Ed's Pickup In The Frankie

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Re: Ed's Pickup In The Frankie

Post by lll »

PLX wrote: Sat Oct 01, 2022 1:47 pm I'm in the camp now where Ed used a high output pickup from the first record onwards.. 13k, 14k, 15k, 16k.. whatever. It was not 8~9kΩ PAF style output.
And not just any high output pickup, but one that cleans up to "clean PAF" levels when the guitar volume knob is turned down.

Think cleanish parts in "Ain't Talkin' 'Bout Love", "Jamie's Cryin'" etc...

The SH-5 Custom does this to a "T" with its smaller ceramic magnet, when the volume knob is turned down. Stays bright and chimey, too.

Which reminds me: I may be wrong, but I can't think of a single "VH 1st album tone pickup test/shootout" vid or clip that includes the "guitar volume knob down for clean parts in certain VH1 songs" test. They're always only the full gain distorted test.
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Re: Ed's Pickup In The Frankie

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harddriver wrote: Sat Oct 01, 2022 2:52 pm Might Mite also made a 13K Super Stud 13K pickup that had all slug pole pieces. I will muddy the waters further and say a Mighty Mite 1400 which is 9K(mine measures 9.9K is very PAF like but with the same balls and drive as the 1300(13K) pickup. I have a 1300 but I have been so pleased with my 1400 it's still in the package. ;) Readily available high output pickups in 1977 were the Dimarzio and Mighty Mite.....use your own deductive reasoning there.

Now I still think the PAF may have played a part somewhere otherwise Gaustad would not be able to get close to VH1 tone with those 7.8K-8.5K PAF pickups. But I really hear that ceramic almost fuzz distortion that rides on the notes with the MM pickups...for VH1 and the VH1 tour. Ed also may have swapped different pickups during the tour to see what he liked better or if his mood changed...who knows...

For the 78 tour he was using the two echoplexes, MXR 6 band prior to the Japan leg of the tour and then the Boss GE-10. If you play hard and dig in the PAF can work my 78 Model can do VH1 ok but it's not as raunchy as my Might Mite 1400...which is what I hear on VH1.

VHII is warmer and that Might Mite grind is gone. Is it a 9K PAF rewind or the 15.5K JB offset wind? Who knows but Seymour was rewinding PAF pickups for celebrity players in 78-79 according to Gaustad and the timeline could fit.

For the time being I'm still in the camp the super high output pickups cam into play after VHII but it's all still open for discussion and revision at any time....... :lol:

OH THE LORE.......................It's fun isn't it! :lol:
The main difference between Mighty Mite model 1300 and 1300-1 is the poles.

The 1300-1 has hex screws and is made in China. The 1300 is made in the USA.

Originally, The Mighty Mite 1300 was marketed as "The Distortion 1".
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Re: Ed's Pickup In The Frankie

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After hearing the Ossie Ahsen and pickup shootout I had to try them. I purchased new production Might Mites... a 1300-1 and 1400 both with hex poles and both are Made in the USA. Maybe they recently moved production I have no idea but anything made in the USA for me is a big selling point. From everything that I have read they build them exactly the same way they were built in the 70's and from Ossie's comparison video that seems to be accurate. ;)
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Re: Ed's Pickup In The Frankie

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harddriver wrote: Sat Oct 01, 2022 10:24 pm After hearing the Ossie Ahsen and pickup shootout I had to try them. I purchased new production Might Mites... a 1300-1 and 1400 both with hex poles and both are Made in the USA. Maybe they recently moved production I have no idea but anything made in the USA for me is a big selling point. From everything that I have read they build them exactly the same way they were built in the 70's and from Ossie's comparison video that seems to be accurate. ;)
It's just like Jim Gaustad says, if you were a kid playing guitar back in the late 70's you had like 3 choices for aftermarket pickups.. DiMarzio super distortion, Mighty Mite (knock-off of the DiMarzio) or the Bill Lawrence blade type pickups... that was it.

Growing up in Houston and going to Rockin Robin guitar shop, this was exactly how it was. We never heard of anyone "rewinding" pickups, or doing custom winds.
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Re: Ed's Pickup In The Frankie

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I've cycled though almost all the pickups lored about for VH1, Duncan Custom, Duncan 59B, Duncan 78 model. various PAF types although I've never acutally played an actual PAF, the Tom Holmes 455 pickup interests me and the Arcane Triple Clone. After hearing Ossie's shootout I heard what I hear specifically on VH1 to my ears.....I have not installed the 1300-1 so that might be enough grunt for no EQ pedal bumps but I find the 1400 can get there without an EQ boost as well. Both pickups are aggressive a hell yet still kinda spanky. They are not really suited for VHII IMHO...enter the 78 model... ;)

I'm not saying the Duncan Custom doesn't do a good VH1, I found it wasn't as open as a lower wound 8-9K pickup range. Now according to Gaustad the offset wind give is more of that PAF spank yet has the drive of the 15.5K coils.

If you have not ventured out and tried the MM you are doing your self a disservice IMHO.

Like I said I love the 78 model for alot of reasons it can do, VH1, VHII and playes feels alot hotter. I like Jim Gaustad's theory and he make that offset wind JB sound excellent and I agree it may have been in there for FW. Was it in there for VH1/VHII I don't know more, it would make sense if Ed wanted to drop the EQ boosts and so mostly straight in.

Was Ed using the Echoplexes on the 79 tour? I would almost have to say yes......For me it's all about the VH1 tone....I'll stick with my Mighty Mites until something else checks all the boxes again the way the 1400 and 1300 does... :o
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Re: Ed's Pickup In The Frankie

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On a side note all my Duncan Seymourizer II pickups are all late 70's probably 79-82. I bought my first one in 1984 after I bought my 1983 Kramer Pacer. In 1984 I bought a whole shoebox full of pickups from some guy in Chicago and I taught my self how to solder....in that box were these pickups... SD59B, BLL500, Dimarzio Super Distortion, and this lowly Seymourizer II. I installed each pickup and tried them all and the only one that I liked that stayed was the Seymourizer II(12.6K ohms).

Does it have some offset to the winds? I don't know and I don't care this pickup screamed in 1984 and it screams now. I have two more of these in my pickup bin that I pickup up for cheap. It's more open and PAF like than the mid 80's Duncan Custom I had.
Here's the Seymourizer II doing VH1 into my version of the Mod 5


Here's my Duncan Custom, for some reason I never really cared for it doing VH1.
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Re: Ed's Pickup In The Frankie

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harddriver wrote: Sat Oct 01, 2022 11:03 pm .. Does it have some offset to the winds? I don't know and I don't care this pickup screamed in 1984 and it screams now. I have two more of these in my pickup bin that I pickup up for cheap. It's more open and PAF like than the mid 80's Duncan Custom I had..
And there's good reason for that.. A lot people don't know/understand this, but almost all PAF's are asymmetrically wound.

Not on purpose though.

Back then pickups were wound by hand, and almost exclusively by women. There were no CNC winding machines. :roll:
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Re: Ed's Pickup In The Frankie

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harddriver wrote: Sat Oct 01, 2022 10:24 pm After hearing the Ossie Ahsen and pickup shootout I had to try them. I purchased new production Might Mites... a 1300-1 and 1400 both with hex poles and both are Made in the USA. Maybe they recently moved production I have no idea but anything made in the USA for me is a big selling point. From everything that I have read they build them exactly the same way they were built in the 70's and from Ossie's comparison video that seems to be accurate. ;)
I admit I have myself been tempted to try a Mighty Mite 1300-1 (the "-1" at the end indicated hex pole pieces - the 1300 is the slug polepieces)... but ultimately I'm good with my early 80's SD SH-5.

Link to 1300-1:

https://mightymite.com/product/1300-1-humbucker-pickup/
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Re: Ed's Pickup In The Frankie

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Has anyone ever checked out an era correct Duncan Custom from 1978-80 to see what they read resistance-wise back then?

I'm going to postulate that maybe Seymour's wind back then wasn't the full 14K that it is now...kinda like the early JB that Gaustad has only reads 15.5K and the new JB's are 16-17K.

What if Seymour's Seymourizer II was supposed to be around 12K and came in anywhere from 12 to 12.6K and the early Customs were 13K( closer to the Dimarzio SD and MM 1300-both were 13K) where they came in 12.75/13.5K then you have the occasional happy accidents where they overwinded more with offsets like Gaustads vintage JB.

I never heard of anyone dissecting a 1978 Duncan Custom, per that ad they were around in 78/79. ;)

I was reverb recently and my godness have you see what people are asking for vintage MXR phase 90's.....holy crap like 500-700 bucks..... :shock:

I'm thinking about pickup up another vintage MXR Flanger and an analogman modded phase 90 with the volume and mix knob. I picked up an MXR flanger likes Ed's in 1985 and it broke, I don't even remember what I did with it.... :roll:
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Re: Ed's Pickup In The Frankie

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harddriver wrote: Sun Oct 02, 2022 1:33 am Has anyone ever checked out an era correct Duncan Custom from 1978-80 to see what they read resistance-wise back then?

I'm going to postulate that maybe Seymour's wind back then wasn't the full 14K that it is now...kinda like the early JB that Gaustad has only reads 15.5K and the new JB's are 16-17K.

What if Seymour's Seymourizer II was supposed to be around 12K and came in anywhere from 12 to 12.6K and the early Customs were 13K( closer to the Dimarzio SD and MM 1300-both were 13K) where they came in 12.75/13.5K then you have the occasional happy accidents where they overwinded more with offsets like Gaustads vintage JB.

I never heard of anyone dissecting a 1978 Duncan Custom, per that ad they were around in 78/79. ;)

I was reverb recently and my godness have you see what people are asking for vintage MXR phase 90's.....holy crap like 500-700 bucks..... :shock:

I'm thinking about pickup up another vintage MXR Flanger and an analogman modded phase 90 with the volume and mix knob. I picked up an MXR flanger likes Ed's in 1985 and it broke, I don't even remember what I did with it.... :roll:
I have one in my box of pickups...

Prolly circa 1998~1999

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<Various Mighty Mite and DiMarzio Super Distortions>
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