pickup suggestions for a Filmore MK II

[doombuggy]

Dimarzio - FS-1
M-3 CALIFORNIA - RC-100
Hallmark - Wide range high output custom wound single coil
Hallmark - THE HIGH FIDELITY HUMBUCKER
Dana-Mo -??



my band plays surfy LOUD over driven monster rock, I play through a Vox AC30

[raygun85]

The RC-100 is wound to about 7.5-8K with 43 gauge wire. May not be the output range you're looking for, then again, it may be perfect - based on the kind of music you're describing. The strong ceramic 8 magnets compensate a little for the lower windings and give you a lot of treble and bite in your tone. Being handwound, it's still a very dynamic pickup. It was designed as the M-3 "economy" pickup but seems to garnering it's own following. Of course, you can always have it custom wound a lot higher. I don't know, with what you're describing, if your heart is set on an M-3 pickup, I'd say have an RC-100 custom wound to about 12K and wax-potted. That should give you a real high-output tone in conjunction with the ceramic magnets. The wax-potting should keep you safe from squealing feedback. While still being a single-coil, you'll have a little more of the chime and bite too. It'll also be unique.

[doombuggy]

heres a link to some of the tunes so it will give you some idea what I need.
https://www.facebook.com/thegogomonsters/app_2405167945

[raygun85]

Heavy sound, but not too heavy. I like the more overdriven sound as opposed to a real grungy sound, it still sounds a little more 60s that way. I know it's debatable but I can hear the difference. With overdrive you still have some dynamics.

Anyway, the XR-2000's might be suited well for you. If you want a pickup that will push your amp all on their own, the XR-2000's are for you. 16Kohms in the bridge, 12K in the neck, ceramic 8 magnets, humbucking...but they have a lot more mids, less sparkle, but some folks love them. I like that sort of sound myself depending on the application. (Ask DennisTheMenace about those - he was the player who inspired them. )

If you want a little more sparkle, an overwound RC-100 would be great. I'd go for 10K in the neck and 12K in the bridge. Definitely wax-potted. They'll push your amp too, but you'll still probably want to use a stompbox or boost. You can even get a smooth-top version if you want it. I'd stick with ceramic 8 magnets so you can have a little bit more highs and output, whether you went for the RC-100's or the XR-2000's. Ceramic magnets are better suited for that kind of music.

[doombuggy]

yeah I dont wanna get something close to the output of my SG but different, a Mosrite sound on steroids basically, wondering if a normal looking Mosrite pup will look weird on the guitar? the Hallmarks look like the original, Dana offer to make a pickup but I she probably made the pups in the Fillmore??? keep the ideas coming

[MWaldorf]

Here's a picture of a Japanese Mark II with full size Mosrite pickups. Looks AOK by me. (OK, I photoshopped in the middle one. )

FWIW, I highly recommend the M3 pickups - I've got the RH-100 dual-tones in my guitar and they're great - the two output levels gives a lot of tonal versatility.

[raygun85]

[doombuggy]

darn where can I find a vibramute that looks great!

raygun85 what model pickups do you have?

MWaldorf what the deal with the non pole pickup covers?

I tried to youtube the pickups but no one have loaded a demo yet :/

[Bob Shade]

Hey Doombuggy!

Another option for you would be our Hallmark II pickup that is the same as the one Johnny Ramone used in the early days with the Ramones. I can hand wind them for you with a ohm of almost 15K and employ alnico 5 magnets for monster tone. This is about twice the ohms of an original Mosrite pickup of the original design and the diff. is this one will push your amp so loud you will likely send the neighbors packing. This pickup will make your guitar look just like an early Mosrite 65 and you will be on your way to driving up earplug sales.

I may be able to help you with a tailpiece as well.

PM me or call for further info.

Best, Bob

240-473-1157

[raygun85]

darn where can I find a vibramute that looks great!

raygun85 what model pickups do you have?

MWaldorf what the deal with the non pole pickup covers?

I tried to youtube the pickups but no one have loaded a demo yet :/

I was trying not to sound like a cheesy salesman, actually I'm one of the guys behind M-3. I find it difficult to get involved in discussions because I like to stay objective and help people without trying to sell them something every single time. If you want to buy something from us, great. If not, oh well, just enjoy talking shop. You're not allowed to shamelessly peddle your products on a lot of other forums - like the Telecaster Forum (TDPRI).

For myself, I use Dual Tones in my personal guitar. 7.5K/11.5K with Hot Circuits and Alnico V magnets. Alnico V won't give "monster tone", I still recommend ceramic for what you're doing. A single-coil at 15K, with Alnico V, is gonna get pretty muddy. The RC-100's can be wound as high as 20K (maybe even more), but you will significantly lower your resonant peak. Ceramic magnets will give you more output and, in conjunction with a 12K coil, you will be pushing your amp but still have a little bit of clarity and dynamics, you still may want a boost or overdrive pedal in front, though. Early pre-Ventures 60's Mosrite pickups were usually 9.5-11K, with the later ones wound 11-12K. Mel's pickups are also Dual Tones, with the neck, middle, and bridge at 11K, 12K, & 13K, respectively. The pickups that came with his guitar were 14K. You may want to talk to him about his opinions. The number of windings don't necessarily dictate the overall output. The type of magnets and their strength have a direct bearing on the inductance. For instance, a pickup wound to 12K with degaussed Alnico V magnets at 300G will have less output and a lower resonant peak than a pickup wound to 7.5K and Alnico V magnets at full charge - which can be as high as 800-900G, depending on the alloy composition. The magnetic materials (e.g. Alnico vs Ceramic) will have a direct bearing on the tone as well. A typical Alnico V at full charge will register between 700-900G. Ceramic 8 will register much higher, in fact, I've got my meter here at home and I just literally measured a ceramic 8 magnet laying on my desk (yes, I obsess over this stuff day and night ), it's well over 1800G. Ceramic 8 will have a more "scooped" midrange with a much wider frequency range. Some people describe the higher frequencies as sounding like an "ice pick", while others might describe it as "brilliant." I say it depends on the pickup. On a pickup with higher windings, you'll want to scoop the mids a little so it doesn't get muddy. Our pickups have been described by almost everyone as "very loud" when compared to other pickups. That is partly because we fully charge our magnets so folks can get the most of out of their pickups - crisper highs, tighter bass...etc...The stronger the magnetic field, the higher the inductance - the higher the output. An RC-100 at 12K with ceramic 8 magnets is going to give you a very high-gain sound, it'll overdrive your amp, but it'll still sound very open and clear. Whether you have us make your pickups or not, I recommend trying ceramic 8 magnets.

Another thing that we don't usually like to advertise is that when people order custom pickups from us, they can send them back and we'll wind a replacement set that get's them closer to the tone they're looking for, for free. We usually only tell folks that privately for obvious reasons. To my knowledge, we're the only pickup manufacturer that does that. But only a few folks have taken advantage of that offer because they're usually spot on.

I'm currently designing a pickup that will give you 12K single-coil output, and 12K humbucking output that you can switch between, so you can truly have the best of both worlds without the volume drop. When it comes to custom pickups, your options are almost without limit.

-matt
M-3 California
(916) 760-8560
guitars@m3california.com