Fun! Swapped magnets/pickups in my Agile tonight.

[FrankenFretter]

Recently I bought some AlNiCo II and IV magnets from a respected seller on Ebay. I had done a trade recently for some Epi pickups taken out of an Epi SG400, and I swapped the magnets out for the AlNiCos. I put an A4 in the bridge and an A2 in the neck. I finally got around to swapping the pickups out today, taking the GFS VEH pickups out, and putting the modded Epis in.

I was very pleasantly surprised. Both pickups sound very warm and rich. The neck sounds especially sweet and chunky, and the bridge sounds pretty killer. I'm assuming that these are more of a vintage wind, since the don't seem super hot (which is fine), but I don't have my multimeter here to test them. I'll try to remember to bring it home sometime soon to check.

I'm really happy with the results. I almost just want to leave them in there, but I plan on swapping the A5 magnets in the GFS pickups for the same magnet combo. I also got some Mallory 150 tone caps that I may replace the Sprague Orange Drops with when I put the zebras back in. My Epi Tribute LP has Mallorys and I love the way it sounds. I know that the pickups in the Tribute have much more to do with the sound than the caps, but I'm trying to get the Agile to sound closer to the Tribute. I think I've discovered the key now... ;-)

I didn't take any photos of the process, but I can take some of the finished product, if anyone wants to see them.

I may be selling some pickups here soon. Stay tuned!

 

[Tig]

It would have been easier to just keep the tone pots at 10.
oke

I bet changing magnets was cheaper and more fun that buying all new pickups.

 

[FrankenFretter]

It would have been easier to just keep the tone pots at 10.
oke

I bet changing magnets was cheaper and more fun that buying all new pickups.

Definitely more satisfying. I also have some alloy pole piece screws that I may try in the GFS pickups. Not sure what difference that will make.

 

[Eric]

Cool deal. I know you had been talking about Alnico IIs for a while, so I'm glad you got positive results. Keep us posted on future developments, please!

 

[Duffy]

Swap

That sounds cool. I bet you really like that. I think the Epiphone SG pickups are Alnico "Classic" pickups, emulating, to some extent the old school PAF type pickups. Both of my Epi SG's have them in them and I really like those pickups, no problem at all. Even the neck produces some beautiful rythym tones. Just playing one of them a few minutes ago thru my Egnater Tweaker head.

Going the expensive route, I have played some Seymour Duncan, no affln., Alnico II Pro covered humbuckers in a LTD Viper Deluxe and they were some really smooth warm sounding humbuckers that I could really connect with. These are, of course, probably about seventy five a piece. Don't know if they would show up used very often.

Your custom homemade versions sound like real good pickups.

 

[wingsdad]

For those wondering or debating what pickup(s) to choose to replace the one(s) in the guitar you own, or are considering owning, here's some light on the subject copied from the Seymour Duncan website's How To Choose A Pickup...there's more to it, but since this thread is focused on replacing the GFS VEH pickups with Alnico 2's and 4's...

magnet
The magnet brings life to the pickup. We use two different magnet materials:
Alnico and ceramic. Alnico, an alloy which includes aluminum, nickel and cobalt (“ALNI-CO”), tends to have lower string pull and creates a softer
magnet field which improves sustain and helps smooth out the tone.

We use two different strengths of Alnico magnets -- Alnico 2 and Alnico 5 -- to create two totally different tones. Alnico 2, which is slightly weaker than 5, tends to have a smoother, warmer, rounder tone with softer attack. Alnico 5 has a brighter, more dynamic tone with a tighter bottom end than 2.

Ceramic magnets are a blend of magnetic iron and rare earth materials like barium or strontium, which is formed into bars under high pressure and intense heat. If you are looking for power and extended range in your
tone, ceramic is the way to go. Ceramic creates a magnet field more powerful
than that of Alnico and is more resistant to environmental aging. We use ceramic magnets on some of our humbuckers (like the SH-13 Dimebucker), single coil sized humbuckers (like the JB Jr.), and bass pickups (like the active soapbars), because it produces a more aggressive tone with a punchier bass end and enhanced upper mids.

Understanding the relationship between d.c. resistance and resonant peak is a great way to discern the “voice” of a pickup. But of equal importance is understanding how the magnet of the pickup matches with the various types of tone woods used in guitars.

Ask yourself this: is my guitar naturally bright sounding or warm sounding? Bright sounding guitars will have a tendency to have a pronounced high-end detail; and warm sounding guitars will have more emphasis in the lower-midrange. Certain woods, like mahogany and rosewood, will often create a warm sounding guitar. Other woods, like maple and ebony, will make a guitar bight sounding. What kind of wood is used on your guitar?

Here’s the trick: you can balance a bright sounding guitar with a warm sounding pickup. And vice versa. Alnico 2 has a characteristic warm tone with
soft attack. Generally, this means it usually works well with bright sounding
guitars. Alnico 5 and ceramic generally have a brighter tone than Alnico 2,
which make them well suited to warm sounding guitars.

Keep in mind that these are general guidelines; and we make some broad-based suggestions for woods for each pickup in their catalog description. But some Alnico 2 pickups, like the APS-1 Alnico II Pro for Strat®, for instance, are actually bright sounding – not because of the magnet, but because of the low d.c. resistance and high resonant peak.


d.c. resistance and resonant peak
The gauge of wire and the number of turns on the coil each play a part
in defining the d.c. resistance. D. C. resistance is resistance to the flow of
direct current. Generally, the more turns of wire, the higher the D.C. resistance, the higher the output and the lower the treble response. For single coils, the d.c. resistance generally ranges from around 6.5k for a vintage tone, to 15k for a high output tone. For humbuckers, the range
is around 7.5k to around 16.5k.

Though it may seem that this is the clear-cut way to determine what kind of pickup is best for you, remember this is only one of several variables that aid in determining the tone or voice of a pickup. Resistance to the flow of alternating current is called impedance and it changes with frequency. The frequency where a pickup’s impedance reaches its highest level is called the resonant peak. Generally speaking, the higher in frequency the resonant peak, the clearer and brighter the pickup’s tone.

 

[FrankenFretter]

That sounds cool. I bet you really like that. I think the Epiphone SG pickups are Alnico "Classic" pickups, emulating, to some extent the old school PAF type pickups. Both of my Epi SG's have them in them and I really like those pickups, no problem at all. Even the neck produces some beautiful rythym tones. Just playing one of them a few minutes ago thru my Egnater Tweaker head.

Going the expensive route, I have played some Seymour Duncan, no affln., Alnico II Pro covered humbuckers in a LTD Viper Deluxe and they were some really smooth warm sounding humbuckers that I could really connect with. These are, of course, probably about seventy five a piece. Don't know if they would show up used very often.

Your custom homemade versions sound like real good pickups.

The magnets that I removed from the Epi pickups were definitely ceramic. They may have been from one of those Goth SGs, but I didn't ask.

 

[FrankenFretter]

For those wondering or debating what pickup(s) to choose to replace the one(s) in the guitar you own, or are considering owning, here's some light on the subject copied from the Seymour Duncan website's How To Choose A Pickup...there's more to it, but since this thread is focused on replacing the GFS VEH pickups with Alnico 2's and 4's...

Good info, thanks Wingsdad. Although it doesn't mention A IV magnets, Gibson used to use the A4s, A3s and A2s in their original P90s, then when they started making the PAFs, they would use whatever they had available from the P90s, which meant that occasionally you'd get a pair of PAFs that would have one A4 and one A2, or A3 from what I've read. I buy the rough sandcast magnets, which is what Gibson used in the early PAFs. I'm not sure there's any difference in tone between the polished and the rough cast, but they're the same price, and I like the mojo of the rough cast. ;-)

 

[Duffy]

Pickups

Are the Epi ones covered or uncovered? You also could have gotten the set from the G-310 possibly.

The good thing is that they sound great with the new magnets.

I'm trying to decide if I should get some new pickups for my new MIM standard tele that doesn't have any noise cancelling in any switch position. Even a RWRP set would be satisfactory. Right now I have a line on a single new Fender Vintage Noiseless bridge tele pickup for 55 US, no extravagant deal, but it would give me a noiseless option and I can buy the neck one next month. I went out last night an bought a bunch of tools that I need and that cost more than the new set of Fender noiseless tele pickups. These tools make things easier though, and we have a lot of construction projects going on at the house.

I'm glad you discovered a great pickup solution, even though I'm still on the quest for a solution for my tele.

 

[FrankenFretter]

Are the Epi ones covered or uncovered? You also could have gotten the set from the G-310 possibly.

The good thing is that they sound great with the new magnets.

I'm trying to decide if I should get some new pickups for my new MIM standard tele that doesn't have any noise cancelling in any switch position. Even a RWRP set would be satisfactory. Right now I have a line on a single new Fender Vintage Noiseless bridge tele pickup for 55 US, no extravagant deal, but it would give me a noiseless option and I can buy the neck one next month. I went out last night an bought a bunch of tools that I need and that cost more than the new set of Fender noiseless tele pickups. These tools make things easier though, and we have a lot of construction projects going on at the house.

I'm glad you discovered a great pickup solution, even though I'm still on the quest for a solution for my tele.

The pickups are uncovered. I'll have to ask the guy that I got them from which model he pulled them from.

Duffy, my Tele[caster] is pretty noisy too. The hum isn't deafening, but when you add gain, it feeds back pretty bad. Ah well, another project for another day. I've been looking at the GFS noiseless pickups with some curiosity. Might go that route, but I'm not sure. I really like the tone of the stock pickup, I just don't like the noise.

My 2.5" magnets should be here today or tomorrow, so I can cram them in the GFS VEHs this weekend, hopefully. I may also disassemble some covered pickups to do some magnet swaps, but that's going to be slightly more time consuming. This time, I'll try to remember to take photos as I go, for anyone that's interested.

 

[Duffy]

Pups

Great on the pictures as you go idea.

I probably will stay away from the GFS noiseless tele pickups, only because the Fender Vintage Noiseless are on sale for around 110. Not that much more than the Neovins, sixty, or the new True Coils, I think eighty or so; plus I think the new True Coils are stacked like the Fender Vintage Noiseless anyway.

My tele is an '09 MIM standard and it sounds beautiful. One viewpoint I have been hearing from some knowledgeable players is to learn to love the noise, because it goes with the traditional telecaster sound that many have come to know and love. I must say, the stock hot ceramic pups do sound great, chimey and brilliant, and a little hotter than the average tele pickup too. So I suppose that hottness magnifies any inherent single coil noise.

What year is your tele? Maybe we should just try to get used to the noise and listen to the music, because we both agree - they do sound great.

 

[FrankenFretter]

Great on the pictures as you go idea.

I probably will stay away from the GFS noiseless tele pickups, only because the Fender Vintage Noiseless are on sale for around 110. Not that much more than the Neovins, sixty, or the new True Coils, I think eighty or so; plus I think the new True Coils are stacked like the Fender Vintage Noiseless anyway.

My tele is an '09 MIM standard and it sounds beautiful. One viewpoint I have been hearing from some knowledgeable players is to learn to love the noise, because it goes with the traditional telecaster sound that many have come to know and love. I must say, the stock hot ceramic pups do sound great, chimey and brilliant, and a little hotter than the average tele pickup too. So I suppose that hottness magnifies any inherent single coil noise.

What year is your tele? Maybe we should just try to get used to the noise and listen to the music, because we both agree - they do sound great.

Mine is actually a clone, a White Bridge Tele. See the review here: LINK

You are correct about the True Coils. OTOH, the Neovin, for just the bridge, is something like $36. Not much, I guess. I'm planning on changing out the pickguard for a black one routed for a humbucker, then putting a Mean 90 in it. With a humbucker route (a.k.a. "hole", lol), I always have the option to put a humbucker in later.

 

[Duffy]

Pups

The Neovins sound interesting. I think they are similar to Fender's new noiseless, the N3 or whatever number it is. I think the N stands for neomydium as in the magnets.

Neovins are supposed to be "completely" noiseless too. The Little Punchers are true dual rail humbuckers and are not going to retain much traditional tele sound I don't think.