PSA: Wilde Pickups (Bill Lawrence) Holiday Sale

[PLX]

Yes and no. With traditional pickup manufacturing (think normal HB and SC construction), the inductance is still the thing that actually matters for output but you can look at the resistance readings as a sort of stand-in that will lead you to the right conclusions about the pickup output. That’s the measurement that was commonly used not because it’s the best measure of output, but because it’s the readily accessible measurement that they were using in builds and mods as I understand it.

When you start getting into alternative pickup designs like bill lawrence stuff, the resistance reading may not be telling you what you think it is. You wouldn’t be very happy to choose a pickup based on a resistance reading only to install it and learn that it’s considerably louder or quieter than its resistance indicated it would be. Or at least I wouldn’t be very happy about that. The inductance answers the output question more accurately, which is why they provide it instead.

D

Dammit Becky, I told you never to call me here.

 

[JoeBfstplk]

Resistance is a false friend. If all pickups were wound with the same spec wire, it would be interchangeable with inductance, but there are differences in resistance per 1000 ft. for different gauge wire that can mess with your resistance readings....

 

[Jarick]

I believe inductance can change with the magnet as well.

 

[JoeBfstplk]

I believe inductance can change with the magnet as well.

Any ferric metal, too.

 

[Blix]

While @Jarick is waiting for his pickups, I reinstalled my Alnico Microcoils in my tele and recorded a quick before and after for anyone interested.

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EMG first going through the pickup positions, then Wilde at 0:24

 

[Jarick]

While @Jarick is waiting for his pickups, I reinstalled my Alnico Microcoils in my tele and recorded a quick before and after for anyone interested.

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EMG first going through the pickup positions, then Wilde at 0:24

Mine should be arriving tomorrow! I'll have to do a quick before and after as I'm putting in both Tele and Strat.

I'm curious about the EGM's myself especially after hearing John Bollinger playing with the Lukather set. Which ones did you have?

 

[Blix]

Mine should be arriving tomorrow! I'll have to do a quick before and after as I'm putting in both Tele and Strat.

I'm curious about the EGM's myself especially after hearing John Bollinger playing with the Lukather set. Which ones did you have?

It was the standard EMG T set. They’re quite low output, sounds fine but a tad too polite

 

[Jarick]

Got them in this yesterday, will put in at some point over the next few days.

Really interesting readings. I was worried they would be really low, but they actually seem pretty healthy output:

Strat Bridge - 10.8k
Strat Middle - 6.4k
Strat Neck - 6.5k

Tele Bridge - 9.3k
Tele Neck - 6.4k

Will have to check them to see if they keep increasing after warming up.

The Tele bridge is cray light, the bobbin is like 1/4 the height as a normal pickup! Although it looks oddly angled, not sure if it's put together incorrect or not.

 

[Jarick]

Apparently I forgot to post, so that was from yesterday morning.

Wired up the Strat this morning, will do some before and after clips and finish installing. I keep trying to work on my wiring cleanliness. I think another 20 years and it might look decent. This time I used some longer interconnects to move them out of the way on the switch. Also had my daughter teach me how to braid so I could get the 3 conductor wires clean!

Side note, I really like the Fender 250k pots and switches. Although I got one in at 230k so that will be my bridge tone, but they are all very smooth taper and seem to last.

Lastly, the pickups are supposed to be white but are a perfect match for Fender Parchment color. The knobs look off so I've got some new ones coming to see if they are a little better.

 

[PLX]

Apparently I forgot to post, so that was from yesterday morning.

Wired up the Strat this morning, will do some before and after clips and finish installing. I keep trying to work on my wiring cleanliness. I think another 20 years and it might look decent. This time I used some longer interconnects to move them out of the way on the switch. Also had my daughter teach me how to braid so I could get the 3 conductor wires clean!

Side note, I really like the Fender 250k pots and switches. Although I got one in at 230k so that will be my bridge tone, but they are all very smooth taper and seem to last.

Lastly, the pickups are supposed to be white but are a perfect match for Fender Parchment color. The knobs look off so I've got some new ones coming to see if they are a little better.


View attachment 35231View attachment 35232

Adjustable pole pieces on Strat pickups !

Nice innovation !

 

[Jarick]

Okay got them installed but need to dial in pickup heights. They sound quieter and a bit fatter and less spiky/bright than the regular single coils. If I always assumed they would be really thin and super bright. Pleasantly surprised. You can hear a lot of single coil note clarity through the gain. It sounds like a clean signal mixed in with the gain almost? It's really interesting.

Quick noise tests, estimates based on levels using a Fractal BE amp sim without a noise gate:

Humbucker ~ -58 dB
Single Coils ~ -42 dB
Micro Coils ~ -48 dB

Definitely lower noise than the single coils but not as quiet as humbuckers.