I emailed Kent Armstrong himself, and he said they were PAF's. Players love how they teeter between tone and chaos. There is a chance that you might have gotten a "good" set of P90's as stock equipment on your Epi. this drumming check out the FAQ by clicking the I'll hafta get some of Telenators PT-90's. I wandered over to the Kent Armstrong website earlier. Bags of twang and not microphonic like the SD pickup I replaced. I would be interested in you comments about the Benedetto swap. Your link has been automatically embedded. 04-16-2008, 05:17 PM Well by looking at the list of players that he's made pickups for, he should be **** good. All I know is WD sells Kent Armstrong pups at higher end pricing with no sound clips or specs. Happy hunting! The pickups are hot a great pairing with my Engal Powerball, Mesa Roadking and Carvin V3 all modern high gain amps. I was talking with my luthier the other day abound building an archtop and he was also saying he could put a BK Stormy Monday as a floating pickup even being a regular-sized humbucker. Yup - I can stare at the screen for ages when you and Presa Tito are posting on a thread. Looking for the ultimate Jazz/Fusion Allrounder Guitar, The "capacitor trick" on a Superblock US: 3 values compared (with audio), Looking for some Wisdom on Mini Humbuckers. Kent Armstrong has long been the best jazz pickup designer in the industry. JavaScript is disabled. If you go for the re-wire, the easiest option is 3 volumes and master tone. I imagine earlier pre WD Armstrong pickups would hold quite a bit of value. KA's are available in double creme though and come standard with 4 wires if you're into coil tapping and in the UK they're extremely cheap and I think quite a bargain. Below are pictures of this model of pup as well as the Casino, as listed on the WD website: A site named "Dan Armstrong - A Man and His Guitars" outlines the history of Dan and his son, Kent, and their manufacture of guitars and pickups. Between the warmth and adjustability, you just can't beat this pickup. They're were custom wound and came with the guitar. I'm actually thinking of up grading. The pickups are priced nicely as well. For a while you could still get domestic KA pickups built custom direct by him and/or his sons - not sure if that is possible still today or if it is all via WD Music. That neck pup on its' own with a little treble rolled off on the tone control would give you a warm mellow full sound, especially if you pick at the bottom of the neck. He is a very good friend and a good guy also. There are several actions that could trigger this block including submitting a certain word or phrase, a SQL command or malformed data. depends on the sound you want of course - they ARE at least as good as the Gibson Johnny Smith mini humbuckers that came on some of the older Gibbies and Heritage archtops, but well Also, the lack of adjustable poles is a turn off for me, YMMV, but I will say the best "smooth top" floating jazz pickup I've owned is the Bartolini 5J pickup, which is an excellent choice for that thinner, more acoustic sound. Jazz guitar players are less interested in output and the unique voice pickups can bring to their instrument. All of these modern updates have done nothing to quell demand for lipstick pickups, new and old. Very warm sound. WebReviews Kent Armstrong Vintage Series 6 Shooter PAF Style Humbucker Pickup This pickup design has sweet, soulful tones with a warm bass, punchy mids, and a bright, jangly treble response. It may have just been whatever model I had that I didn't like. My gut feeling is that they are one of the better import options out there but maybe not the same level as US aftermarket. You may have to register 67 AB165 BF Bassman "restoration" complete. and start thinking about it and then my bank account will suffer. While some might call it a brittle sound, others love the faster response and better note definition. I have spoken to him many times on the phone. has body but the upper frequency contour is really interesting. They also split for single coil use better than any other humbucker I've tried. WebFor Sale First Edition 2003 Ibanez JTK1 JetKing w/ Kent Armstrong PAF Humbuckers in Transparent Black Red Sunburst Finish. Assuming they do, it is curious how so many people automatically rip out the stock Epi pickups and replace them with (you guessed it) Kent Armstrongs. But the pickups arent the only reason Danelectro guitars sound the way they do. We all do. They were OEM pickups pulled from some Jazz guitars. sorry, didnt mean to digress from the original topic. So if you are in the market for these old-school models, we recommend finding a broken-down Dano from the 50s or 60s and pulling the pickups out yourself. [/quote] Thanks. This wiring results in an output boost with a woolier midrange punch than you might expect from lipsticks. Announcing the all new Side mounted Jazz Pickup. Virtually no one knows about the high end products. You are using an out of date browser. They are here to help. Sam: How was the pickup swap in your ElRey? link above. thanks. No more actual lipstick tubes! It's funny that this thread just came up, because I discussed this topic with my tech just today. There seem to be a plethora of newer 100 watt smaller floor based amps these days. #Bedroom Level# Tube Amp, Is it possible. 1995-2022 Harmony Central, Inc. All rights reserved. The tone is bright and detailed with a single coil type twang that also provides great crunch on They sound very authentic for P90's and when used in Parallel, they move into Tele territory for tone. I've been using Kent's m214 - m215 pair of humbuckers as well as the wpu10 - wpu11 for over 14 years now in nearly every custom that I have built because they blow away Seymour Duncan's Mayhem set and you can't beat the price nearly half as much. To start viewing messages, WebKent Armstrong - Any Good? In fact, modern guitarists such as Phoebe Bridgers still swing Danelectros over their shoulders quite often. But the name is much more accurate than many players realize. Copyright 2021 Gibson Brands, Inc. All rights reserved. Some of the add-ons on this site are powered by. And if you do find them, youre going to pay a premium. It may not display this or other websites correctly. I prefer passive pickups for their character and subtle nuances. This instrument is listed as being in 'very good' condition in accordance with Reverb's definition of the term. Theres a guy selling the following KA pickups around here for a reasonable price Are they any good? However, there are some people who want even more flexibility in this style of pickup, so Kent has brewed up something new and even more versatile. Is this Mark Whitfield's new D'Angelico??? (and Szab (or Szabo) and not Sczabo or Szarb for God's sake). Today, lipstick pickups and their tone are still synonymous with the Danelectro sound. Unfortunately for many years these sorely needed pickups - made by Dan Armstrong & Son never materalized.". All are welcome, from seasoned pros to absolute beginners. Among its other design factors, Danelectros magic can be traced straight to the highly unique pickups that Nathan Daniel designed. The Kent Armstrong's were about 8K Ohms (as they should be). It is the bridge model of the 4/5 string soapbar. These are the Kent Armstrong pickups in my Soloist: The bridge pickup has a bright fendery tone, for a humbucker it. I believe he still does hand winds to order in the states. Most of the time I played with the middle one set to zero volume. 62.133.128.109 before you can post: click the register link above to proceed. etc.) This company advertises that they have the hand wound Kent Armstrongs: http://www.oneflightupguitars.com/kentarmstrong.html. That is not a knock on Eastman, they I was shocked! The action you just performed triggered the security solution. We get asked a ton of questions about lipstick single-coil pickups. There was a Kent Armstrong humbucker of some sort in the bridge position of my US Masters when I got it. I thought it sounded terrible. Really thin And like the Rhoads fan mentioned above, the split tones are excellent, and not that weak-ass puss-o-matic tone which is the usual result of split coils. I have one of his "hot-rails" type tele bridge pickups in my thinline and that is an amazing sounding pickup, not to mention the nicest made pickup of this type that I have seen from ANYONE (it even has a chrome plated grounding plate on the base), and that is one of his "mass-produced" pickups. The PAF and bridge humbucker in my Jackson Soloist are excellent pickups. When I first got the guitar my standard procedure was to swap things for Post up some sound files, I'd love to hear them. By contrast, the Armstrong (VT-made) PAF 12-pole humbucker has a much fatter, more electric sound. I'd like to try one. Down solos the bridge pickup. I have used Seymours and Gibsons and there's very little difference, except in the price. The Kent Armstrong Humbucker on the Eastman AR371ce measured about 8.7K Ohms at the output jack. I wanted to have some time with the guitar before I went with the swap but at the next string change, I'll change out the pickup. (HJGN-2 for neck mount version) Made in the tradition of the Johnny Smith endorsed Gibson instruments introduced in the early '60s. Tech experts from Seymour Duncan are regularly on this forum, and are clearly labeled as employees of Seymour Duncan. Middle position, your stock Epi neck pup, 3. The lead "Vintage" pickup was less chunky sounding than a Burstbucker 1 but creamier than an Antiquity. Webhey guys, i was wondering if any of u have had experience with kent armstrong pickups. do kent armstrong do alnico 2s? We are using cookies to give you the best experience on our website. I just fitted a tele bridge pickup and it's great. Great pickups for jazz and classic rock tones, these pickups are the real deal. hi im thinking about buying new pickups for my black beauty and i came across kent armstrong pickups on ebay are they any good compared to standard epiphone ones? Armstrong or Rautia pickups are a much better way to go. I was happy with it. All are welcome, from seasoned pros to absolute beginners. You can email the site owner to let them know you were blocked. These new pickups allow you to completely equalize the string balance through height adjustment of individual polepieces. Hi, I don't have a personnal experience with the Armstrong Casino P90s, but I've had other KA pickups (a Firebird mini hum and lipstick pickps) and they were quite good. I have the Tele bridge pickup and it's OK, but not great. EMGs or something else but they were so good I've kept them. has body but the upper frequency contour is really interesting. It will still fit and fasten to any other archtop that is replacing a floater. im looking to a bluesy peter greeny kind of tone. For that sort of tone you want the alnico 2 magnets. All times are GMT-7. So there should be a few good European Pickup builders Bare Knuckles, Haussel,etc? Cloudflare Ray ID: 7c0631601a9af2e4 There was a Kent Armstrong humbucker of some sort in the bridge position of my US Masters when I got it. They allow me to play the most aggressive styles of music out there like no other, they really complete my tone. By yes. This is fairly hot for a jazz guitar. His current product line is produced to his specs overseas for the "mass" market and as such seems to carry a big "bang for the buck" combined with low cost. But the in-between setting runs both pickups in series wiring. They sounded decent. Mar 9, 2015 #6 S, Copyright 2022 - Jazz Guitar Online - All rights reserved - Privacy Policy. I've had several KA PUs. Indeed, the Kent Armstrong lipstick pickups on Scheff basses sound strong and clear. They were very impresive. Super Block United States. All rights reserved. Cookie information is stored in your browser and performs functions such as recognising you when you return to our website and helping our team to understand which sections of the website you find most interesting and useful. And Danelectro continues to build the reissue Danelectros around the lipstick pickup platform. Theyre unique pickups, different from a Tele neck pickup, different from a Stratocaster single-coil pickup. Playing them clean in a tube amp.best tone I've ever heard. If you go here' date='. If you disable this cookie, we will not be able to save your preferences. Strictly Necessary Cookie should be enabled at all times so that we can save your preferences for cookie settings. It is only available as a side-mount (pickguard mount) due to varying neck sizes from manufacturer to manufacturer. This page was generated at 01:08 AM. You must log in or register to reply here. I heard the hot rod vintage is better than a JB? You are using an out of date browser. Danos usually feature a 3-way toggle switch. Specifically designed for use with traditional arch-top electrics. Thanks one and all, that's filled in a lot of blanks for me, and hopefully others. http://wdmusicproducts.com/Merchant2_Code=PUHMBCKR. The cheaper type are made in the far-east while the more expensive ones are USA made. But the in-between WebEmail: sales@kentarmstrong.com Phone: (239) 543-3625 Fax: (239) 543-5874 WD Music Products, Inc. 17570 N. Tamiami Trail Suite 1 North Fort Myers, FL 33903 Thanks again. I know for a while you could still get domestic KA pickups built custom direct by him and/or his sons - not sure if that is possible still today or if it is all via WD Music. The copper wire coil is now wound around a custom-sized plastic bobbin that features an Alnico bar magnet right down the center. Kent Armstrong has long been the best jazz pickup designer in the industry. the If yours sound like P-90's should sound OR you are happy with them, then don't even think about replacing them. select the forum that you want to visit from the selection below. I have some KA's in a Benedetto Benny. They weren't very good. Indeed, difficult especially without his hand. even the lower priced ones.. 30.00 or so, in single coils were excellent. Kent Armstrong makes a number of different hand-wound pickups and will do custom work as well. Kent is Dan Armstrongs (of ampeg plexiglass etc. And while these guitars might be missing the tonal contributions of a plywood Dano, they still bring that beautiful twang to every guitar theyre in. Clear editor. Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible. Lipstick wiring is also a contributor. This website is using a security service to protect itself from online attacks. This is probably a dumb question to a lot of you but I'm still relatively virginal guitar-wise. A Smooth Sam pickup will breathe depth and articulation back into your favorite archtop guitar and make you fall in love all over again. I put a set of noisless Kent Armstrong P90's in a PRS SE Soapbar 2 - I also wired them Series or Parallel. It's just magnets and wire at the end of the day. I have the Tele bridge pickup and it's OK, but not great. I have another Tele with an SD AlNiCo II pickup that I prefer over the Kent Armstrong. EDIT: forgot to mention, I'm especially interested coz I have a G-400 Custom which has 3 buckers also, and I have an active picup git, an Ultra-II with NanoMag, it can make some half decent tones. I ended up moving on from that guitar but that was pretty cool. On 28/02/2021 at 14:34, Tvrtastic said: Kent Armstrong has posted a little clip about his life. Display as a link instead, I got the cheap ones (I was only 18 at the time) and was very pleased. I've known that these two types of pick-up magnets existed for a while now, what is the difference between them and what are the tonal characteristics of each? This pickup is only 3/8 thick but sacrifices nothing in terms of Not a new arguement but an interesting take. Kent then went on to make his own pickups using the name 'Rainbow Pickups' and once his name was more established, he changed it to Kent Armstrong Pickups. The neck pickup produces a surprisingly authentic jazz tone with, the tone rolled down, with it rolled up it's a a warm nice tone with. You can find out more about which cookies we are using or switch them off in settings. check out the FAQ by clicking the For such high output pups, they sure preserve a lot of the guitar's acoustic tone. good low end with plenty of midrange cut-through and hi sparkle For me, the tone is wayyy too bright, and it seems like the top 80% of the tone wheel is all the same (this could actually be a wiring issue, I have to have it inspected). Up until now, I have had no other verification of this claim, until he directed me to the WD Music website (as milospilo has provided the link above). ive noticed that about my guitar that the middle doesnt really do much. However, Dan and Kent had a major falling-out, as the story explains: "The proposal was for Kent to manufacture and distribute the pickups, and for using his fathers name they would split the proceeds. Don't know for sure. I have mentioned in previous posts that my tech had claimed that the stock P90 pups in my '56 Gold Top Les Paul and Zephyr Blues Deluxe (see my sig.) More than likely, the pickups are worth way more than the rest of the guitar anyway. Roy and Sid worked together on the project on a no-compromises basis - the finest mahogany body, a quilt top that Paul Reed Smith himself suggested they use for the project and so on. This explains why I wasnt as concerned with the Epiphones tone. Very well built pickups, that sound good also. I don't think they're anywhere near the Rolphs but I can't be arsed to swap them between guitars to do a real comparo. His pickups are really, really nice. This pickup is only 3/8 thick but sacrifices nothing in terms of the full rich sound that players have come to expect from him. We are not able to accommodate order changes or cancellations once you have completed the check out process. I love the look of 3 humbuckers, but the extra one does little sonically. They certainly suit me, although YMMV. Due to their size limitations and other considerations, lipstick pickups provided a low output and DC resistance that excelled at clean tones. Rewiring to 1 master vol plus a specific vol for middle pup should be quite cheap; it doesn't need any new / different components. Kent is a great guy. I've had several pups in my sheri. humbuck size p90s.. and the vintage 12 pole humbuck. Pasted as rich text. The extended cover allows for use with traditional 7 string arch-top electrics. Especially the humbuckers and P90 humbucker retrofit and P90s Im very easy to satisfy; just give me a '58 Les Paul, a '52 Fender Tele w/ Bigsby, a '63 Gibson ES-335, a '62 Marshall JTM45, a '59 Fender Bassman, and a dozen or so assorted vintage Fender blackfaces and tweeds to play through and Ill be just fine. These modern designs are much more reliable and standardized than vintage lipsticks while retaining most quirks that make old ones special. The customer changed his mind and went with a Different Armstrong. Thanks to their popularity, finding vintage, original lipstick pickups is next to impossible. Has an output of 8.14 k. Bridge position a hotter KA like : http://www.wdmusic.co.uk/product/Rocker_Alnico_Humbucker_Chrome_Cover_HRC-1A. I put Kent Armstrongs in my much-reviled epiphone LP about a year ago and found them to be a good pickup and much improved over the stockers (obviously). Talk with your fellow tone freaks on the web's liveliest (and friendliest!) For reference, lets take a look at our (retired) Danelectro Lipstick Tube pickup. I have the Tele bridge pickup and it's OK, but not great. I have another Tele with an SD AlNiCo II pickup that I prefer over the Kent Armstrong. Wa These are the Kent Armstrong pickups in my Soloist: The bridge pickup has a bright fendery tone, for a humbucker it. It's got the M213K PAF at the neck and a M214K Distortion at the bridge. You are using an out of date browser. I put Kent Armstrongs in my much-reviled epiphone LP about a year ago and found them to be a good pickup and much improved over the stockers (obviously). Hughes and Kettner, Victory Amps, Black Star, Two Notes, etc. What I did not know was the extent of the Kent Armstrong catalog. This pickup is vertualy brand new. I'm not sure how their other pickups are. Are all of his current pickups made over seas? I'd go for that configuration again if I had a 3 humbucker guitar. Don't despare so quickly. Just depends what tones you're after; whatever you choose, you'll probably end up buying pedals to make it sound more like one of the others. I'm about 90% there. I have to admit I have only seen and heard the import stuff from Kent Armstrong. Never worry about fitting a pickup under the strings again! Instead, jazz players often focus on tonal purity That pickup combo gave the most amazing tones. Paste as plain text instead, been to his house and talked to him many times. I haven't needed to use him for years but his rewinds were superb. The reason I asked here is I know I'll get good info I can trust, you go through a lot of chaff before you find something really useful trawling. So now I use the Gretsch when I know an amp is going to be needed and my Heritage 575 is too modern soundingah the choices I get to make. What would you guys recommend fro the bridge of a Les Paul if I want deep bass, solid mids, and sweet(smooth) highs. Santa Barbara, California. Posted March 1, 2021. L5 CES started in '53, had p90s, soon got staple pickups, then Carvin or Kiesel Alan Holdsworth HH2 But during the electric guitar boom in the 1950s, he added the original Danelectro and Silvertone guitar to his lineup, again with the starter-budget guitarist in mind. Using the middle pup with either gives you something inbetween which I didn't like much. No lie, folks, he also built the Televersary. thanks for your help. http://www.stewmac.com/shop/Electronics,_pickups/Pickups:_Guitar,_archtop/Kent_Armstrong_Suspended_Jazz_Humbucker.html. So those VT hand-wound, 12 pole HB'show much does something like that run? Performance & security by Cloudflare. It would be hard to describe in words just how bad they were. As long as you are talking about KA pickups and bumping the thread, I think of it as no dis-service to the OP. I also suggest that you choose your priority for heat level. SnoMan97December 17, 2008 in Electric Guitars. I want to do it unobtrusively and I don't like piezo pickups, so I'm planning on getting a floating pickup and making a new pickguard to mount it. Instead, they used a relatively crude Alnico V bar magnet with the copper wire wrapped directly around it. i think ill try and persuade my dad to rewire it for me. If this is your first visit, be sure to To start viewing messages, Unlike the Duncan SMB4D the Armstrong is very consistent all the way up the neck with thick mids, clear highs and growling lows. Matthew Bellamy of Muse used the "Motherbucker" In his first few custom guitars. Finally, modern lipstick single-coil pickups offer a variety of wiring improvements. The "Hot Rod" bridge pickup was a fattened up PAF sound, similar to a Burstbucker but with warm thick mid's and highs without being harsh. Someone tell me if this is right, please add corrections? I've never had any experience of KA humbuckers but the single coil pickups that japasul is considering are great and for the price of KA's I don't think that you can go too far wrong. They seem very open with a good output; they don't seem to colour the sound of the instrument as much as the Barts (which appears to be the general consensus)and somehow seem more balanced sonically. When searching for the right single-coils for his guitars, Daniel knew they would have to be easy and inexpensive to manufacture. FWIW, the markings on the bottom of the original P-90's say Epiphone (engraved in the bottom plate) with a sticker on each that says either neck BHK or Bridge BHK for the respective pickup. It was definitely an improvement over the stock pickup, which itself was not a bad pickup. That assembly was then wrapped in cellophane tape, vacuum wax potted, and inserted straight into the trademark lipstick tube coversactual lipstick tubes! Maybe more like a Ford fusion, then say a Holdworth type thing. I had a KA Hot 60s Tele Neck pup in a project that I did few years ago, sounded awesome. The neck model was built Reverse Wound / Reverse Polarity from the bridge model for hum-canceling operation when using both pickups. Was not knocked out by the tele set I had. By Learning Jazz Improvisation - "Imitate, Assimilate, Innovate". P90's are normally ~8H -- nearly double the inductance of an average PAF. I know for a while you could still get domestic KA pickups built custom direct by him and/or his sons - not sure if that is possible still today or if it is all via WD Music. These pickups still deliver the same tone but are much more reliable and easier to manufacture. Epoxy casting inside the cover allows for added coil to give a sweet mini-humbucker tone. Nice wire, nice waxed string cover on the coil, nice box, good screws and springs. I tried the humbucker sized P90s. IMO, they are the best jazz pickup out there. I once had occasion to call Mr Armstrong in Vermont and found him to be absolutely accommodating and quite a delightful person. A good friend of mine (Roy) had a guitar built for him, to his own personal design and specification, by his good friend the one and only Sid Poole (who made the most finely built electric guitars on the planet before his recent death - even Paul Reed Smith himself is agreed on this, and even here we all accept the quality of PRS constructions and finishes). Also, dont forget to dig into the rest of the Seymour Duncan blog. I had a 12 polepiece nickel covered Kent Armstrong in the neck position of a double humbucker Tele for a while, and it was a very sweet sounding humbucker. He was jamming on it while I was in the store which is what caught my attention. Both these Kent Armstrong made in the USA pickups are far superior to what Eastman is selling on most of their guitars. You cannot paste images directly. For a better experience, please enable JavaScript in your browser before proceeding. i dont know anything about those models mentioned, but just a word of props for Kent Armstrong, he is a super nice guy and makes a quality product. I'm really shocked at reading this thread as I have bought 2 guitars that have had KA pups (mini hum and hums) and in both cases these guitars were totally liberated by replacing themI replaced the KA mini humbucker with a Duncan SM-3 mini and the humbuckers with a Duncan JB and a Bare knuckle Stormy Monday. the upgrade turned both guitars from potential ebay items into favourites.go figure!? TDPRI, short for Telecaster Discussion Page Reissue, is the leading online community and marketplace for Telecaster guitars. Jangly, chiming, clear, and detailed are often used to describe their singular voice. Ive found using a bridge Seymour Duncan Vintage Mini hum in the neck position of my Tele, gives me a warmer, darker No, I agree, with shells it's a lot easier and in some cases sounds richer. I've fitted their humbuckers and P94s to several guitars in recent years. This is the links to the two: http://www.wdmusic.co.uk/product/Rocker_Humbucker_Gold_Cover_HRG-1, http://www.wdmusic.co.uk/product/Rocker_Alnico_Humbucker_Gold_Cover_HRG-1A. I used the vintage in the neck and the HPAOR1 in the bridge. select the forum that you want to visit from the selection below. All times are GMT-7. Kent Armstrong humbucker removed from It felt wrong and so I told him that I wasn't interested." WebThese pickups are handwound in the USA by Kent Armstrong and retail for $160 new, not the import version. When I first got the guitar my standard procedure was to swap things for. again, i cannot help with what you are really asking, but after reading some disparaging other comments, i thought i should at least share my experience with his handmade jazz pickups, which are superb. I thought it sounded terrible. The PAF is OK but the Distortion kicks but. They were meant to be used straight into a tube amp, although an OD pedal is ok. I used them exclusively in my tele strat builds for a long time, and those are all nice pups, too. That said, other Korean Kent Armstrong pickups I tried sounded very good as well, so I would not hesitate trying them. they have the full range and a brief description of each one. Your IP: I had my LP wired so that 1 volume pot was a master volume, and the other was middle pup only. I always wanted to get a third pickup (the Armstrong Rock Treble, or something like that) for the guitar, but haven't done so yet. i dont know anything about those models mentioned, but just a word of props for Kent Armstrong, he is a super nice guy and makes a quality product.

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