The inherent character of a guitar

[JoeB63]

I had a few hours to kill before a gig this past Saturday, so I decided I would swap out the VA1 neck pickup on my Classic and replace it with a Duncan Alnico II Pro that I've had sitting in a draw for a few years. I put the guitar back together, restrung.... and guess what?

Almost zero change in the tone. If I didn't know any better, I might assume that the pickups are identical. I even double-checked to make sure I wasn't crazy and put the original pickup back in instead of the Duncan.

If pressed, I might say that the Duncan has a bit less highs - and it also seems that I get a bit less 60 cycle hum with the Duncan, but they sure seem very close.

Is it just that these two pickups are very similar, or can you not change the inherent tone of a guitar by changing its pickups?

[olectric]

Joe--

I had the stock SA1-SA1R-SD2 in my Hollow Classic. I loved the modern tone, but still wanted something a little more vintage. I found some Fralin Vintage Hots, and installed them. There was definitely a change--a sweetness was picked up by the Fralins. (So was a 60hz hum). It's a little spankier, 2 & 4 are funkier, and the guitar is overall a little weaker sounding, actually.

Buuuuut, it really does sound like the same guitar. Different pickups definitely articulate what the wood/neck/chambers/ect of the guitar sounds like in different ways, but in the end, I think the guitar's character can't be changed that much. I can still tell mine is the same Swamp Ash HC. It's not going to sound like a solid Alder strat no matter what I put in it. (I'm not going for that, anyway).

My .02

[BFC]

Check out this pickup testing session David Barber put together.

David Barber (http://www.barberelectronics.com/pickuptest.htm)