Can The Sound Of A Pickup be Infuenced By Wood Types

[IKnowALittle]

Not according to George Beauchamp, the inventor of the electromagnetic guitar pickup in 1934.
When you think about it, EM pickups work through the process of induction.
It is impossible for any type of wood to initiate induction. Same is true for pressure waves or sound waves.
Now whether the types of wood used in an electric guitar influence the "holistic" sound of the instrument is an entirely different question.

 

[AP515]

This again? Let's use PRSH's way of thinking. It isn't what the wood initiates, it's what the wood takes away and what it leaves for the pickup to ... well... pickup.

 

[sergiodeblanc]

I recently joined a religious forum and one of the few rules they had was not allowing discussions about personal belief's with regards to whether or not tone-woods exist.

 

[dmatthews]

I recently joined a religious forum and one of the few rules they had was not allowing discussions about personal belief's with regards to whether or not tone-woods are factual.

Your flip-flop is flapping.

 

[jay]

The wood can influence the strings though. Pickups simply translate string vibration into electric signal. Affecting how the string vibrate will affect the signal coming out from a pickup then.
But yes, the pickup itself works the same whether around it is ash or maple (or styrofoam) (edit: actually, I'm not so sure about styrofoam electric characteristics ...).

 

[Mixstar]

If what you're saying is right you could attach a pick-up to a brick and it would sound the same if it was mounted on a PRS.

FWIW - I do agree that wood can't 'initiate' induction, that's an electrical thing, wood is inert.

 

[veinbuster]

If what you're saying is right you could attach a pick-up to a brick and it would sound the same if it was mounted on a PRS.

I don't think that follows.
The pickup doesn't know what non-conductive material it is mounted in and will behave the same regardless.
The wood doesn't change the pickup, it changes the behavior of the string, which the pickup detects. So...if you could attach the pickup to a brick and position it in the same relative location as the pickups would normally be on a guitar it would give you the same result - a tricky bit of engineering to have the pickups on a brick that moved with the guitar while the guitar was made of whatever wood you liked and still be able to play the guitar.

 

[rugerpc]

Aren't we a little early for this topic to return?

I = (((pN * ia) + (pif * lg)) * ntw) / (b * iw * pT)^2

Where
'I' is interval expressed in fp-s (forum post-seconds)
'pN' is percent forum noobs expressed in modified newbies
'ia' is internet access in Mb/s
'pif' is previous ignored posts on topic
'lg' is logins per day
'ntw' is new tone woods expressed as quartersawns
'b' is boredom in infomercials/sixpack
'iw' is the average inclimate weather index
'pT' is percent troll expressed in Standard Nordics

By my calculations we shouldn't have to suffer this argument again for 6.8296x10^6 fp-s, until at least August, though the introduction of a newly discovered tone wood at the Experience could skew calculations.

 

[Boogie]

 

[clasbtenn]

In 1978, I was in California in Hollywood. I went into the first Guitar Center, which at the time, was a truly impressive music store. The store manager was nice enough to show me around. During my tour, he brought out a marble guitar which was electric. I plugged it in and it had a very thin tone to it.

Having played different types of wood guitars, and while I understand that the electric pickup does pickup vibrations from the strings, it is still my personal belief that the type of wood, it's weight, and other factors in the chain completing a guitar, will affect the overall tone, be it take away something, add something, whatever.

Even two exactly identical guitars will not sound the same. Assuming the pickups are the same or as close as can be reasoned, then the wood must contribute to the difference in the tone from one guitar to the next.

At least that's what I believe, but then I believe in the Force, and other things.

 

[László]

In a theoretical world, a magnetic pickup is different than in the real world.

Fact is, pickups are microphonic. That's why they feed back. They weren't designed to be microphonic, but that's how the real world works.

So they pick up some acoustic sound waves from the body of the guitar they are mounted on, some acoustic noises transmitted by the strings because the strings' vibration is affected by what the strings are attached to, and a lot of magnetic stuff they were designed to pick up.

I can talk into the pickups of my old '65 SG Special, and my voice will come through the amp.

String vibrations are themselves affected by what the strings are attached to, i.e., the guitar and all its parts.

If all the pickups picked up was the movement of the strings above the pickups by the force of magnetism, a hollow body jazz guitar would sound like a solid body guitar, and so on.

That doesn't happen. The pickups pick up the added resonances of the hollow body. How does that happen? Well, I've already explained.

If you can tell the difference listening to a hollow body jazz box and a Strat, you can listen carefully to other guitars and hear lots of differences between wood types. All it takes are functioning ears.

You don't need a scientist to tell you what you're hearing.

 

[clasbtenn]

In a theoretical world, a magnetic pickup is different than in the real world.

Fact is, pickups are microphonic. That's why they feed back. They weren't designed to be microphonic, but that's how the real world works.

So they pick up some acoustic sound waves from the body of the guitar they are mounted on, some acoustic noises from the strings, and a lot of magnetic stuff they were designed to pick up.

I can talk into the pickups of my old '65 SG Special, and my voice will come through the amp.

They also pick up magnetic vibrations from the strings - those vibrations are themselves affected by what the strings are attached to, i.e., the guitar and all its parts.

If all the pickups picked up was the movement of the strings above the pickups by the force of magnetism, a hollow body jazz guitar would sound like a solid body guitar, and so on.

That doesn't happen.

If you can tell the difference listening to a hollow body jazz box and a Strat, you can listen carefully to other guitars and hear lots of differences between wood types. All it takes are functioning ears.

You don't need a scientist to tell you what you're hearing.

End of story.

I like this guy. Great thinking.

 

[veinbuster]

I can talk into the pickups of my old '65 SG Special, and my voice will come through the amp.

Will your voice come through if there are no strings on the guitar?
I suspect not.

 

[Mixstar]

Strangely enough, if I have my compression and delay on full bore and just sit and very quietly listen on the headphones I can hear BBC Radio 4.

 

[bodia]

BREAKING NEWS! Did you guys know wood type can effect the tone of a guitar?

 

[11top]

BREAKING NEWS! Did you guys know wood type can effect the tone of a guitar?

You serious, Clark?

 

[bodia]

You serious, Clark?

Sometimes it's just about a reaction

 

[markintime]

Will your voice come through if there are no strings on the guitar?
I suspect not.

Would someone be so kind as to test this hypothesis? Someone in the middle of a string change, perhaps? Inquiring minds wanna know...

 

[jay]

Aren't we a little early for this topic to return?

I = (((pN * ia) + (pif * lg)) * ntw) / (b * iw * pT)^2

Where
'I' is interval expressed in fp-s (forum post-seconds)
'pN' is percent forum noobs expressed in modified newbies
'ia' is internet access in Mb/s
'pif' is previous ignored posts on topic
'lg' is logins per day
'ntw' is new tone woods expressed as quartersawns
'b' is boredom in infomercials/sixpack
'iw' is the average inclimate weather index
'pT' is percent troll expressed in Standard Nordics

By my calculations we shouldn't have to suffer this argument again for 6.8296x10^6 fp-s, until at least August, though the introduction of a newly discovered tone wood at the Experience could skew calculations.

The original question actually raised a lot more interest that your boring answer.

The title is very explicit. All those who are not interested can avoid to open this. I find your comment unrespectful.

 

[sergiodeblanc]

Shots fired.