Pickup specs

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Author Message   Growler Username: Growler Registered: 3-2007 Posted on Monday, April 02, 2007 - 3:50 pm:    As a newcomer to this great site, I'm learning every day. I'm particularly interested in pickup specs and I've done a bit of digging around in past threads to learn about Ibanez pickups. Here is what I know so far, and I thought it would be a great place to get a collective database on Ibanez Pickups as fitted to Vintage electrics 70/early 80s. Here's what I got, could you guys pitch in with any missing info re resistance, magnets, format, and dates. V2: 15.2K, Alnico 5, made by Maxon then Dimarzio. Cream or black open coils. 3 hole mounting. Super 70: Alnico then changed to Ceramic. Super 80: 8K, ceramic. 2 hole mounting, then 3 hole. Super 58: Alnico. 3 hole mounting. Maybe this info is already documented somewhere, in which case, where? otherwise, Over to you guys!   Fox Username: Fox Registered: 2-2003 Posted on Monday, April 02, 2007 - 6:39 pm:    Growler, I was a little bit amazed, where did you find that info, Super 70s with ceramic magnets?? I thought they all were equipped with Alnico 8, as well as Super 58s with Alnico 5... Btw, the 3-hole mounting system was used ´til around 1987-88...   Strings Username: Strings Registered: 1-2005 Posted on Monday, April 02, 2007 - 7:26 pm:    Are there Super 70s that had flush FlyFingers covers? That seems to be the case as you read around through this site and on the catelogue specs (which seemed to be quite inconsistant/incorrect at times.) So, if there ARE Super70s with ceramics, then is that when they ducked them under the flush covers?   Gemberbier Username: Gemberbier Registered: 5-2006 Posted on Monday, April 02, 2007 - 8:55 pm:    I don't think this list is reliable, at least there are several types of Super 58 pups, with 2 and 3 adjustment/suspension screws, with alnico and with ceramic magnets (those new Customs on the high end Artcores). But the idea of making a list is of course a good one. Doing some measurements collect some data from catalogues etc. But there is one feature we cannot measure with a normal multimeter: the inductance in HENRIES. If you look at the specs of Fender pups they give the resistance in KOhm and the inductance in Henries. I know a retired Philips employee who knows how it is done, but he said it was more complicated than just putting the multimeter on. I think it's very interesting what measured values lead to a desirable sound. Sound description is always a subjective description, but interesting. It's all about emotion. What sound colour can touch your soul... Ginger   Fox Username: Fox Registered: 2-2003 Posted on Monday, April 02, 2007 - 10:17 pm:    Ginger, there are quite a few parameters to be measured, if we want a full & comprehensive "spec-sheet" of Ibanez pickups.. Most people think its the DC resistance that counts, but neccessarily that aint the whole truth..as you pointed out, inductance is one. The shape of the coil determines the sound produced by the pickup, tall and narrow coil enhances hi-mid frequencies, as "normal" humbucker-coil lo-mid.. Then there is of course the magnet(s)what sort of flux field and how strong one they create..the whole "sound" comes from a string moving in that flux field, and this induces a current in the coil. The number of turns in the coil, the diameter of wire in the coil, placement of magnets, the material of the magnets all help to "fine-tune" of the pickup. Back to the topic, I strongly believe that there is no ceramic magnet Super 70s but they all use Alnico 8 magnets.. As for the new (non-vintage) Super 58s I´m not sure..perhaps the new winder has substituted Alnico 5 with ceramic magnet, its cheaper. Older manufacturers (Maxxon, Gotoh and FujiGen have been all mentioned having made pickups for Hoshino) used Alnico, I think. When Ibanez started joint-venture developing (and manufacturing) with Larry DiMarzio, those pickups used mostly ceramic magnets..eg. IBZ which had three ceramic magnets.   Growler Username: Growler Registered: 3-2007 Posted on Tuesday, April 03, 2007 - 4:16 am:    I got that formative info all from previous posts in this section of the site. That's why with the best will in the world, some of it will be questionable. As an electronics engineer, I'm well aware that pickups have more than just resistance etc. But not wanting to overcomplicate this list that I'm creating here, I would like to find out the following for each pickup: Model name Year of introduction General format (open coil, engraved cover, chrome, gold etc) Mounting holes (2 or 3) Manufacturer(s) DC resistance Wiring format (2 wire (hot and screen), 4 wire) Magnet type Variations wrt time Date discontinued If anyone has any info over and above the little starter list I've made above, please post it and I'll begin a spreadsheet with all the data collected, and we can all have access to it once it's taken shape. Thanks.   Talajuha Username: Talajuha Registered: 11-2006 Posted on Tuesday, April 03, 2007 - 5:48 am:    For those interested in technics ... http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pickup_%28music%29 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alnico http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ceramic_Magnet http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electromagnetic_induc tion http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inductance and links on these pages ... Juha   Fox Username: Fox Registered: 2-2003 Posted on Tuesday, April 03, 2007 - 6:39 am:    Great, Growler! I´ll see what I have got, not much I´m afraid.. And, as you said, there is a lot of variable info around. But let´s see what we will get done, combined effort! Be back in a jiffy... *throws papers around*   Fox Username: Fox Registered: 2-2003 Posted on Tuesday, April 03, 2007 - 8:24 am:    OK,sports fans! Here are some DC resistances, more to follow.. Older pickups first.. Nylon soft-bobbin Maxxon-made humbuckers (assembled with glue) 7.0 Hi-Power Maxxon normal bobbins, square and adjustable polepieces, sometimes seen with slot-top covers 8,12 Alnico magnet (type not specified) "Logo PU" (predecessor of Super 70) Alnico 8 7,85 Super 70 w. cover Black normal bobbins Alnico 8 7,9 Super 70 open type Cream bobbins, otherwise identical Neck 7,7 Bridge 7,9 Super 80 "Flying Fingers" Ceramic magnet clear resin potted 7,86 (singlecoil version in AR 112?? Same cover, but one coil only) Super 88 Brown or black plastic cover 7,68 - 8,05 IBZ-DiMarzio Flat plastic cover, no visible polepieces Ibanez-logo on right bottom corner 3 ceramic magnets 11,9 Super 58 + V2 and V5 data I did not find... but new Super 58.. (SP-58-F) front pickup 6,57 completely wax potted Shield and hot -wiring 2-point mounting   Growler Username: Growler Registered: 3-2007 Posted on Tuesday, April 03, 2007 - 9:02 am:    Fox, excellent stuff! many thanks. I'll add that to the sheet and let's see what else comes in.   Munch Username: Munch Registered: 2-2001 Posted on Tuesday, April 03, 2007 - 6:07 pm:    Hi Growler, For the sake of consistency, how are we supposed to measure the pickups? At the output jack, or removing the pickup from the guitar? Thanks, Mark   Growler Username: Growler Registered: 3-2007 Posted on Tuesday, April 03, 2007 - 6:19 pm:    Due to parallel path errors there is only one way to accurately measure the DC resistance of a pickup, that's with it disconnected from the guitar. You don't have to physically remove the pickup from the guitars, just disconnect one wire from a two wire pickup, or three wires from a 4 wire pickup.

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