Changing Pick Up Magnets

Previously, I wrote a short article on how changing Pick up Magnets can actually change the sound of your pick up. After further investigation, I read from Jemsite that swapping the magnet for the Ibanez V7 and V8 actually improves the sound drastically. As V7 carries a Ceramic Magnet while the V8 carries the Alnico V magnet, swapping them actually changes the way the magnetic field is being projected out that picks up (That's why it's called a pick up?) the steel string vibrations of the electric guitar.

In this post, I shall attempt to show my readers out there on how exactly to change pick up magnets. The magnet measures 2.50'' long x 0.50'' wide x 0.125'' thick by the way. First things first, what you need is a cross head screw driver, and a flat head screw driver. I must warn all my readers out there, please be very careful when you attempt to remove the pick up magnets just in case you damage any of the coils, which will then be really trouble some to repair.

Now, remove the back plate cover of the pick up by first unscrewing the 4 screws located behind the pick up. Once you have done that, pry open the back plate cover with the flat head screw driver. As mention, please take great care in this process, you really don't want to break any coils.

And this is how it looks like inside.

After prying it open, you will see this very obvious stick of magnet in the middle of the pick up. Pry it out again with a flat head screw driver, and make sure you remember the position of it. I marked it with a marker, just in case I forget. The reason being is that the magnet are placed in a way aligned with the north and south pole in which since i don't own one of those meter to tell which pole it is, I have to use this primitive method to remember it. Before replacing the magnet, make sure to try putting it on top of the existing one. If it sticks, it's the correct direction and if it doesn't it's wrong.

And this is how it looks like after the magnet is taken out. Note that I written BT on the magnet. That means Bridge Top. So go ahead and replace the magnet by putting the new magnet on the middle of the pick up, cover it up with the back plate and screw back the 4 screws which you have taken out earlier.

I haven't gotten the chance to test the pick ups but I shall leave that for another day. Thanks to LonePhantom from Jemsite on providing the information on the magnet swaps and of course the sound samples at your end. You rock bro!

The difference in Pickups Magnets

During my quest in searching for a cheaper alternatives to big names or boutique pick ups, I started reading up the specs of the pick ups, not that I understood any of it other than the tonal chart. However, there are a few certain things that I see are consistence in differences and that is magnet. Scrolling through different big names pick up maker's website, i noticed that the consistent differences other than the numbers are the magnets. There are Ceramic, Alnico II and Alnico V. So my research begins.



Ceramic: Ceramics has the highest output among all magnets used and is able to produce a more driven and hotter sound while allowing the player to achieve better harmonics with the Ceramics. Ceramics are usually being used in pick ups with high output.



Alnico II: Alnico II is the softest and most compressed sounding. It gives a mellower, warmer, more transparent and vintage sound. Think along the lines of Gibson PAFs. Slash himself uses a Seymour Duncan pick up utilizing Alnico Pro II magnets.



Alnico V: Alnico V is the strongest and most bright and powerful of both the Alnicos. It has higher output compared to Alnico II but isn't as high compared to Ceramic. This gives an edgier kind of sound, A.K.A higher bass and treble.



That all being said, the stronger the magnet, the more pull it has which also equates to less sustain. So technically, more magnetic force doesn't equate to better tone. The number of copper windings and the thickness of the wire used will of course affect the tonal characteristics of the pick up. According to Bill Lawrence, there is no such thing as Ceramic magnets sounding harsh while Alnico magnets sound sweet. There are harsh-sounding pickups with alnico magnets and sweet-sounding pickups with ceramic magnets and vice-versa. I hope this post can serve as a reference or guide to prospective buyer in search of the tone they like and makes their pick ups selection process a lot easier. In the end of the day, it is still up to the player to try it out for themselves for the tone that they are searching for.