Larry DiMarzio discusses naming his pickups, DC resistance, sheilding, magnet staggering, and more.
Some of us make gear, some of us play it, and, in our case, some of us
work at a media network that aims to keep everyone informed. That’s
why we facilitate this discussion every month. There are certain conversations
that need to take place just between us gearheads. This month, we
wanted to give you a chance to ask Larry DiMarzio a few questions.
Not only is DiMarzio a significant manufacturer in the pickup world, he
was the first gearhead to figure out how to mass-market replacement
pickups. Starting with the introduction of the Super Distortion and
Dual Sound pickups in 1971, players could finally swap their guitars’
stock pickups for something different. You could say that changed
everything. Think about it: A new world of drive and power was just
a quick modification away—you no longer had to buy a new amp,
pedal, guitar (or all three) to try to change the fundamental tone that
served as the basis of your sound.
DiMarzio produces nearly 200 pickup models now and offers a full line
of cables, straps, and hardware. The company boasts a who’s who list of
endorsers that includes notable guitarists and outright guitar gods, many
of whom have been instrumental in the development of their signature
pickups. It isn’t too hard to connect the dots and realize the impact that
Larry DiMarzio has had on guitar-driven music in general. As if that wasn’t
enough, the man behind the company is also a well-respected photographer
who has created a number of iconic images that any guitarist would
recognize in a heartbeat.
Below are 10 of the questions you submitted to us, along with answers
from Larry DiMarzio.
1. I have had Dual Sounds in my Les Paul for 25+ years. I
remember when imports like Hondos and Curlees had
DiMarzio SD-2s in them (which were basically budget Super
Distortions) from the factory. Are you considering reissuing the
SD-2 or similar pickups any time soon?
—John Seetoo, New York, NY
You have a good memory. The pickup you’re talking about was our
K-10, which was a lower-cost, OEM version of our Super 2 that had
nonadjustable pole pieces. But there’s no need for a re-issue, since the
Super 2 has sounded basically the same as the K-10 since 1977.
2. How different do rail-humbucker versions of DiMarzio pickups
sound than their standard-humbucker equivalents (like
a Tone Zone S vs. a Tone Zone)?
—Ethan Munter, Richmond, VA
They’re very similar in terms of tonality. The main difference is in terms
of output. We had to sacrifice a little power in the case of the Tone
Zone S and several other [rail-humbucker] models in order to maintain
the characteristic sound of the full-size humbuckers.
3. Hey Larry, love your pickups! I was wondering, is DC resistance
the main factor in whether a pickup is high, medium, or
low output? I have a Super Distortion and an Air Zone, and
I’ve noticed the Air Zone is classified as medium output but has a
DC of 17, whereas the Super (which is high output) is only 13. Or is
it because of ceramic versus alnico magnets?
—Craig Jahns, Englewood, CO
DC resistance by itself has nothing to do with output level, for several
reasons. First, it doesn’t take wire gauge into account. The thinner
the wire gauge, the higher the resistance. So fewer turns of thinner
wire can produce the same resistance as more turns of heavier wire.
Fewer turns would produce less output. Second, the type and size of
magnet will have a major effect on output level. It’s true that a Super
D is louder than an Air Zone, but it’s not really about ceramic versus
alnico—we have some ceramic-powered humbuckers that are not
as loud as some alnico-equipped models. The only accurate way to
directly compare output level (loudness) is to check the output spec,
which is measured in millivolts and published for each pickup model
on the DiMarzio website.
4. Hi Larry. I was told that if you wrap the coils of a pickup
with copper shielding tape and solder the ground to it, it
will shield the pickup from outside interference. Is this just
a myth, or is there some validity to the idea? Thanks,
—Ed Baumgarten, Covington, LA
It’s not a myth, but shielding the coils isn’t always as effective as you’d
like it to be. Ideally, the entire pickup would have to be enclosed in
shielding, and that isn’t practical for a lot of pickups.
5. How do you come up with your unique names for pickups (specifically,
Norton, Breed, Fred, Steve’s Special)?
—Cameron Johnson, Greensboro, NC
Norton and Fred were the creations of Steve
Blucher, whose mind sometimes has the ability
to go off in strange directions. One of
those directions also produced the Steve’s
Special, which wasn’t supposed to be manufactured
until John Petrucci tried it and called
it “Steve’s Favorite Pickup”—which was obviously
too long to put on a label. The Breed
was named by Steve Vai.
6. Hi Larry. What’s your opinion on the
main differences among alnico 2, 3
and 5 pickups, and what do you recommend?
Thanks!
—Rogerio Bley, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
This is a subject that can trigger a lot of discussion,
but we don’t recommend pickups
based on magnet choice alone because so
many other factors influence a pickup’s total
performance. All other things being equal,
alnico 2 and 3 generally create a warmer
sound than alnico 5 but produce a little less
power. However, there are a number of different
grades of all of these magnets, and they
have a pretty wide range of performance.
7. There is no better pickup for drop
C tuning than the D Sonic, in my
opinion. My band is starting to do
more stuff that’s much lower, even going
to A flat for a few chug tunes. The D Sonic
handles it all great, but I wonder if there’s
a set of pups you’d recommend for those
lower songs. I’ve got an Axis Super Sport
set aside just waiting to drop something in.
—Ken Moore, Clearwater, FL
A flat? Yikes! I’m old-school in my musical
tastes and I like warm sounds, but I think low
tunings can sound really muddy if you’re not
careful, so it makes sense to me to use pickups
that don’t have very powerful bass response.
I also think lower-output pickups would be
good to check out, because low tunings generally
call for heavier strings which won’t clean
up well with hot pickups. A pickup like the
EJ Custom works well because it’s clean and
bright and can “hear” the strings well.
8. I bought a ’66 ES-335 in 1977 that
came with two of your cream-colored
PAFs, and it is one of my favorite-sounding
electrics. What year did you introduce
those, and are they made the same
way today? Thank you!
—Will Mramor, Cleveland, OH
Our first PAF was introduced in 1976. They’re
not made the same way today. After a lot of
research, we altered the EQ so the highs are
fatter and the lows are more articulate, which
is closer to the sound of the humbuckers in my
’59 Les Paul.
9. Hi Larry. I am a long-time user
and fan of DiMarzio humbuckers.
Recently, I’ve been on a quest to
find the perfect single-coil. I haven’t found
any vintage-style models that I like from
any manufacturer. So far I’ve had the best
results with ’80s Fender USA single-coils
with non-staggered magnets. Could you
explain how magnet staggering affects
tone and what would warrant using staggered
versus non-staggered magnets?
—Dan Szaba, Rochester, NY
Another subject that can provoke arguments
in some circles. I don’t really feel
that different magnet staggers have a major
effect on tone, but they can have a real
impact on string balance. This is something
Fender was aware of in the 1950s, when
they created a magnet stagger designed
to balance with the most popular string
sets of the time. These sets had 4 wound
strings and 2 plain strings, so the B magnet
was the shortest and the G the tallest.
This stagger doesn’t function as well with
today’s standard 3 & 3 string sets, because
the G-string would be very loud if it had the
tallest magnet. I don’t think nonstaggered
magnets will produce as even a response
across all six strings as a good stagger will if
you’re playing chords, but bending a string
may be smoother-sounding as it crosses
over the individual magnets because the
field will be more even.
10. With all this fuss about players
changing out their magnets for
alnico 4s and 8s and whatnot,
don’t you think this is going overboard?
I mean, do you think most guitarists can
even hear the difference between alnico
and ceramic? Thanks for all the years of
great pickups and cables, Larry!
—Jean Spiegel, Redlands, CA
You’re very welcome. I think these are two
different questions. There are obviously
people who enjoy modding their equipment,
and changing magnets is one way to do it.
I don’t think it’s necessarily the best way to
create a specific sound, but most folks don’t
have the ability or equipment to design a
pickup from the ground up, which is naturally
the method I prefer.
Swapping an alnico for a ceramic magnet
in the same pickup should be pretty easy to
hear for most players (I hope). However, the
idea that every type of magnet has a specific
sound that’s always easy to identify is wrong,
as far as I’m concerned. I think even the most
experienced players with the most acute
ears may not be able to correctly identify a
magnet type if they’re playing an unfamiliar
guitar in a blindfold test. There are so many
things that go into pickup design that I’m
not convinced, at this point, that the type of
magnet is the most important factor in determining
tone or feel.
Next month
For next month’s “Go Ahead and Ask,” head to
premierguitar.com/goaheadandask and let us know
what questions you’d like to ask Fred Gretsch III.