Members Karma1 Posted March 28, 2009 Members Share Posted March 28, 2009 I came across this in the Sweetwater newsletter and thought I'd pass it along. I'm sure a lot of people here know this already, but I do frequently see the two terms used interchangeably in posts. This is a good explanation of the difference: Q: Is there a difference between coil splitting or coil tapping the pickups on a guitar? A: Most people use the terms interchangeably. However, technically, there is a difference. With guitar pickups, "coil splitting" refers to breaking the connection between the two coils in a humbucking pickup so that one is disabled and the remaining one functions as a single-coil pickup. "Coil tapping," on the other hand, refers to taking the signal from a location within a single-coil pickup's coil of wire, rather than at the end of the coil. This is done to reduce the output of the pickup; the more turns of wire the coil has, the higher its output. By tapping the coil somewhere in the middle, the output is reduced. This feature is commonly found on higher-output single-coil pickups such as Seymour Duncan's Quarter Pounders, which can be tapped to produce an output more similar to a vintage Fender single-coil. Coil tapping could also be used to tap off the signal from a humbucking pickup from somewhere within one of the coils, though this is much less commonly done. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members lfrz93 Posted March 28, 2009 Members Share Posted March 28, 2009 i needed to know this thanksnever had the balls to ask though Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members cheezusbhrist Posted March 28, 2009 Members Share Posted March 28, 2009 so when you coil tap you arent really getting a single coil sound? this is important to me because i am planning on getting a humbucker in my strat and i want to have a way to go back to the dynamics of a single coil. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members tlbonehead Posted March 28, 2009 Members Share Posted March 28, 2009 so when you coil tap you arent really getting a single coil sound? this is important to me because i am planning on getting a humbucker in my strat and i want to have a way to go back to the dynamics of a single coil.no problem since there are so very few HBs that are tappable. I have a set of the only ones I am aware of. Joe Barden TwoTones. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members tlbonehead Posted March 28, 2009 Members Share Posted March 28, 2009 I came across this in the Sweetwater newsletter and thought I'd pass it along. I'm sure a lot of people here know this already, but I do frequently see the two terms used interchangeably in posts. This is a good explanation of the difference: Q: Is there a difference between coil splitting or coil tapping the pickups on a guitar? A: Most people use the terms interchangeably. However, technically, there is a difference. With guitar pickups, "coil splitting" refers to breaking the connection between the two coils in a humbucking pickup so that one is disabled and the remaining one functions as a single-coil pickup. "Coil tapping," on the other hand, refers to taking the signal from a location within a single-coil pickup's coil of wire, rather than at the end of the coil. This is done to reduce the output of the pickup; the more turns of wire the coil has, the higher its output. By tapping the coil somewhere in the middle, the output is reduced. This feature is commonly found on higher-output single-coil pickups such as Seymour Duncan's Quarter Pounders, which can be tapped to produce an output more similar to a vintage Fender single-coil. Coil tapping could also be used to tap off the signal from a humbucking pickup from somewhere within one of the coils, though this is much less commonly done. goor call, but as many times as it has been clearly explained here, I doubt if it will help. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members cheezusbhrist Posted March 28, 2009 Members Share Posted March 28, 2009 no problem since there are so very few HBs that are tappable. I have a set of the only ones I am aware of. Joe Barden TwoTones. oh, so i could get a seymour duncan JB and split the coils? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members tlbonehead Posted March 28, 2009 Members Share Posted March 28, 2009 oh, so i could get a seymour duncan JB and split the coils?Ya, every JB I've ever seen was splittable. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members jack harper Posted March 28, 2009 Members Share Posted March 28, 2009 nice explanation, What about series and out of phase for humbuckers? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members newbuilder Posted March 28, 2009 Members Share Posted March 28, 2009 That is good info, thanks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members unworthy Posted March 28, 2009 Members Share Posted March 28, 2009 goor call, but as many times as it has been clearly explained here, I doubt if it will help. Yeah, there are already a couple of responses here that seem to have missed the point. D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Brewski Posted March 28, 2009 Members Share Posted March 28, 2009 Wow!! I always used them interchangably. I'd like to split and then tap all my humbuckers. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Into Nation Posted March 28, 2009 Members Share Posted March 28, 2009 I've probably used the terms wrong more than once... Thanks.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Karma1 Posted March 29, 2009 Author Members Share Posted March 29, 2009 Glad to see that some people found this info helpful. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Verne Andru Posted March 29, 2009 Members Share Posted March 29, 2009 That's a good explanation, but it has been explained ad nausea over the years I've been here and it's amazing how many people still use these terms incorrectly. Without mentioning names, there is one reasonably high profile builder/brand guy who hangs out here who, even though I've tried to explain it to him, still runs ads in places like Vintage Guitar with ad copy using these terms incorrectly. Great way to turn off potential customers. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members tlbonehead Posted March 29, 2009 Members Share Posted March 29, 2009 That's a good explanation, but it has been explained ad nausea over the years I've been here and it's amazing how many people still use these terms incorrectly. Without mentioning names, there is one reasonably high profile builder/brand guy who hangs out here who, even though I've tried to explain it to him, still runs ads in places like Vintage Guitar with ad copy using these terms incorrectly. Great way to turn off potential customers. Yep, I've seen it used incorrectly by manufacturers as well. I'm blaming Leo Fender for starting the fad of using incorrect terms! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Vantango84 Posted March 29, 2009 Members Share Posted March 29, 2009 Yep, I've seen it used incorrectly by manufacturers as well. I'm blaming Leo Fender for starting the fad of using incorrect terms! When Leo uses the term, it BECOMES correct. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Verne Andru Posted March 29, 2009 Members Share Posted March 29, 2009 Yep, I've seen it used incorrectly by manufacturers as well. I'm blaming Leo Fender for starting the fad of using incorrect terms! I dunno - in Leo's case this stuff was all new and not "codified" the way it is today. I'd argue there's no excuse for today's builders as we're 60 years along and there really hasn't been much of anything new [digital aside] since Seth Lover invented the humbucker back in the 50's. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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