Any floating pickup maker inside the EU?

[mrblues]

Hello dear members!

I wonder if you guys know anyone inside the EU who is making custom floating pickups for jazz guitars? If you have any experience with him/her, and can post sound sample, dont hesitate . Im googling but still didnt find anyone who is expert on this area of pickup making in the EU. I already got a tele/strat pickup maker to build me floaters, he made me 3, but I can say none of them I liked, they are all very noisy. So I prefer a technician with experience on making jazz floaters.

Please feel free to share the info with me here.

Thanks a lot!

MrBlues

[jhbpa]

Boris Dommenget Guitarmaker handmade Guitars and Pickups

Domenget Jazzbucker Full-size Floater anyone?

[gitman]

Harry Häussel :

Haeussel Pickups: Pickups

Shadow SH AZ48 Humbucker for Jazz Guitars, 89,00 €

[jim232777]

If I remember correctly, Kent Armstrong's son (Aaron?) makes custom pickups and is located in England. Not sure of website/contact info but google would get you started in the right direction.

[jhbpa]

If I remember correctly, Kent Armstrong's son (Aaron?) makes custom pickups and is located in England. Not sure of website/contact info but google would get you started in the right direction.

England is no longer in EU, see OP.

[Cunamara]

England is no longer in EU, see OP.

That was my thought process. I first thought of Aaron, then I thought of Brexit. I have to admit that Brexit strikes me as nose and face meeting carving knife. But I don't live in the British Isles, so what do I know about it? Probably even less than nothing.

The other makers suggested above all have excellent reputations; I've never had a chance to play any guitars with those pickups on them, unfortunately.

I know nothing about taxes, duties, etc. importing into the EU. I just installed a floating Pete Biltoft humbucker on my archtop and I am really happy with it. Based on my experience with two of Pete's pickups, I can recommend them very highly (the other one was a floating Charlie Christian style pickup, which was just too noisy in my old house with bad wiring but it sounded wonderful).

[Ol' Fret]

Free-Floating | AmberPickups

[Rob MacKillop]

That was my thought process. I first thought of Aaron, then I thought of Brexit. I have to admit that Brexit strikes me as nose and face meeting carving knife. But I don't live in the British Isles, so what do I know about it? Probably even less than nothing.

No, I think you have it spot on. It’s an unmitigated disaster. The sad thing is that the Labour Party never really opposed it, and still don’t. Scotland voted against it, yet here we are.

[Ol' Fret]

One of the more private, though even more knowledgeable pickup experts is Helmuth Lemme.
He's a physisist, so if you happen to believe in widespread "pickup tales, daydreaming and moonpricing", I wouldn't dare to contact him.

From his (German) website Pickups zum Experimentieren (gitarrenelektronik.de) - roughly translated:

I'm actually not a pickup manufacturer. The market is already completely oversaturated, not only with products, but especially with the most flowery advertizing slogans. I'm not at all interested in outdoing the latter...

There is no need to fear comparison with the commercially produced types. The only thing missing is the "halo". I would have to put in an incredible amount of marketing effort for that; I'll save that....

The important technical data are mentioned in each pickup. The inductance is measured with a “PeakTech 2165” at 120 Hz, the Q factor with the pickup analyzer, the output voltage with an eccentrically rotating steel axis (see Praktische Infos zu Technik + Sound von Elektrogitarren + Elektrobassen fur Spieler, Liebhaber, Sammler, Hersteller, Bastler, Freaks, ... - GitarrenElektronik.de - Home /elektronik/17-messtechnik/106 ; comparison: Fender Strat 25 – 30 mV, Gibson 490R 55 – 65 mV.) Anyone who asks about the DC resistance or the magnetic material has not understood anything.
The vast majority of the first series were sold very quickly. But there are always a few new ones at irregular intervals. So check back often!

Helmuth Lemme makes humbuckers just now and then as individual pieces or for own "experimental purposes". I got one of these personal floating Jazz HBs, really good value, after telling him preferences. It looks a bit like the more known Flat-Jazz HBs from Häussel, and "sounds" as good (or bad) as any of much more expensive "boutique" pickups I've ever come across, whose price-performance-ratio is anything but high. The wonderful world of guitars... Lemme has published two informative e-books also in English. After plodding through them and reading Prof. Manfred Zollner's scientific approaches to guitar electronics, the brands of pickups become a minor matter.

[RJVB]

[sidebar]

I know nothing about taxes, duties, etc. importing into the EU.

Really quite simple nowadays: any shipment from a country outside the EU that doesn't have some kind of trade agreement will be subjected to the VAT percentage that applies to its category in the country of destination levied over the total value of the shipment (so shipping cost included ). Plus whatever your country thinks you owe them for having the right to pay this tax on something that didn't come off a shelf in the EU, and whatever fee the contractor who's paid to handle all this wants from you. Those add-ons can really drive the cost up proportionally. The last DeOro guitar support I ordered from Canada cost me almost as much (or maybe even more) in ITD than what I'd paid for the order. For more expensive items that aren't readily available "locally" (like the pair of Noconas I ordered a few years back) you usually end up paying about what you'd pay in a store.
[/sidebar]

[Cunamara]

[sidebar]


Really quite simple nowadays: any shipment from a country outside the EU that doesn't have some kind of trade agreement will be subjected to the VAT percentage that applies to its category in the country of destination levied over the total value of the shipment (so shipping cost included ). Plus whatever your country thinks you owe them for having the right to pay this tax on something that didn't come off a shelf in the EU, and whatever fee the contractor who's paid to handle all this wants from you.

Sure. Simple. Yikes.

Pete's in the US, if that helps.

[Cunamara]

One of the more private, though even more knowledgeable pickup experts is Helmuth Lemme.
He's a physisist, so if you happen to believe in widespread "pickup tales, daydreaming and moonpricing", I wouldn't dare to contact him.

From his (German) website Pickups zum Experimentieren (gitarrenelektronik.de) - roughly translated:

I'm actually not a pickup manufacturer. The market is already completely oversaturated, not only with products, but especially with the most flowery advertizing slogans. I'm not at all interested in outdoing the latter...

There is no need to fear comparison with the commercially produced types. The only thing missing is the "halo". I would have to put in an incredible amount of marketing effort for that; I'll save that....

The important technical data are mentioned in each pickup. The inductance is measured with a “PeakTech 2165” at 120 Hz, the Q factor with the pickup analyzer, the output voltage with an eccentrically rotating steel axis (see Praktische Infos zu Technik + Sound von Elektrogitarren + Elektrobassen fur Spieler, Liebhaber, Sammler, Hersteller, Bastler, Freaks, ... - GitarrenElektronik.de - Home /elektronik/17-messtechnik/106 ; comparison: Fender Strat 25 – 30 mV, Gibson 490R 55 – 65 mV.) Anyone who asks about the DC resistance or the magnetic material has not understood anything.
The vast majority of the first series were sold very quickly. But there are always a few new ones at irregular intervals. So check back often!

Helmuth Lemme makes humbuckers just now and then as individual pieces or for own "experimental purposes". I got one of these personal floating Jazz HBs, really good value, after telling him preferences. It looks a bit like the more known Flat-Jazz HBs from Häussel, and "sounds" as good (or bad) as any of much more expensive "boutique" pickups I've ever come across, whose price-performance-ratio is anything but high. The wonderful world of guitars... Lemme has published two informative e-books also in English. After plodding through them and reading Prof. Manfred Zollner's scientific approaches to guitar electronics, the brands of pickups become a minor matter.

Reminds me much of Bill Lawrence, who also stated that the DC resistance and type of magnet were non-definitive contributors. He seems to have put more stock in inductance and designed pickups using math, before ever winding something.

[Bop Head]

Reminds me much of Bill Lawrence, who also stated that the DC resistance and type of magnet were non-definitive contributors. He seems to have put more stock in inductance and designed pickups using math, before ever winding something.

You mean Willi Lorenz Stich from Cologne? Which is in the EU.

[bluenote61]

You mean Willi Lorenz Stich from Cologne? Which is in the EU.

I thought of Billy Lorento.
This guy had more alias names than a secret agent...

[Herbie]

Finnish luthier AJL (Ari-Jukka Luomaranta) has specialiced in Rhythm Chief type of floaters. (And damn beautiful guitars!)

AJL-Guitars | 17" Archtop

[mrblues]

Thank You all guys for the infos! Have a nice weekend!

[bananafist]

There are also Surdo pickups made in Italy. They have a website and advertise on FB. Popular with gypsy jazz players, but they make a range of pickups.

[Opickups]

Hello, I am pickup maker based in EU. I make mostly custom floating pickups, but also other types. You can contact me, what are you looking for.

[Jabberwocky]

Micro-Stealth PAF-Style Pickup for Archtop Jazz Guitar

I have been to Oregon. Almost had me believing I was someplace in the EU...like, I don't know, Istanbul?