Thanks for the explanation. I question comes to mind: if voltage is stepped up, that means current is reduced to conserve energy. Does this mean that as far as electric guitars go, current is irrelevant?
I have two alumatones in a custom 8-string build. They definitely have a very unique level of clarity that I love. fantastic cleans and very articulate leads.
@@grilledspaghetti pretty sure people will give you scrap-wire/cables that they're throwing away for free. Lace could easily remove the insulation and melt them down into sheets if they were really on an environmental quest
@@grilledspaghetti Late response but anyways. There is, and isn't. There is a lot of scrap copper but it's not in the hands of the ones making the product, it's in the shops and businesses using them. They (collectively) will have an enormous amount of scrap copper lying around, it's just not recycled as of yet.
Great and informative video. Originally tried these out because they really suited an asthetic that I was looking for and have been hooked ever since. They deffinatly have their own sound, but not so distinct that they can't still be incredibly versatile.
They’re great tech. I have two pairs of Hammerclaws (never really listened to Mastadon-but i share taste in guitar tones with Brent Hinds) and they’re the only pickups I’ve played that feel comfortable doing all the genres from surf to metal. The volume and the tone are so malleable I can get ALL the sounds with a twist of the knobs on my V.
Thanks SO much for this deep dive on Alumitones. I have my well-worn Richmond for several years now and had no idea just how different these top notch pickups are. Obviously I really like mine very much. Yay DTT!
I think you are correct on the cost thing. If a company can make a product cheaper and sell it for more they will. Material and production costs are probably half of those for a wound pick-up. There was an initial setup cost but any production line will have that. Thanks for the great explanation of how they work.
Thanks for showing what was under the shrink wrap, I wanted to build one of these and thought it could be a transformer in there but I just wanted confirmation thats what it was. We use those types of transformers when building a welder, never considered it for a pickup but it makes sense. You are right it is a super simple and cheap way to make a pickup and they even adopted the glued on magnet under it, which is found in lower end pickups where the strip magnet is magnetizing steel poles. Doing it this way does eliminate the need for large amounts of enamel wire. What Lace would never tell the consumer is these can be built at home with basic knowledge of how you explained the job of this transformer. That was my immediate thought because I have all the loose electronics to make one of these. Quick question do you know how many turns is made on each side of the transformer and how many steel plates (I assume those are super small) they used? My only warning to someone who is going to try and DIY one of these that you didn't explain in the video is that the current to voltage ratio of a transformer depends on how thick the wire is. Smaller wire = higher voltage and lower current and thicker wire = lower voltage and higher current. We want the higher voltage option for a number of reasons mostly because voltage doesn't kill you the current does and it doesn't take much (I think I read that it was somewhere around 0.1 to 0.2 amps). But again thanks for the look inside, its still very cool how it was thought up despite it being so cheap to make you could pay for the cost of manufacture with just recycling a few bags of cans.
I was just watching Phillip McKnight and his Alumitone / P90comparison. Then I move on to Dillon, and it reminded me of the old days on the radio where the AM disc jockey would be loud and in your face, not that Phillip was going crazy or anything, but when this video came up, Dillon was the typical Mr. Cool laid back kind of DJ found on FM at night! I miss those days! Lol
Ive been curious about these for awhile and how they work. They sound clear as a bell and very articulate. Like a crystal clean Roland solid state amp. Like piano clean and articulate. Which is really nice for lots of applications.
I lterally searched for anything you did about these pups a couple days ago and couldnt find anything. Now TH-cam suggested this video, two days later. Lol
I use lace pickups in my five string ESP and they are really clear and quiet and when I slap some pinch harmonics they sound wicked. The pickups in my edwards are also lace and they're good as well.
Man, I'm so digging your videos. Never knew about these do-dads. I love a practical spin on tradition. Now I'm off to see if these sound practical to me... Thanks for the heads-up.
I have the single coil Alumitones in Warmoth Strat I put together. Amazing tone!! You could sound like a Strat or a les Paul. Love them. Now I know they are way over priced.
How much do you think "normal" magnetic pickups cost to make, when you can buy Asian made ones on ebay or reverb for 10 or 15 bucks? The amount of copper in a magnetic pickup is pretty small, even if there are a few thousand turns of wire, it's wire as thin as a human hair and adds up to a few ounces of coper..
@@robertsmith-xe2iw i recently got into winding pickups, and it’s insane how expensive the markup on guitar shit is. magnets for a pickup are roughly $2-3, and likely cost less than half of that to make. the bobbins are $1-4, and likely cost cents to make. you can make roughly 30 or so pickups with 50,000’ of wire, which is roughly $40-50. pickup covers are cheap pieces of plastic that are a few bucks as well, which ALSO most likely are very very cheap. if you do the math, you can make a pickup for less than $10, and that’s as a consumer, not a company who can do machining and molding in-house. it most likely takes huge OEM manufacturers dollars, if not nickels and dimes to make a single pickup. i strongly suggest getting into winding pickups yourself if you’re the modding type. for the price of a set of Texas Specials, you can build a pickup winder, and buy all the parts necessary to make 5 sets of Texas Specials.
@sanctummm3950 you can make your own car from scratch too while you're at it. Some of us would rather spend our time and energy on other things, so we pay to have them made for us.
@@RetroPlus I wanna to do it. How? I'm building a flying v atm and would love to throw some homemade lace pickups in. Literally routing out the pickup cavities tomorrow. I'm calling it valac, which is a name for a demon who is a boy and has the ability to find treasures, and am making it out of the kitchen table we had when I was a little kid. Valac the demon V! 🤘😈🤘
@@doknox Look up "heavymetalATC" on youtube then find his DIY alumitone video, it's really simple to make and you should be able to make one in a few hours with no special tools or skills required. Have fun 👍
*At the **8:01** mark..., I would use the example of the output transformer of a tube/valve amp..., where the high impedance primary coil is connected to the high voltage output tubes/valves, and the low impedance secondary coil is connected to the high current speakers..., except in the case of the Alumitone pickups, the transformers would be in the opposite configuration..., two low impedance primary coils connected to the two single turn aluminum coils, and two high impedance secondary coils connected to the controls and output jack...*
Thanks so much for doing this I've been very interested in the workings of these pickups ever since I fitted a base that I have with the jazz bass version of those pickups I didn't necessarily like them but it's still an interesting subject
Props to Lace for finding a different way to make pickups. Personally I’m not a fan of these or the Lace Sensor’s tone. But that’s just me. I got in big trouble by some sensitive people on an earlier video for giving my personal opinion. But I don’t care. You can’t blame a company for finding a better profit margin. That’s the American way. Some people really like these. I don’t. But try a guitar with some of these in it. You may love them. To each their own and live and let live.
Very cool. I've never dealt with the Alumitones. I've _avoided_ the Lace Sensors...I'm not a fan. But I've always wondered about the Alumitones. Giving me ideas!
Very well presented! I’m so impressed that you read the patent! Thanks. - By the way, thanks to you, I get that these have a lot in common with ribbon mics.
I have a few single coil lace pick ups and I got a don lace pick up it actually says don lace on it anyway it was cheap it’s a single coil but I want to get more some humbuckers not these but the regular ones silver or chrome they definitely look different I’ll have to check them out thank you Dylan for the explanation of how they work I’m new to your channel and I like what I watch very informative
I put a set in my new build and I am having trouble bonding with them. They don't sound that great. It's like playing through a solid state amp. No natural compression and just sort of sterile. They sound good for clean and pretty stuff but don't really rock. Are there any tips for making them sound better, other than crank up the knobs on the compressor?
Thank you for this video. I own a pair of deathbuckers and always wanted to cut that piece of heat shrink to see how they work but they just straight out cost so much that I didn't want to ruin them. Thank you, great watch!
I put a set into one of my Jackson Vs . They sound ok but pick up way too much noise from other things running in the room. Just sitting near my computer caused unwanted noise and made the guitar useless for recording. I spent hours grounding everything from the control cavity to even grounding inside the pickup cavity and still just could not seem to solve the noise issues . If I sat anywhere near a TV they picked up hum from the TVs power supply too. I actually ended up putting the cheap stock Jackson branded pickups back into the guitar and they where better. I was rather bummed over it. They was fine for clean playing and seemed to have a very flat response curve.
Alumitones/deathbuckers got a hi-fi tonality that I enjoy, since I rely heavily on FXs, Jazz players like it because they ain't muddy but I agree with you, they are overpriced (for what they cost) and not alike a regular humbucker (alnico II player here). Thanks for such an amazing explanation of how this works :D
I don't understand. How is it "hi-fi"? high fidelity of what? the sound depends mostly from the pickup, then, all the pickups are hi-fi, because all of them sound like themselves.
Fascinating! The only similar design I know of is the Electar low impedance pickup on the Epiphone Jack Cassady bass, which has a three way "tap" selector to choose different sounds from the transformer hiding in the body.
Just ordered a set, I'm really curious about the range of frequencies they put out. I don't think it was just a matter of cost in making the pickups though, I think there's weight and conductivity of aluminum to factor in.
Awesome! I need both!!! It’s a single turn coil with a magnet that produces a voltage which is amplified by a step up transformer. Nice and simple! It’s just like the ignition coil on your car’s engine! And you get 50,000V today because they found that a more powerful spark ignites the air-fuel mixture in the engines cylinder more completely. So would that coil be a signal booster and that is controlled by how many turns in the step up transformer is used. I lie the idea of seconding it forward! And I really need help intonations my guitar!
Nice. I once had a cheapo noname-guitar that had fake humbuckers that were actually single coils with very little windings and a small output transformer. Clean sound was boring, but it sounded amazing overdriven. My band mates hated it, probably cause it didn't easily fit in the tonal space that my main guitar was used for.
After having tried 30 different pickups the Alumitones are my clear preference. The clarity, string separation, definition and low noise floor are unrivaled (for me). The production cost aren't relevant for me so long a $100 pickup is doing what I want. And that is a given fact. And there are many other players who share this experience (check other TH-cam videos). In a purely digital signal chain the high-fidelity sound might be too much for some people but when you are playing over an amp (with a speaker) the sound is always amazing. And in an old-fashioned recording scenario with a mike and an amp/speaker these pickups do wonders.
I'm almost homesick, I'm from the other end of California. I've been living here in Colorado, on the Western Slope of the Rockies. Step up, and step down X-formers, reminds me of my dad, teaching me electronics.
I've been waiting for a deathbucker review for a while... .I bought some and will never use anything but...plain and simple and badass. Good buy to feedback
Digging your explanation of terminology Dylan. Question is it possible for the transformer to ever blow out? Such as a power surge or ,,,well anything I suppose?
Just went and listened to some tone samples. I would say, because of the very low self-noise, these would be really good for active electronics, running first into a good pre-amp and shaping the tone that way. The samples I listened to made me think that these are like the equivalent of solid state (non-modelling) amps - they work, they can sound very good in their own right, but they don't have the natural dynamics of a tube amp. My ears say, same thing with these pickups vs conventional design pickups.
I can't believe it's simply a step-up xformer. I have an old Lace humbucker that I think basically works the same way except it uses the metal cover as the 'wind'. The magnets and xformer underneath are just epoxied in place. Great sound, splittable, love it. It and my single-coil Alumitone seem overly warm to me, like a lot of Lace Humbuckers, I ask why they want to get rid of the highs? I like Lace sensors okay, but I do think they are compressed compared to vintage singles, and not so much on the Alumitone.
Hi Dylan, I want to adapt this idea for viola and I need to see more detail about the secondary coil. In particular is it a U core UU or UI and what did you discover when stripping it down ? I have a cute design for the primary, so all I need is winding plan. Thanks bro.
Awesome explanation. I like how they sound, but never have played them, or knew about the "guts"... or bothered to look at the patent. I like Lace Sensors, but my idea of stuff is still sadly back in the 20th century.
Hey Dylan why don't you make your own version of them Lace pickups who knows you might come up with a better pickup. Also I don't know if it was you that I asked but could you do a blog on lipstick pickups please. Thank you ahead of time if you do.
I can't believe I haven't found this before now!! SO informative! Alumitones are a lot less mysterious to me now! Thank you very much! I thought more than meets the eye, too! :P
You may be right on them being water jet or laser cut before stamping but a multi stage die could punch those holes and bend it to shape. The die would be expensive but you eliminate the need for a water jet machine and it's hourly paid operator. In the long run the die would be the cheaper way to make these.
The Lace name brand usually scares me off, but TBF, I haven't tried any of their product since they first came out.I generally strongly dislike the modern, streamlined look, have no use for active circuits ,- vastly prefer the old chrome plates, - but this is an intriguing idea.Would have been better (IMO) if it was Valco style, OVER the strings, but maybe, - I'll give it a go. Thanks for informing my ever aging opinions.
You talkin my language, now. I love using ac 120v to 12v (1amp) transformers back to back (the other side in series, so 3 transformers) to step up to 300v DC for 12AX7 preamp pedal prototypes.
hi, thanks for this , ,I'm thinking of getting one of these pickups for a sitar. , iv a few questions , 1, can the transformer be moved from under the pickup plate to the side ,as I need the space under the pickup for the sympathetic strings to pass under the pickup , 2, do you need to and a volume pot as I don't need to change volume just need it full all the time and it would save me from drilling into the sitar to add one ,3 if I did need a pot just a volume pot what size should it be 500 or 250 ,,, iv tried to email the company a few times but they haven't got back to me , thanks
Hi , thanks for your help , iv final got one and iam new to soldering , when wiring without a volume pot and just soldering to guitar input can you tell me ,, the orange goes to the guitar input ,, where would I put the green and the white/black strip ground wires too , thanks again. Sorry I’m new to wiring and soldering.
I’ve been wondering about these pickups simply Because they look cool. I recently graduated from Roberto Venn School Of Luthiery and got really hyped on winding pickups , I’ve been scouring for specs on popular Duncan’s etc to experiment (links welcome ). I’d love to try out one of these (and gold and black is my thing) , have you given all of them away? The death bucker seems alluring with all the mysterious “deathy” implications . Unrelated : Rob Timmons of Arcane was my instructor on pickup winding and I was told Duncan JBs use 44awg , I can’t seem to find much in the way of info on pickups using this gauge , have you experimented with 44? Thoughts? Keep up the great work!
Interesting pick up design & construction! There is nothing to stop some1 else trying different responses by using a different construction metal! A copper 1, an iron 1, nickel maybe, just to see WHAT frequencies are accentuated. I think in non ferrous metals LIKE the aluminIum, it works more on EDDY currents! (Or so I've been told!)
Anything not ferromagnetic will probably sound almost identical but slightly quieter due to possible higher resistivity, ferromagnetic metals would attenuate the magnetic field and probably sound quieter
I totally do agree that I think he's just doing those pickups to find a cheap way to make a pickup that looks high-dollar Boutique because the ones that I got sounded so weird
Does this pickup may combined with a normal pickup since the transformer will be load once it is linked to a second pickup.. how can be this combinations
Yay! I've been waiting for this one. I'm used to hearing that low-output pickups are ideal for blues and related styles. Does that mean that these can be run at those low output levels to get the sweet warm sounds like a low-output humbucker?
Yeah they will work if you dial them in on your amp. These sound like they articulate a note really well and a lot better than traditional pickups. For leads is likely where they shine the most.
I just installed Deathbuckers on my latest build and have huge feedback/squeeling problem. Cannot really use without noise gate. Any idea what's the problem? I just contacted Lace but haven't got any reply yet.
Wow Thank you for this. VEry educatuve Bro. You're awsome dude! Here again I realize I never lurn finish. Keep uP de good work and the infos come in. One blessed Love everytym. Grtx. Tom
Isn't it more like a single turn RWRP Humbucker than a Single Coil? The way you described it working, the transformer would amplify noise, not reduce it.
![[MV] A leap of faith...ความเชื่อใจครั้งสุดท้าย (From "Petrichor the series")](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/U1piZH2CNXA/mqdefault.jpg)
Get You Some Alumitones here amzn.to/39imc1x
Great video ...God bless you and thanks this is very interesting
Thanks for the explanation. I question comes to mind: if voltage is stepped up, that means current is reduced to conserve energy. Does this mean that as far as electric guitars go, current is irrelevant?
Totally made the "More than meets the eye" joke during the first description. Great content
I have two alumatones in a custom 8-string build. They definitely have a very unique level of clarity that I love. fantastic cleans and very articulate leads.
You are not paying for the cost per unit...you are paying for the tech, research, and tooling to produce
I've always appreciated the "green" aspect of the alumitone's reduced usage of copper. If it saves him money, fudge it. They look kewl, too.
Tbf there's tons of scrap copper available waiting to be recycled too.
What happens if I ground the white and the white with a black tracer wires at the same time?
@@atrumluminarium no there isn't, that's why the price went through the roof and tweaker steal plumbing out of houses.
@@grilledspaghetti pretty sure people will give you scrap-wire/cables that they're throwing away for free. Lace could easily remove the insulation and melt them down into sheets if they were really on an environmental quest
@@grilledspaghetti Late response but anyways. There is, and isn't. There is a lot of scrap copper but it's not in the hands of the ones making the product, it's in the shops and businesses using them. They (collectively) will have an enormous amount of scrap copper lying around, it's just not recycled as of yet.
Great and informative video. Originally tried these out because they really suited an asthetic that I was looking for and have been hooked ever since. They deffinatly have their own sound, but not so distinct that they can't still be incredibly versatile.
They’re great tech. I have two pairs of Hammerclaws (never really listened to Mastadon-but i share taste in guitar tones with Brent Hinds) and they’re the only pickups I’ve played that feel comfortable doing all the genres from surf to metal. The volume and the tone are so malleable I can get ALL the sounds with a twist of the knobs on my V.
Thanks SO much for this deep dive on Alumitones. I have my well-worn Richmond for several years now and had no idea just how different these top notch pickups are. Obviously I really like mine very much. Yay DTT!
Always wondered how these pickups worked thanks for the video, very informative
Literally just fitted a set of Lace pick ups to my guitar and can’t recommend them enough.
I've got a set of dirty Heshers and a set of dragonauts.
Why? I am thinking on putting an Alumitone Humbucker set to one of my guitars. What didn't you like about these pickups?
@@saedemoph I love everything about them, that’s why I can’t recommend them enough. Meant as in I will always recommend them!
@@crashbangpow1649 oh cool... then they are really good. Thanks.
While a microphone is the necessary part of an answer, what difference in sound Do you value from the Lace?
I think you are correct on the cost thing. If a company can make a product cheaper and sell it for more they will. Material and production costs are probably half of those for a wound pick-up. There was an initial setup cost but any production line will have that. Thanks for the great explanation of how they work.
Thanks for showing what was under the shrink wrap, I wanted to build one of these and thought it could be a transformer in there but I just wanted confirmation thats what it was. We use those types of transformers when building a welder, never considered it for a pickup but it makes sense.
You are right it is a super simple and cheap way to make a pickup and they even adopted the glued on magnet under it, which is found in lower end pickups where the strip magnet is magnetizing steel poles. Doing it this way does eliminate the need for large amounts of enamel wire.
What Lace would never tell the consumer is these can be built at home with basic knowledge of how you explained the job of this transformer. That was my immediate thought because I have all the loose electronics to make one of these. Quick question do you know how many turns is made on each side of the transformer and how many steel plates (I assume those are super small) they used?
My only warning to someone who is going to try and DIY one of these that you didn't explain in the video is that the current to voltage ratio of a transformer depends on how thick the wire is. Smaller wire = higher voltage and lower current and thicker wire = lower voltage and higher current. We want the higher voltage option for a number of reasons mostly because voltage doesn't kill you the current does and it doesn't take much (I think I read that it was somewhere around 0.1 to 0.2 amps).
But again thanks for the look inside, its still very cool how it was thought up despite it being so cheap to make you could pay for the cost of manufacture with just recycling a few bags of cans.
I was just watching Phillip McKnight and his Alumitone / P90comparison. Then I move on to Dillon, and it reminded me of the old days on the radio where the AM disc jockey would be loud and in your face, not that Phillip was going crazy or anything, but when this video came up, Dillon was the typical Mr. Cool laid back kind of DJ found on FM at night! I miss those days! Lol
Ive been curious about these for awhile and how they work. They sound clear as a bell and very articulate. Like a crystal clean Roland solid state amp. Like piano clean and articulate. Which is really nice for lots of applications.
I was just looking at these last night for a project. I love Lace Sensors, so thank you for this.
I put some on a guitar I built a couple of years ago. They sound fantastic. Highly recommended. And made in USA on top of all that
Dead simple. Don’t know if they would be my cup of tea, but it is really cool engineering.
I lterally searched for anything you did about these pups a couple days ago and couldnt find anything. Now TH-cam suggested this video, two days later. Lol
That looks crazy. I thought you had already taken it apart when you first showed the bottom. Neat stuff my dude.
The conclusion about the price and cost cutting is absolutely correct!
Just installed one .....it's amazing!
I use lace pickups in my five string ESP and they are really clear and quiet and when I slap some pinch harmonics they sound wicked. The pickups in my edwards are also lace and they're good as well.
Man, I'm so digging your videos. Never knew about these do-dads. I love a practical spin on tradition. Now I'm off to see if these sound practical to me... Thanks for the heads-up.
Soundwave approves of your 7:45 thoughts
I have the single coil Alumitones in Warmoth Strat I put together. Amazing tone!! You could sound like a Strat or a les Paul. Love them. Now I know they are way over priced.
Most pickups are way over priced.
How much do you think "normal" magnetic pickups cost to make, when you can buy Asian made ones on ebay or reverb for 10 or 15 bucks? The amount of copper in a magnetic pickup is pretty small, even if there are a few thousand turns of wire, it's wire as thin as a human hair and adds up to a few ounces of coper..
@@robertsmith-xe2iw i recently got into winding pickups, and it’s insane how expensive the markup on guitar shit is. magnets for a pickup are roughly $2-3, and likely cost less than half of that to make. the bobbins are $1-4, and likely cost cents to make. you can make roughly 30 or so pickups with 50,000’ of wire, which is roughly $40-50. pickup covers are cheap pieces of plastic that are a few bucks as well, which ALSO most likely are very very cheap.
if you do the math, you can make a pickup for less than $10, and that’s as a consumer, not a company who can do machining and molding in-house. it most likely takes huge OEM manufacturers dollars, if not nickels and dimes to make a single pickup.
i strongly suggest getting into winding pickups yourself if you’re the modding type. for the price of a set of Texas Specials, you can build a pickup winder, and buy all the parts necessary to make 5 sets of Texas Specials.
@sanctummm3950 you can make your own car from scratch too while you're at it. Some of us would rather spend our time and energy on other things, so we pay to have them made for us.
Do they sound like single coils or more like humbuckers?
Thanks for unraveling the alumitone mystery. Pretty good video!
Is it too late to try a pickup?
I’ll pass it forward.
Can they be split like a regular humbucker?
I’m late!
I got an Aluma 90 for the neck of my Reverend V and it’s fantastic. I paired it with a TV Jones Powertron and it’s bang on rock and roll
Cool as hell. Makes you wonder how someone would even figure that out. Humans are amazing!
TFW you've got an excess of capital, so you throw a grant to your engineers and let them go wild.
You can actually make these out of literal junk that's probably lying around your house, and I'm serious
@@RetroPlus I wanna to do it. How? I'm building a flying v atm and would love to throw some homemade lace pickups in. Literally routing out the pickup cavities tomorrow. I'm calling it valac, which is a name for a demon who is a boy and has the ability to find treasures, and am making it out of the kitchen table we had when I was a little kid. Valac the demon V! 🤘😈🤘
@@doknox Look up "heavymetalATC" on youtube then find his DIY alumitone video, it's really simple to make and you should be able to make one in a few hours with no special tools or skills required. Have fun 👍
@@RetroPlus thnx
What a crazy concept. Very interesting educational video.
Great explanation and they are kinda clever. May miss out on the Thursday class - middle of the night for me. Cheers.
*At the **8:01** mark..., I would use the example of the output transformer of a tube/valve amp..., where the high impedance primary coil is connected to the high voltage output tubes/valves, and the low impedance secondary coil is connected to the high current speakers..., except in the case of the Alumitone pickups, the transformers would be in the opposite configuration..., two low impedance primary coils connected to the two single turn aluminum coils, and two high impedance secondary coils connected to the controls and output jack...*
Thanks so much for doing this I've been very interested in the workings of these pickups ever since I fitted a base that I have with the jazz bass version of those pickups I didn't necessarily like them but it's still an interesting subject
I like the sound of the alumitone. One of the best ever was from a classical guitarist who was using them, the sound went from music to art.
Great new kind of a pickup, thanks. FYI, in a fluorescent light, the mercury is ionized, it is not ignited.
What’s Ionized? Isn’t that what they put in salt?
I just found out about these pickups yesterday!
Interesting opinions and points I'd not considered. I might buy one still, as I have enjoyed the demos I've heard.
Props to Lace for finding a different way to make pickups. Personally I’m not a fan of these or the Lace Sensor’s tone. But that’s just me. I got in big trouble by some sensitive people on an earlier video for giving my personal opinion. But I don’t care. You can’t blame a company for finding a better profit margin. That’s the American way. Some people really like these. I don’t. But try a guitar with some of these in it. You may love them. To each their own and live and let live.
"I read the patent over and over and over again last night"
First time watching, and I want to say thank you hahaha
Very cool. I've never dealt with the Alumitones. I've _avoided_ the Lace Sensors...I'm not a fan. But I've always wondered about the Alumitones.
Giving me ideas!
Very well presented! I’m so impressed that you read the patent! Thanks. - By the way, thanks to you, I get that these have a lot in common with ribbon mics.
I have a few single coil lace pick ups and I got a don lace pick up it actually says don lace on it anyway it was cheap it’s a single coil but I want to get more some humbuckers not these but the regular ones silver or chrome they definitely look different I’ll have to check them out thank you Dylan for the explanation of how they work I’m new to your channel and I like what I watch very informative
Thank you for this clear explanation. I had always wondered.
I put a set in my new build and I am having trouble bonding with them. They don't sound that great. It's like playing through a solid state amp. No natural compression and just sort of sterile. They sound good for clean and pretty stuff but don't really rock. Are there any tips for making them sound better, other than crank up the knobs on the compressor?
I think the design looks really cool. In certain guitars it would be so right!
Thank you for this video. I own a pair of deathbuckers and always wanted to cut that piece of heat shrink to see how they work but they just straight out cost so much that I didn't want to ruin them. Thank you, great watch!
I put a set into one of my Jackson Vs . They sound ok but pick up way too much noise from other things running in the room. Just sitting near my computer caused unwanted noise and made the guitar useless for recording. I spent hours grounding everything from the control cavity to even grounding inside the pickup cavity and still just could not seem to solve the noise issues . If I sat anywhere near a TV they picked up hum from the TVs power supply too. I actually ended up putting the cheap stock Jackson branded pickups back into the guitar and they where better. I was rather bummed over it. They was fine for clean playing and seemed to have a very flat response curve.
Could you replace the ceramic magnets with Alnico? If so would that change to the tone ? Just wondering cause of the way these are built..Thanks!
I'm pretty sure it would lower the output considerably.
Alumitones/deathbuckers got a hi-fi tonality that I enjoy, since I rely heavily on FXs, Jazz players like it because they ain't muddy but I agree with you, they are overpriced (for what they cost) and not alike a regular humbucker (alnico II player here).
Thanks for such an amazing explanation of how this works :D
I don't understand. How is it "hi-fi"? high fidelity of what? the sound depends mostly from the pickup, then, all the pickups are hi-fi, because all of them sound like themselves.
The lace deathbuckers are insane
Fascinating! The only similar design I know of is the Electar low impedance pickup on the Epiphone Jack Cassady bass, which has a three way "tap" selector to choose different sounds from the transformer hiding in the body.
Just ordered a set, I'm really curious about the range of frequencies they put out. I don't think it was just a matter of cost in making the pickups though, I think there's weight and conductivity of aluminum to factor in.
Awesome! I need both!!! It’s a single turn coil with a magnet that produces a voltage which is amplified by a step up transformer. Nice and simple! It’s just like the ignition coil on your car’s engine! And you get 50,000V today because they found that a more powerful spark ignites the air-fuel mixture in the engines cylinder more completely. So would that coil be a signal booster and that is controlled by how many turns in the step up transformer is used. I lie the idea of seconding it forward! And I really need help intonations my guitar!
Great video! I would love to try one and dissect it like you did. Thank you for sharing.
Nice. I once had a cheapo noname-guitar that had fake humbuckers that were actually single coils with very little windings and a small output transformer. Clean sound was boring, but it sounded amazing overdriven. My band mates hated it, probably cause it didn't easily fit in the tonal space that my main guitar was used for.
After having tried 30 different pickups the Alumitones are my clear preference. The clarity, string separation, definition and low noise floor are unrivaled (for me). The production cost aren't relevant for me so long a $100 pickup is doing what I want. And that is a given fact. And there are many other players who share this experience (check other TH-cam videos). In a purely digital signal chain the high-fidelity sound might be too much for some people but when you are playing over an amp (with a speaker) the sound is always amazing. And in an old-fashioned recording scenario with a mike and an amp/speaker these pickups do wonders.
I'm almost homesick, I'm from the other end of California. I've been living here in Colorado, on the Western Slope of the Rockies. Step up, and step down X-formers, reminds me of my dad, teaching me electronics.
I've been waiting for a deathbucker review for a while...
.I bought some and will never use anything but...plain and simple and badass. Good buy to feedback
Digging your explanation of terminology Dylan.
Question is it possible for the transformer to ever blow out?
Such as a power surge or ,,,well anything I suppose?
For actives, I still like EMG 81/85.
For passives, I still like Lace Alumitone.
Very informative ! I learn things everytime I watch your videos ! Thanks so much !!
I have one, they are very transparent, not for everyone but it works for me on one of my guitars!
Just went and listened to some tone samples. I would say, because of the very low self-noise, these would be really good for active electronics, running first into a good pre-amp and shaping the tone that way. The samples I listened to made me think that these are like the equivalent of solid state (non-modelling) amps - they work, they can sound very good in their own right, but they don't have the natural dynamics of a tube amp. My ears say, same thing with these pickups vs conventional design pickups.
I can't believe it's simply a step-up xformer. I have an old Lace humbucker that I think basically works the same way except it uses the metal cover as the 'wind'. The magnets and xformer underneath are just epoxied in place. Great sound, splittable, love it. It and my single-coil Alumitone seem overly warm to me, like a lot of Lace Humbuckers, I ask why they want to get rid of the highs? I like Lace sensors okay, but I do think they are compressed compared to vintage singles, and not so much on the Alumitone.
D, thanks for explaining topics in a way I can understand. I've learnt so much from this channel 👍
Hi Dylan, I want to adapt this idea for viola and I need to see more detail about the secondary coil. In particular is it a U core UU or UI and what did you discover when stripping it down ? I have a cute design for the primary, so all I need is winding plan. Thanks bro.
Awesome explanation. I like how they sound, but never have played them, or knew about the "guts"... or bothered to look at the patent. I like Lace Sensors, but my idea of stuff is still sadly back in the 20th century.
Great content Dylan! Thanks! So cool to see a fresh take on pickups!
Great stuff. Was one of the people asking for this video. Thanks for the explanation.
Thanks! I've always wondered what makes those pups tick. Now I know.
The entire pickup can be described as a self-generating transformer. The aluminum is the primary, linked to the secondary coils by a ferrous core.
If these are super cheap to make then why isn't anyone making inexpensive copies? Has the patent not run out?
Hey Dylan why don't you make your own version of them Lace pickups who knows you might come up with a better pickup. Also I don't know if it was you that I asked but could you do a blog on lipstick pickups please. Thank you ahead of time if you do.
I wonder if it would be easy to curve one for bowed instruments. I’m pretty happy with my $1 piezo pickup system but it’s interesting nonetheless.
I can't believe I haven't found this before now!! SO informative! Alumitones are a lot less mysterious to me now! Thank you very much! I thought more than meets the eye, too! :P
You may be right on them being water jet or laser cut before stamping but a multi stage die could punch those holes and bend it to shape. The die would be expensive but you eliminate the need for a water jet machine and it's hourly paid operator. In the long run the die would be the cheaper way to make these.
Very interesting, I do wonder what they sound like!! Great video!!
Wow that’s interesting,.. what value of pot would you use for that pickup?
The Lace name brand usually scares me off, but TBF, I haven't tried any of their product since they first came out.I generally strongly dislike the modern, streamlined look, have no use for active circuits ,- vastly prefer the old chrome plates, - but this is an intriguing idea.Would have been better (IMO) if it was Valco style, OVER the strings, but maybe, - I'll give it a go.
Thanks for informing my ever aging opinions.
You talkin my language, now. I love using ac 120v to 12v (1amp) transformers back to back (the other side in series, so 3 transformers) to step up to 300v DC for 12AX7 preamp pedal prototypes.
Great video. Please do Railhammer Humcutter pickups!
Do you think it would be possible to convert the transformer to 18v?
hi, thanks for this , ,I'm thinking of getting one of these pickups for a sitar. , iv a few questions , 1, can the transformer be moved from under the pickup plate to the side ,as I need the space under the pickup for the sympathetic strings to pass under the pickup , 2, do you need to and a volume pot as I don't need to change volume just need it full all the time and it would save me from drilling into the sitar to add one ,3 if I did need a pot just a volume pot what size should it be 500 or 250 ,,, iv tried to email the company a few times but they haven't got back to me , thanks
Hi , thanks for your help , iv final got one and iam new to soldering , when wiring without a volume pot and just soldering to guitar input can you tell me ,, the orange goes to the guitar input ,, where would I put the green and the white/black strip ground wires too , thanks again. Sorry I’m new to wiring and soldering.
Hi Dylan! How do I clean the black cloth wrap around my humbuckers, without damaging the coils?
Hi , is the transformer underneath the pickup ,can it be moved to the outside. As I’d like to try them on a sitar ,thanks
I’ve been wondering about these pickups simply
Because they look cool. I recently graduated from Roberto Venn School Of Luthiery and got really hyped on winding pickups , I’ve been scouring for specs on popular Duncan’s etc to experiment (links welcome ). I’d love to try out one of these (and gold and black is my thing) , have you given all of them away? The death bucker seems alluring with all the mysterious “deathy” implications .
Unrelated : Rob Timmons of Arcane was my instructor on pickup winding and I was told Duncan JBs use 44awg , I can’t seem to find much in the way of info on pickups using this gauge , have you experimented with 44? Thoughts? Keep up the great work!
Interesting pick up design & construction! There is nothing to stop some1 else trying different responses by using a different construction metal! A copper 1, an iron 1, nickel maybe, just to see WHAT frequencies are accentuated. I think in non ferrous metals LIKE the aluminIum, it works more on EDDY currents! (Or so I've been told!)
Anything not ferromagnetic will probably sound almost identical but slightly quieter due to possible higher resistivity, ferromagnetic metals would attenuate the magnetic field and probably sound quieter
@@lawabidingcitizen5153 Ok, sounds like a plan.
I totally do agree that I think he's just doing those pickups to find a cheap way to make a pickup that looks high-dollar Boutique because the ones that I got sounded so weird
great and informative video. thanks
Thank, really intersting. Do we can see as a current transformer?
Yes, a lot of people in the cigar box guitar building community have made DIY alumitones using an off-the-shelf 1 to 500 current transformer
Does this pickup may combined with a normal pickup since the transformer will be load once it is linked to a second pickup.. how can be this combinations
Cool video. I'd try them out
hello man blz what are the polarities of the magnetics and the resistances of the coils
Yay! I've been waiting for this one.
I'm used to hearing that low-output pickups are ideal for blues and related styles. Does that mean that these can be run at those low output levels to get the sweet warm sounds like a low-output humbucker?
Yeah they will work if you dial them in on your amp. These sound like they articulate a note really well and a lot better than traditional pickups. For leads is likely where they shine the most.
Actually, the aluminum frame is a two-coil simulating humbucker.
I just installed Deathbuckers on my latest build and have huge feedback/squeeling problem. Cannot really use without noise gate. Any idea what's the problem? I just contacted Lace but haven't got any reply yet.
Hey Dylan. Have you ever done a vid on the DMZ Air tech? How it works, etc? Also the virtual vintage tech. Kinda interesting stuff. Thx. You rock💪😎👍
My homie has a deathbucker and it sounds pretty sick. Though a 6505 makes everything sound sick.
It's the best pairing possible, the Alumitones are god tier with any 5150/6505 type of sound
Like vomit?
Wow Thank you for this. VEry educatuve Bro. You're awsome dude! Here again I realize I never lurn finish. Keep uP de good work and the infos come in. One blessed Love everytym. Grtx. Tom
What about the copper under the magnets?
Isn't it more like a single turn RWRP Humbucker than a Single Coil? The way you described it working, the transformer would amplify noise, not reduce it.
thos
Primary winding is a humbucker.
Thank you very much!!!