Choosing A New Set Of Pickups For Your Favorite Guitar

The harmonious and beautiful squeal of electric guitars was the pinnacle of rock and roll. Back in the 50′s, this type of music was being played around with and then in the 1960′s and 1970′s, that creation was made better until it lead the way to the most popular music of all time. The crispness of sound that comes from an electric guitar is simply beautiful. It is amazing to ponder where music would have ended up if it hadn’t been for the creation of the electric guitar; a scary thought. A band with no electric guitar is like a child without its mama.

Electric guitars come in various contours, sizes, colors, and designs. Some think that it does not bear significance what electric guitar that is used because they all sound the same. This is simply not true; brand, size, pickups, and neck play a part in the sound that comes from the electric guitar. Because of this, certain brands of electric guitars are seen and played for decades because of the precision that is put into making them. However, the most important part to the sound type is the pickups.

Whether starting a brand new band, jamming solo, or adding more guitars to your band’s existing stock, you should be aware of the different arrangement of pickups used in electric guitars before you go out and purchase one. Many instrument shops will let you you testing them and can be very helpful in providing information and assisting one in buying the most suitable electric guitar. Make sure to get an explanation about the different types of pickups. Thestyles of pickups for electric guitars are:

* Single Coil Pickups – This style has only one coil or wire. This kinds of pickup remains the oldest of electric guitar types. When jamming with a guitar that has a single coil pickup, the sound is affected by other frequencies in the area which create a hum with the music. These types of pickups are not often seen today but are the choice of a few very well known musicians because of the old style sound they give.

* Humbucker Pickups – This type of pickup consists of two coils wherein the unwanted hum of the single coil pickup is eliminated. Basically, the coil holds two signals: one that the music is making and one that cancels out the hum. The actual piece that does this is called a Humbucker which was patented in 1954. The humbucker is the process of two coils.

* Double Coil Pickups – These pickups, like in the name, include two coils. Though, for an unknown reason, musicians do want the hum sound from time to time so the double coil pickup electric guitars usually come with a switch that can cancel the second coil.

There are many other factors that go into the sound an electric guitar makes. Though, pickups are the sound makers. Other things like: neck length, shape, material, frets, and tuners make a difference too but not like the pickups. For decades, pioneers have been trying new things in hopes to finding the perfect guitar to make the optimal sound. Rock and roll has changed in some ways but in different ways it has stayed the same.