Pick up resistance

I'm considering new tele pickups. What is the difference between low number pickup resistance and high number in technical sound quality terms (louder, fuller, broader, chimier, etc.)? I'm guessing that 7.5 is higher resistance than 5.6. Am I correct? And does that have anything to do with how a Tele sounds? Plz share your knowledge/opinions. Thx

I'm no expert, but just saw this video yesterday and it somewhat addresses your question.

O9LeAdoPcAY#!

Basically, the longer the wire the higher the resistance to current flowing from one end to the other. The more wire, the stronger and midsier the sound becomes. Dc resistance only tells you so much though, as there are other factors too. For instance, if you use awg43 wire instead of 42, and wind both to the same dcr, the one with 42 will be louder and fuller. Or, you wind two pickups to the same dcr with the same wire, but use different magnets, the sound will be completely different.

if everything (bobbin foot print and build, magnets, wire gauge used) is the same, then the primary difference 'tween two dissimilar pups will be the turn count and wound wire tension. as an example, 8000 turns of 42awg and 10000 turns of the same wire, on the same bobbin build, will reflect a resistance difference and the 10000 turn bobbin will have that higher ohms value. a change in the wire gauge, and perhaps even wire type/insulation, will make for a different final resistance, based on the turn count. resistance by itself means nothing. resistance when comparing same type pup builds will reflect the turn count. higher turn counts with same build single coil pickups will typically reduce treble and spike the midrange.

Good question.

Rob, I have had sets of the Vintage pickups in Classic Series 50's Strats, a set of 57/62's and now a set of CS '69's.

Per respective sets, these are all the same pickups ( put them in any hole) and naturally their dcr varies per pup, somewhat. I could give you readings.

So my question is, what percentage, or 10th of a KΩ is it that a NORMAL person would perceive a difference, or a difference large enough to matter.

Good question.

Rob, I have had sets of the Vintage pickups in Classic Series 50's Strats, a set of 57/62's and now a set of CS '69's.

Per respective sets, these are all the same pickups ( put them in any hole) and naturally their dcr varies per pup, somewhat. I could give you readings.

So my question is, what percentage, or 10th of a KΩ is it that a NORMAL person would perceive a difference, or a difference large enough to matter.

IF all the build and wind parameters are the same, and the only difference is in the turn count, it could easily take 1000 turns to perceive a difference in tone. or not.

there are SO many factors to take into consideration. i bumped my lion up from 10500t to 11000t and i can hear a difference ... then again, 500 turns on an empty bobbin and 500 turns on a near full bobbin is a measured length/resistance difference that may or may not change the tone to everyone's ears. SO many factors involved, including all that stuff that's connected to the pickup, and ending with the speaker(s).

What I am curious about is when you measure IDENTICAL model pups, like the CS 69 model I referred too, e.g.

mine are:
5.38
5.67
5.4

Classic Series 50's:
Here are readings from a couple sets I had:

N 5.62 KΩ
M 5.59
B 5.61

Neck 5.57 Ω
Middle 5.69
Bridge 5.62


57/69:
neck 5.74 mid 5.82 bridge 5.99

I measured them b4 the install and thought I'd put the highest dcr in the bridge...............would it have mattered ??

what also matters when checking pup dc resistance is the temperature of the coil. as an extreme example, the measured resistance of any coil just removed from a wax potting bath will register way high on an ohm meter ... as it cools down, so does the ohms resistance.

with all things equal except the turn counts, it will typically take quite a difference in turn count to make any kinda tonal difference. with a same build strat pup, i don't notice any tone changes when the ohms difference between all pups is a mere .5k, but ymmv.

Wow!!! After joining this forum over 6 yrs ago, this is your first post? What restraint....

like a Musky layin' in the weeds

what also matters when checking pup dc resistance is the temperature of the coil. as an extreme example, the measured resistance of any coil just removed from a wax potting bath will register way high on an ohm meter ... as it cools down, so does the ohms resistance.

with all things equal except the turn counts, it will typically take quite a difference in turn count to make any kinda tonal difference. with a same build strat pup, i don't notice any tone changes when the ohms difference between all pups is a mere .5k, but ymmv.

thanks Rob.

ya just about everything expands with temp so these things (a coil of wire) are no different.

Interesting on the dc res., .5 is quite a bit, I wouldn't have thought it would take that much. Like I said, with all those pups I had that varied, I was curious what it took to hear a diff.

going back to the temp vs resistance thing, the variance to a typical strat or tele bridge pup wound with 42awg in a cool 55F room to outside in the hot 90F sun will make quite a dc resistance difference. so i wonder how all of this plays out with advertised pup dc resistance? i take all my readings at a mean 70F, so i have some reasonable bench mark, but even that can drift. but for kicks, measure two pups at 70F then store both away for at least a few hours at much colder and much warmer temps and take readings. interesting, eh?

Hey, that's a thought, instead of buying different pickups, just mount one of these to your geetar, you can have hot pups whenever you wanna ROCK IT !!! :

http://www.webstaurantstore.com/conair-110swiw-1600-mini-turbo-hair-dryer/conair-110swiw-1600-mini-turbo-hair-dryer.jpg

or a chemical hand warmer pac. :mrgreen: