Mini Humbuckers

Just thought I'd let you guys know the results of some budget pups I picked up and installed in my Hollowbody Tele build the other day.

I originally had a set of these generic firebird pups in there http://cgi.ebay.com/Mini-Humbucker-neck-pickup-Firebird-Style-Chrome-/170604798167?pt=UK_Guitar_Accessories&hash=item27b8d6a0d7 They are dam good pups for the price. The tone is fairly bright, the breakup comes on faiely smoothly and is very tight for a santana type sound if you roll the tone off.

I've also used these filteron type pups on my Dot http://cgi.ebay.com/MRG-GOLD-Mini-Humbucker-ALNICO-NECK-Guitar-Pickup-New-/380314949086?pt=Guitar_Accessories&hash=item588c8995de They were better than most fullsized pups, plenty hot but they are lacking in the upper frequency ranges.

I replaced the pups in my Tele hollowbody build with these. http://cgi.ebay.com/GOLD-MINI-HUMBUCKER-GUITAR-PICKUP-SET-VINTAGE-SOUND-/400196763822?pt=Guitar_Accessories&hash=item5d2d9600ae

I have to give them a major for tone. They really nail the Les Paul Deluxe tone I been wanting. If you've ever played one of those pauls you would know that thay have clean tone like P90s up untill about #8 on the volume knob, and quickly go from being clean to crunchy at #9 then to smooth sustain all the way up on #10. I'm completely stoked that they nail the Gibson Minis so closely like that. I had been searching a good budget pickup that would do that for a few years now. Its funny because those pups were in the first good Gibson i owned as a kid. took me a lifitime to make the full swing off everything out there only to come back to what I started with.

I have the p100s in my Les Paul, but thats a different sound altogether. I have P90's in a few others. they sound good for cleans but are a bit too razor blade for driven tone for me. The firebird pups are real close but lacked the good clean tone when turned down. By the time it started to clean up at about 1/2 way down, the volume pot caused the tone to get muddy and the sound loset its presence.

These are the pups. You want them to go from clean to driven within a few notches on the volume with minimal volume and tone loss. They are the whole key to getting vintage tone from a good tube amp without pedals and having great pinch harmonics. I was digging in and getting that ZZ Top sound without any effort at all. I'm going to use them on some tracks tonight and maybe post a song. I already have tracks done with the firebird type pups. I'll add the leads with these Paul Deluxe type so they're be contrast between the two.

I even bought another set for my other guitar build that has minis. I figured for $23 for both pups and $6 shipping theres no way you can go wrong here.

Looks like I'll soon have two more sets of pups in my parts drawer.

Good info. Since I completed the red strat and sold it I don't have a project. Maybe I'll try these.

Yea, for the price I'll give my recomendation onthem. As you know I dont do that very often on low end gear.

I still may get a third set. I need to get some conversion rings to fit a standard HB route. Those Filteron mini HB's are an oddball size and dont fit the standard mini HB sizes. I bought the set in gold thinking they would before I sized them up and found out they were wrong. I could make my own rings, but I'm kind of past the point of dorking with stuff like that. I'm not that hard up financially where an extra $15 to have it look pro would break my bank.

I have the first gold gold set on a chrome hardware guitar. Its cheaper to buya chrome set like Ihave then to deck the rest of the guitar out in gold. I've already done the Dot in gold, so digging up gold conversion rings is the way to go. I threw them in the Tele to see how they would sound and fixed the finish while I was at it. I'm pretty pleased with it. I'll likely do the back of that guitar in high gloss when I get the other set and change it back to chrome with the same kind of pups. I hate finishing as you know but the front came out so Good, It doesnt make sence to leave a thin satin on the back. its an easy job anyways, just some loght sanding to remove any wax I had on there and just overspray a few coats. I have a half a can left and that should do the trick.

I still have to find a project for those rickenbacker pickups I have. i may try them on that Teisco Casino copy i have. its a good body and i have a pretty good neck for it. Its just the dam hols for the stock pups were so long. The only thing I can think of doing is using pickguard material and making my own rings. nothing stock is going to fit. I did dig up a gold foil pickup thats a stock Teisco. I just dont like the way it looks and I'd still have to have something else for the other hole.

I have some dog ear P90's in there now and they sound OK but I'm not thrilled with it for the kind of stuff i play. I just know I could do so much better for tone with some minis in there. The guitar would go from a wall hanger to being one I rotate to often. Maybe tonight I'll cut some of that black pickguard material to size, then trace out the hole for a mini and get to work. I'd cut the inside holes with a hot blade knife but thats something i need to add to my tool list. I'll likely cut the hole smaller then dremmil the pup hole to size for a tight fit. Its one of those jobs I rarely get to look like a factory cut, and its exactly why I dont do them often.

I do have mini rings though and since I wont be using the rings with the minis, I'm going to sandwitch the pickguard material between the metal rings. I can then cut the hole and not worry about cutting too far. I can also use a file by hand when I'm close to the rings and stop short of damaging them. If anything I'll have a littel arch to the plastic mounting them on the body, but what the heck.