Post by antigua on Sept 25, 2016 19:00:53 GMT -5
www.lollarguitars.com/mm5/merchant.mvc?Screen=prod&Store_Code=lgp&Product_Code=220&Category_Code=strat-pickups
This is Lollar's hottest set. He describes them as being "thicker" and "rounder", pretty much what you would expect from higher wound Strat pickups. Unlike, say, the Seymour Duncan SSL-5, these appear to be an attempt to cram as much 42 AWG onto a bobbin as possible. The DC resistances in the 7k's suggest this is the case.
They contrast mostly with the Lollar Blackface www.strat-talk.com/threads/lollar-vintage-blackface-analysis-and-review.401152/#post-2424146 . In general, "vintage" output pickups have had a loaded (470pF parallel) resonant peak around 4kHz, the Lollar Blackfaces were around 3.8kHz, and these are nearer to 3.5kHz, so they're a whole notch hotter/darker than the Blackfaces. That's been my subjectively heard experience as well, the Special S is more Blackface than Blackface.
I'd like to contrast them with SSL-5s, as they are the big name "high output" Strat pickup, but my set is buried in a Strat, and I will have to pull them out in order to compare them. According to Scott of Zexcoil, SSL-5's have an inductance near 6H, that's about 1.5 times hotter than the Lollar Special S, and over twice as hot as your average Strat pickup. IMO, this Lollar Special S is a much more versatile choice if you're looking for a fire breathing Strat pickup.
Lollar likens the Special S to a Gibson humbucker, and the SSL-5 was meant to bring humbucker power to a Strat, so how do they compare? I got stats from a Gibson Classic 57 neck www.strat-talk.com/threads/electrical-analysis-of-a-gibson-57-classic-versus-a-stock-epiphone-humbucker.402460/ , and it showed a loaded resonant peak of 2.6kHz to the Special S' 3.5kHz. It's safe to assume the SSL-5 will have a loaded peak that lands closer to the '57, but for reasons unknown, a humbucker of higher inductance sounds much clearer than a similar single coil. People have their theories, but nothing convincing or concrete. Having played all three extensively, the Lollar Special S sounds far far more "humbucker" than an SSL-5. I'd recommend these sooner than, say, a Little '59, if you want humbucker essence without cutting holes.
Lollar Special S Bridge
DC Resistance: 7.98K
Inductance: 4.035 H
Resonant Peak: 7.29 kHz
Calculated C: 98pF (118-20)
Coil width: 0.6040" (with tape)
Lollar Special S Middle
DC Resistance: 7.52K
Inductance: 3.151 H
Resonant Peak: 8.27 kHz
Calculated C: 98pF (118-20)
Coil width: 0.6080" (with tape)
Lollar Special S Neck
DC Resistance: 7.40K
Inductance: 2.981 H
Resonant Peak: 8.08 kHz
Calculated C: 135pF (155-20)
Coil width: 0.5945" (with tape)
I've noticed that Lollar's pickups have a pretty constant capacitance calculation of 90-100pF, so it was interesting to see that the Special S neck was an outlier with 135pF capacitance. It's still a bit of a mystery as to why the capacitance varies so much between Strat pickup sets. Fender's pickups are generally between 120pf - 150pF, consistently beyond Lollar. It either has to do with coil thickness (due to tension or insulation) or the dielectric constant of of the insulator. There are thick coils with high capacitance, and thick coils with very low capacitance, leading me to suspect it's more likely the latter.
Setup details:
Bode plots are made with a Velleman PCSGU250 and the supplied probes in 10x mode, with the function generator feeding a driver coil of 0.48mH, placed on top of the pickup and driven with 2Vpp. The pickup is connected to an integrator circuit, designed by Ken Willmottkenwillmott.com/blog/, with a Velleman 10x probe, and fed back into the Velleman PCSGU250. I measured the probes' capacitance at 20pF, so that amount is subtracted from the capacitance calculation.
The inductance and Q measurements are made with an Extech 380193 in "SER" series mode, and the mean value between the 1kHz and 120Hz modes is recorded. The capacitance value is derived from the inductance and measured resonant peak.
Magnets are tested with a Spin Doctor ER gravitastech.weebly.com/spin-doctor-er.html