A Guitar And Gear Support Forum

Little help here...

My new-ish Eastman 335-type guitar's bridge pickup is pretty darn honky and I can't tweak enough knobs and sliders to smooth it out. The neck pick up is tasty IMO. I do not want to tear into the guitar (read: pay somebody to tear into it) but will if necessary. Yes, I can use the middle position, but it only mitigates the problem a bit (and I like toggling).

Product specs list pickups as follows:

- Body Top:Deluxe Flamed Maple Laminate
- Body Back/Sides:Deluxe Flamed Maple Laminate
- Neck: Seymour Duncan Jazz
- Bridge: Seymour Duncan '59
- Neck Material:Maple
- Capacitors: 0.022μF
- Potentiometers: CTS 500K Audio Taper
Complete specs here: https://www.eastmanguitars.com/t486

I played this clip on the setup below (toggling pickups) but the honky tone is the same through my Princeton Reverb. The playing is what it is. The EQ is off, too but the crux of the honk is present. Two takes and I used the first.

Input and suggestions are appreciated.

I like the pup you used first. Is that the honky one? The second one sounds like its got a blanket over it....IMO.
Okay, not a blanket, a thin sheet.

Partscaster wrote: ↑Tue Feb 15, 2022 10:28 pm I like the pup you used first. Is that the honky one? The second one sounds like its got a blanket over it....IMO.
Okay, not a blanket, a thin sheet.

first bit is honk. the blanket is a lack of eq finesse.

Listening again, I really like the honker.

Looks like you've got the 1.6k slider on your Fish & Chips boosted about 7-8 db. That's exactly where the honk lives. Pulling that slider down should reduce it.
You can raise the 3.2k and 6.4k sliders to add more air and fix the blanket problem.

Honking problems are rampant lately. =)

toomanycats wrote: ↑Wed Feb 16, 2022 7:52 am Looks like you've got the 1.6k slider on your Fish & Chips boosted about 7-8 db. That's exactly where the honk lives. Pulling that slider down should reduce it.
You can raise the 3.2k and 6.4k sliders to add more air and fix the blanket problem.

The eq pedal wasn't engaged but i I was running treble- and mid-boosted on the Quilter. Thanks for the input.

tlarson58 wrote: ↑Wed Feb 16, 2022 8:07 am

toomanycats wrote: ↑Wed Feb 16, 2022 7:52 am Looks like you've got the 1.6k slider on your Fish & Chips boosted about 7-8 db. That's exactly where the honk lives. Pulling that slider down should reduce it.
You can raise the 3.2k and 6.4k sliders to add more air and fix the blanket problem.

The eq pedal wasn't engaged but i I was running treble- and mid-boosted on the Quilter. Thanks for the input.

Ok. Pull the mids back on the quilter. If necessarily engage the Danelectro and use the sliders to sculpt the tone to taste. As noted, the 1.6k slider should be your honk regulator.

As an aside, I've often thought about how much a good eq pedal can alter or correct the perceived deficiencies of any given pickup. I've got an MXR 10 band graphic eq pedal, and with proper tweaking it can make a muddy humbucker sound much more articulate and airy. It's not exactly the same as replacing a cheap import mud-bomb pup with a Seth Lover, though adjusting sliders and judiciously using your ears is a heck of a lot easier than firing up the soldering iron, messing with pots and caps, and all that.

@toomanycats "Ok. Pull the mids back on the quilter. If necessarily engage the Danelectro and use the sliders to sculpt the tone to taste. As noted, the 1.6k slider should be your honk regulator."

Thanks. It's sounding better. I'll post a clip after dinner (grilled cheese while watching Olympics).

@toomanycats

Here goes...

Honk panned left.
Mitigated panned right.

I tried to play similar licks in order to compare apples to apples.



New settings (EQ pedal was on but the light is too faint)

I don't hate any of those tones but if you wanted to make a change and not have to weave a new pickup in maybe a mag swap?

They both sound OK to me. The honk has its place.

Rollin Hand wrote: ↑Fri Feb 25, 2022 10:18 am They both sound OK to me. The honk has its place.

I think I like the "honk" better.