Seymour Duncan Alternative 8 Analysis & Review

[antigua]

In addition to an Area T pickup, Bruxist from TDPRI also sent me a Seymour Duncan Alternative 8 humbucker to mention, which is comparable with a JB guitarnuts2.proboards.com/thread/8032/seymour-duncan-jazz-analysis-review The Alternative 8 appears to have a few more turns of wire than the JB, because the DC resistance and inductance are both a little higher, and the loaded peak slightly lower. The difference in frequnecy response isn't so great that you would notice the difference.

The main difference between the Alternative 8 and JB is that thew Alternative 8 has an AlNiCo 8 bar instead of a AlNiCo 5 bar. The Guass measured at the tops of a JB were around 350, but with the Alternative 8 I measured around 600 Guass, with the slugs reading stronger than the screws. The JB and Alternative 8 have longer filister screws, which if cut at the bottoms to be flush with the base plate, increases the magnetic strength even further. The strength of these pole pieces brings the overall magnetic strength at the strings to being closer to that of AlNiCo pole pieces.

Split, the resonant peak of the individual coils is about 3 henries, which is substantial on it's own. The split coils by themselves are similar in terms of inductance and magnetic strength to a ceramic pickup that you'd find in an import Strat copy.


Seymour Duncan Alternative 8

- DC Resistance: 18.070K ohms
- Measured L: 8.183H (3.647 split)
- Calculated C: 120.44pF
- Gauss: 600G (AlNiCo 8)

Bridge unloaded: dV: 4.4dB f: 4.31kHz (black)
Bridge loaded (200k & 470pF): dV: 0.9dB f: 1.96kHz (blue)
Br Split unloaded: dV: 4.3dB f: 7.29kHz (red)
Br Split loaded (200k & 470pF): dV: 1.9dB f: 3.10kHz (green)

[mrlime]

Thanks for all those analyses.

So I assume the JB, DD and Alt8 have basically the same construction but differ in their magnet?

Isn't the Invader a DD with hex screws?

[antigua]

Apr 20, 2021 11:04:27 GMT -5 mrlime said:

Thanks for all those analyses.

So I assume the JB, DD and Alt8 have basically the same construction but differ in their magnet?

Isn't the Invader a DD with hex screws?

Yeah, same construction. I've never seen an Invader first hand, I don't have any first hand knowledge about them. 

[mrlime]

I have replaced the big hex screws of a Duncan Designed Invader style pickup with those of a Dimarzio and really like how it sounds on a James Trussart Steel Deville.
Can't remember if I replaced the magnet from ceramic to AlNiCo8 but I guess the Duncan Designed stuff is close enough to the original to say it's worth a try?!

In a Gibson SG Standard I loved the Alt8 and found it to be a perfect match but then I sold the guitar after getting a SG Supreme and switched the pickups.
The Alt8 just don't fit any more. 

[antigua]

Apr 21, 2021 13:47:31 GMT -5 mrlime said:

I have replaced the big hex screws of a Duncan Designed Invader style pickup with those of a Dimarzio and really like how it sounds on a James Trussart Steel Deville.
Can't remember if I replaced the magnet from ceramic to AlNiCo8 but I guess the Duncan Designed stuff is close enough to the original to say it's worth a try?!

In a Gibson SG Standard I loved the Alt8 and found it to be a perfect match but then I sold the guitar after getting a SG Supreme and switched the pickups.
The Alt8 just don't fit any more. 

The few Duncan Designed pickups I've had on hand were nothing like the SD equivalents. It looked like they just badged some Chinese-made pickups. I'd be surprised if Seymour Duncan had any say at all in their design. For example, some have copper shielding on the coils, I've never seen a Seymour Duncan made that way, and it actually increases the unit cost of the pickup.

[papasteack]

Apr 22, 2021 18:33:48 GMT -5 antigua said:

For example, some have copper shielding on the coils, I've never seen a Seymour Duncan made that way, and it actually increases the unit cost of the pickup.

Hi,

Seymour Duncan GUS.G.Fire active kit with their bmp-1 preamp comes with passive pickups shielded with copper around coils on both humbuckers. But it's a special case of course :-)