-A Beginner's Guide to Replacing Pickups-
I buy hundreds of guitars a year, and as I set them up, I’ve noticed that a surprisingly large number of them have had their pickups replaced. It’s likely that the owners were dissatisfied with the sound of their current guitar in some way and decided to swap out the pickups to fix it.Whether it’s due to budget constraints, a preference for the neck shape of their current guitar, or simply not being able to find a guitar they like, they can’t just go out and buy a new one… If you’re already well-versed in music, you likely have the skills to solve these issues on your own. But what if you’re a beginner facing similar challenges?
That’s why we created this special feature. We hope it serves as a starting point for solving the problems with your own guitar.
Many amateur musicians (and even some pros!?) have at least some dissatisfaction or issues with their instruments or sound. I imagine many people consider replacing their pickups as a way to address these issues. I also think a major reason for doing so is to customize their instrument and make it feel even more special by swapping out pickup covers for colorful variations or vintage-style aged finishes.
But just how effective is this, really? For example, if you swap out your pickups for those found on a famous musician’s signature model, will you get the same sound? Unfortunately, the answer is “no.” Even if you play a signature model guitar, the equipment you use, your playing environment, and—most importantly—the person playing it are all different, so there’s no way you’ll get the exact same sound. Strictly speaking, that’s probably the case. Also, while opinions on this are likely to be divided, some might argue that it’s a waste to put expensive pickups on a cheap guitar!My opinion on this matter differs slightly; I don’t think you can make such a blanket statement. Certainly, I believe that the value of a guitar and the quality of its sound are largely determined by the wood and the precision of its craftsmanship. However, simply changing the pickups will definitely alter the sound. (Of course, the extent of the change varies—it can go either way, for better or for worse...) If you choose a pickup yourself and it brings you closer to your preferred sound—even if only slightly—isn’t that joy in itself?
There are many variations of pickups. That said, since single-coil and humbucker pickups come in different sizes, not all of them can be installed on every guitar… Incidentally, it was Adolf Rickenbacker who invented the electromagnetic induction type—the precursor to today’s electric pickups.
~Single-Coil Pickup~
The most popular type of pickup. It’s the model found on Stratocasters. Its characteristics include high noise levels, a bright, clear sound rich in harmonics… and so on. In a basic single-coil pickup, the six pole pieces themselves act as magnets, and wire is wound around them by machine (the standard number of windings is about 6,500 to 8,000. The higher the number of windings, the greater the output, and the weaker the high frequencies become.)And as for “Fleming’s right-hand rule”… well, getting into the technical details would take too long… Long story short, electricity is generated when the strings vibrate as they pass through the magnetic field created by these pole pieces. (I’ve left out a lot of the technical details…) That electrical signal is amplified by the amplifier and comes out as sound through the speaker. Today, many manufacturers sell replacement pickups. Here are just a few examples.
Seymour Duncan SSL-1
A replica model of the now-classic vintage Stratocaster pickup. The sound produced by its Alnico 5 magnets (an alloy of aluminum, nickel, and cobalt) is a powerful, edgy vintage tone. It produces a very pleasing tone when set to a light, crunchy distortion.
Fender Vintage Noiseless Strat Pickup
This is a stacked-coil design (with the coil divided into two layers, top and bottom), which provides hum-canceling effects. It captures the tone of vintage Strats from the late ’50s to early ’60s while minimizing the noise typical of single-coil pickups to the utmost extent. Since it comes with a dedicated potentiometer and capacitor, we recommend using it as a set of three.
DiMarzio DP-184 The Chopper
This is a single-size humbucker. It retains the character of a single-coil pickup while offering higher output than an original humbucker. I believe the mid-to-low frequencies are quite close to those of an original humbucker. It features a thin plate called a “bar pole piece” running vertically, which ensures that the volume remains consistent even when the position of the strings changes due to bending or similar techniques.
~Humbucking Pickup~
The humbucker is so synonymous with Gibson that it’s used in many Gibson guitars. Its origins date back about half a century, when Seth Lover developed it in 1956 in an effort to eliminate noise from magnetic pickups.
The concept began with the idea of offsetting each other’s noise by winding one coil in the opposite direction. Furthermore, by reversing the polarity of the magnets to prevent the electrical signals from canceling each other out, a low-noise, high-output pickup was developed. Unlike single-coil pickups, the pole pieces are not magnets; instead, a plate-shaped magnet is placed beneath two coils wired in series.A key feature is that wiring the coils in series increases their inductance, resulting in higher output. While this allows for better low-frequency response, it compromises high-frequency response. In other words, the sound is completely different from that of a single-coil pickup. The coils are also slightly shorter, with approximately 5,000 windings. Additionally, the six pole pieces are movable and can be adjusted vertically.
Gibson PAF
In 1957, Gibson introduced its first humbucker, the PU-490. It is known as the PAF, an acronym derived from the initials of the “Patent Applied For” decal affixed to its back. It uses Alnico magnets and, because it is not wax-impregnated, tends to be prone to feedback. This characteristic led to the long sustain produced when distorted through an amplifier, laying the foundation for the drive and rock sounds.
Tom Holmes H453 Limited
A sound inspired by Gibson’s Old PAF. It is not wax-impregnated, and Alnico 4 magnets are used, resulting in slightly stronger magnetic field strength. Additionally, while open-type pickups were the standard for replacement pickups at the time, a covered version was also released; today, aged-finish covers are particularly popular.
DiMarzio Dual Sound
While many manufacturers release replacement pickups modeled after the Gibson PAF, companies like DiMarzio pursue the original sound and offer numerous pickups with unique designs; there are also many variations of open-type bobbin colors. This model features all 12 adjustable pole pieces and is characterized by a sound with boosted midrange. Furthermore, coil tapping is available to achieve a wide variety of sound characters.
~Other Pickups~
EMG
EMG has become synonymous with active pickups. More accurately, they are low-impedance pickups designed with an unwavering commitment to minimizing noise.While standard pickups—known as high-impedance pickups—are designed to achieve high output through strong magnetic fields and a high number of coil turns, making them prone to noise, low-impedance pickups use fewer coil turns and weaker magnets, relying instead on the preamp to boost the output. This design makes them exceptionally resistant to noise. A battery is required to power the preamp. They offer a clear, bright tone and pair exceptionally well with distortion pedals.
Gibson P-90
Surprisingly, its history dates back to around 1946. Developed by Walter Fuller, the pole pieces were not yet adjustable at that time. The basic structure consists of a single coil with two Alnico magnets placed beneath the bobbin. The sound has a slightly bright, full-bodied quality with a warm character.It offers a sound distinct from that of Fender’s single-coil pickups. Furthermore, in the 1990s, the P-100 model was introduced, featuring a “stacked humbucker” design. While it’s the same size as the P-90, the P-100 is taller due to its stacked structure. Although it’s called a humbucker, its primary purpose is hum cancellation, so in terms of sound, it’s essentially a low-noise version of the P-90.
Now, let’s try replacing the pickups. Basically, if you’re swapping pickups with the same basic structure (Single → Single, etc.), no modifications to the guitar body are necessary—you simply reinstall the new pickup in the spot where the old one was removed… Put simply, that’s all there is to it. Let’s take a Stratocaster as an example. First, let’s remove the pickguard along with the pickups from the guitar body.Disconnect the two output wires connected to the jack and the ground wire. If these wires are long enough, you won’t have any trouble working without disconnecting them, but if they’re short, the job will feel very cumbersome. Also, since the basic principle is to “keep the guitar’s wiring as clean and tidy as possible,” it’s not ideal to have wires so long that you have to place the pickguard next to the body after removing it. Next, remove the pickups, but I recommend making a note of which wire was connected to which terminal.
When installing the new pickups, instead of soldering them one by one, mount all of them to the pickguard at once. As I mentioned earlier, “guitar wiring should be as neat and tidy as possible with minimal excess,” and since new pickups come with longer lead wires, mounting them all first and then trimming them to the appropriate length will result in a much neater appearance.
It’s a good idea to bundle the lead wires together at a suitable point using cable ties or similar. Now for the soldering—don’t forget to pre-tin the wires. (This means lightly applying a layer of solder to the stripped ends of the lead wires.) Doing this makes it easier for the solder to flow smoothly during the actual soldering process.
Once you’ve connected the switch, solder three ground wires to the back of the volume pot. Soldering all three wires together at once is surprisingly tricky. Twisting the three wires together and pre-tinning them makes them less likely to come undone, which is effective—but it makes it a hassle to remove them later if you want to replace just one. When reusing the existing solder, it can be difficult to melt. In that case, adding a small amount of new solder will melt it easily. Be careful not to apply too much solder.
That’s pretty much the replacement procedure. Adjust the pickup height and other settings, then go ahead and give it a listen!
By the way, when replacing a pickup, swapping out the pots, wiring, capacitors, and other components is a relatively easy customization to do. Changing just these parts will definitely alter the sound.As an aside, while Japanese-made products are overwhelmingly preferred for everything from home appliances to cars, for some reason, USA-made guitar parts are overwhelmingly favored. This is probably because genuine Fender and Gibson parts are made in the USA. Among them, parts from CTS and CRL—which hold a large market share—seem to be overwhelmingly popular. It’s not that Japanese-made parts are bad, though…
So… here’s an emergency special feature!!
Up until now, I’ve focused almost exclusively on pickups, but it suddenly occurred to me… Have you ever thought about replacing your capacitors? It’s been getting a lot of attention lately, so I decided to test it out by swapping in a capacitor I happened to have on hand. I’ve heard rumors—or so they say—that replacing them makes almost no difference, or that you can’t really tell the difference to the ear, but is that really the case?
*Top left: Ceramic capacitor, top right: Orange Drop, bottom left: Oil capacitor, bottom right: Film capacitor
Ceramic Capacitor
It has a clear, neutral sound. Compared to the other three, it struck me as the most balanced. I guess you could call it “standard”…
Orange Drop
This gives a brighter impression than the ceramic capacitor. It has a rough, brittle quality. When played through a cable, it has a gritty sound. Also, when I turned down the “Tone” knob, it sounded milder than the ceramic one.
Oil Capacitor
This also has a bright, clear sound, but it feels slightly more subdued than the Orange Drop. However, the definition and overall balance are excellent. It’s hard to describe, but the sound feels more “hi-fi.” When I rolled off the Tone control, the sound seemed to lose a bit of focus, but out of the options I tested this time, this one felt the best.
Film Capacitor
These are the ones you often find on inexpensive guitars. Perhaps because of that preconception, the sound feels somewhat lightweight overall. It lacks that sparkling quality in the high frequencies. I just couldn’t get behind this one.
I compared these four options, and sure enough, there were differences between them. However, those differences were subtle—by no means a decisive, major difference that would make you want to swap out an Effector. Still, I felt that even the tiniest changes in sound resulting from replacing wiring, solder, or pots can add up over time to a difference that shouldn’t be overlooked. While none of these modifications are complex enough to be called “mods,” the results are interesting, so I highly recommend giving them a try.
What did you think? Stay tuned for the next installment.
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