Here at Lollar Pickups, we love working closely with some of the best builders in the industry to find the right tone for their custom creations. So we thought we’d spotlight some of the unique builds and the thought process behind them. Next up is BiLT Guitars and their sexy Zaftig model, equipped with Lollar Regal pickups:
Lollar Pickups: What made you choose Lollar Regals for the Zaftig?
BiLT Guitars: We had several people ask us to have the reissue (Wide Range) units redone to sound more like guitar pickups, then Regals appeared and the rest is history.
At Lollar Pickups we love working closely with some of the best builders in the industry to find the right tone for their custom creations. So we thought we’d spotlight some of the unique builds and the thought process behind them. First up is John Page and this amazing double-neck beauty:
The Firebird and Mini-Humbucker might be the two of the most underrated and misunderstood pickups that are available today. These two designs are as versatile and complex as any of the pickups we make, and many discerning players are taking advantage of their unique capabilities in order to expand their tonal options.
Hi Lollar fans! We sometimes get requests to verify the authenticity of Lollar pickups, whether its a set that pops up on eBay, or a used guitar that is said to be stocked with our stuff. Sometime in 2003 or 2004 we standardized how our pickups were marked, and it is still done the same today. The only way to know for sure that you have a genuine Lollar pickup is to check the bottom and look for the proper markings. We label them in a few different ways, from humbuckers to Strats… there are certain things to look for to insure authenticity.
CURRENT PRODUCTION:
HUMBUCKERS: All our humbuckers have tags screwed to the bottom and are stamped with “LOLLAR IMPERIAL” followed by the year, and if it is a neck or a bridge. Color is important as well… a black label is standard wind, grey is a Low Wind, and red is a High Wind. The name of the builder will be initialed in the right bottom corner.
Here is a question we received from a customer. It is a good one, so here you go….
The customer wrote…
“I read the following excerpt from your tech info page:
Inductance (H): When iron or an iron-based (ferrous) metal moves within a magnetic field, it has the capacity to induce a current in any conductive material also in that magnetic field (i.e. the copper wire coil). This is inductance—a measure of the physical property to induce a current. In general, the greater the inductance, the greater the output and greater the bass response.
From the above I would assume my bridge pickup is bassier than the neck because it is higher inductance. But the opposite is true on my guitar. The neck is bassier and the bridge cuts. I love my set up, I am trying to develop a greater understanding [of inductance].
Best, Mr. X”
The statement about inductance is true if everything else is equal. If you put your bridge pickup in the neck position it would sound bassier than the neck pickup in the neck position. If you put the neck pickup in the bridge position it would have less bass than the bridge pickup in the bridge position. This would be the answer, based solely on the property of inductance as described above.
However, there are two related parts of the answer as to why the neck and bridge pickups sound different from each other.
Take a look at this diagram which represents string vibration:
The neck pickup sits closest to the center of the wave pattern
The first part of the answer has to do with where the pickup is located, relative to the string vibration.
The amplitude of the fundamental is greatest at the center point between the nut and bridge. The greater the amplitude of the string vibration, the more the magnetic field of the pickup is disturbed which generates a higher voltage in the coil. More voltage = more output or volume.
The neck pickup sits closest to the full arch of the wave pattern, but the bridge is positioned where it senses only a small fraction of the arch. In other words, if you pick the string near the end of the fingerboard you’ll get a smooth bassy sound. That is what the neck pickup is sensing. If you pick the strings about 1/4″ in front of the bridge, you’ll get a bright thin sound. That is what your bridge is sensing.
The second part of the answer has to do with “how much” of any one frequency the pickup is sensing. Have another look at the diagram above.
The portion of the diagram showing the string vibrating like one big arc represents the fundamental. Your neck pickup sits close to the center of that arc, so you get more fundamental which is the fullest bassiest tone (the fundamental is the note you are actually playing). Strings vibrate in many patterns at the same time, so not only is the fundamental present but many higher overtones are also being generated at the same time.
Now if you look at the area of the diagram that is closer to the bridge, you’ll notice there are many shorter wavelengths clustered together. You’ll also see that it senses a larger proportion of the higher frequency multiples of the note you are playing. Mostly the 4th 5th, 6th and 7th harmonics. In other words, all of the patterns are happening at the same time, but the fundamental and the 2nd and 3rd harmonics are less predominant.
