Post by antigua on Apr 2, 2017 23:24:48 GMT -5
www.tonerider.com/alnico-ii-blues-tele
I haven't installed these yet, so this is just a technical look, not commentary on the end result.
Included below is a picture showing that the neck pickup is taped, which is usually regarded as unnecessary, since there is already a metal cover, but it's a nice feature, because you can more easily remove the cover without risk of damaging the coil, making this brand great for anyone looking to remove the Tele neck cover for a more Strat like tone.
There is also a pic below where I have shaved away some of the neck cover leg to see that the cover is silver in appearance, with a brass example behind it for contrast.
There's a big collection of Tele pickup measurements here for contrasting with, as well as the Tonerider Vintage Plus set.
The neck and bridge have remarkable similar resonant peaks around 3.4kHz, considering they have very different construction. These are fairly average, not especially hot. The neck's DC resistance of 5.75k ohms is among the lowest I've seen, but the AlNiCo 2 poles boost the inductance over what you'd get with AlNiCo 5. The DC resistance of both of these pickups are lower than the Tonerider Vintage Plus, but they have higher inductances and resonant peaks due to the AlNiCo 2, which just goes to show that DC resistance is an unreliable figure, unless you're aware of the impact that pole piece magnet type, and can factor that in.
Tonerider AlNiCo II Blues for Tele Bridge
- DC Resistance: 6.56K ohms
- Measured L: 3.252H
- Calculated C: 127pF (137 - 10)
- Gauss: 850G
Bridge unloaded: dV: 10.7dB f: 7.54kHz (black)
Bridge loaded (200k & 470pF): dV: 4.8dB f: 3.40kHz (red)
Tonerider AlNiCo II Blues for Tele Neck
- DC Resistance: 5.75K ohms
- Measured L: 2.341H
- Calculated C: 180pF (190 - 10)
- Gauss: 450G
Neck unloaded: dV: 2.2dB f: 7.13kHz (green)
Neck loaded (200k & 470pF): dV: 6.3dB f: 3.43kHz (gray)
There is something a little mysterious about the neck cover; it's believed that Fender neck pickups use nickel silver while most imports use brass. With nickel silver covers, a peak amplitude of 7dB to 10dB is common, and is seen with the Tonerider Vintage Plus, while pickups with brass covers generally have no resonant amplitude, just a drop off. But this pickup, and the DiMarzio Twang King show something in between, a rather shallow peak amplitude, and the Tonerider Alnico II Blues is even lower than the Twang King, but that might be explained by the AlNiCo 2 pole pieces. There are plenty of Fender Tele neck pickups with AlNiCo 3 that don't show this low of a resonant amplitude, though. Do they use a different formulation of nickel silver? Is it something else?
I haven't installed these yet, so this is just a technical look, not commentary on the end result.
Included below is a picture showing that the neck pickup is taped, which is usually regarded as unnecessary, since there is already a metal cover, but it's a nice feature, because you can more easily remove the cover without risk of damaging the coil, making this brand great for anyone looking to remove the Tele neck cover for a more Strat like tone.
There is also a pic below where I have shaved away some of the neck cover leg to see that the cover is silver in appearance, with a brass example behind it for contrast.
There's a big collection of Tele pickup measurements here for contrasting with, as well as the Tonerider Vintage Plus set.
The neck and bridge have remarkable similar resonant peaks around 3.4kHz, considering they have very different construction. These are fairly average, not especially hot. The neck's DC resistance of 5.75k ohms is among the lowest I've seen, but the AlNiCo 2 poles boost the inductance over what you'd get with AlNiCo 5. The DC resistance of both of these pickups are lower than the Tonerider Vintage Plus, but they have higher inductances and resonant peaks due to the AlNiCo 2, which just goes to show that DC resistance is an unreliable figure, unless you're aware of the impact that pole piece magnet type, and can factor that in.
Tonerider AlNiCo II Blues for Tele Bridge
- DC Resistance: 6.56K ohms
- Measured L: 3.252H
- Calculated C: 127pF (137 - 10)
- Gauss: 850G
Bridge unloaded: dV: 10.7dB f: 7.54kHz (black)
Bridge loaded (200k & 470pF): dV: 4.8dB f: 3.40kHz (red)
Tonerider AlNiCo II Blues for Tele Neck
- DC Resistance: 5.75K ohms
- Measured L: 2.341H
- Calculated C: 180pF (190 - 10)
- Gauss: 450G
Neck unloaded: dV: 2.2dB f: 7.13kHz (green)
Neck loaded (200k & 470pF): dV: 6.3dB f: 3.43kHz (gray)
There is something a little mysterious about the neck cover; it's believed that Fender neck pickups use nickel silver while most imports use brass. With nickel silver covers, a peak amplitude of 7dB to 10dB is common, and is seen with the Tonerider Vintage Plus, while pickups with brass covers generally have no resonant amplitude, just a drop off. But this pickup, and the DiMarzio Twang King show something in between, a rather shallow peak amplitude, and the Tonerider Alnico II Blues is even lower than the Twang King, but that might be explained by the AlNiCo 2 pole pieces. There are plenty of Fender Tele neck pickups with AlNiCo 3 that don't show this low of a resonant amplitude, though. Do they use a different formulation of nickel silver? Is it something else?