a love for ceremic magnets

[WarmothRules]

alnico is not for me, what ceremic pickups you all into, I'm reading bare knuckle painkillers are top notch. I got a stan hinesly rouge and I'll tell you it's beyond awesome, just not quite diggin the alnico character of it. I live duncan distortions a bunch, but you know there is always something better out there. The stan hinesley helllion I read is a tad scouped in the mids. I like my mids.

 

[dudesweet157]

Ceramic huh?  While I love my AlNiCo's for anything and everything, I have to say that Steve Vai gets an GODLIKE lead tone out of his Dimarzio Evolutions.  I don't know how much of it is his pickups and how much of it is 30k of rack gear fed into a raging 100 watt amp, but whatever it is, it's heavenly. :icon_thumright:

 

[-CB-]

Some people have love of root canals too.

Bill Lawrence has said, on more than one occasion, its not the type of magnet, but how strong it is that makes the difference.  By varying the winding - and the magnet - the output level can be maintained, and the tone changed as well.  But just to say - this magnet, or that magnet, is not really justified.  I seem to recall a Seth Lover interview where he pretty much said the same thing.  Something like "we used the allnickle magnets because they were the right strength and fit more or less into the space we wanted to put them in" (paraphrased)

 

[Ted]

I have ceramic (bridge) BKP Miracle Man set in my Vee. They are great but quite scooped. Awesome for Zakk and 'tallica though. Painkiller has lots of Mids emphasis. I play with low mids so I prefer the Miracle Man set.  arty07:

 

[briny001]

I have the Zakk Wylde EMG setup in my LP (only I switched 'em and put the 81 in the neck and the 85 in the bridge. It's great.  I favor ceramic pickups in the neck position and alnico in the bridge.  Ceramic magnets seem to have a more tight and focused sound, which is what I want for my neck pickups.

 

[WarmothRules]

Some people have love of root canals too.

Bill Lawrence has said, on more than one occasion, its not the type of magnet, but how strong it is that makes the difference.  By varying the winding - and the magnet - the output level can be maintained, and the tone changed as well.  But just to say - this magnet, or that magnet, is not really justified.  I seem to recall a Seth Lover interview where he pretty much said the same thing.  Something like "we used the allnickle magnets because they were the right strength and fit more or less into the space we wanted to put them in" (paraphrased)

My Stan Hinesly Rouge is alnico is supposed to sound like a ceremic and it's very high gain but it still has the character of alnico, if the magnets don't matter much how about the Q-tuners pickups with the neodymium magnets? Those have a real different character.

 

[-CB-]

magnets come sizes... shapes... strengths

there is more to a magnet than the magnet.  there is how it interacts with other magnets, the strings and metal in the pickup

different magnets can be shaped (ceramic is easy - its molded and fired), drilled, threaded, cut, etc etc etc into shapes.

the shape and strength and interaction determine the "magnetic circuit" or how the lines of magnetic force flow from magnet, pole, strings, to other end of magnet and through the coil

BL has used all sorts of magnets in his pickup designs - the magnet type matters not.  what matters is the magnetic circuit - what the designer wants the magnet to do in terms of the circuit, and its interaction with the strings and coil - and then find a magnet of some type that will adhere to the form factor and be the correct strength (too strong is no too too)

FWIW, Fender cautions against raising alnico V magnets too close to strings - creates nasty harmonics from magnetic pull on strings - such is a "too strong" magnet

 

[Soloshchenko]

just ordered some Rio Grande Dirty Harrys which are ceramic, I'm hoping for something special!

 

[WarmothRules]

magnets come sizes... shapes... strengths

there is more to a magnet than the magnet.  there is how it interacts with other magnets, the strings and metal in the pickup

different magnets can be shaped (ceramic is easy - its molded and fired), drilled, threaded, cut, etc etc etc into shapes.

the shape and strength and interaction determine the "magnetic circuit" or how the lines of magnetic force flow from magnet, pole, strings, to other end of magnet and through the coil

BL has used all sorts of magnets in his pickup designs - the magnet type matters not.  what matters is the magnetic circuit - what the designer wants the magnet to do in terms of the circuit, and its interaction with the strings and coil - and then find a magnet of some type that will adhere to the form factor and be the correct strength (too strong is no too too)

FWIW, Fender cautions against raising alnico V magnets too close to strings - creates nasty harmonics from magnetic pull on strings - such is a "too strong" magnet

Yeah my current alnico I've lowered it to the point where it sounds best, I started with it close then lowered past to where it sounded good then raised it a hair back to where it sounded best :toothy10: