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Coil Pickups

Electric Guitar Clinic: Would you like single coils or humbuckers with that?

In this article we will take a look at some of the differences between Humbucking pickups and Single Coil pickups, both technically and tonally. Many think, "Isn't a Humbucker just two Single Coils side by side?" The answer is both yes and no as they both yield quite different tonal and technical characteristics. There have been many attempts to harness both sounds in one guitar or pickup, but the general consensus is that a guitar is either a Humbucking guitar or a Single Coil. Like they say, you can't have your cake and eat it too.

How a Pickup Works

To start out, let's talk a little about how a pickup works. A guitar pickup is essentially a magnet that creates a magnetic field right above the pickup. The magnet picks up the vibrations of the strings and sends the signal to your amplifier to be amplified. Most pickups in electric guitars are passive which means that they don't have any kind of pre-amp and it is the amplifiers job to boost the signal. Contrastingly, an active pickup uses weaker magnets than passive pickups but has a pre-amp to boost the signal output to a reasonable level. Active pickups are most common in acoustic guitars but can be found in a few electric guitars as well. 

Single Coils: The First Pickups

Single Coils were the first pickups. The first single coil guitar pickups came in the late 1920's. A single coil pickup, as the name implies, is made up of a single coil of wire wrapped in one direction (either clockwise or counter clockwise) around the pole pieces. The pole pieces are the circular metal pieces under each string. One of the problems in early single coil pickups was that they picked up a lot of electromagnetic interference from other electric machinery or radio waves, which caused a buzz or hum 

Why Humbuckers Were Invented

Humbuckers were invented to cancel out the electromagnetic interference. They use two coils, which are wrapped in opposing directions to give each coil opposing polarity. This would cancel out the electromagnetic interference and help get rid of the hum, thus creating a "hum-bucking" pickup. Humbuckers did not start showing up in guitars until the mid 1950's. When it comes to tonal differences, it gets a little harder to explain and really comes down to personal opinions and preferences. 

Common Misconceptions About Humbackers

Many people think humbuckers are for distortion and overdrive, and single coils are for clean patches. This isn't necessarily the case because many guitarists use single coils for high gain distortion and others use humbuckers exclusively for clean tone. Humbuckers tend to be hotter pickups because they utilize two coils which does make them easier to distort. However, many jazz box guitars have humbuckers and are almost always used for a clean patch. They produce a thicker and darker clean tone than single coils do. The clean from single coils is a more sparkly high type clean that is often associated with country or "Eric Clapton Style" blues. They also are not as quick to overdrive as humbuckers. When single coils are played through a smooth tube overdrive, you can still hear the clean coming through where it gets lost with a humbucker. 

Typical Guitars that use Humbuckers

Typical guitars that use humbuckers are the Gibson Les Paul, Gibson SG, most PRS models, most Ibanez guitars, and almost all hollow body Guild's and Gretch's. The most common single coil guitars are the Fender Stratocaster and Telecaster. 

Increased Versatility of Both

Over the years, each style of pickup has become more versatile. Some humbuckers have the option of coil splitting or tapping. This is the ability to essentially shut off one of the coils in the pickup which can provide a fairly good representation of a single coil pickup. Single coils have gotten much better about electromagnetic interference and there are several "noiseless" single coil pickups available. However, this does not solve the single coil vs. humbucker conundrum because you only get a solid emulation. 

The "Fat Strat"

Fender has attempted to solve the problem by creating the "Fat Strat," which utilizes a humbucking pickup at the bridge and two single coil pickups in the usual Stratocaster location. It does thicken the sound when using the humbucker, but there isn't the option running two humbuckers together as you can in a Gibson Les Paul or SG for a truly saturated overdrive. The guitar also loses some of the ability to get the really twangy bridge sound you can achieve with the single coil pickup. 

Single coils and humbuckers are very different animals, and if you want both sounds, you need two guitars. If you need to choose one guitar, the best way to go about it is to go play several different guitars with different pickups through different amps and choose the one you like best.

 

About the Author

Matt Griffith, born and raised in Western Colorado, made the leap to move to Nashville 5 months ago to pursue a career in music along with the thousands of other hopefuls that call Music City home. Matt loves electric guitars and is currently playing lead guitar for the band Brookline. He writes electric guitar reviews for Music Gear Review.

Used Epiphone With Single Coil Pickups Black $149.99 In Store Used USED EPIPHONE WITH SINGLE COIL PICKUPS BLACK

Gibson Les Paul Traditional Pro Electric Guitar with Coil-Splitting P-90 Pickups Ebony $1899 Gibson Les Paul Traditional Pro Electric Guitar with Coil-Splitting P-90 Pickups Ebony

Gibson SG Standard Electric Guitar with Coil-Splitting Humbucker Pickups Honey Burst $1299 Gibson SG Standard Electric Guitar with Coil-Splitting Humbucker Pickups Honey Burst

Gibson Sg Standard Electric Guitar With Coil-Splitting Humbucker Pickups Honey Burst $1299.99 Gibson SG Standard Electric Guitar with Coil-Splitting Humbucker Pickups Honey Burst

Gibson Sg Standard Electric Guitar With Coil-Splitting Humbucker Pickups Vintage Cherry $1299.99 Gibson SG Standard Electric Guitar with Coil-Splitting Humbucker Pickups Vintage Cherry

Gibson Les Paul Traditional Pro Electric Guitar With Coil-Splitting P-90 Pickups Ebony $1899 Gibson Les Paul Traditional Pro Electric Guitar with Coil-Splitting P-90 Pickups Ebony

Fender Custom Shop Texas Special Strat Pickups $169.95 Fender Custom Shop Texas Special Strat Pickups give you that classic blues sound. Take a set of vintage Fender Strat pickups and overwind them for more midrange, punch, and output and you get pickups with Attitude! Featured in the Stevie Ray guitar, they are calibrated for each position with a reverse coil, reverse-wound middle pickup for noise cancellation. If you want plenty of midrange bark and crisp high-end bite, get these Special Strat Pickups. Set of 3.

EMG SA Guitar Pickups (3-Pack) - Black $199 Use these active guitar pickups with most Strat -style guitars to enhance midrange response and output. An Alnico bar magnet delivers classic overdrive with a smooth midrange distortion while retaining the high end of a single-coil pickup.

EMG SA Guitar Pickups (3-Pack) - White $199 Use these active guitar pickups with most Strat -style guitars to enhance midrange response and output. An Alnico bar magnet delivers classic overdrive with a smooth midrange distortion while retaining the high end of a single-coil pickup.

Fender Custom Shop Texas Special Strat Pickups Regular 886830367977 $108.77 Fender Custom Shop Texas Special Strat Pickups give you that classic blues sound. Take a set of vintage Fender Strat pickups and overwind them for more midrange, punch, and output and you get pickups with Attitude! Featured in the Stevie Ray guitar, they are calibrated for each position with a reverse coil, reverse-wound middle pickup for noise cancellation. If you want plenty of midrange bark and crisp high-end bite, get these Special Strat Pickups. Set of 3.

Used Fender Custom Shop Texas Special Strat Pickups $126.23 Fender Custom Shop Texas Special Strat Pickups give you that classic blues sound. Take a set of vintage Fender Strat pickups and overwind them for more midrange, punch, and output and you get pickups with Attitude! Featured in the Stevie Ray guitar, they are calibrated for each position with a reverse coil, reverse-wound middle pickup for noise cancellation. If you want plenty of midrange bark and crisp high-end bite, get these Special Strat Pickups. Set of 3.

Used Fender Custom Shop Texas Special Strat Pickups Regular 886830367977 $108.77 Fender Custom Shop Texas Special Strat Pickups give you that classic blues sound. Take a set of vintage Fender Strat pickups and overwind them for more midrange, punch, and output and you get pickups with Attitude! Featured in the Stevie Ray guitar, they are calibrated for each position with a reverse coil, reverse-wound middle pickup for noise cancellation. If you want plenty of midrange bark and crisp high-end bite, get these Special Strat Pickups. Set of 3.

Silversun Pickups $34 Silversun Pickups

Lace Sensor Gold V-Series Electric Guitar Pickups 3-Pack Black $153.99 Lace Sensor Gold V-Series pickups have false pole pieces that give them a vintage look while their sound duplicates the sound of early Fender single-coil pickups. Sensor Gold pickups generate crisp top end and bell-like tone while reducing hum. Lace has built these world-famous, patented pickups since 1985, Lace pickups were used exclusively by Fender guitars for over a decade.The Lace Sensor guitar pickup family has a unique, radiant field-barrier system that surrounds both the coil and the magnets, reducing annoying 60-cycle hum. The patented Lace micro combs replace traditional bobbins, yielding a wider tonal range and better string balance than traditional pickups.Unlike ordinary guitar pickups, Lace Sensor Gold pickups generate 36 separate magnetic "sensing" fields which, in the areas where they contact the string, "read" the strings' vibration. (Regular pickups only generate anywhere from 4 to 12 fields.)The radiant field barriers of these pickups are actually metal slides that frame the inner core of the pickups and perform two functions: the first is to shield the pickup from outside noise and 60-cycle hum, while the second is to produce a broader yet more concentrated umbrella of a sensing field than that of standard magnetic pickups.Less Noise, More Harmonics:Compared to standard pickups, Lace Sensor Gold pickups read a greater physical area of the string while picking up less outside interference. This makes the signal-to-noise ratio nothing short of phenomenal for a single-coil system. Also, a wider range of harmonic content is read by the pickup, delivering a more complex tonal response.Increased Sustain, Truer Pitch:Since they operate so efficiently, Lace Sensors Gold pickups can utilize much lower energy magnets than ordinary pickups and this in turn brings about a whole new realm of properties. In regular pickups, the magnetic fields are so strong that they physically dampen, or drag on, the strings' vibration, reducing sustain and actually changing the pitch. But in Lace Sensor Gold pickups, string dampening is virtually nonexistent. This means your sustain is increased dramatically while the string holds its true pitch for the duration of the note.With their pickups package, Lace includes a three-inch mini data CD that includes all the pickup's latest wiring diagrams in color, along with Lace's most current pickup and guitar catalogs. Also is a warranty card plus other useful information regarding Lace Music Products.

Lace Sensor Gold V-Series Electric Guitar Pickups 3-Pack White $153.99 Lace Sensor Gold V-Series pickups have false pole pieces that give them a vintage look while their sound duplicates the sound of early Fender single-coil pickups. Sensor Gold pickups generate crisp top end and bell-like tone while reducing hum. Lace has built these world-famous, patented pickups since 1985, Lace pickups were used exclusively by Fender guitars for over a decade.The Lace Sensor guitar pickup family has a unique, radiant field-barrier system that surrounds both the coil and the magnets, reducing annoying 60-cycle hum. The patented Lace micro combs replace traditional bobbins, yielding a wider tonal range and better string balance than traditional pickups.Unlike ordinary guitar pickups, Lace Sensor Gold pickups generate 36 separate magnetic "sensing" fields which, in the areas where they contact the string, "read" the strings' vibration. (Regular pickups only generate anywhere from 4 to 12 fields.)The radiant field barriers of these pickups are actually metal slides that frame the inner core of the pickups and perform two functions: the first is to shield the pickup from outside noise and 60-cycle hum, while the second is to produce a broader yet more concentrated umbrella of a sensing field than that of standard magnetic pickups.Less Noise, More Harmonics:Compared to standard pickups, Lace Sensor Gold pickups read a greater physical area of the string while picking up less outside interference. This makes the signal-to-noise ratio nothing short of phenomenal for a single-coil system. Also, a wider range of harmonic content is read by the pickup, delivering a more complex tonal response.Increased Sustain, Truer Pitch:Since they operate so efficiently, Lace Sensors Gold pickups can utilize much lower energy magnets than ordinary pickups and this in turn brings about a whole new realm of properties. In regular pickups, the magnetic fields are so strong that they physically dampen, or drag on, the strings' vibration, reducing sustain and actually changing the pitch. But in Lace Sensor Gold pickups, string dampening is virtually nonexistent. This means your sustain is increased dramatically while the string holds its true pitch for the duration of the note.With their pickups package, Lace includes a three-inch mini data CD that includes all the pickup's latest wiring diagrams in color, along with Lace's most current pickup and guitar catalogs. Also is a warranty card plus other useful information regarding Lace Music Products.

Joe Barden Pickups J-Style 5 String Bass Pickup Set $284.95 The Joe Barden J-Style 5 String Bass Pickup Set offers the same great Joe Barden tone, power, and response for the bass guitar as their ground breaking double-blade guitar pickups have done for 6 string guitars for the last 25 years. This set will take your bass sound to a whole new level.The J-Style pickups were designed to maintain authentic J-Bass tone and character but with extended frequency response and articulation that characterizes all Joe Barden pickups. And, like all other Joe Barden pickups, the J-Style pickups exhibit quiet performance for live performance or recording.Now, bass players are free to tailor their sound more precisely than was possible with stock pickups, and can select one or both pickups without fear of noise or hum often induced by traditional single coil bass pickups. Neck and bridge position pickups differ in size to fit into the cavities of traditional J-Bass and similarly styled guitars without modification to the instrument. J-Style pickups are available for both 4 and 5 string J-Bass styled bass guitars.Dual blade designGreater tone and powerExtended frequency responseQuieter performanceFits standard J-Bass pickup routs

Joe Barden Pickups J-Style 5 String Bass Bridge Pickup $159.95 The Joe Barden J-Style 5 String Bass Bridge Pickup offers the same great Joe Barden tone, power, and response for the bass guitar as their ground breaking double-blade guitar pickups have done for 6 string guitars for the last 25 years. This pickup will take your bass sound to a whole new level.The J-Style pickups were designed to maintain authentic J-Bass tone and character but with extended frequency response and articulation that characterizes all Joe Barden pickups. And, like all other Joe Barden pickups, the J-Style pickups exhibit quiet performance for live performance or recording.Now, bass players are free to tailor their sound more precisely than was possible with stock pickups, and can select one or both pickups without fear of noise or hum often induced by traditional single coil bass pickups. Neck and bridge position pickups differ in size to fit into the cavities of traditional J-Bass and similarly styled guitars without modification to the instrument. J-Style pickups are available for both 4 and 5 string J-Bass styled bass guitars.Dual blade designGreater tone and powerExtended frequency responseQuieter performanceFits standard J-Bass pickup routs

Joe Barden Pickups J-Style 5 String Bass Neck Pickup $159.95 The Joe Barden J-Style 5 String Bass Neck Pickup offers the same great Joe Barden tone, power, and response for the bass guitar as their ground breaking double-blade guitar pickups have done for 6 string guitars for the last 25 years. This pickup will take your bass sound to a whole new level.The J-Style pickups were designed to maintain authentic J-Bass tone and character but with extended frequency response and articulation that characterizes all Joe Barden pickups. And, like all other Joe Barden pickups, the J-Style pickups exhibit quiet performance for live performance or recording.Now, bass players are free to tailor their sound more precisely than was possible with stock pickups, and can select one or both pickups without fear of noise or hum often induced by traditional single coil bass pickups. Neck and bridge position pickups differ in size to fit into the cavities of traditional J-Bass and similarly styled guitars without modification to the instrument. J-Style pickups are available for both 4 and 5 string J-Bass styled bass guitars.Dual blade designGreater tone and powerExtended frequency responseQuieter performanceFits standard J-Bass pickup routs

Joe Barden Pickups J-Style 4 String Bass Bridge Pickup $159.95 The Joe Barden J-Style 4 String Bass Bridge Pickup offers the same great Joe Barden tone, power, and response for the bass guitar as their ground breaking double-blade guitar pickups have done for 6 string guitars for the last 25 years. This pickup will take your bass sound to a whole new level.The J-Style pickups were designed to maintain authentic J-Bass tone and character but with extended frequency response and articulation that characterizes all Joe Barden pickups. And, like all other Joe Barden pickups, the J-Style pickups exhibit quiet performance for live performance or recording.Now, bass players are free to tailor their sound more precisely than was possible with stock pickups, and can select one or both pickups without fear of noise or hum often induced by traditional single coil bass pickups. Neck and bridge position pickups differ in size to fit into the cavities of traditional J-Bass and similarly styled guitars without modification to the instrument. J-Style pickups are available for both 4 and 5 string J-Bass styled bass guitars.

Joe Barden Pickups J-Style 4 String Bass Pickup Set $284.95 The Joe Barden J-Style 4 String Bass Pickup Set offers the same great Joe Barden tone, power, and response for the bass guitar as their ground breaking double-blade guitar pickups have done for 6 string guitars for the last 25 years. This set will take your bass sound to a whole new level.The J-Style pickups were designed to maintain authentic J-Bass tone and character but with extended frequency response and articulation that characterizes all Joe Barden pickups. And, like all other Joe Barden pickups, the J-Style pickups exhibit quiet performance for live performance or recording.Now, bass players are free to tailor their sound more precisely than was possible with stock pickups, and can select one or both pickups without fear of noise or hum often induced by traditional single coil bass pickups. Neck and bridge position pickups differ in size to fit into the cavities of traditional J-Bass and similarly styled guitars without modification to the instrument. J-Style pickups are available for both 4 and 5 string J-Bass styled bass guitars.

Joe Barden Pickups J-Style 4 String Bass Neck Pickup $159.95 The Joe Barden J-Style 4 String Bass Neck Pickup offers the same great Joe Barden tone, power, and response for the bass guitar as their ground breaking double-blade guitar pickups have done for 6 string guitars for the last 25 years. This pickup will take your bass sound to a whole new level.The J-Style pickups were designed to maintain authentic J-Bass tone and character but with extended frequency response and articulation that characterizes all Joe Barden pickups. And, like all other Joe Barden pickups, the J-Style pickups exhibit quiet performance for live performance or recording.Now, bass players are free to tailor their sound more precisely than was possible with stock pickups, and can select one or both pickups without fear of noise or hum often induced by traditional single coil bass pickups. Neck and bridge position pickups differ in size to fit into the cavities of traditional J-Bass and similarly styled guitars without modification to the instrument. J-Style pickups are available for both 4 and 5 string J-Bass styled bass guitars.