Need Help on Guitar pick-ups

[Dawn]

Hi,



i´m currently usin an Ibanez GSA-60 with light guage strings. I find that the guitar sounds "whimmpy?" no PoWeR! lol =D



Is there any thing i can do? Cos i´d like a longer sustain and more warmth in da string like a Les Paul sound?



Change pick-up?



P.s: i know it sounds dumb but, if you change ur pick-up to some super dupa like seymour duncan or wateva Fender pick-ups...will ur lousy cheapo GSA60 sound like a Les Paul or Strat?

juz curious =)



Thx, cheers all

<font size=-1>[ Edited by Dawn On Date _MONTHDATETIME ]</font>

 

[live33]

Hi!



eh... no power, ah?... lol...



Ok, well, one of the things you can do is to increase your action. This will improve on the volume and sustain a little. If you don´t know how to do a proper setup for your guitar, you would probably vant to bring it down to a workshop. It´s more than just turning a few screws here and there. Changing to a "hotter" pickup will also help.



Sustain depends on a few factors actually, so does the tone, such as the type of wood used in the fingerboard, neck and body, strings and gauges and pickups. I guess for electric guitars, the pickups affects the tone the most. Well, you could get a tone close to a Les Paul, but from what I know, the tonal characteristics of a Les Paul is probably due to the wood (maple top on mahogany) more than anything else...



Just my 2 cents worth. ; )

<font size=-1>[ Edited by live33 On Date _MONTHDATETIME ]</font>

 

[Dawn]

Thx there

but erm...wat´s "action" ? and do u haf any good workshops to recommend?



I also have a pretty old classical guitar dat needs repair... know of any gd luthiers and with reasonable fees and GD workmanship?



Thx alot =)

 

[live33]

well, action refers to the string height from the frets... the higher the action, the louder it gets. This is more apparent in acoustic guitars; I think it affects electric guitars as well. You´ll probably get an offset in the volume as the string gets further from the strings, but this increased action will improve the sustain as the damping effect of the pickup magnets will be less.



For a start, you may want to consider changing pickups first. Think that would be the easiest way. Improper adjustment of the action may result in string buzz or notes being out of tune (intonation problems). Which pickups to choose would depend on your preference. Think some of the manufacturers like DiMarzio have sound samples on their website.



As for luthiers in SG. You can try the Guitar Hospital at Sinamex (Parklane). Dunno about the charges, though. There´s also one at Ming Arcade (opp. HardRock); not sure if they´re still there.

<font size=-1>[ Edited by live33 On Date _MONTHDATETIME ]</font>

 

[subversion]

do keep in mind that higher action affects playability- it hampers speed.



pickups only contribute to a certain extent with regards to tone. the bulk of it comes from the guitar´s wood. i don´t have any workshops to recommend simply because IMO, action adjustments are user friendly since your GSA-60 does not sport a floating trem (floyd-type trem).



however, if you insist on a learned individual attending to your guitar, visit Music Plaza (Plaza Singapura) & ask Beez whether he can attend to your needs. erm, if you live in the Yew Tee neighbourhood, i can attend to this need...

 

[Frez]

Hi Subversion,



can u leave your contact or email address? or is there anyway I can reach you via this website on a member to member basis?



Thanks!



Regards,



Frez

 

[subversion]

hello my friend

you can mail me your concerns here: subversion@eudoramail.com



will be glad to help if it is within my means...



cheers!!

 

[Frez]

Thanks Sub!

 

[andrewtheshredder]

Hi,

ive found that making your pickups higher will help increase power and tone. i did that to my humbuckers and it sounds really beefy

 

[subversion]

hi there! welcome aboard...



well it´s really a trade off- too high & the magnets are too close to the string, hence, stronger string-pull...

 

[guitar_phreak]

Agreed....too high pickups make alot of magnet pull....screws the sound.

I have a PU question of my own too!

I am really thinking of swapping my Ibanez stocks to the DiMarzio air norton and Evolution or Tone Zone.

Need a open clear neck PU sound and hot ripping bridge PU sound....then again, my equipment ain't great so I don't know if the changes will make a difference.

friendly advice anyone?

 

[penguin]

the tone zone works real well with the norton or PAF ..
not sure abt the evo ...
tried but dont like it...i feel like its too "digital" sounding...

U might like to try Steve special as well

 

[fretless6]

do keep in mind that higher action affects playability- it hampers speed.



pickups only contribute to a certain extent with regards to tone. the bulk of it comes from the guitar´s wood. i don´t have any workshops to recommend simply because IMO, action adjustments are user friendly since your GSA-60 does not sport a floating trem (floyd-type trem).



however, if you insist on a learned individual attending to your guitar, visit Music Plaza (Plaza Singapura) & ask Beez whether he can attend to your needs. erm, if you live in the Yew Tee neighbourhood, i can attend to this need...

Personally I find pickups alter tone more than the wood does. "Tone" of the wood comes mostly from the wood absorbing certain freqs from string vibration.

 

[subversion]

i said what i said because i was moved by what PRS said about tone starting from the guitar's wood, he suggested trying an acrylic bodied guitar & noting the midrnage response. i did just that...

 

[fretless6]

i said what i said because i was moved by what PRS said about tone starting from the guitar's wood, he suggested trying an acrylic bodied guitar & noting the midrnage response. i did just that...

How does an acrylic bodied guitar sound anyway? "Sounds" interesting...

 

[Hideo]

i saw 1 plastic body guitar at parklane, did not try, but looks pretty cool.
BTW, dawn, how come ur gsa60 not good? i have 1 too, but i m too newbie to even know how lousy the pick up is, but i think it sounds ok to me.

 

[p00n]

would emgs allow your action to get lower without losing that much sustain? after all its a weak magnet with the active preamp to amplify the sound (i think).. anyway im like too scared to even adjust the truss rod when there is already fret buzz on the low E on the 5th fret when i fret a little off center..

and im also like the neck-pickup-bane or something as my first ibanez's neck pickup died, my current stock epi's neck pup died too, and the 59' which i replaced got like really soft after i tried to adjust the pup height.. im thinking its soldering or connection problem.. mm maybe one of these days would bring back to guitar connnection and ask kelvin to fix it or i may change it out to EMG 60 or 85/89..

anyone knows how the 85/60 in the neck sounds? i hear the 60 has lesser gain and lots more bass.. err technically im not hijacking this thread as im asking about higher output pups too