A Lesson on Pickup Winding Intepretation

This was a great post by Rod Kinkade of Skatterbrane pickups. I felt that this information is something that needs to be shared. Rod himself winds fantastic PAF replicas and is one of the best in the market.

Check out http://www.skatterbrane.com/ for more information on his pickups.

Most people insist on getting a hotter pickup for their needs, and feel that a higher DC resistance is needed to achive that. Rod's explanation debunks that myth. Read on:

Q: I want something "hotter", so why don't you make a 13k style pickup?

In some ways this is similar to choosing an amp that has dials that go to 12 vs 10, thinking you are going to be able to play louder. It is natural for people to gravitate to a single measurement to sort out what they are seeking. (it makes their search simplified AND perpetuates myths)

Did you know that a PAF type pickup may actually be LOUDER or offer more overdrive than a 13K pickup? Let me explain only a small part of what I am talking about.

PAFs use 42awg wire, which is THICKER than 43 or 44 awg wire. The thinner a wire, the MORE resistance it has, and you can get more winds on a bobbin with thinner wire.

The more resistance you have in a circuit (with everything else being the same) the more rolled off the high frequencies are AND the LESS power you have at the output.

A PAF, depending on the wind pattern, when the bobbins are full, will top out around 9-9.5K. You run out of room. If you want to get MORE winds, you have to go to thinner wire, 43awg or 44awg. Also as you make more winds, each layer becomes longer per wind, and further away from the pole screws and slugs, this has an effect on energy too.

But here is the crux of the matter, these exampes are arbitrary but reasonable and demonstrative;

PAF 42awg wire 10,000 winds = 8k ohms. Nearly full.

Modern hot pickup 44awg wire 10,000 winds = 12K ohms. But
you have still more room to wind more!

The PAF in THIS case (above) is actually going to have more output!! Why? LESS resistance! Same number of winds. To get the same output from the modern pickup you will have to wind more turns to make up for the higher resistance, while actually adding resistance in the process.

Resistance is NOT an indication of a pickups power in itself. It only gives you a clue as to how many winds you have IF you know the gauge of the wire. It is how many WINDS you have that gives you the power.

And I do not know about you, but I would rather have the same power BUT less of my highs taken away.

Let's say to get the same power from a 44awg coil, as the PAF coil, you have to wind it up another 15% to 11,500 winds and add even more resistance, and lose even more highs. This is why many modern "hot" pickups use magnets that tend to exaggerate highs. A5, ceramic etc.