Ep103 Single-coil and Humbucker Guitar Pickups Tone Test

Guitar Music Theory

Desi Serna

Musictheoryforguitar, Guitar, Guitarscales, Performing Arts, Guitarmusictheory, Music, Guitarlessons, Arts, Guitarchords, Guitartheory

4.6 • 931 Ratings

🗓️ 11 September 2021

⏱️ 24 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

Can you hear the difference between a single-coil guitar pickup and a humbucker? Test your ear by listening to my blind samples played in the style of familiar songs. You should notice that the lower output single-coil pickups sound thinner, brighter, and with less depth but more clarity. The higher output humbuckers sound thicker with more midrange, depth, and sustain. The twangy, snappy sound of single-coil pickups typically work better for clean tones and when light to moderate overdrive is in use. Humbucking pickups typically work better for higher gain tones. Humbuckers are actually two single-coils wired together. Humbuckers get their name because they cancel the 60-cycle hum that can be an issue with single-coil pickups in some settings where electronic interference is present. All these sound samples are played through a Kemper Profiling Amplifier using profiles from Tone Junkie and Top Jimi. I used the same settings for both guitars in each example. What are your favorite tones? Let me know in the comments!

🎸 What do you SPECIFICALLY need to do in order to play guitar better? Visit https://GuitarMusicTheory.com - answer the questions about your playing and get FREE custom video instruction calibrated to your current level.

GEAR
Squier Classic Vibe '50s Telecaster (hardware, pickups, and wiring upgrades by Bluesman Vintage Guitars)
PRS McCarty 594 (Seymour Duncan SH-1 59 pickups)
Kemper Profiling Amplifier
Top Jimi '68 Sup Ld Profile Pack (1968 Super Lead)
Tone Junkie PLEXI SL KEMPER PROFILE PACK (1971 Marshall Super Lead 1959SL)
Tone Junkie TWEED DELUXE KEMPER PROFILE PACK (Fender Tweed Deluxe)
Tone Junkie 67 PRO VERB KEMPER PROFILE PACK (Fender Pro Reverb)

Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

0:00.0	In episode 103 of the guitar music theory
0:24.8	podcast. I am your host Desi Cerna and today we're going to have a little bit of
0:29.4	fun. I'm going to play some sound samples using a guitar with humbucking pickups and a guitar with
0:35.1	single coils.
0:36.1	We're going to see if you can hear the difference in their sounds.
0:40.8	There are some guitarist that swear by the tone of single coil pickups and others that
0:45.8	swear by the tone of humbuckers.
0:48.9	And there are many guitarists like me that like to play a variety of music and so I like to have guitars with
0:54.8	both single coils and guitars with humbuckers on hand. We'll see what you
0:59.9	prefer in this podcast and whether or not you can even tell the difference. Now I pulled
1:04.6	the audio from a video that I posted to YouTube so if you would like to watch this
1:09.3	video just go over to YouTube and search my name Desi Cerna D-E-SS-E-R-N-A plus the keywords single-coil Humbucker pickups and you should find that video.
1:22.0	If you're not already subscribed to my
1:23.6	YouTube channel, you're sure to subscribe, click the notification bell and you'll receive
1:27.9	alerts when new videos are added. Now perhaps today's podcast episode is just the sort of thing you need to be focusing on right now or maybe your guitar playing needs help in other areas.
1:39.0	If you need help determining what you should specifically be working on right now in order to
1:44.0	get your guitar skills together, go to my website guitar music theory.com answer the questions I ask
1:50.3	you about your playing and I'll send you free custom video instruction calibrated to your current level.
1:56.2	I'll show you specifically what you need to be doing right now in order to get your guitar
2:00.7	skills together so you can progress, move forward, and reach your music
2:05.4	goals. Enroll in your free video course now at guitar music theory.com. You can click on the
2:10.7	link in the podcast show notes. I'm Desi C-Serna and in this
	...

Please login to see the full transcript.

Previous episode | Next episode

Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from Desi Serna, and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.

Generated transcripts are the property of Desi Serna and are distributed freely under the Fair Use doctrine. Transcripts generated by Tapesearch are not guaranteed to be accurate.