Single coil pickup question...

[jgcable]

The EJ strat thread has inspired me to ask the question.. so HERE IT GOES.

If a single coil pickup has a dummy coil stacked under it that is only there to noise cancel the 60hz hum would you still consider it a single coil pickup or would you call it a humbucker??? For instance:
Fender Noiseless
Fender Samarium
Evans Eliminators
After all.. you can't coil tap them because there is only one active coil.
So... whats your answer??

[DonP]

Re: Single coil pickup question...

Humbucker, because it is bucking the hum.

Also, I don't call it a single coil if it has two coils. It's a stacked humbucker.

[toejam]

Re: Single coil pickup question...

I'd still say it's single coil.

Also, the DiMarzio Bluesbucker is essentially a single coil P-90 sounding pickup (in a humbucker housing), as the side with the slug/non-adjustable poles is essentially just a dummy coil used to cancel the single coil hum it would normally have. Though, it does have 4-conductor wiring and can be split for even more of a Strat single coil sound when needed. What would the consensus be on this pup?

[jgcable]

Re: Single coil pickup question...

[ QUOTE ]
Humbucksr, because it is bucking the hum.

Also, I don't call it a single coil if it has two coils. It's a stacked humbucker.

[/ QUOTE ]

Then... wouldn't you call a traditional side by side humbucker a dual humbucker?
Why??
Because both coils humbuck the other and they are both active.
A stacked single coil sized humbucker technically should be called a stacked single humbucker when only 1 coil is active.
A stacked single coil sized humbucker technically should be called a dual stacked single coil humbucker when both coils are active.

[DonP]

Re: Single coil pickup question...

EMG's ROCK!

[Newc]

Re: Single coil pickup question...

The "dummy coil" has to be wired into the active coil to buck the hum - it can't buck the hum by just being there. Though it only has one lead, that just means the coils cannot be separated electronically.

Any pickup that has hum-cancelling properties is technically considered a humbucker, no matter the size or configuration.

However, for clarity's sake, they are generally referred to as hum-cancelling single coils, especially in detailed descriptions of guitars, because if you put a pic of a Strat with 3 singles and say it's got a humbucker, you'll get bombed with emails asking if you put up the right pic, was the guitar modded, etc etc etc, because they expect to see a traditional humbucker.