The renowned songwriter of the popular hitmaker duo Hall & Oates chops it up with host John Bohlinger about developing and nurturing his songcraft skills, how he scored his beloved 1958 Strat, he reflects on how production methods changed over his career, discusses balancing commercial success with artistic authenticity, and of course, the Johns share a pair of jams.
Guitarists in the early 1950s had a big problem on their hands: the annoying hum of single-coil pickups. When Gibson engineer Seth Lover introduced a way to cancel that noise, a new era of guitar tone was born. Instead of a single coil, Lover used two, wound in opposite directions and wired out of phase. Seventy years later, the humbucker is still being refined and reimagined. PG contributor Tom Butwin sets out to demystify the humbucker pickup and how modern designers and builders have evolved the design, construction, and circuitry.
StewMac
Parsons Street Humbucker Pickups
Straight-up raw vintage tone! Closely modeled after outstanding original P.A.F.s, these humbuckers capture the tone that changed music forever.
50th Anniversary Limited-edition JB/Jazz Humbucker Set
Experience the true origin of the hot-rodded humbucker with the 50th Anniversary Limited Edition JB / Jazz Set. Built with historically accurate parts including butyrate bobbins and rough-cast magnets, this set faithfully replicates the earliest production models. Presented in retro silver packaging and limited to 2026 production only, this is a collectible piece of tone history.
The concept for our Monolith Humbucker set was to explore a higher-output pickup set intentionally designed for guitarists who play both modern and extreme styles of music. High-output humbuckers often suffer from either a boxy voicing or a harsh and brittle top end that can be fatiguing. We voiced a set of pickups with the right balance of a strong, thicker midrange and smooth top end for clarity and articulation.
Traditional pickups often shape the voice of a guitar before the signal ever reaches the rest of the rig.
MagFRAG was designed with a different goal: remain open, balanced, and dynamically responsive, allowing the guitar, pedals, and amplifier to do more of the talking. The result is a foundation that feels immediate under the fingers and integrates naturally with vintage amplifiers, modern designs, pedals, modelers, and recording workflows. MagFRAG isn’t a “flavor pickup line.” It’s a pickup system created to reveal the instrument and respond to the player.
The MagFRAG lineup is organized into two families, each focused on a different role in the signal chain.
Our cleanest-sounding humbucker with an open and percussive tone, chimey highs and relaxed mids. And, thanks to the Railhammer design, our neck humbuckers don’t go all mushy when you dig in hard—even with chords. Great for blues, classic rock, old-school metal, punk, and more traditional tones. It does everything a classic PAF does, but better.
MortalCoil delivers three precision-engineered voices: a tight, aggressive modern metal MC1 voice with fast, controlled attack, authentic JB and Jazz-inspired passive tones, and a clear, articulate single-coil. Built with optimized-resistance coils and advanced audio op-amps for exceptional response and efficiency, MortalCoil is a powerful, versatile active upgrade.
Known the world over as one of the greatest guitar players ever, Zakk Wylde relies on his EMG 81/85 signature humbucker set for his aggressive tone and sustain.
*This classic setup comes complete with long shaft volume and tone controls for installation*. Short Shaft versions are also available, please check your instrument before making your wiring kit selection. Make sure to check the instructions for pickup measurements before purchasing to compare your existing pickups with EMG models.
Fluence Modern pickups are the most versatile humbuckers ever created, enhancing your favorite guitar with three selectable voices including the ideal single-coil sound.
Period correct from the construction to the sound, the Vintage Mini Humbucker delivers the classic Vintage Firebird tone that has all of the sparkle of a single coil with the tight low end of a full-sized humbucker.
This vintage mini humbucker pickup is gritty and punchy in the bridge position, while the neck model strikes a musical balance between the clarity of a single-coil and the low-end tightness of a full-sized humbucker.
For more than 20 years, English guitarist Barrie Cadogan (aka Little Barrie) has been one of the go-to 6-string collaborators for England’s biggest rockers, from Morrissey and Liam Gallagher to Primal Scream, Paul Weller, and more. The Better Call Saul theme song composer has also made a name for himself in the U.S., notably as a trusted creative collaborator for Dan Auerbach and his Easy Eye Sound studio. That’s where PG’s Chris Kies linked up with Cadogan for this Rig Rundown. Tune in for the full interview for all the fascinating details, and peek at a quick preview roundup below.
Cadogan acquired this P-90-loaded goldtop Murphy Labs Les Paul from the Gibson Garage in Nashville last year. It was fitted with a Bigsby later, and the neck has been slimmed down. Cadogan uses a custom set of ProSpec Pyramid flatwound strings (.011–.014–.018–.028–.038–.048).
Blue Bomber
Cadogan designed this 6-string himself, inspired by a guitar owned by John Squire of the Stone Roses. A bit of a hybrid between a Jaguar and Jazz bass body, it’s also equipped with P-90s and a Bigsby, and holds up well to touring abuse. Plus, Cadogan had a killswitch installed.
Tarulli Tones
Black Keys’ front of house engineer Jason Tarulli built these two combos. One of them is inspired by the early-’70s Fender Musicmaster Bass amp circuit, while the other takes after a tweed Deluxe. Cadogan loves the sound of them running together.
Barrie Cadogan’s Pedalboard
Cadogan’s few-frills board carries a Boss TU-3W, Sola Sound-modded Boss TB-2W, Fredric Effects Super Unpleasant Companion, Strymon Deco, Fredric Effects West Germany Vintage Tremolo, and an Echo Fix EF-P2 Spring Reverb.
The Warm Audio Reamper does what the name says, but that's the least interesting thing about it. Tom Butwin runs through three use cases of the latest studio stalwart from @WarmAudioOfficial: pulling old direct recordings back through a real amp and pedalboard, splitting your signal to capture a dry safety track alongside your live rig tone, and even routing a vocal through a guitar overdrive pedal. For something this compact, the feature list runs long: JFET and op-amp switching for analog color or transparency, plus a built-in 50-watt power soak for silent amp recording with IRs or cab sims added after the fact.
Warm Audio
Reamper
Analog Studio Routing Hub with Independent Preamp and Re-Amp Signal Paths, Variable Impedance Control, and Silent 50W/8 ohm Power Soak
Spoiler alert: the new RK2000 Funk Siren from Keeley Electronics ain’t your ordinary delay pedal – and that’s a massive understatement.
Designed in collaboration with Trey Anastasio and his guitar tech Justin Stabler, the RK2000 is based on the iconic Ibanez DM2000 rackmount delay, a classic from the 1980s and an integral part of Anastasio’s sound in Phish and other projects.
The RK2000 delivers the exact “Funk Siren” ambient loops made famous by Anastasio, with rock solid reliability, a ton of modern updates and expanded functionality, including adding modulation to your delay, tap tempo, full MIDI integration, five presets, expression pedal control and more.And did we mention that it also happens to be a great sounding delay pedal? But that’s just the tip of the iceberg.
Keeley
RK2000 Funk Siren Delay
DM-style Stereo Digital Delay Guitar Pedal, Signature, with Blend, Feedback, Filter, Depth, Input, Time, Rate, Sub, Mod, Tap, and Hold Controls
