The place to discuss, post photos, video, and audio of the G&L products (US instruments, stomp boxes, etc.) produced after 1991, including the amps & gear we use with them.
It is too hot to be outside so I have been in my air conditioned garage (man cave) and have been checking equipment. I have already mention that the ASAT Special is an animal and for a guy to generally plays unplugged, I decided to give a few of them a test drive on different amps. I settled in on my Twin Reverb Custom 15. It is exceptionally clean and quiet and the 15 seems to bring out the best in everything. I did go through a test drive on the Taylor SB-2 and it really works great for humbuckers. In the neck position it has the fat hum tone and in the bridge it quacks. It goes pretty much anywhere in between. Keep in mind that I would not know how to get distortion if I had to, and this is not the amp for distortion. The custom 15 blew me away the first time I tried it in the store.
Now to the Blonde Legacy with the Kinman Blues Pickups. They are the quietest single coils that I have ever experienced. Muting the strings over the pickups with the amp dimed, there is no noise. None. The neck pickup is nice and thick and really sweet. It has most of the Strat tones in between and the bridge has the twang you would expect from a single coil. To have something this clean is really a treat to the ears. Earlier today, I tried some Texas Specials on a Tele and they are a bit noisy. All I can say is the Kinmans are so clear and articulate, with no noise, that it is a treat to listen to. This particular Legacy has great sustain and I am not sure what pickups have to do with that. Comparing it too my American Legacy with G&L pickups, there is a very noticeable difference in noise. When I dime the amp (identical settings) there is quite a bit on hum (60 cycle). I have florescent light in the garage. The G&L pickups seem to have more overtones. The Kinmans are very clear and articulate. Some of you have asked, so I finally had a chance to make a comparison. I have no idea how they would overdrive. Darwin When I described "dimed" the volume is all the way up with everything else at midpoint.
Edit, I did the same test with my Tele with 52 pickups and it is by far the noisiest of all. The Taylor SB-2 is quiet in positions 1 & 5 and has some 60 cycle hum in 2,3 and 4.
Thanks for that report Darwin. If you get a chance, could you plug your Strat Plus in to compare with the Kinmans in the G&L? I'd be interested to hear how noiseless the Lace Sensor pickups are compared with the Kinmans.
Philby, I remember you asking that when I first got the Kinmans. Here are the results:
88 Strat plus- Very low noise but a very slight amount.
My build American Deluxe Strat with Lace Sensor Chrome Domes (Hot Golds)- Almost no noise, barely noticeable.
Legacy Kinman Blues- No noise.
Overall the Lace are a very good choice as there would be no noticeable noise under most playing conditions. Remember, I have my amp volume and guitar volume turned all the way up.
The Chrome Domes are very close to the vintage sound of my Clapton Custom shop. Hope that helps-- Darwin.
darwinohm wrote:...I have florescent light in the garage. ...
I have fluorescent lights where I play and there is absolutely no interference with my Legacy stock pickups. The secret? ...Electronic ballasts. I cannot stand the hum of magnetic ballasts let alone what they do to all guitar pickups including humbuckers. An amp on its own picks up noise from magnetic ballasts.
Now I have to find a remedy for the natural 60 cycle hum of the stock Legacy pickups. I can only use the #2 and #4 positions of the 5-switch. Even clean the other positions are unplayable to me because of the hum.
Darwin, did you have the Kinman's installed or were they on a guitar when you purchased it?
Considering any remaining noise, which tone do you prefer between the Kinman and Lace pickups? If there is any noise is it worth keeping because the tone is superior?
MGM, your question is a tough call. I have always been a Lace Sensor fan. The chrome domes have a lot of gain. I have to say I think te Kinmens are some of the most pleasing I have ever heard. They are so clean and clear and actually the neck pickup is very lush. I also like the lace sensors for the same reason. The stock Legacy pickups are great too but they do have hum and some overtones, not that I can describe as necessarily pleasing but do add color to the tone. They are certainly superior to an American Fender pickup in my opinion. I like them all but now you guys have me on this tone search. Hopefully it will pass as I don't wnat a bunch of pickups laying around. But I could build a test rig like Leo used and hook them up on that. Pickup GAS would be a terrible condition.-- By the way MGM, my custom 15 is silent when turned all the way up. It is the most quiet amp that I have ever owned.--Darwin
darwinohm wrote:...for a guy to generally plays unplugged.....
Darwin,
Are you saying that (with all of those electric guitars) you generally do not play (them) through an amp?
You mentioned that the Lace Sensors have a lot of gain and the context of your post seems to suggest that you view this as a virtue. You said they were one of your favorites. If you play clean what does the extra gain do for you?
Also, when you say the "overtones" in the stock Legacy pickups, can you describe what you mean? My initial interpretation appears to be off after reading your subsequent post.
Hi Darwin. Thanks for doing the comparison between the Kinmans and Lace Sensors. I too can make my Lace sensors hum very slightly by playing near fluoro lights, so it's interesting to hear that the Kinmans are dead silent.
And yes, my Legacy pickups are about the noisiest set I own. But they sound SOOO good. I wish I knew why they were so noisy. Poor wax potting? Poor shielding in the guitar? Who knows?
Philby wrote:Hi Darwin. Thanks for doing the comparison between the Kinmans and Lace Sensors. I too can make my Lace sensors hum very slightly by playing near fluoro lights, so it's interesting to hear that the Kinmans are dead silent.
And yes, my Legacy pickups are about the noisiest set I own. But they sound SOOO good. I wish I knew why they were so noisy. Poor wax potting? Poor shielding in the guitar? Who knows?
Potting effects microphonic feedback, not electronic noise. So it is likely shield and being single coils.
Shopping for pickups is extra difficult. Any A/B comparisons are often on mismatched guitars. How many people have two identical guitars with only the pickups being different? Watching the demos on Youtube you will find a video that shows the different pickups getting one sound then another video that shows the pickups getting the sound of the other pickups. After going through a slew of videos I came up with more that showed me a sound from the Lace Sensors that I did not want.
I carefully considered the Ilitch/Suhr noise cancelling options and might have sent my guitar out and had them do the router mod at the shop rather than going with the DIY version which would allow me to keep the stock pickups. However, this approach seems to be addressing environmental interference which I do not have trouble with. The expense and mod impact on the guitar makes me uncomfortable. I just want the 60-cycle hum reduced significantly if it cannot be eliminated while retaining decent tone.
MGM, just back in town. The lace chromes are hot golds and hotter that the standard Fender pickups. I do not know the gain rating compared to the stock Legacy pickups. I almost always play clean. I believe that the gain contributes to the clarity, bell like tones in the Lace pickups with much less background. Our lead player has played the Chrome Domes on some gigs and really likes the overdrive. I failed to answer your earlier question about the installation. I was old by the original owner who had them installed by one of the top twin city luthiers, that the pickups were installed and the wiring replace at the same time. I haven't opened it up to look and I have no idea why the wiring was replaced. The work was done by Dave Rusan, whom I have been told, build a guitar for Prince.-- Darwin
I have time to check things out. Tonight I thought I would check the F-100 Return for pickup noise. I did the same test as the others. It is surprisingly quiet. It is not as quiet as the Kinmans or the Lace Sensors but it is very respectable. Besides, it really cooks from a tone standpoint! Why aren't these things used in more G&L's????- Darwin
When I described "dimed" the volume is all the way up with everything else at midpoint.
