Tag: PAF

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Hofner Pickup – an interesting repair

I came across a blog I wrote in 2010 about a repair on an old Hofner pickup, thought you might be interested:

I had a visit from Paul Crowther the other day (always a pleasure to see him). He’s rather a legend for amongst other things his ‘Hotcake’ overdrive pedals and the ‘Prunes and Custard’ (my favorite for theremin).

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Emlyn_Crowther

 He wanted to know if my coil winding machine was up and running –  he had an interesting pickup for me to wind.

Early Hofner pickup

 Its an old Hofner pickup which I guess is from the 50’s. The guitar has 3 of them and this one has a break in the windings so needs to be re-wound.
This would normally be a straight forward job except for the design of this pickup.

inside an old hofner

 This is the inside of it. The windings (around the outside) are not wrapped around a bobbin. They are just sitting in the pickup and have been wrapped in tape to protect them. In the middle you can see the magnets sitting in a hard putty. There are incidentally only 5 magnets.
 So the problem Paul left me with was how to wrap about 5000 turns of extremely thin wire into a coil and therefore make a pickup.
 After a long brainstorming session with Sheena we came up with a plan.

 We figured that the wire had to be wound around a bobbin and then somehow the bobbin removed.

repair hofner pickup

 So I made this bobbin. The sides are plastic from a Strat pickguard (white) and the centre has been carved from candle wax.

hofner bobbin

The bobbin bolts together and is attached to another plastic plate which in turn fits to the winding machine.
 The idea is to wind the pickup on this and then warm the completed coil up and melt the wax. The wax should seep into the coil thus potting it as well. Then the sides can be unbolted and voila a copy of the original coil.

hofner repair

 Winding the coil wasn’t any different from any other pickup – so now for the tricky bit.

hofner repair

 I warm the coil ever so gently with a heat gun. I put my free hand next to the work to judge the temperature – if it gets too hot the plastic will melt and I’ll be starting again.

hofner pickup repair

 When I see some wax oozing out I ever so gently remove the top plate.

hofner pickup repair

 With the wax exposed I can apply more heat and watch it flow into the coil and as it cools becomes solid.

hand made coil

Then I wrap tape around it to hold everything in place. I cannot emphasize enough how fiddly this is. There are a few stray wires and if any of them break I’m starting again.

coil

It may not be much to look at but its taken hours. The slight curve is to match the shape of the pickup casing. I’ve tested it and I’m pleased with it at 5.5Kohms.
 In the background you can see the magnetic lugs – I had to dig them out of the putty.

pickup fix

 I put the whole thing back together using ‘friendly plastic’ instead of putty then fill the casing with wax, solder the back on and its finished.

 Its been quite a task but I’m happy with the result.

   Glyn

Hofner Pickup – an interesting repair

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updated 3 April 2023

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Customer Feedback

In the last week I have received 2 emails from customers with YouTube demos attached just showing how Mr Glyn’s Pickups are working for them. Customer Feedback is always gratefully received.

If you like their YouTube channels don’t forget to Subscribe.

Firstly, Reg in Christchurch NZ with a set of Cruel Mistress Telecaster pickups:

Then Antonio from Tasmania who has a Cloud Nine bridge pickup.

Here is the email he sent me along with the links to his YouTube:

Hi mate.

Just wanted to give you some feedback on the cloud nine i recently installed.

Firstly, thanks for the amazingly fast service.

Secondly the pickup sounds fantastic, especially alongside the dimarzio hs4s that were already installed on the guitar. I got the cloud nine to replace the paf pro which was only standard spacing but needed to be f spaced. I absolutely love the paf pro, but im so glad i went with the cloud nine.

Even in coil cut mode it sounds fantastic.

Anyways i wanted to send you a couple of links to videos i made with the finished guitar.

The cold chisel one i used the humbucker in full mode on the second solo.

As for the Europe cover, all the rhythm guitars were recorded in coil cut mode including the parts of the solo when i switch to the bridge. Because the hs pickups are such low output pups, the cloud nine in coil cut mode is a perfect output match.

Im definitely going to give more of your pickups a go.

Exceptionally well made mate.

Regards

Antonio

Here is my YouTube channel

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Customer Feedback

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Cool 90

Single – “Cool 90” P90 NZ$189 for NZ customers, if you’re overseas it’s GST free; NZ$164.35

Pair – “Cool 90” P90 NZ$369 for NZ customers, if you’re overseas they’re GST free; NZ$320.87

Neck- 6.4 KOhms, 5.45H, Alnico II. Bridge 7.25 KOhms, 6.42H, Alnico II

Buy Cool 90 set
Head to store
Buy Cool 90 single

The Cool 90 is a P90 based pickup available in both Dogear and Soapbar. Designed with Jazz and Blues players in mind it produces a clear, full, well balanced tone. Never harsh, always full and musical.

The bridge pickup has an organic sound with a lower mid push ideally suited to dynamic lead lines and tight rhythm playing.

The neck pickup is clear and chiming with enough clarity to always be heard in the mix. It has that lovely woody tone especially in an archtop.

Cool 90 Guitar Pickup from Mr Gyn's Pickups

For ‘full fat’ P90 tones have a look at our “Sassy” P90 pickup set.

The Cool 90 Story

Like many of my pickups the Cool 90 started with a repair job. A customer sent be a faulty Gibson P90 out of a 1955 Les Paul Junior. Naturally, I took measurements and completely analyzed every detail of it. Unlike the information in the books (and internet) it had less windings and Alnico II magnets instead of Alnico V.

And what a great sounding pickup it was.

I decided to make my own version of it to compliment the ‘Sassy” P90 pickup I was already making. The Sassy has the classic “full fat” P90 tone, plenty of growl and cut through.

The idea behind the “Cool 90” was to make a lower powered version for the cleaner player. Still keeping the classic P90 character but with less grunt.

Cool 90 P90 dogear Alnico 2 by MrGlyns Pickups
Cool 90 soapbar P90 set with alnico 2 magnets
Buy Cool 90 set
Head to store
Buy Cool 90 single
Roboguy Logo - Cool 90

I also make a humbucker size P90 set – the “Black Sand” if you need some P90 goodness in your humbucker guitar, here’s a link to them: https://mrglynspickups.com/2020/03/29/black-sand-humbucker-sized-p90-neck/

For a full range of demo videos of Mr Glyn’s pickups go to my YouTube channel https://www.youtube.com/c/MrGlynsPickups/featured

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Series Parallel switch

There are numerous ways to wire a humbucker but for me the most versatile is with a Series Parallel switch.

So what is series/parallel all about?

The standard way of wiring a humbucker is in series. PAF’s are wired this way and it gives the traditional full sound with plenty of mids and bottom end. Its simply one coil following the other, the end of one coil connected to the beginning of the next.

Wiring a humbucker in parallel is quite a different sound. It’s much more similar to a single coil sound but the pickups is still hum cancelling. There is a drop in volume though not as much as with a coil tap (switching one coil off).

This series parallel humbucker wiring diagram shows how to do it with a push/pull switch. With the switch down and the humbucker is wired in series (normal), pull it up and it’s in parallel. The wiring colour code is for Mr Glyn’s Pickups ( I use the same colours as Seymour Duncan).

Series parallel humbucker wiring diagram

I’m not sure why series/parallel isn’t more popular. Maybe it’s a little harder to understand than coil tapping, maybe it’s because its a little more complicated to wire up. I certainly prefer it.

I’m going to be posting a few more wiring diagrams in the near future. Keep an eye on this blog or my social media:

Mr Glyns pickups are individually made near Auckland, New Zealand. From low powered Vintage to powerful ROCK pickups. Designed combining experience, intuition and science. Road-tested by players on stage and in studios. Packaged with care for you and the planet. Food for amplifiers.

Mr Glyns Pickups is a small business which means I can communicate with my customers one to one. I’m always happy to discuss your requirements, answer questions and give advice. I want to know about the guitars my pickups are going in, send me pictures, send me recordings.

Roboguy Logo

For the full range of pickups https://mrglynspickups.com/

Series Parallel switch

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Epiphone Les Paul pickup upgrade

Integrity humbuckers. PAF Alnico 2 vintage voiced pickups

The biggest difference you can make to an Epiphone Les Paul is a pickup upgrade. In this video Ben Neal does just that.

Take a look at his YouTube channel for more great videos – https://www.youtube.com/c/BenNeal

Here’s some info on the Integrity humbucker set and you can go to my Integrity page for lots more demos:

Inspired by the early Gibson PAF pickups the Integrity-vintage humbucker give the classic full, balanced tone we all love. Asymmetric coils give an open sounding mid range and the Alnico II magnet gives clarity and balance. A rich bottom end, characterful mids and sweet treble make this a pickup set for every situation – Jazz, Blues, Rock, it does it all.

Every pickup manufacturer makes a “Vintage” humbucker based on the Gibson PAF, of course they do – old Gibsons sound so good.

So how come they all sound so different? Well, the simple answer is that PAF’s were all different. I’ve been a full time luthier since 1995, whenever I come across an old humbucker I test the ohms and the gause and have a good listen. They’re all different. My conclusion is that pickup manufacturers have taken the PAF they like and based their own version on that. Old PAF’s vary so much so modern ones do as well.

I like my own version to be clear sounding, have obvious string separation and definition and to keep clarity no matter how much gain. The mids must be strong and woody, this is not a “scooped” pickup. The clean sound needs to be chimey and clear with no mush; through a valve amp I want clarity. When I tickle it I want clean and vocal sounding when it clips. The bridge pickup needs to be well behaved with high gain and clear with enough cut through so the drummer knows you’re there. The neck smooth, clear and articulate. Warm but with none of the boom you get with a more powerful pickup.

I don’t want much do I.

My “Integrity”-vintage humbucker has an Alnico II magnet and I’ve used plain enamel insulated magnet wire with asymmetric coils to open up the mids. The very first pickup I ever made back in 1995 was a PAF style and I’ve been tweaking the recipe ever since. Like all my pickups I’ve used a number of test pilot players in its development as well as gigging it myself. It wasn’t until around 2015 that I settled on this particular design. I did a gig with a set in a PRS SE series only last weekend – sounded great to me.

The full and honest sound of the Integrity-vintage humbucker along with it’s timeless tone inspired the name “Integrity”. 

Roboguy - Mr Glyns Pickups mascot. pickup upgrade

pickup upgrade

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Integrity humbucker demo

Integrity humbuckers. PAF Alnico 2 vintage voiced pickups

Thought I’d let you know about a new demo of my Integrity humbucker by Ben Neil. https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCVg2uivLJff7FTWmwTYVZWQ

Here’s the short, to the point version:

For those of you wanting to delve a little deeper here’s the full version:

Inspired by the early Gibson PAF pickups the Integrity-vintage humbucker give the classic full, balanced tone we all love. Asymmetric coils give an open sounding mid range and the Alnico II magnet gives clarity and balance. A rich bottom end, characterful mids and sweet treble make this a pickup set for every situation – Jazz, Blues, Rock, it does it all.

Every pickup manufacturer makes a “Vintage” humbucker based on the Gibson PAF, of course they do – old Gibsons sound so good.

So how come they all sound so different? Well, the simple answer is that PAF’s were all different. I’ve been a full time luthier since 1995, whenever I come across an old humbucker I test the ohms and the gause and have a good listen. They’re all different. My conclusion is that pickup manufacturers have taken the PAF they like and based their own version on that. Old PAF’s vary so much so modern ones do as well.

I like my own version to be clear sounding, have obvious string separation and definition and to keep clarity no matter how much gain. The mids must be strong and woody, this is not a “scooped” pickup. The clean sound needs to be chimey and clear with no mush; through a valve amp I want clarity. When I tickle it I want clean and vocal sounding when it clips. The bridge pickup needs to be well behaved with high gain and clear with enough cut through so the drummer knows you’re there. The neck smooth, clear and articulate. Warm but with none of the boom you get with a more powerful pickup.

I don’t want much do I.

My “Integrity”-vintage humbucker has an Alnico II magnet and I’ve used plain enamel insulated magnet wire with asymmetric coils to open up the mids. The very first pickup I ever made back in 1995 was a PAF style and I’ve been tweaking the recipe ever since. Like all my pickups I’ve used a number of test pilot players in its development as well as gigging it myself. It wasn’t until around 2015 that I settled on this particular design. I did a gig with a set in a PRS SE series only last weekend – sounded great to me.

The full and honest sound of the Integrity-vintage humbucker along with it’s timeless tone inspired the name “Integrity”.

https://mrglynspickups.com/

Integrity humbucker demo

Mr Glyns Pickups logo. Integrity humbucker demo
Mr Glyns Pickups
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Integrity humbucker in a HSS Strat

Roboguy. Humbucker

Had some fun today making a short stop-motion movie of Roboguy to demonstrate an Integrity humbucker in a HSS Strat.

The ‘real’ guitar is being played by Warren Mendonsa aka Blackstratblues.

Of course, any of my humbuckers will work as part of a HSS Strat set but I think the Integrity matches single coil pickups best.

For more demos of this pickup have a look here: https://mrglynspickups.com/2020/03/29/integrity-vintage-humbucker-2/

Inspired by the early Gibson PAF pickups the Integrity-vintage humbucker give the classic full, balanced tone we all love. Asymmetric coils give an open sounding mid range and the Alnico II magnet gives clarity and balance. A rich bottom end, characterful mids and sweet treble make this a pickup set for every situation – Jazz, Blues, Rock, it does it all.

Every pickup manufacturer makes a “Vintage” humbucker based on the Gibson PAF, of course they do – old Gibsons sound so good.

So how come they all sound so different? Well, the simple answer is that PAF’s were all different. I’ve been a full time luthier since 1995, whenever I come across an old humbucker I test the ohms and the gause and have a good listen. They’re all different. My conclusion is that pickup manufacturers have taken the PAF they like and based their own version on that. Old PAF’s vary so much so modern ones do as well.

I like my own version to be clear sounding, have obvious string separation and definition and to keep clarity no matter how much gain. The mids must be strong and woody, this is not a “scooped” pickup. The clean sound needs to be chimey and clear with no mush; through a valve amp I want clarity. When I tickle it I want clean and vocal sounding when it clips. The bridge pickup needs to be well behaved with high gain and clear with enough cut through so the drummer knows you’re there. The neck smooth, clear and articulate. Warm but with none of the boom you get with a more powerful pickup.

I don’t want much do I.

My “Integrity”-vintage humbucker has an Alnico II magnet and I’ve used plain enamel insulated magnet wire with asymmetric coils to open up the mids. The very first pickup I ever made back in 1995 was a PAF style and I’ve been tweaking the recipe ever since. Like all my pickups I’ve used a number of test pilot players in its development as well as gigging it myself. It wasn’t until around 2015 that I settled on this particular design. I did a gig with a set in a PRS SE series only last weekend – sounded great to me.

The full and honest sound of the Integrity-vintage humbucker along with it’s timeless tone inspired the name “Integrity”. https://mrglynspickups.com/

humbucker in a HSS Strat

Integrity humbucker in a HSS Strat

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‘Mini’ – mini humbucker

Single NZ$199 for NZ customers, if you’re overseas it’s GST free; NZ$173.04

Pair NZ$379 for NZ customers, if you’re overseas they’re GST free; NZ$329.57

AlnicoV – Bridge 7.25 KOhms, AlnicoV – Neck 6.6 KOhms

Buy Mini set
Head to store
Buy Mini single

The ‘Mini’ is inspired by the Gibson mini humbuckers of the 70’s used in the Les Paul Deluxe.

The ‘Mini’ is a clean clear sounding mini humbucker with the warmth and clarity from an alnico II magnet combined with low winding strength. This gives them a full, smooth, chiming bass, clear mids and an almost jangly treble, present but never harsh.

Great for jazz, funk, blues, pop or any genre that requires a clean, low powered humbucker set.

Mini humbucker by MrGlyn’s Pickups

Mini humbuckers are great pickups, lower in power than their full size sisters their clarity comes from less windings around a smaller bobbin. The smaller size of the pickup means they ‘hear’ less of the string length than a full size humbucker. The result is a clearer tone with less of the lower mid range push that you get from a PAF.

Mini humbucker set by MrGlyn’s Pickups

The neck pickup has a clear voice ideal for funk or jazz. The neck and bridge pickups together have a perfect balance when used together, ideal for clean rhythm playing. The bridge pickup alone has a cheeky ‘cut through’ quality pushing you to the front of any mix.

Although he Les Paul Deluxe was a short lived guitar in the Gibson range the mini humbucker has lived on. It is a very popular pickup in custom guitars particularly the neck pickup and is a great match for Mr Glyn’s ‘Cruel Mistress’ telecaster bridge pickup.

If you’re looking for a pickup that is clearer than a PAF, has a less prominent lower mid spike with an even balanced tone then the mini humbucker could be the pickup for you.

The Mini has a more powerful sister – the Minx https://mrglynspickups.com/2021/11/11/minx-mini-humbucker/

Buy Mini set
Head to store
Buy Mini single
MrGlyn’s Pickups Roboguy logo

mini humbucker https://www.youtube.com/c/MrGlynsPickups/videos

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Minx – mini humbucker

Single NZ$199 for NZ customers, if you’re overseas it’s GST free; NZ$173.04

Pair NZ$379 for NZ customers, if you’re overseas they’re GST free; NZ$329.57

AlnicoV – Bridge 10.5 KOhms, AlnicoV – Neck 6.6KOhms

Buy Minx set
Head to store
Buy Minx single
Minx hot mini humbucker MrGlyn’s Pickups

If you love your mini humbucker guitar but want a bit more power than standard Deluxe style pickups the ‘Minx’ mini humbucker is the pickup for you.

The Minx has plenty of that mini humbucker clarity and tonality but with more power and more grit.

The ‘Minx’ is a clean clear sounding mini humbucker but with more power than the vintage Gibson’s. There is warmth and clarity but with more powerful windings than the ‘Mini’ along with an alnicoV magnet they will push your amp harder.

With narrower coils than a PAF mini humbuckers ‘hear’ a narrower part of the string resulting in cleaner highs, a less pushy lower mid range and a distinctive clear bass that’s never woofy or wooly.

The neck pickup has the same coils as the ‘Mini’ but with an alnicoV magnet they have a fatter power and make a great match to the Minx bridge pickup.

The bridge pickup has a characterful mid range with a bite and fullness that is lacking in most mini humbuckers. You wouldn’t describe this pickup as polite and it will certainly put you towards the front of any mix.

Minx hot mini humbucker set MrGlyn’s Pickups

Great for the blues or rock player after dynamics – tickle it and it’s clean but when you dig in there’s enough power to push the front end of your amp into break up when you ask it to.

Although he Les Paul Deluxe was a short lived guitar in the Gibson range the mini humbucker has lived on. It is a very popular pickup in custom guitars particularly the neck pickup and is a great match for Mr Glyn’s ‘Cruel Mistress’ telecaster bridge pickup.

If you’re looking for a pickup that is clearer than a PAF, has a less prominent lower mid spike with an even balanced tone then the mini humbucker could be the pickup for you.

For a lower powered mini humbucker take a look at the ‘Mini’ https://mrglynspickups.com/2021/11/12/mini-humbucker/

Buy Minx set
Head to store
Buy Minx single
MrGlyn’s Pickups Roboguy logo

Have a look at Mr Glyns Pickups on YouTube https://www.youtube.com/c/MrGlynsPickups/videos

updated 8 May 2023

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“Clear View” humbucker

Single NZ$199 for NZ customers, if you’re overseas it’s GST free; NZ$173.04

Pair NZ$379 for NZ customers, if you’re overseas they’re GST free; NZ$329.57

Cover NZ$20 ($17.39) extra each pickup

Alnico V, Bridge 3.58KOhms, 2.43H, Neck 1.96KOhms, 1.16H

Buy Clear View set
Head to store
Buy Clear View single

.

,

The “Clear View” humbucker is something different. It’s a humbucker for players that don’t like humbuckers.

This pickup set is all about pure clarity. There are no pushy lower mids that make your clean sound a mush. The highs are clean and clear but not harsh, the bottom end is clear but with none of that humbucker woof.

If single coils are too harsh and unforgiving, conventional humbuckers too powerful and muddy then here’s the solution. The “Clear View” humbucker is low powered and balanced, designed for the textural player, great with reverbs and modulation, sits its the mix without getting in the way.

If you want a low powered ‘Vintage’ humbucker with all the character of a PAF get a MrGlyn’s ‘Integrity’ humbucker. If humbuckers sound too thick and you crave extra clarity then the ‘Clear View’ is for you.

And, of course, it’s hum cancelling.

This is not a pickup born to rock, it’s more than that.

Here’s a short video, clean with no effects, to show the clarity and balance of the “clear View” Pickups.

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The Clear View Story

It started with a phone call from luthier Ramsay Phillips.

I’ve got huge respect for Ramsay, he’s worked all over the world and has a great client list (including Steve Vai). He knows guitars, knows tone and he’s a thinker. So when he calls to talk about a new pickup idea I listen.

He was interested in having a humbucker for people that didn’t like humbuckers (his phrase). A pickup with clear tone and low powered but not like a PAF, clearer than that. He wanted a midrange more like a single coil than a traditional humbucker. At first I thought my ‘Black Sand’ humbucker size P90 would suit him but as he talked I realised he didn’t want the grit of a P90. He’s very well practiced at describing sound so I felt I understood what he meant. He assured me he had customers asking about such a pickup.

He wasn’t in a rush which meant I could have a good ponder over what he’d said before making anything.

Then one morning about a week later I was out on the beach with the dogs. There was quite a big swell (the sea is never calm at Muriwai) and I was listening to the sea. I was trying to figure out which frequencies in that sound I would need to remove to make Ramsay’s pickup. By the time I got home there was a plan.

I made a set of pickups, sent them to him and a few days later he called to say they were spot on. It isn’t usually that easy.

Clear View humbucker Mr Glyns Pickups
Clear View humbucker
Humbucker options Mr Glyns Pickups
Humbucker options
Buy Clear View set
Head to store
Buy Clear View single
Guitar Pickups, cute robot
Mr Glyns Pickups Roboguy

/https://mrglynspickups.com/

https://www.youtube.com/c/MrGlynsPickups/videos

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Yamaha SA30 pickup

Vintage Yamaha humbucker

This Yamaha SA30 pickup came to me for repair the other day and I decided to take some photos and share my thoughts on it with you.

Yamaha SA30 pickup - Mr Glyns Pickups

The Yamaha SA30 is becoming a bit of a legend and getting rather sought after. Gone are the days you could pick one up cheap – the word is out. Thank you internet 🥴.

If you don’t know about them here’s some info: https://tymguitars.com.au/blogs/blog/1966-yamaha-sa-30t

This pickup was sent to me with an intermittent fault. It would work if you tapped it but stop a minute later. That pointed towards it being an internal wiring fault rather than a broken coil, I needed to investigate.

Yamaha SA30 pickup - Mr Glyns Pickups
Yamaha SA30 pickup - Mr Glyns Pickups

With the cover off you can see the hook up wires – these were my number one suspects. Sure enough, there was a dry joint where one of them was soldered to the connectors on the base plate. Just to make sure I re- soldered all the joints and the pickup is fixed.

But that’s not the interesting part – look at those bobbins. They’re different sizes. They each measure in the 4.5 K Ohms range but they’re clearly wound with different gauge wire on each coil. These pickups are renowned for their clarity – so what’s going on?

The smaller coil on the left must be wound with thinner gauge wire and less of it than the one on the right. Thinner wire have a greater resistance for the same length.

The coil on the right looks like a conventional humbucker coil like an overwound PAF but the coil on the left would have a less full sound. It will have less bottom and lower mids and a lot less power. But that’s just the windings.

bobbins - Mr Glyns Pickups

Turn the pickup over and you can see a ceramic bar magnet but it’s how it connects to the poles that’s interesting. The bigger coil has a larger piece of steel coupling the poles to the magnet than the smaller coil. Measuring the strength of the magnetic field on the top of the poles the smaller coil is about 20% weaker. So this again gives the big coil an overwound PAF sound and the smaller coil still thinner.

- Mr Glyns Pickups

So with the Yamaha SA30 pickup they’ve created that clarity by having one coil doing most of the work – 4.5k Ohms with a ceramic magnet has a bit more grunt than one half of a PAF. But the other coil on it’s own would have more of a weedy gold foil type sound. Then they’ve been combined in series as a humbucker. Smart stuff eh!

Feel free to contact me for pickup repairs or for a chat about my range of new pickups. mrglynspickups@gmail.com

And here’s a great site for all things Yamaha SA, heaps of information here https://www.thesupposedstringmeister.net/?page_id=644

https://mrglynspickups.com/

https://www.youtube.com/c/MrGlynsPickups/videos

Mr Glyns Pickups Roboguy Logo

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How do Humbuckers Work?

So How do Humbuckers Work? By a clever quirk of physics humbuckers manage to cancel out the hum they pick up. So how do they do it? Here’s a simple explanation with some help from Sammy the dog. https://mrglynspickups.com/

Mr Glyn’s pickups are hand made in New Zealand.

I make a few flavors of humbucker:

The Integrity

A full, clear sounding Alnico II pickups in the style of the best of the early PAF’s. Balance and clarity – a humbucker for every situation. https://mrglynspickups.com/2020/03/29/integrity-vintage-humbucker-2/

The Cloud Nine

A mid to hot, pickup made specifically for blues/rock players who want to push the front end of their amps. Plenty of grunt, plenty of mids and enough cut through for you to stand out in the mix.https://mrglynspickups.com/2020/03/29/cloud-nine-hot-humbuck

The Attitude

A pickup for the modern metal or fusion player. Articulate and balanced, smooth and clear. https://mrglynspickups.com/2020/07/29/attitude-humbucker/

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Integrity alnico 2 vintage voiced humbucker
Integrity

…………………………………………………………………………………………….

My name is Glyn Evans.

I have been a full time pickup winder and luthier since 1995. I wound my first pickup under the guidance of legendary guitar repairer Ted Lee while studying guitar making/repair under him at City of Leeds College of Music in the North of England.

There’s something about the physics that really appealed to me. I went straight home, built my own winding machine, bought some wire and started experimenting.

In those pre-internet days there just wasn’t any information available on how to make good pickups. I made pickup after pickup, I wound and I listened. I made notes of every variation both good and bad so I could learn what was happening.

Looking back I think that time was invaluable for developing an intuition for making pickups. Whenever I came across a result I didn’t understand I swatted up on the physics; there’s a lot to learn.

I wrote all the experiments down in a notebook, I still have the notebook and I’m still adding to it.

I love hearing my pickups played live or on recordings; it feels good to have played a very small part in that sound.

My day to day work has always been in guitar repair so I’ve been privileged to be able to study first hand some of the great vintage (and modern) pickups. I have re-wound and repaired countless faulty pickups to either restore them to their original state or to improve them. This is how you learn and I think I will always be learning.

In 2012 I had the idea for my own range of pickups. In 2020 MrGlyn’s Pickups website went live. I’ve been lucky enough to know many professional players who’ve given their time and expertise to help me.

Every pickup design I make has been tested both by me and some of these “test pilots”. They’ve been in and out of numerous guitars, recorded, gigged, analysed and altered more times than I can remember.

I am really happy with the results, I hope you will be too.

How do Humbuckers Work

Mr Glyn's Pickups Roboguy
Mr Glyn’s Pickups Logo – Roboguy
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Gibson T-Top repair

I’ve been repairing a few broken old pickups recently so thought I’d share some pictures and thoughts on this classic old Gibson T-Top.

The T-Top is a fairly common pickup on my workbench. Not because there’s and common fault with them but simply there were so many made and they’re all getting quite old now.

The “T-Top” simply refers to the molding on the top of the bobbin. They were Gibson’s standard humbucker from 67/8 until around 1980 replacing the legendary PAF.

Mr Glyns Pickups Gibson t top
Gibson T-Top Mr Glyn’s Pickups

There were a few subtle changes from the PAF but enough to make a difference.

Although the bobbins look different the important dimensions were unchanged and they are still made of butyrate making it impractical to wax pot them. Butyrate distorts with heat.

The wire is poly insulated instead of the plain enamel used on PAF’s. Pretty much all T-Tops have a dc resistance of around 7.5 KOhms, neck and bridge the same. The coils are wound symmetrically and are unpotted so beware of squealing with high gain.

The magnets varied, often Alnico III, V or even Ceramic so not all T Tops sound the same.

T Top repair
Gibson T-Top Mr Glyn’s Pickups

This one came to me with a dead coil in need of a re-wind. the magnet is a rough cast Alnico V and from the good coil the finished dc reading I was after was 7.4 KOhms.

Gibson T-Top repair
Gibson T-Top Mr Glyn’s Pickups

After the re-wind I gave it some new cloth tape so it looked the part and it was ready to ROCK.

T-Top repair
Gibson T-Top Mr Glyn’s Pickups
Gibson T Top humbucker
Processed with Focos

Get in touch if you have any old pickups in need of repair. Although most of my day is spent making new pickups I do enjoy repairing classic old pickups.

www.mrglynspickups.com

Head to store…

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updated 3 April 2023

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Seymour Duncan JB Re-Wind

Seymour Duncan JB humbuckers are such a classic pickup, loud and aggressive with no shortage of high end attack. This particular one has had a hard life and finally gave up so it arrived at my workshop for repair. It’s not the first Duncan JB Re-Wind if had to do but this time I’ve taken some pics.

Seymour Duncan JB repair

This one had stopped working altogether. With the tape off the hook up wires are exposed and it’s possible to identify which coil has the problem. It’s usually just one coil.

Mr Glyns Pickups repairing a JB

It turned out to be the coil with the screws in this case.

Duncan JB repair

The coil with the lugs in fine and showing 8.42KOhms and from that I can figure out what size wire they used and calculate the number of turns needed to re-wind the duff coil.

Pretty routine stuff this Duncan JB Re-Wind but always nice to have a look inside a classic pickup. https://mrglynspickups.com/

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCcDggiRTQyFec5KAVHsC2xA

Pickup re-winds are a big part of what I do.

In the early days back in the 1990’s I re-wound a lot of pickups. It was an invaluable introduction into the inner workings of electric guitar pickups.

Back then there were a lot of 60’s and 70’s quality pickups around to practice on, they weren’t as valuable or sought after as they are now. Because of that I got to see how pickups were put together in the old days, the construction, the potting material…

There wasn’t much information available so experimentation was the only way to learn. I made so many bad pickups back then but made a note of every single one, how I’d wound it and what the result was. By using that method I got closer and closer to what I wanted. I also made a note of all the re-winds I did and the original spec if I could get it. I’m still writing in that note book to this day and it’s becoming a fantastic reference tool when I receive an unusual pickup repair from a customer.

I still really enjoy re-winding pickups, I think I have a strong instinct to fix things. I would much rather repair a faulty old pickup than sell a customer a new one. Sometimes, of course, the customer wants a different sound that the old pickup can’t give them and a new pickup is the way to go.

Please feel free to contact me about any faulty pickup by email (mrglynspickups@gmail.com) or by phone (021 912 678).

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Integrity-vintage humbucker

Single NZ$199 for NZ customers, if you’re overseas it’s GST free; NZ$173.04

Pair NZ$379 for NZ customers, if you’re overseas they’re GST free; NZ$329.57

Cover NZ$20 ($17.39) extra each pickup

Alnico II – Bridge 8.02 KOhms, 6.43H. Neck 7.41 KOhms, 5.57H

Buy Integrity set
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Buy Integrity single

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Inspired by the early Gibson PAF pickups the Integrity-vintage humbucker give the classic full, balanced tone we all love. Asymmetric coils give an open sounding mid range and the Alnico II magnet gives clarity and balance. A rich bottom end, characterful mids and sweet treble make this a pickup set for every situation – Jazz, Blues, Rock, it does it all.

Every pickup manufacturer makes a “Vintage” humbucker based on the Gibson PAF, of course they do – old Gibsons sound so good.

So how come they all sound so different? Well, the simple answer is that PAF’s were all different. I’ve been a full time luthier since 1995, whenever I come across an old humbucker I test the ohms and the gause and have a good listen. They’re all different. My conclusion is that pickup manufacturers have taken the PAF they like and based their own version on that. Old PAF’s vary so much so modern ones do as well.

I like my own version to be clear sounding, have obvious string separation and definition and to keep clarity no matter how much gain. The mids must be strong and woody, this is not a “scooped” pickup. The clean sound needs to be chimey and clear with no mush; through a valve amp I want clarity. When I tickle it I want clean and vocal sounding when it clips. The bridge pickup needs to be well behaved with high gain and clear with enough cut through so the drummer knows you’re there. The neck smooth, clear and articulate. Warm but with none of the boom you get with a more powerful pickup.

I don’t want much do I.

My “Integrity”-vintage humbucker has an Alnico II magnet and I’ve used plain enamel insulated magnet wire with asymmetric coils to open up the mids. The very first pickup I ever made back in 1995 was a PAF style and I’ve been tweaking the recipe ever since. Like all my pickups I’ve used a number of test pilot players in its development as well as gigging it myself. It wasn’t until around 2015 that I settled on this particular design. I did a gig with a set in a PRS SE series only last weekend – sounded great to me.

The full and honest sound of the Integrity-vintage humbucker along with it’s timeless tone inspired the name “Integrity”. https://mrglynspickups.com/

Is pickup was originally called the “Blue Sky”.

Here are some sound samples recorded clean through a Fender Princeton Reverb-Amp. The overdrive sounds are using an Electroharmonix Soul Food. The guitar is a ’98 Les Paul Std with D’Addario 10-52’s. All of them with the same guitar, same amp, same settings, no reverb or eq added later.

Neck Pickup Clean
Bridge Pickup Clean
Middle Position Clean
Neck Pickup with Overdrive
Bridge Pickup with Overdrive
Middle Position with Overdrive

Integrity-vintage humbucker by Mr Glyns Pickups
Humbucker options - Mr Glyns Pickups
Buy Integrity set
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Buy Integrity single

Testimonials

I put the integrity pick ups into my Jim Root Jazzmaster last week.
I gigged with the guitar on Sat night and am so happy.
They have the versatility that I’m looking for.
Thanks

Bought a set of Mr Glyn’s Integrity humbuckers and they are awesome! These pickups do everything from clean to blues rock to screaming distorted rock tones. So great to just roll off the volume, have it clean up but still stay loud and defined. My guitar is now super versatile and sounds great! Thanks

https://keningtonmusic.com/

Integrity-vintage humbucker

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