pickups are wound to approximate DC resistances and cannot be guaranteed to have a tighter tolerance than 5%. Even machine wound pickups vary in DC resistance. Temperature greatly affects resistance per foot of copper wire. Tension when winding also affects this, and while we take great care to create a consistent product, there is always slightly more tolerance when hand winding a pickup.
What are the differences between the various types of AlNiCo magnets?
The main alnico types we use are alnico 2, 3 and 5.
-Alnico 3 is the weakest magnet and contains no cobalt. It is a clear sounding magnet with a softer attack than alnico 2 and 5. The bass notes are sometimes referred to as more "spongey". Despite the weak gauss, it is still a bright sounding magnet.
-Alnico 2 is similar to alnico 3, but contains cobalt like alnico 5. It has a smooth top end and soft attack, although not as soft as alnico 3.
-Alnico 5 is the strongest of the three. It has a harder attack and tighter bass response. This is the most common magnet found in 1955 and later Fender guitars.
