TV Jones vs. MiniHB

[rauchman]

Greetings,

New guy here that literally looks at the offerings from Warmoth everyday.  As I fine tune what I want in what I'm looking for, I find myself stumbling on pups.  I primarily an LP player with Strat and SuperStrat mistresses.  I find single coils somewhat limiting for what I like to play.  Great at some things, but not great for others.  Prefer HB's, but have become very TV Jones and MiniHB curious.  I recently played a Gibson SG Special at my local GC.  I didn't like the neck on the guitar, but LOVED the sound of the pups.  Also tried a Firebird, but noticed the sounds of these 2 guitars were very different.  I greatly preferred the SG's mini's.  Also, have recently become acquainted with TV Jones Filtertrons by way of the Warmoth site and have listened to some youtube vids, and love the snarl.

For the "build" I'm evolving in my head, I'd like to have a mix of pups and also different pups from what I have.  Have any of you ever mixed MiniHB's and TV J's in a build?  Preference of brands/types of pups and positioning mix (neck, bridge, middle)?  Do either of these pups work better in one position (bridge, neck, etc.) than the other?  How do these pups work for harder/heavy rock, 80's style metal?  Would either of these pups be better for having the flexibility of going from Ozzy/Randy to jazzy cleans?

I'm thinking of getting a Strat body with swimming pool route to use as a test bed for different pup combo's.  Appreciate the help and................thanks!

 

[rgand]

Welcome to the forum. I also like the filtertrons and will put a set on something soon. Perhaps a set of humbucker sized ones with mounting ears so I can put them in anything.

The swimming pool route is a good idea for future flexibility/expansion.

Looking forward to seeing what you end up with.

 

[rgand]

As TBurstStd recently said, "Everyone needs 1 Guitar with Filtertrons as they have their own sound. "

There's no reason you can't make that your first build.

 

[Kostas]

...How do these pups work for harder/heavy rock, 80's style metal?  Would either of these pups be better for having the flexibility of going from Ozzy/Randy to jazzy cleans?

I'm thinking of getting a Strat body with swimming pool route to use as a test bed for different pup combo's.  Appreciate the help and................thanks!

I have made this one (TVJ Classic Plus - Lollar P90), it's a versatile guitar, you can play anything including metal. I love Filtetrons (TVJ's to be exact) but other than a Gretsch 20 years ago I only have experience with this pickup. It's a HB, you can play heavy music if you want but it also has a great clean tone. That was a surprise to me cause I don't usually play clean with bridge pickups, especially with HB's. Filtertrons have a tighter sound than PAFs, you should play and see for yourself.

A strat is the ideal guitar to try different pickups. With the pickguard you can stay with the classic Filtertron look, TVJ makes Filterons in PAF dimensions but they look weird to me. If you want to try I recommend the Classic Plus - Classic set. I'm also curious about the Setzer set, every clip I've watched sounded great.

I like mini HB's in most Les Pauls I have heard. No experience with Firebird pickups but I was so impressed with the PGS clip of the Mojotone J. Winter set I would have bought them if I had a Firebird.

 

[TBurst Std]

Keep in mind, while MiniHBs and Firebird pickups look similar, their construction is quite different. 

 

[Verne Bunsen]

This is a great article written by Jason Lollar about the design differences between PAFs, mini-humbuckers, Firebirds, and Johnny Smith humbckers.

https://www.premierguitar.com/articles/Humbuckers_and_Mini_Humbuckers

 

[swarfrat]

I too have wondered about miniHB's, but am ignorant of the firebird / minihb differences. I am a fan of the GFS Memphis pickups I own though. I'm not "metal" but if Ritchie Blackmore and Iron Maiden fall within your definition of it, a tighter sounding humbucker ought to be able to reach some portions of that Venn Diagram.

 

[rgand]

That was a good article. Thanks for posting it, VB. I learned some more about these mysterious things we call pickups. I can see the interest in winding your own.

 

[Re-Pete]

Lollar's article in Premier Guitar is worth a read so you understand the differences between the 3 mini humbucker types.

The mini humbucker with the adjustable pole pieces is what is called the Mini Humbucker & it was first. It is derived from the old Epiphone one, has a more mild attack and smoother response. Seen in the Gibson Les Paul Deluxes when they first appeared in late 1960s/70s.

The Firebird humbucker is a different construction, hence the no adjustable pole pieces. These can be bitey and do go well as a neck pickup replacement for a Telecaster if you wish to retain the single coil bridge pickup.

The Johnny Smith mini humbucker is a mild toned humbucker and is the type you see as screwed onto the end of the neck, free from mounting on the body of a jazz archtop. It has a smaller depth so ti can be fitted that way.

In recent times, Gibson has revamped the Firebird pickup and is now making them with ceramic magnets. This will change their tone compared to their original iron magnet pickups. I'm guessing the ceramic magnets will make this pickup more tighter/clearer on each string and have a higher output.

Also, EMG is now putting out (last time I checked) a mini humbucker variation of their humbucker active pickups.

With TV Jones, it is best to double check the routings you will need to accommodate whatever of TV Jones' pickups you might get. Check the depth of the pickup too.

 

[rauchman]

Keep in mind, while MiniHBs and Firebird pickups look similar, their construction is quite different.

Fully understand that.  Based on my test drive of an SG Deluxe (comes with mini hb's) and a Firebird, I prefer the mini hb's.