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Pickups & wiring Discussion about pickup types, replacements, recomendations, switching, wiring diagrams and sustainer systems for ANY guitar, JEMs included.

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Old 09-17-2005, 03:12 PM
amateur_guitarist  is offline
 
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output vs DC resistance


If pickup A has output value of 200 and DC resistance 6,
and pickup B has output value of 150 and DC resistance 12,

which one will be louder?
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Old 09-17-2005, 04:12 PM
rgr  is offline
 
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Re: output vs DC resistance


Apples and oranges. If you are thinking of the way DiMarzio rates pickups, the 200 and 150 would be milliVolts at a specific frequency with the pickup set a specific difference from the string, and probably a specific string guage. Hopefully you have gathered that this is a relative spec, for comparison only. The resistance is just that, the resistance of the wire wrapped around the bobbins and is a function of the wire guage and number of wraps. This is not 6 or 12, but 6K or 12K ohms (kilo ohms) meaning 6000 or 12000 ohms.

To answer your hypothetical question, 200mV would be greater than 150mV so pickup A would be louder for the specific set of circumstances that the test was performed at. However, the frequency responses would be different so the pickups would sound quite different, depending on wire guage, type and strength of magnet, etc... A Steve's Special has a higher output that a Tone Zone by the specs, but a TZ can sound louder because of it's hyped midrange. Actually, all of the high output DiMarzio pickups are so close in output that there isn't that much difference, frequency response will have more to do with how loud a pickup sounds.

This wasn't meant to confuse you, but pickup design has to take into account alot of parameters. Basically, what happens is a conductor (string) vibrating in a magnetic field (created by the magnets and screws) generates a voltage in a coil of wire in the same field. That's the Electronics 101 explanation. Now to translate that into cool sounds for guitarists takes as much technical knowledge as it does black magic (okay, experience and trial and error).

EMGs do this on a smaller scale, then amplify the generated voltage through an amplifier circuit. Like a small pickup with its own built in booster.

Make sense,
Roger

Last edited by rgr; 09-17-2005 at 11:05 PM.
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Old 09-17-2005, 06:52 PM
dragsternj  is offline
 
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Re: output vs DC resistance


Thats what i call a great explanation
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Old 09-17-2005, 10:13 PM
j.arledge  is offline
 
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Re: output vs DC resistance


yeah that got it pretty good.

a small foot note to that would be that generally the high the resistance the less treble a pickup has, this isn't a rule but it is just what i have played .

As bill lawernce put it "dc resistance is like trying to figure out how smart a person is by thier shoe size ".
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Old 09-17-2005, 11:08 PM
rgr  is offline
 
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Re: output vs DC resistance


I'll remember Bill's quote, he definitely knows his stuff. The reason that higher resistance usually equals greater output, is that higher resistance usually means more turns of wire, therefore more area for electro-magnetic induction of voltage. But again, things like wire guage (smaller guage wire has higher resistance) and magnets will influence the output and tone.

More than you wanted to know, I'm sure,
Roger
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dimarzio pickup, dimarzio pickups, string guage, tone zone


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