Lace Alumitones vs EMG

[antcarrier]

I have a guitar with a set of alumitone humbuckers. They are interesting pickups that really have their own thing going on. They don't really sound like humbuckers (can't really compare them to EMG as I've never owned a guitar with EMGs). Kinda like somwhere between a humbucker, P-90, and maybe a filtertron - although IMO they do sound more clinical/sterile than all of these. They are very bright as far as humbuckers go. It is a good sound, but not one that I would have in my #1 guitar (I'm more of a humbucker guy normally). They are mostly quiet, although when split they do pick up a bit of noise (no real volume drop though, which is a plus). There output isn't too high either, which I like. One thing I really don't like about them is that they don't seem to be wide enough to pick up all the strings correctly. They don't pick up the 2 e strings as well as the others unless they are at exactly the right height, and there's really no room to move them from this position without the string levels becoming unbalanced.

 

[pima1234]

I recall that issue on my old Carvin, come to think of it! One of the reasons I ended up selling it. Thanks for the reminder.

Another good noiseless option is Kinman. Their website is weird lately. Hopefully, they're not closing up shop. And their distribution is not to great. They should sell in Europe and the US, directly.

 

[Sixstring]

I have a guitar with a set of alumitone humbuckers. They are interesting pickups that really have their own thing going on. They don't really sound like humbuckers (can't really compare them to EMG as I've never owned a guitar with EMGs). Kinda like somwhere between a humbucker, P-90, and maybe a filtertron - although IMO they do sound more clinical/sterile than all of these. They are very bright as far as humbuckers go. It is a good sound, but not one that I would have in my #1 guitar (I'm more of a humbucker guy normally). They are mostly quiet, although when split they do pick up a bit of noise (no real volume drop though, which is a plus). There output isn't too high either, which I like. One thing I really don't like about them is that they don't seem to be wide enough to pick up all the strings correctly. They don't pick up the 2 e strings as well as the others unless they are at exactly the right height, and there's really no room to move them from this position without the string levels becoming unbalanced.

Interesting insight... with the pickup having a bright quality to it, it sounds like they would be a good fit for use with an amp or a guitar that has a darker tone to it.

 

[Sixstring]

These look interesting, the about to be released Fishman Fluence line. They deal with the noise issue, have multiple voicings, and recreate the tones of what most of us would consider a "normal" sounding pickup. . . .

All Electric Guitar Pickups for Electric Guitar - Fishman Transducers, Inc.

Terry.

These are very interesting...

 

[pima1234]

The Fishman pickups are active.

 

[Sixstring]

The Fishman pickups are active.

True but it is a nice departure from say what Line 6 or some of the other companies have done with guitar and pickup modeling, maybe not quite as versatile as some of the others but still nice. USB charging jack and thin LiPoly batts that reside on the backside of trem style guitars are pretty cool features.

This is what I was hoping that FAS was going to get into, finding some way to add different typs of voicing within a pickup without having to carve up a guitar to install it.

 

[Rook]

I have ordered a Deathbucker and an Alumitone in black for my Geiger RG. Yeah, I'll admit the look played a part in it - they are going to look great in that guitar. Also it is a pretty metal guitar so i'm not so likely to be looking for Carlos Santana tones. The stock pickups really need changing, so I thought I'd roll the dice on these.

I'll report back. Hey, maybe I'll even try to do some kind of Keith Merrow style vid

 

[Sidivan]

I have ordered a Deathbucker and an Alumitone in black for my Geiger RG. Yeah, I'll admit the look played a part in it - they are going to look great in that guitar. Also it is a pretty metal guitar so i'm not so likely to be looking for Carlos Santana tones. The stock pickups really need changing, so I thought I'd roll the dice on these.

I'll report back. Hey, maybe I'll even try to do some kind of Keith Merrow style vid

Funny you should mention Santana. We just added Smooth to the set list and I use a guitar loaded with alumitones.

 

[Rook]

Funny you should mention Santana. We just added Smooth to the set list and I use a guitar loaded with alumitones.

Ah, but does it look like this?

Thanks though, I'm happy to know they are flexible enough to cover that ground.