Affordable Neck Humbucker for a solid body

[SimplyTH]

I am looking for a neck humbucker to put into a cheap solid body that I have and am looking for more of a jazz tone. Right now the neck humbucker feels a little too woofy but also has too much high end too. Looking for something rounder and smoother but without the woof. Looking to spend under 100 (I am totally open to buying used). There is a used Seymour Duncan '59 and Seymour Duncan Jazz available for cheap local to me but I am worried that the 59 might be too woofy and the Jazz might be too bright and thin.

[sgosnell]

A little over $100, at $110, but the Parsons St humbuckers from StewMac are very good.

[Stringswinger]

A Duncan 59 in the neck position of a solid body is great for jazz. I have a Strat and a Tele with that pickup in the neck position.

[DawgBone]

The Duncan Jazz is a great pickup also and is not thin in any way. I would say it has slightly more definition than a '57 classic. Either of the Duncan's would be great IMO. I've yet to find a Gibson or Duncan pickup that isn't usable. I would scoop up those Duncans in a heartbeat if the price is right. Lifetime quality pickups.

[John A.]

I have the Korean Kent Armstrong PAF style pickups in my D'Angelico semi-hollow. Under $100 from US distributor. The UK distributor has excellent sound samples. I'm very much not a pickup connoisseur, so grains, of salt, but my take is they sound a lot like Gibson Classic 57's (based on side by side comparisons with a few different 335's). I also managed to play two Eastman ar503ce's, one with the KA pickups and one with Duncan Seth Lovers. My take was that the KA's are a little more mid-rangey and have a little less high end than the Seth Lovers, and sounded better in the Eastman (by taming some of the guitar's inherent brightness).

When I first got my D'Angelico/KA pickups, I found the bass strings to be kind of overpowering (is that what you mean by "woofy"?). Lowering the bass side of pickup and adjusting pole pieces addressed that. I find this guitar/pickup combination to be very well balanced in terms of string-to-string volume.

[pingu]

for a really low price option

i just got hold of a fleor alnico 2
humbucker

two for about £20



I’m very pleased with it in the neck
of my Tele ….

(thanks again for the tip from Little Jay)

[chris32895]

I had a Tele and had that exact problem except I already had a '59 installed. Bass was boomy and trebles were ice picky. I realized that it was (most likely) the Alnico 5 magnet in there that I do not get along with. Try to look for a pickup with an Alnico 2 magnet if you want a smooth sound. Gibson '57 classic and SD Seth Lover would be good choices. I know the '57 classic is on my list at the moment. I have a SD '59 but I replaced the A5 magnet w/ an A2, but in specs it's essentially the exact same as a SD Seth Lover at that point.

[blille]

The catalog I know well is the Seymour Duncan one. My recommendation would be a pickup with vintage output and an Alnico II magnet, one of the following:

- Alnico 2 pro
- Seth Lover
- Pearly Gates

The 59 is a great pickup (Mike stern uses it in his tele) but I personally swapped the magnet in my 59 to an Alnico II and was happier. The Jazz is exactly an Alnico 2 Pro but with an A5 magnet. I do find it thin as well for jazz.