Considering changing pkups in Eclipse

[Caddie]

Luv everything about that Eclipse. But the orig S.D. mini HB harshness is finally getting to me. Are the Lollars worth the $$$? Need to have something that will drop in. Homey don't do no "carpentry".

Recommendations?

Thanks in advance.

caddie

[G Man]

I had one for awhile with SD Anitquity II Firebird pups in it that sounded great, definitely not harsh. Direct drop in replacement too.

[burningyen]

Tone control doesn't cut it?

[Caddie]

Tone control doesn't cut it?

I feel like I have exhausted most of the usual methods. Fiddled with Vol n Tone while plugged into various amps. The tone control on this Eclipse sounds like it very quickly takes it from barky harsh to muffled nasally, that's the best description I can give. That's how it is to my ear anyway.

I wish a little more amp n guitar knob tweaking would do the job. Haven't found the right recipe yet. There seems to be occasional discussion around here about the huge improvement with the Eclipse when you replace the orig SD minis. I'm not a pup swapper, never have been. IMHO too much $$$ to justify it. But I luv this Eclipse. Hamer USA, wraptail, belly cut, forearm relief, lightweight. The simplicity of the whole package is very attractive to me. What's not to luv?

But do I really wanna spend almost as much on new pups as I can net reselling the guitar? Uh...no.

Perhaps a pot value is the answer or cap or some other electronic thing inside the control compartment the answer. Onboard pre-amp like on the VintS or Duotone?

Oh boy!!! A couple hundred $$$ = more pots to twist n switches to flip! YEEEEE haaaaaa. Simplicity? HA!

caddie

[murkat]

Hamer is known to put the cap on the inside of the pot grid,

en result a fast roll off at the end of the tone cap curve.

you can try to switch the tone cap, output lead from the

tone pot and see, hear a different sweep of the tone.

take a picture for me, would be glad to help, guide and to keep

your costs at min.

[hamerhead]

Noonan - check out the GFS site. They have quite a variety.

I put their alnico minis in a Studio and they were very good. I'm thinking about putting their 'Liverpool' minis in my Eclipse 12 because they have a great jangle to them. In fact, have I got a deal for you - I'll sell ya the Dimarzios currently in there!!

And besides being cheap, the guys over there are good at recommending something based on what you tell them. The full-size Liverpools I put in an Echotone absolutely nailed what I was looking for, and they got back to me within a day or so.

[Caddie]

Noonan - check out the GFS site. They have quite a variety.

I put their alnico minis in a Studio and they were very good. I'm thinking about putting their 'Liverpool' minis in my Eclipse 12 because they have a great jangle to them. In fact, have I got a deal for you - I'll sell ya the Dimarzios currently in there!!

And besides being cheap, the guys over there are good at recommending something based on what you tell them. The full-size Liverpools I put in an Echotone absolutely nailed what I was looking for, and they got back to me within a day or so.

Hamerhead please hold that thought. I'm gonna try murkat's idea first.

murkat sez;

"you can try to switch the tone cap, output lead from the

tone pot and see, hear a different sweep of the tone.

take a picture for me, would be glad to help, guide and to keep

your costs at min."

[JohnnyB]

Duncan offers a selection of Alnico-mag Firebird drop-in replacements:

From SD's standard line, they offer the SM-1 with Alnico 5 magnet:

The Antiquities line offers an Antiquities II version:

And from the Custom Shop are these two interesting alternatives:

Adjustable 12-pole mini-bucker available with alnico 2, alnico 5, or ceramic magnet:

Staggered 3+3, also available with alnico 2, alnico 5, or ceramic magnet:

[Bloozguy]

I've got DiMarzio Minibuckers in one of mine and they sound pretty sweet. More vintage sounding with none of the harshness of the Duncans.

[gtone]

I'll second Murkat's suggestion to change the tone cap value. Even a Sprague PIO shouldn't run more than about $5 a pop - hella cheaper/easier than a pu swap. Besides that, jumping from say a .010 cap to a .022 or even greater can make a fair amount of difference.

[Caddie]

Analyze THIS! Deniro sez pointing and shaking finger at Crystal; "You, you are good, you got a gift."

Caddie sezto Murkat, shaking soldering iron at him; "You, you are good, you got a gift."

Your suggestion on a simple wiring change made a world of difference in my Eclipse. It took the nasty, unruly bite out of it and made the tone control usable. It did not throw a wet blanket over it . It just made it "more linearly responsive" to the tone control. Even Mr. Numb Nuts himself was able to successfully follow murkat's instructions.

Thanks murkat!

caddie

Hamer is known to put the cap on the inside of the pot grid,

en result a fast roll off at the end of the tone cap curve.

you can try to switch the tone cap, output lead from the

tone pot and see, hear a different sweep of the tone.

take a picture for me, would be glad to help, guide and to keep

your costs at min.