Question about North Pole / South Pole Hummies

[Ting Ho Dung]

Adjustable pole screws on one bobbin. Why do they face away from each other? Bridge toward bridge, neck toward neck. What is the big deal about turning them around?

For example, if I have a bright bridge pickup would it warm it up by turning it around? I've already experimented with two neck pickups and two bridge pickups. Can't say that I prefer either or both. To me, sometimes it just seems to work and I don't know why.

So I've been experimenting with raising and lowering the pickups and the adjustable pole pieces. It seems dumb. Raise the pickup and lower the gain on the amp. Lower the pickup and raise the gain on the amp. Maybe I'm too focused on the gain aspect?

I understand the idea behind the adjustable pole pieces. Just not sure if it's worth thinking about.

But then you have the Murkat pickups that have 12 adjustable pole pieces. Damn. I haven't even thought about messing with those.

[zenmindbeginner]

I don't really think it matters but here's my explanation:

The slug coil has a stronger magnetic pull than the screw coil which means it will draw more energy to the pickup.

Bridge pickups have the screw side facing the bridge because you want the stronger coil further away from the bridge... the slug coil closer to the bridge will be less thick and more bright.

Conversely, the screw coil faces the neck since the bass heavy resonance that makes neck pickups boomy are found closer to the neck... if the slug coil faced the neck, the result would be even more boomy bass.

So, thats why the hook-up wires are on the right side of the bridge and left side of the neck pickup.

You can reverse their orientation if you want less power and more treble out of the bridge pickup or more bass and power from the neck pickup.

All will still be in phase but if you want "out of phase", you have to flip one of the magnets like a pancake.

[oldskoolrulz]

My neck pup is flipped on my '06 sunburst, it's a dimarzio 36th anniversary zebra and had to do it in order to have the black part on the inside. Maybe I could have gotten a reverse zebra but Murkat did the install and if i recall correctly he said it really didnt make that much of a difference...

[Ting Ho Dung]

I don't really think it matters but here's my explanation:

The slug coil has a stronger magnetic pull than the screw coil which means it will draw more energy to the pickup.

Bridge pickups have the screw side facing the bridge because you want the stronger coil further away from the bridge... the slug coil closer to the bridge will be less thick and more bright.

Conversely, the screw coil faces the neck since the bass heavy resonance that makes neck pickups boomy are found closer to the neck... if the slug coil faced the neck, the result would be even more boomy bass.

So, thats why the hook-up wires are on the right side of the bridge and left side of the neck pickup.

You can reverse their orientation if you want less power and more treble out of the bridge pickup or more bass and power from the neck pickup.

All will still be in phase but if you want "out of phase", you have to flip one of the magnets like a pancake.

I read this and was thinking this guy really knows his shit. It all made sense. Then I saw it was Zen and it all made sense.Now.

[jim777]

For example, if I have a bright bridge pickup would it warm it up by turning it around? I've already experimented with two neck pickups and two bridge pickups. Can't say that I prefer either or both. To me, sometimes it just seems to work and I don't know why.

For pickups with one row of screws and one row of slugs, yes (most of the time). Turning the bridge pickup around so that the screws are closer to the neck will warm it up a little bit - same goes for the neck pickup if you want to brighten it up a little bit (screws to bridge side). Peter Green and Steve Howe have both turned pickups around for just this reason (Pete the neck and Steve the bridge). Pickups with slugs in both rows, or adjustable hex screws in both have identical coils so orientation won't matter.

[Hfan]

I've been wondering about North and South too..been looking at different coil split diagrams and some are for a North and some are for a South coil split which I don't get. Isn't the tap point between the two coils?

Bought a used Heritage once, posted NGD pics and someone was like "uh..what's with the backwards pickup"..the bridge was swapped around, never even noticed.