EVH Tone - Pickup Roundup

[Ed Hunter]

As far as the DSD's go keep in mind that they had 2 versions. One was 13-14k and others were 7-9k. However, they both provide the same output.

yeah the 9K one is a neck model called the super 2

[Tone Slinger]

I think that Ed had the 'vintage' Mighty Mite in his strat during the 1st albums recording. The concensus seems to be that he was using a 13k or so ceramic mag mighty mite. I think it may have been a Mighty Mite and if it was it was SURELY a ceramic magnet, since the literature promo advertisements for Mighty Mite (''77 article) say that they all used ceramic masgnets.

The thing is,that I hear alot of bite and clarity without much 'fat' like the higher ohm winds tend to get. I hear a very close sound to a 8k alnico 5 type paf.

The zebra coiled MM in the all black rosewood board franky (arguably the version used on the first album) may well have been the 'vintage' mm. Which would have been a 9 to 9.5k ceramic mag wind.

Ceramic is BRIGHTER than alnico, which is why you NEVER see a pick up with a ceramic magnet with anything less than around 13 or 14k (the higher the output the bassier a pu becomes)

The 'vintage' MM was around 9k. This would have been brighter than a 8k paf with a harsher tighter type tone. This may have been what Ed was using on that first album. I dont really hear the pick up pushing that much harder to be a 14k DSD.

[Ed Hunter]

I think that Ed had the 'vintage' Mighty Mite in his strat during the 1st albums recording. The concensus seems to be that he was using a 13k or so ceramic mag mighty mite. I think it may have been a Mighty Mite and if it was it was SURELY a ceramic magnet, since the literature promo advertisements for Mighty Mite (''77 article) say that they all used ceramic masgnets.

The thing is,that I hear alot of bite and clarity without much 'fat' like the higher ohm winds tend to get. I hear a very close sound to a 8k alnico 5 type paf.

The zebra coiled MM in the all black rosewood board franky (arguably the version used on the first album) may well have been the 'vintage' mm. Which would have been a 9 to 9.5k ceramic mag wind.

Ceramic is BRIGHTER than alnico, which is why you NEVER see a pick up with a ceramic magnet with anything less than around 13 or 14k (the higher the output the bassier a pu becomes)

The 'vintage' MM was around 9k. This would have been brighter than a 8k paf with a harsher tighter type tone. This may have been what Ed was using on that first album. I dont really hear the pick up pushing that much harder to be a 14k DSD.

i agree, you dont think eddie put the ceramic mag from the MM or DSD in his es335 P.A.F do you?

[Blix]

Is there any way you could post that clip of the comparison? as for the DSD didnt ed use a mighty mite screamer(M-1300) which does have the same specs as a DSD? my duncan custom is a 14K pup as well with the same wire gauge as the dimarzio and mighty mite but the duncan has a smaller ceramic than those other two. i really like the custom for the VH 1 tone.

I wish I could, but they are on a hard drive that died on me a few weeks ago But there were virtually no difference at all. Yeah, probably could be the MM pickup as well.

[nitro]

I remember Ed talking about(who knows if its true coming from Ed)swapping out the ceramic magnet out of a Dimarzio Super Distortion and replacing it with a PAF magnet,now was that magnet a alnico II or alnico V.This would sound like,if it was a alnico II the Duncan custom custom the dc resistance would be close to that.When Ed switched to the floyd rose trem he did complain that his sound was thin and bright with no body to it.

[rgorke]

Bump

I didn't realize this was started nearly two years ago. Where has the time gone?

[Tone Slinger]

Well I'm coming full circle again in the pu dept. (It is funny how most of us here keep going around the same circle, re rediscovering stuff).

I am likeing a vintage wire (42 awg ?) 9k output alnico 5 pu at the moment. The attack seems accurate as compared to the very hard and closed in sounding ceramic types (DSD for sure). The initial push and eq you get from a DSD can fool you for a bit. I just cant get the right twang and chew with ANY ceramic magnet style pu.

So, in hind sight, Ed really DIDNT fib as much as we thought. He just cranked his main top up like he said. So, if we go by what he says back then, then he used a 'Old paf that was rewound to my specifications'. That could be ANYTHING, but I think he had a old paf that sounded GREAT to him, but needed a tad more push. Meeting Seymour Duncan probably gave him the advice /knowledge that he needed in that regard. I think that this PAF was probably reading around 7.5k to 8k, like the majority of them by the early '60's. Ed probably had it wound with as many turns as possible (like to a 9k to 9.5k).

Retaining the base tone of a paf, with just a hair more push and volume. I hear alot of strat 'twang' early on, which is just hard to get at with a super distortion.

Still, the amp is SO important. A Mighty Mite (DSD) style is still a valid candidate for that first album, though I'm not feeling it right now.

[rgorke]

I agree, I keep putting in and taking out pickups. My wife looks at me and says, "what are you doing?" If seems like one is really good then the part it lacks starts really bugging me so I swap around.

[Tone Slinger]

Mine too (wife that is). I just switched back in my DSD, just to confirm what I thought I had confirmed the LAST time I took it out. I think I'm gonna leave it in for awhile again . I hear something 'definitive' about it again.

The OCT. 15th Pasadena civic show just almost confirms the possibility of this DSD clone MM pu. That hardness and DEFINITION is there. Still, it just doesnt make sense in some ways.

I need to just sit on this pu for awhile I guess, this swapping shit is starting to get to me .

[Marshall SL12301]

Mine too (wife that is). I just switched back in my DSD, just to confirm what I thought I had confirmed the LAST time I took it out. I think I'm gonna leave it in for awhile again . I hear something 'definitive' about it again.

The OCT. 15th Pasadena civic show just almost confirms the possibility of this DSD clone MM pu. That hardness and DEFINITION is there. Still, it just doesnt make sense in some ways.

I need to just sit on this pu for awhile I guess, this swapping shit is starting to get to me .

Tone slinger i know what you mean,all we do know for a fact is by the time he did his first interview, he had a major hard on for P.A.F's. he talked about them pretty upfront
He absolutely used DSD's and MM's as documented in many pics BUT only VH knows what exactly was done to those pu's? he swore he did not care for dimarzio's cause they were too distorted.
even his love for P.A.F's was IF they were rewound? well that would no longer be a true P.A.F then!
I guess the best thing to do since the truth will never be known is to just use your ears. the DSD or MM 1300 just has something about it that to me is not VH1.I hear it in the earlier club boots but not on that record.

[rgorke]

Even seeing pictures of him using certain pups at gigs may not mean too much. There is a series of pictures in the new Zloz book of Ed working on Franky in the tune up room. He, no doubtedly, switched out things incessantly. He may have had a pickup in one day and a different the next.

[vanhalen5150]

Even seeing pictures of him using certain pups at gigs may not mean too much. There is a series of pictures in the new Zloz book of Ed working on Franky in the tune up room. He, no doubtedly, switched out things incessantly. He may have had a pickup in one day and a different the next.

That same pic you see the soldering iron on the bench and that odd pot with the square bottom sitting there. Notice that? He probably was changing PU's like socks. 2-3 boxes of Duracell 9 volt batteries too. Not to get off topic, but look at the pics of that high res Shark pic. Look at the chips taken out on the bottom edge . You can see black paint underneath the white between the white and original clear Ibanez. Every chip taken out to the clear shows a coat of black paint. Lots of info within those pages. Geek info of course.

[Marshall SL12301]

Even seeing pictures of him using certain pups at gigs may not mean too much. There is a series of pictures in the new Zloz book of Ed working on Franky in the tune up room. He, no doubtedly, switched out things incessantly. He may have had a pickup in one day and a different the next.

I never considered that but do agree with you! he may have had a MM 1300 in for the recording of atomic punk then had a over wound PAF in that same strat for the recording of eruption or the other way round? who knows
all i know is that i have never heard any one pu get that opening A chord tone found on eruption on that record.
it is way too warm and smooth to be a ceramic and sounds too hot to be a 9K PAF so what was it?
like strat 78 had sad the duncan custom is close but is too dark to nail it. For now i have not found any other model that comes that close to the eruption tone than the duncan custom.

[vanhalen5150]

9K PU with 2 EP3's in series for VH1.....

[Marshall SL12301]

9K PU with 2 EP3's in series for VH1.....

I have the duncan 78 which is supposed to be THEE pu he had wound by duncan. It does a great VHII