Ric pickups, the differences

soundmasterg · Post by **soundmasterg** » Thu Nov 02, 2006 11:53 am

I believe (just by checking the gauss) that the toasters are Alnico 5, but osmeone from RIC could clear things up for sure if they wanted.

For P90 tones, you should try Alnico 3....they really sound great! I personally like Alinoc 2 a lot better for full size humbuckers than Alnico 5.

Check out www.sdpickups.com, and email Dave and ask him about magnet types with P90's, and he'll give you some great info. I get to hear his pickups on a regular basis at a local blues jam every week and he makes some great stuff and is obsessed with pickups and pickup design. He's a good guy to know.

trancedental · Post by **trancedental** » Thu Nov 02, 2006 5:04 pm

Greg I just bought a P90 Bridge (scatterwounds) with Alinco II, from www.Leosounds.de It's going on the Epi Sheraton which has a Gibson '57 Classic for the neck,Alinco II as well.

I checked around & it seems that most of the P90 H/B sized pups are wound hot with a modern midrange peak like the P94's & Phat Cats etc & as I'm going more 50's/60's than high gain/hard rock sounds those don't really appeal.

I think I should have bought a Epiphone Casino in the first place! Have a Gretsch Country Gent & a few Rickenbackers so that's enough Beatles guitars!

Although I like H/B in the neck position for jazzy stuff & I did pick up the '57 Classic for cheap. Hopefully it should sound OK.

Those SD pups sound real good!

soundmasterg · Post by **soundmasterg** » Fri Nov 03, 2006 10:15 am

Congrats on the new pickup...hope it wokrs out for you! I've been working on dialing in an Epiphone Dot I got recently. Its got a big fat neck and really sounds great acoustically. The stock pickups were **** and I had some Seymour Duncans sitting around, so I put them in. The Alnico 2 Pro in the neck sounds great, but the Pearly Gates int he bridge is a little bright. I'm thinking about having my friend at SD pickups wind me something, and yes, almost all of the pickups I hear form him sound great. I've got some of his on my list for sure. If you haven't yet, take a listen to his Dirty Harry pickups. They fit into a humbucker slot and sound VERY good for blues with a jazzy twist. I'm thinking about one of them also, especially since I suggested the name for them!

They're based on a Harry Dearmond pickup design from the late 40's.

trancedental · Post by **trancedental** » Fri Nov 03, 2006 3:42 pm

I did like the DH pups when I heard them!

Like yourself I found my Epi Sheraton sounds great acoustically but the stock pickups were lifeless, they're probably the same as your Dot?

I tried a pair of GFS Retrotrons (Filtertron types), a bit better still not right to my ears but I suppose they were allright for the price & nothing more. A while afterwards I bought the Gretsch so decided to get some better pups for the Sheraton. So I'm looking forward to having fun installing them, where's that dental floss gone?

I would jump on those SD pups if I were you,I don't reckon you could go wrong there!

Obviously you get what you pay for with pickups just like speakers, this is getting expensive as I've just bought a pair of Bartolini's for my CIJ '62 reissue Jazz Bass!

trancedental · Post by **trancedental** » Fri Nov 03, 2006 4:05 pm

Just been reading back on this thread as I've managed to let it drift off topic & found out that the Rick high gains are ceramic & the toasters are Alnico 5 magnets?

I think what myself & maybe others might be looking for is a few more classic retro sounding pups to chose from & not so modern sounding Humbucker/Single coils.

At the moment we only really have a choice of three pickups to choose,apart from Rickenbacker Bass players who seem to have plenty.

So I'll get my order in first......................................................!

I'll have a pair of mini humbuckers in a toaster cover with Alinco II magnet scatterwound please & a P90 Alnico III in a High gain covers if anyones making them! Or a pair of Filtertron types in a toaster size maybe?

Oh & another pair of Rickenbackers to put them in!

telebob · Post by **telebob** » Tue Nov 07, 2006 2:04 am

Seymour Duncan makes a P90 in a Ric style cover.

tennis_nick · Post by **tennis_nick** » Tue Jan 16, 2007 4:27 am

In all honesty, if High Gain pickups were wound the same, but with Alnico 2 or 5 magnets, their range would be so much smoother and have great crunchy tone. unless wE're talkign the Seymour DUncan SH-5 Custom Custom, it's hard to get ceramic pickups to sound as dynamic as Alnico's