Pickup wiring documentation

[MichV]

Hi everybody,

I’m a long time reader of this forum, but this is my very first post. I want to share two experiences, quite opposed, I recently had with pickup companies regarding included documentation and tech support.

The first one is with EMG. I had a problem with my order (wrong switch) and a question with the installation. I wrote an email and by the next the day all my problems were solved. I should add the most important thing : the pickups I ordered came with detailed wiring diagrams covering almost any setup you may want.

My other experience, far less rewarding, was with Nordstrand. I bought a pair of Big Split (not from the company itself) and they came without schematics. Since I couldn’t find any useful information on Nordstrand's website, I emailed them to get some help. It’s been over a week now and I’m still waiting for an answer… I understand they must receive a lot of requests, but maybe it wouldn’t be the case if they were providing complete schematics. I find it counterproductive for every user to have to try and fail in search of best configuration for a given pair of pickups. Is it not the a company’s responsibility to advise customers on how to properly use the products they’re selling?

What do you think of this? Am I the one to blame for not being able to find a solution by myself? Are Nordstrand products geared toward more advanced users? If so, what are the pickup companies for less experienced persons like myself and from which one should I stay away? If someone can give me an honest opinion, I would like to know!

Thanks,

Mich.

 

[sikamikanico]

Does this not cover it?
Pickup Wiring Diagrams and Schematics

 

[MichV]

Does this not cover it?
Pickup Wiring Diagrams and Schematics

Thank you for your answer.

For me, the information provided on Nordstrand’s website is too generic and fragmented to be of any help. Sure, I can set up the pickups to work, but how will I know if I did it the best way possible? What I’m trying to understand is why such a company does not provide whole schematics for typical and optimal operation of their pickups. The only answer I can guess is that Nordstrand are maybe targeting more professional users while keeping away hobbyists like me.

The point of my post is only to know if I’m right or wrong on my perception, and maybe have suggestions on pickup brands for less experienced people.

Thanks,

Mich.

 

[sikamikanico]

I suppose no other company matches EMG on how straightforward their solderless systems are. I’m surprised it’s not more common. Yeah, it’s not rocket science to figure out a soldering iron and proper wiring, but at the same time it’s one more thing to buy/learn.

Why don’t Nordstrand (and I think most other makers) offer more instruction? Don’t know, but I speculate they want the person installing pickups to know what they’re doing, not learning it from them. Otherwise they risk more downside than upside: more requests for support/troubleshooting (time), more users that will blame them for installation mistakes or dissatisfactory results, more damaged products during improper installation, etc…

From the other makers, I think perhaps Seymour Duncan offers more guidance. I recall seeing more schematics/diagrams from them. But there are many resources online that anyone interested should be able to navigate this easily…

 

[ctmullins]

The EMG solderless connectors increase the chance of incorrect installation in the field, so I think the detailed documentation is warranted.

The Nordstrands are two-wire pickups, just a hot wire and a ground wire. It doesn't get any simpler than that.

The "optimal" configuration is subjective. My "optimal" might be different from your "optimal". In fact, my "optimal" this year might be different from my "optimal" last year. Fortunately, five minutes with a soldering iron and you can change the circuit to suit your wishes.

 

[MichV]

The EMG solderless connectors increase the chance of incorrect installation in the field, so I think the detailed documentation is warranted.

The Nordstrands are two-wire pickups, just a hot wire and a ground wire. It doesn't get any simpler than that.

The "optimal" configuration is subjective. My "optimal" might be different from your "optimal". In fact, my "optimal" this year might be different from my "optimal" last year. Fortunately, five minutes with a soldering iron and you can change the circuit to suit your wishes.

Thank you for your reply.

First of all, it looks like Nordstrand pickups have at least three wires, the other one being of some use with preamps. What I’m confused about is that the Big Split pickups, which I guess should be splittable, have the exact same output wires as a single coil (for example the Big Single)... I’m clearly missing something and that’s where I would have liked some information on Nordstrand's website to help me understand.

I agree with you, wiring pickups is no rocket science and "optimal" operation is surely subjective. But there are "typical" operations that may be pickup dependent, and that would be so easy for companies to provide such information, at least to give customers a starting point. For example, are the pickups XXX more suitable for parallel or series operation? Maybe they fare very well in both scenarios? What R and C values for a tone filter at that cutoff frequency? Here's a Vol-Vol-Tone circuit... Why leave everybody to trial and error? It's not that important, but I just don't get it!

Mich.

 

[ctmullins]

Ah - yep, you're right - Nordstrand provides that third wire (the gray one, if I recall) for shielding purposes. It carries no signal; it just needs to be connected to a known good ground to reduce extraneous noise. That's covered in their online documentation if I recall.

And no, you would never want to split a Big Split. If you did, you would silence the output from half of the strings.

 

[MichV]

Ah - yep, you're right - Nordstrand provides that third wire (the gray one, if I recall) for shielding purposes. It carries no signal; it just needs to be connected to a known good ground to reduce extraneous noise. That's covered in their online documentation if I recall.

And no, you would never want to split a Big Split. If you did, you would silence the output from half of the strings.

Thanks a lot, but now I have to admit I didn't knew the meaning of "split-coil" pickup... Just to be sure I get it, the Big Split is just a P-bass pickup without the offset ?

 

[ctmullins]

Thanks a lot, but now I have to admit I didn't knew the meaning of "split-coil" pickup... Just to be sure I get it, the Big Split is just a P-bass pickup without the offset ?

Essentially, yes.

Here's a photo somebody posted a while back - hopefully this illustrates the split well enough....

 

[sunbeast]

Thank you for your reply.

First of all, it looks like Nordstrand pickups have at least three wires, the other one being of some use with preamps. What I’m confused about is that the Big Split pickups, which I guess should be splittable, have the exact same output wires as a single coil (for example the Big Single)... I’m clearly missing something and that’s where I would have liked some information on Nordstrand's website to help me understand.

I agree with you, wiring pickups is no rocket science and "optimal" operation is surely subjective. But there are "typical" operations that may be pickup dependent, and that would be so easy for companies to provide such information, at least to give customers a starting point. For example, are the pickups XXX more suitable for parallel or series operation? Maybe they fare very well in both scenarios? What R and C values for a tone filter at that cutoff frequency? Here's a Vol-Vol-Tone circuit... Why leave everybody to trial and error? It's not that important, but I just don't get it!

Mich.

In theory you could wire the Big Splits with the coils in series (the way they are wired from the factory) or in parallel (which would drop the output level but extend the frequency response). From the factory they are hardwired in series and don't offer a parallel option (might well be able to order a custom version that does have 4-conductor wiring to allow this though).