Are the Gretsch 2202 and 2210 pickups the same?

I have owned both and I would say "No"!

The pickup on 2202 were much better. The pickups on 2210 seem to be "generic" mini-humbucker.

The pickup on the 2202 was quite stellar.

 

They are not the same, nor are they in the same location. The 2210 is a great short scale, but the pickup on the 2202 is definitely better than the new version.

 

Just curious...I just got a 2202 and it sounds good with a new set of Chromes. I noticed, though, that touching/tapping the pickup makes a click, so that it's not good to play right over the pickup or use it as a thumb rest.

Is that usual for this pickup because it has a metal cover?

 

The pickup on my G2202 is dead silent when being used as a thumb rest.

 

Hmmmm....I wonder what's going on

 

How did they fit?

Was the E too long?

 

The fit of the Short scale Chromes was just fine and a slightly larger gauge than the GHS strings that were on it. The tone is a bit better defined on the lower strings, too.

 

Update...so I pulled the pickup, cut the solder joints holding the cover on, and slid off the cover. This is a blade design, with a ceramic bar magnet below, set between the two blades. Other than the solder joints for the cover, it looked like the whole thing was held together with potting wax.

The magnet came off with the brass back cover, held on by a very small spot of glue perhaps. The blades came out easily with needlenose pliers. I think they were in contact with the metal cover, so I cut a sliver of electrical tape wide enough to cover each blade top. Then I slid them back in and placed the magnet between the two blades. I then soldered the cover back on and tested the pickup. When I touched or tapped it, the pickup still made a knocking noise, but at least it wasn't broken

I then got out my electric glue pot, heated a water bath and put in a tin can with chunks of paraffin wax. When the wax was all melted, I lowered the pickup into the wax and let it sit for about 20 minutes. I then pulled the pickup, drained it briefly and let it set up overnight, face down.

This morning I soldered the pickup back in, reinstalled the strings and tuned up. It worked! Now when I use the pickup for a thumb rest or just bump into while playing, the pickup no longer makes a clunk. The pickup's tone has gotten clearer without any loss of bottom end, too.

 

This was a heartwarming story, but it would have been so much better with pictures.

 

So the voiced length of the E did not go to or beyond the post at pitch?

Miraculous, glorious if true!

 

A picture is worth 5 or 6 words!

 

Some relevant pictures here:

StewMac wax potting

Just pretend it's a Gretsch humbucker instead

 

I'm going to have to go lie down for a while.

 

No, I understand about potting. I just wanted to see the guts of that pickup.

 

Pretty ordinary cheap import humbucker inside. Chrome cover, two coils, two metal blades and a thin bar magnet. I emailed TV Jones recently and he said he didn't design it, just provided advice on appearance...I think he was referring to the Filtertron though. This pickup reminded me of what Eastwood uses for its scroll bass copy.

 

So I guess I can assume that my new G2224 which has two of these "Gretsch" mini humbuckers are NOT TV Jones pickups right?

I never thought they were, and am planning to yank them eventually and put in some actual TV Jones pups, but a guy in another thread told me that this model had TV Jones designed pickups.

Looks like I was right and he was wrong.

 

I don't see where Gretsch makes that claim on the new series Junior Jet II. I went back to check my email from TV Jones and he called the pickup "an imported Gibson-style mini humbucker."

 

Yeah... It never says anything about TV Jones in the lit about this model, but I guess people just wrongly assumed that they were still using those. They did change to these in a rather quite fashion, and probably were hoping that people would make that wrong assumption and buy the new models based on the original's reputation.

I LOVE the neck on this little bass though, and it plays like a dream, so I have no regrets. But... If you add the expense of the upgraded pickups, tuners and electronics to the total cost, this ends up being closer to a $600.00 bass.

Still worth it in my opinion though, since it is hard to find a killer short scale with a neck like this, even in that price range!