Bridge pickup much quieter then neck pickup.

[SoCalumberjack]

Hey guys, I recently swapped the pickups and pickguard on my Jazzmaster modern player to give it more of a traditional Jazzmaster look and feel. I went with a Seymour Duncan Antiquity 1 in the neck and an Antiquity 2 in the bridge. I was able re connect everything with relative ease, but when I play it, the bridge just sounds... dead almost. Don't get me wrong it's still there, but when I play the neck pickup alone it seems like it's screaming compared to the bridge and when they're both running the neck seems to dominate the two. In my experience bridge pickups are usually louder or at the least comparable to the neck pickup (as I understand it they also need to be louder because the bridge has less string vibration than the neck area) . Part of the reason I selected the Antiquity 2 for the bridge was because it seemed brighter, like it would cut through in a band better and a little more versatile overall, but so far it's really too quiet to be much use when playing in my band or at home unless I crank my amp up to compensate (but then if I switch back I become extremely loud). Now i've adjusted the pickup heights to try to help by lowering the neck and raising the bridge almost as high as I could, but it still seems unnaturally out of balance. I made sure my solders were good when I originally re wired it, and as far as I know that hasn't changed. Some other things that might be effecting it are the fact that I don't have the rhythm circuit hooked up as I just grounded the other pickup leads, I used coper shielding on the underside of the pickguard, and I have foam under the pickups. If you guys have any suggestions for me I would really appreciate it, as I emailed Seymour Duncan a while ago and they haven't got back to me just yet. Also The bridge pickup box was labeled correctly and indicated it would be 8.38k the neck was also labeled correctly and the tag indicated it was coming in at 8.28k.

Thanks for the help guys!

[Big tuna]

just a guess but switch the wires of one pickup to ground and see if it makes a difference.

[Hyphen Nation]

Double check heights? Neck pickups on any guitar are boomier. I found I had to jack the brigade PU on my Jag and LP way higher than I would have assumed necessary. A lot of times with string angle, especially if the neck is shimmed, the bridge pickup is a ways lower than the neck.

[jorri]

only that it might be upside down/back to front that makes a pretty big difference, though hard to do perhaps with a traditional jazzmaster route.

often i feel that you can't match pickups objectively, depends what EQ they are going through, many times i've thought bridge was too loud, becomes too quiet through a bassy amp.

and check the heights, they shouldn't be the same height off the guard, quite often my bridge pickups is twice as high. This compensates for the string vibrating further out in the middle and capturing those higher weak harmonics as opposed to the strong fundamental that the neck picks up. Try adjusting by depressing a string at the last fret, measure the distance to pickups and go for the same such as 1/8" for bass side, 3/32" treble side...or wherever you like the neck at...

http://www2.fender.com/support/articles ... tup-guide/

this is a good place to start. Most traditional fenders it applies to. Certainly other guitars the manufacturers match pickups at the same height off the board, on my squier and most the budget ones that is the case and might be on the modern player's (very likely if it has humbuckers), VS vintage pickup styles.

the ohms seem about right to me, not as much difference on a jazzmaster, but then the bridge pickup is often just a bit weak to what some expect! I suppose next is to figure out if the pickup and circuit are working, i suppose it could be shorting to ground.

[SoCalumberjack]

only that it might be upside down/back to front that makes a pretty big difference, though hard to do perhaps with a traditional jazzmaster route.

often i feel that you can't match pickups objectively, depends what EQ they are going through, many times i've thought bridge was too loud, becomes too quiet through a bassy amp.

and check the heights, they shouldn't be the same height off the guard, quite often my bridge pickups is twice as high. This compensates for the string vibrating further out in the middle and capturing those higher weak harmonics as opposed to the strong fundamental that the neck picks up. Try adjusting by depressing a string at the last fret, measure the distance to pickups and go for the same such as 1/8" for bass side, 3/32" treble side...or wherever you like the neck at...

http://www2.fender.com/support/articles ... tup-guide/

this is a good place to start. Most traditional fenders it applies to. Certainly other guitars the manufacturers match pickups at the same height off the board, on my squier and most the budget ones that is the case and might be on the modern player's (very likely if it has humbuckers), VS vintage pickup styles.

the ohms seem about right to me, not as much difference on a jazzmaster, but then the bridge pickup is often just a bit weak to what some expect! I suppose next is to figure out if the pickup and circuit are working, i suppose it could be shorting to ground.

You mean like I put the bass side of the pickup on the treble side? That would be kinda a problem I guess. Though It does not look like I did that. I have the bridge pick up jacked up quite higher then my neck. I think i'll check to make sure it's not shorting. It might be possible the pick up isn't what I expected as well! Thanks for the advice.

[zenarcade]

Double check heights? Neck pickups on any guitar are boomier. I found I had to jack the brigade PU on my Jag and LP way higher than I would have assumed necessary. A lot of times with string angle, especially if the neck is shimmed, the bridge pickup is a ways lower than the neck.

this. I have a Curtis Novak JM180 in my bridge position and the stock neck pickup of my thinskin (maybe these are hotter thn the AVRIs) is still way louder.

[Seratone]

Replying to a thread from 2014 - SoCallumberjack - did you ever get a resolution?

I'm in a similar situation

I bought some Lindy Frailin Noiseless Jazzmaster Pickups to put in my Classic Player/MJT bodied Relic JM. Immediately the Neck was overpowering the bridge by a factor of 2 to one. I tried the following:

- Switched the pickups - in the case they labeled them incorrectly - the (now) bridge overpowered the neck.
- Lowered the neck pickup down to the pick guard and raised the bridge pickup to Spec. No resolution.
- Replaced the actual wiring harness and pots - No resolution.

I have to keep the neck pickup at a volume of 6 or 7 - only then is it matched to the bridge when maxed on 10

When you buy these pickups you ave the choice to make either of the 5 k hotter - In hindsight I should have choses a hotter bridge pickup.

I talked to Lindy Fralin support - they asked some questions, asked me if I'd switched the pickups.

These pickups cost me about $450 CAN - A significant investment for any guitar... I'm hesitant in asking for a return - or a replacement bridge pickup.... that's just not me - as I should have ordered a hotter bridge initially - I'm wondering if there are any other ticks I can do - apply a resistor perhaps to the Neck p/u?

[timtam]

Replying to a thread from 2014 - SoCallumberjack - did you ever get a resolution?

I'm in a similar situation

I bought some Lindy Frailin Noiseless Jazzmaster Pickups to put in my Classic Player/MJT bodied Relic JM. Immediately the Neck was overpowering the bridge by a factor of 2 to one. I tried the following:

- Switched the pickups - in the case they labeled them incorrectly - the (now) bridge overpowered the neck.
- Lowered the neck pickup down to the pick guard and raised the bridge pickup to Spec. No resolution.
- Replaced the actual wiring harness and pots - No resolution.

I have to keep the neck pickup at a volume of 6 or 7 - only then is it matched to the bridge when maxed on 10

When you buy these pickups you ave the choice to make either of the 5 k hotter - In hindsight I should have choses a hotter bridge pickup.

I talked to Lindy Fralin support - they asked some questions, asked me if I'd switched the pickups.

These pickups cost me about $450 CAN - A significant investment for any guitar... I'm hesitant in asking for a return - or a replacement bridge pickup.... that's just not me - as I should have ordered a hotter bridge initially - I'm wondering if there are any other ticks I can do - apply a resistor perhaps to the Neck p/u?

Have you measured the DCR of each isolated pickup ? Do they match the spec .... 8k for the neck and 10k for the bridge ?
https://www.fralinpickups.com/product/h ... azzmaster/
They have 2 conductors and shield right ? (so hot can can be swapped for RWRP). So you have the shield grounded and then one of the two conductors as your hot ? And the other conductor should then presumably be grounded too (unless the instructions suggest otherwise).

I am assuming they have a dummy coil underneath ? I guess there's no way you could have one upside down ?

[jorri]

Yeh measuring the impedance/resistance may tell you if there is any break.
Im not sure if this would cause either, but testing the grounds are all linked, rather than trusting the shielding (multimeter to each ground wire)

Otherwise...by design? I wouldnt have thought that badly but some comment the bridge is slightly weak.

[Embenny]

I am assuming they have a dummy coil underneath ? I guess there's no way you could have one upside down ?

Fralin noiseless P90s and JM pickups are actually sidewinder humbuckers. The alnico rods (or steel poles with bar magnets sandwiching them at the bottom) in the center, with two coils on either side, rotated 90 degrees compared to what you're used to seeing.

[Larry Mal]

I own a set of Fralin noiseless P90s, three of them in a Firebird. I do not notice any serious difference in output between all of them.

[Great Yawn]

I have Curtis Novak JM-PAF pickups in my AVRI65, and I noticed a massive difference in output when I installed them.

The neck puts out way more volume. This forced me to raise the bridge pickup really high, and basically take out any padding that was under the neck pickup to be able to lower it.

The original Fender Jazzmaster pickups didn't have such a massive difference. So I assume it has something to do with certain pickups not properly compensating for the string vibration each position gets, and maybe with pickup designer not fully understanding the string height on a Jazzmaster?

[timtam]

The original Fender Jazzmaster pickups didn't have such a massive difference. So I assume it has something to do with certain pickups not properly compensating for the string vibration each position gets, and maybe with pickup designer not fully understanding the string height on a Jazzmaster?

Fender typically made neck and bridge pickups on JMs exactly the same in terms of coil wire size/type, wound count (at least specified wind count; may vary in reality), and magnet type (just opposite magnetic polarity, so two pickups can be RWRP as a pair when both selected). So basically the same DCR and inductance for a given era of pickups (with some changes between eras). And thus relative output was set entirely by relative pickup heights. Other pickup makers depart from Fender specs in various ways both for single pickups (which may then not balance easily with a Fender pickup) and for pairs possibly made with non-identical sonic specs (which in some cases might not balance with each other as readily as Fender's do, or they may balance better, ie with less height disparity required).

[Great Yawn]

Fender typically made neck and bridge pickups on JMs exactly the same in terms of coil wire size/type, wound count (at least specified wind count; may vary in reality), and magnet type (just opposite magnetic polarity, so two pickups can be RWRP as a pair when both selected). So basically the same DCR and inductance for a given era of pickups (with some changes between eras). And thus relative output was set entirely by relative pickup heights. Other pickup makers depart from Fender specs in various ways both for single pickups (which may then not balance easily with a Fender pickup) and for pairs possibly made with non-identical sonic specs (which in some cases might not balance with each other as readily as Fender's do, or they may balance better, ie with less height disparity required).

Really? I might have forgotten just how big the original pickup height difference was with the original AVRI pickups then, but it wasn't as extreme as the current set-up.

Perhaps the difference is more pronounced because the PAF's pick up much more bass vibrations, causing the neck to have more volume.