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As I mentioned on the semi-hollow thread, i just changed pickups from Kent Armstrong designed (MIK by Sky) Six Shooters (HPAG) to Stew Mac Parsons Streets.
The main rationale was that the KAs’ relatively bright and percussive sound (alnico V, 8.9k) had done the opposite of growing on me recently (after owning the guitar for 13 years), and I found myself wanting to change it up. I’ve also never swapped pickups before and was curious. I went down the rabbit hole of pick-up specs and reviews for a while, guessed that a more PAF-like spec was where I wanted to go, and picked the Stew Macs because they seemed like a good match and value.
[Edit: I got Alnico II for both bridge and neck; regular (not overwound), which around 7k neck and 8k for the bridge according to Stew Mac.
Installation was an adventure. I’m not good at electronics, but decided to give it a go. Nope. Bailed and brought to a tech after a few hours of not figuring out why it didn’t work. My tech friend invited me to watch him sort it out, and gave me some tips along the way. So if there’s a next time, I may be able to handle it.
The verdict: Very interesting. I did some before and after recordings of clean, crunch, and dirty sounds in my DAW, using the same settings for both. The neck pickup difference was small, bordering on unnoticeable. The bridge pickups were more noticeable, with the Parsons Streets sounding better. I also played a bit through my amp quietly, and the differences were more noticeable, but still kind of subtle.
Last night I went to a jam, and at stage volumes with other instruments, the differences were quite stark. I played several standards, plus one blues-blues with some overdrive, which gave me a pretty full picture.
The main thing is that the pups seemed somehow more “alive” and responsive to picking dynamics and other articulations and overall more nuanced. The neck pickup seems like a medium-sized improvement over what amounts to the same basic timbre. But the bridge pickup improvement is gigantic, like it’s a different instrument.
If the only thing I had to go by was the before and after recordings, I’d say it’s probably not worth the trouble to change from one humbucker to another. But with the instrument in hand in real-world conditions the assessment is really different.
I still need to dial in pickup and pole-piece height a bit more, but otherwise am happy I made the switch and appreciate the learning experience. Prior to this, just from listening to online demos, I was skeptical of how much the details of pickup spec matter. But having gone through the process, I have to say, yes, it matters.Last edited by John A.; 03-20-2024 at 06:33 PM.
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03-20-2024 09:24 AM
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I put a pair of Stewmac's Parsons Street humbuckers in an LP copy kit I built a few years back - very satisfactory, great bang for the buck IMO. A friend swapped out the pu's that came in his Epiphone 335 with these and was very pleased.
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I've played a few sets of them and agree they are very nice sounding pickups.
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Just out of curiosity, did you get the Alnico 2 or the Alnico 5 version of the Parsons Street pickups?
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I got Alnico 2's for both neck and bridge (edited the OP to include this).
Originally Posted by andrew
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Kent Armstrong pickups are one of the biggest myths of the jazz guitar world (even the original ones) - only compared to calling bass amps "jazz amps". Any good humbcuker in the PAF area will yeld an improvement, IMHO. As you're finding out
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I don't know about the "myth" part of what you're saying about Armstrong (I really haven't tried enough pickups to form strong opinions, and in general tend to discount discussion of gear brands). All I can say is that for a long time I was happy with these KA pickups (MIK, hotter than PAF), but recently that changed. Not entirely sure why, but I'm happy with the new ones. Originally Posted by jorgemg1984
Kent Armstrong pickups are one of the biggest myths of the jazz guitar world (even the original ones) - only compared to calling bass amps "jazz amps". Any good humbcuker in the PAF area will yeld an improvement, IMHO. As you're finding out
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I've love KA pickups (not the MiK but his own) but for my Epiphone Broadway I put a StewMac in the neck position. I felt it really has a sweeter sound, and somehow I have found it more "forgiving" when it comes to dynamics. Hard to describe, but I think my regular playing just seems to sound a notch better with this pickup than some others I've tried. I also like the Seymour Duncan Seth Lover, to which I consider the StewMac almost a direct equivalent except half the price!
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Alas, the Parsons Streets are not that much cheaper anymore. I read in reviews that they were a little more mid-range-y than the Seth Lovers, which is what drew me to them, but I it's hard to assess that. The whole endeavor kind of got my head spinning, TBH, and there was an element of "screw it, enough paralysis-by-analysis, let's just buy that one." I'm somewhat curious to try out some other pups, and also other wiring schemes (mine is wired with independent volume controls), but it's a PITA in a semi-hollow. Originally Posted by lawson-stone
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When dealing with Kent Armstrong pickups, there are two different classes that often get mistaken for being the same thing. There is the Asian made "designed by Kent Armstrong" and the Kent Armstrong handwound that the man makes himself in Vermont. I don't have experience with the former, but I do have a Kent Armstrong handmade floating PAF in a Heritage and it is a nice pickup.
I'm with you on the Seth Lovers, also. Very nice jazz pickups. I think I said this in a Tele pickup discussion, but it applies here too, I think the "secret" to good jazz pickup tone is Alnico 2 or 3, underwound, little/no wax potting. Alnico 5 is a deadbreaker for me. Too strident, too rock 'n' roll.
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FWIW, Kent Armstrong has actually posted here a couple of times saying that the MIK ones use the same components as the the ones he winds himself and are just as good (in terms of component and assembly quality). The main differences are that 1) there are certain designs that you can only get in the hand-wound series, and 2) that he does custom orders himself. Originally Posted by andrew
Yup. The old KA's are A5 and 8.9K; the new Stew Mac Parsons Street are Alnico 2, 7.2k (N)/8.3(B), unpotted (also MIK, btw) I'm confident that it's the spec. that makes the difference, not person doing the winding. Originally Posted by andrew
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I tried a MIJ KA slimbucker and is great. No polepieces but nothing at all wrong sounded good. Hard press to tell any differences.
The KA humbucker floating on my 18 inch Vestax D’angelico sounds fabulous no complaints.
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That was my experience with the PS Alnico 2 pickups I installed in an Epi JP a few years ago. Much better sound definition. Great quality for the price.
I am still learning about soldering and wiring these buggers. Always an adventure.
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Here's a sample of the new pickups. The guitar sounds are both from S-Gear. I haven't had change to record anything jazzier yet, but will try to get to it.
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I put the Parson Street pickups in my Sebring. I'm very happy with them.
The reason I went with those, is I planned on winding my own pickups. I had all the parts, bobbins, magnets, covers, screws wire, winder, etc. in my on-line shopping basket. After adding it up, I saw the Parson Street pickups had all the same ingredients, and they wind and assemble them essentially for free, based on the price of the individual parts.
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Kent isnt in Korea doing the QC. Ive had lots of experience dealing with Kent directly (i understand now hes retired) Also had him rewind MIK pickups. I doubt theres a better pickup maker anywhere. The MIKs may have the same spec but theyre not the same quality. I have his on some very nice carved archtops, Ive never used a pedal or even a tone control. Straight into the amp vol full open I can hear everything the guitar has to give. If Im playing something that needs help I sell it. Many archtop owners feel the same way. Hes also a super nice guy who would take his time helping you figure out what might suit your sound best. If your looking for "PAF" there are many choices, none of which will sound like originals...
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