Dylan McKerchie — electric

60Hz Hum Vs EMI/RF Hum in your guitar comes from a few different sources. We discussed how shielding can minimize RF/EMI noise HERE. Electromagnetic interference exists anywhere there is electricity. This is compounded by the fact that anything with a transformer in it, TVs, Fluorescent lights, Power supplies, all emit a lot of EMI because they contain coils. This means that you can have noise from devices that neither share a circuit with your guitar, or are connected in any way. This is because this interference travels through the air. No matter how effectively you have shielded your guitar, you...

What are eddy currents? Do they affect my tone? An eddy current is caused when there is a flat piece of metal perpendicular to the magnetic field. The metal doesn't need to be magnetic. These eddy currents are small spirals of current that are generated in the metal surface They work in opposition to the magnetic field that causes them. This causes an interference in the magnetic field. This causes a disruption in the movement of electrons in the winding wire. This in turn has the potential to cause changes in tone. What Does it Mean in my Guitar? If...

That Nasty Hum I am sure we have all heard the annoying hum from a single coil guitar. This is because the pickups in our guitars become antennas for radio interference. Any time you coil a wire it is possible for this to happen. Remember the old AM radio antenna? it was a simple coil of wire wrapped around a core. Our guitar pickups are the same thing multiplied by thousands. While it is not common (it IS possible) to pick up radio stations with our guitar, the most common noise we can hear is the 60 hz hum from...

What does "Out of Phase" mean? This is of course another term that we hear often. Maybe we have replaced a pickup and experienced it... That quacky thin sound when we turn both pickups on at the same time. Most of the time it is not on purpose, although this tone does have it's place. What causes it? In electric guitar land the term "out of phase" refers to a cancellation of sounds that happens when two pickups that have either opposite winding direction, or opposite magnetic polarity are turned on at the same time. The video below will illustrate...

How Electric Guitar Pickups Work... For some reason, this subject has a shroud of mystique surrounding it. The truth is, how electric guitar pickups work is very simple. An electric guitar pickup is a magnetic transducer. This means that it changes the motion of the string to an AC voltage that can be sent to the guitar amp to be amplified. How does it do this? The most common types of pickups consist of a magnetic core that has a very fine wire wound around it thousands of times.  Single coil pickups like those found in a Stratocaster or Telecaster...