The Alumitone Pickups have landed!!!

Danny Bates · Post by **Danny Bates** » 13 Jun 2009 1:33 pm

I guess I wanted to make sure Bill could find it

Now that I think about it, it's exactly like John Fabian's link on the bottom of page 2 of this thread.

BTW, Hendrix had an Alumitone pickup in his banjo...

Bill Miller · Post by **Bill Miller** » 13 Jun 2009 1:49 pm

Sorry Bill, I should have re-linked to it but others have done that by now. I listened to the comparison files through headphones and I can't tell any difference but I didn't expect too much using my PC sound card and $15 headphones. The Alumitone is an interesting development and I'm watching the user reviews carefully. I took a single coil pickup out of my guitar because I hate any amount of hum, but if these sound like single coils and are dead quiet then I may try one.

Roger Francis · Post by **Roger Francis** » 14 Jun 2009 7:27 am

I just replaced my Emmons SC on my Rains with the alumitone and it sounds Sc but better. You can plainly hear both strings on a 2 string grouping, plus when you get up past fifteenth fret its still as clear as a bell and no harshness. Everything so far sounds great and no hum at all. Hav'nt played out yet but at home it's definitely a keeper. It's hard to believe it sounds real close to the SC i just took out. (MPO)

Ken Metcalf · Post by **Ken Metcalf** » 15 Jun 2009 3:01 pm

Link down

Michael Walker · Post by **Michael Walker** » 20 Jun 2009 2:02 am

I just got one of the pickups from Jeff Lace. It was quite easy to mount and it sounds great.

J D Sauser · Post by **J D Sauser** » 20 Jun 2009 8:02 am

I got one... could use some wiring instructions, thou.

http://bb.steelguitarforum.com/viewtopic.php?t=160979

... J-D.

John Fabian · Post by **John Fabian** » 20 Jun 2009 8:41 am

http://www.steelguitar.com/resource/pic ... iagram.pdf

Ned McIntosh · Post by **Ned McIntosh** » 23 Jun 2009 3:21 am

My pair for my Carter D10 arrived today, what neat pieces of electronics!

Anyone have any thoughts as to the optimum distance between strings and the top of the Alumitone, based on experience? Just so I can get myself somewhere in "the butter-zone".

Roger Francis · Post by **Roger Francis** » 23 Jun 2009 6:59 am

About 2 quarters (money)

Nic du Toit · Post by **Nic du Toit** » 23 Jun 2009 12:42 pm

I've just received my lace to put on the E9 neck.....I do have a problem, though.....In order to increase the depth of the mounting, I've mounted the lace flush on the guitar's mounting plate (the one with the three screws, used to vary the p/up height), and it still wont go deep enough to clear the strings. At its deepest setting the strings just about clears the p/up.... What am I doing wrong? Oh, it's an Emmons D10 (1970). Any advice??

Nic du Toit · Post by **Nic du Toit** » 23 Jun 2009 1:10 pm

I've taken the pickup out, and compared to my GeorgeL E66, the difference in height is about the thickness of the mounting plate that's attached to the lace pickup. It would appear that the p/up comes to rest against the two changer block mountings....so, although the guitar's mounting plate can go down further, the p/up's width won't allow it to sink deeper into the mounting cavity. Bummer. Anyone else had this problem, and is there a way around this??

Post by **Dave Mudgett** » 23 Jun 2009 4:14 pm

Funny you should mention this - I just posted about this same problem on a different thread - http://bb.steelguitarforum.com/viewtopic.php?t=161216 - but the culprit was a Lawrence pickup on an Emmons Legrande.

The problem was the same - the changer block mountings block the guitar's pickup mounting plate from going deep enough to get adequate clearance to the strings. But a couple of years ago, I got a Lawrence XR-16 from Bob Carlucci that he got without the pickup's wide-mounting plate used to screw the pickup into the guitar's metal pickup mounting plate. At his suggestion, I mounted the pickup to that guitar mounting plate using Blue RTV Silicone gasket maker, and all was right with the world - I got 2 quarters thickness between the strings and the top of the pickup, and it sounded great.

Of course, this would require that you pull off the pickup wide-mounting plate (which would no doubt nullify any warranty) and I'd want to make sure that would do the trick before I started monkeying around with it. But it might be one possibility. I wonder if they could make these pickups without that mounting plate, or do something else to cut the width. They sound very attractive to me, but the two guitars I want to try them on are - you guessed it - an Emmons Legrande and P/P.

Rich Peterson · Post by **Rich Peterson** » 23 Jun 2009 4:42 pm

The pictures of the Alumatone Bass Bars on the Lace Music site do not show a mounting plate. If you bought the pickup through Carter Steel Guitars, the mounting plate was installed by them. So removing it will probably not void the Lace warranty.

Since the aluminum frame actually is the coil, fastening it in with some silicone goop would maybe be best, so you don't have metal to metal contact with the changer.

John Fabian · Post by **John Fabian** » 24 Jun 2009 2:22 am

We add the plate as a convenience. Removing it will not void any warranty. We also include additional screws and springs for alternate mounting.

The clearance issues with Emmons guitars are being investigated and I expect to have several solutions by the end of Friday.

Mounting information is shown here:
http://www.steelguitar.com/resource/pic ... itone.html

Nic du Toit · Post by **Nic du Toit** » 24 Jun 2009 3:55 am

John and Dave,
Solution found!.....
Firstly, I must thank John for having the foresight to include those long screws together with the springs!

For all the Emmons P/P guys.... This is what you do: 1. Drop the mounting plate on the Emmons, to below the level of the two changer block posts.....
2. Remove the mounting plate from the Alumitone, as supplied by John,
3. Thread the pickup wiring through the tiny opening (in the pickup cavity)
4. Attach the four screws, and springs, to the pickup. It's a bit tricky to keep the springs from falling off the screws.....Line the pickup up ...(the screws will barely miss the changer posts)...Tighten screws, and adjust for satisfactory height. That's it!
A TIP: I used a tiny reamer to make 1/8 inch indents in the wood, as a guide for the screws...if you do not make those indents, the springs cause the screws to go in their own direction, and you'll battle to line-up the screws properly.
Ok, I'll finish the job, put the old strings back, and report my findings!
Regards,
Nic
BTW.....John, it was nice talking to you at the St Louis convention, past August. The under carriage of the new Carter guitars intrigued me, and you took time out to show and explain the new ideas to me. I will always remember your graceful ways in dealing with my, sometimes 'stupid', questions.

Ned McIntosh · Post by **Ned McIntosh** » 24 Jun 2009 5:08 am

My alumitones are now installed in the mighty Carter D10, replacing a set of Truetones (excellent pickups in their own right, I might add). Installation took a couple of hours, including cleaning, polishing, lubricating roller-nuts and changers and generally "tidging" things up. Re-stringing and re-tuning isn't included in that time estimate.

Installation is straightforward. Strings off, necks cleaned, old pickups desoldered and removed, new ones on, screwed down (using the old screws and screw-holes, they work just fine), leads threaded through the cable-clamps, trimmed to length, stripped, tinned and soldered to the solder-tag. The most finicky part of the whole job is the soldering, and if you can get a helper to hold the wires in position as you solder them it is a good idea. It can be done on your own; I used a haemostat to hold the wires because it reached down between the pull-rods easily and enabled me to make good connections with no "dry-joints". Use fine electrical 60-40 resin-cored solder only.

Height of the pickup was set with a bass and a treble string temporarily installed on each neck. At the moment my top treble string is about 1/16" above the pickup on each neck, the lowest bass string is about 1/8" above on each.

Now, how do they sound? Same terrific string-to-string definition as the Truetone but noticeably less hum and buzz from fluorescent lights, nearby electrical noise-sources etc. No compressed sound to them at all, just beautiful, open, clear tone, each string clearly audible. Nice balance, tone and volume-wise, both across the strings and up the neck, right into "Hugheyland". Perhaps a little smoother up there than the Truetones, or maybe it was the room I was testing them in.

You will soon discover these pickups are uncompromisingly accurate reproducers of your sound. If it seems like you're not getting the sound or tone you want, don't blame this pickup! (This is through my Goodrich 120 pedal and straight into my NV112. YMMV, especially through pre-amps, effects units etc.)

Appearance-wise, set in the aluminium cavity these look the "bees-knees" on the Carter. They look like they're meant to be there. I'm looking forward to getting to know these guys.

Nic du Toit · Post by **Nic du Toit** » 24 Jun 2009 5:56 am

I just found out the 'long' screws are too short! Aaarrggh..will have to go hunting for longer ones.

Maybe if the 'feet' or, the sides of the pickup could be bent (inverted L) the pickup could clear the changer posts, and be easier to fit into the cavity....just a thought.
Let me go on the hunt for those screws.

Randy Beavers · Post by **Randy Beavers** » 24 Jun 2009 6:24 am

I'm sure do like these pickups in my guitars. I had planned to leave single coils in my double neck, then I did an A-B comparison. I liked all aspects of the tonal range better with the Alumitone. So... I've got nice and shiny chrome plated pickups in both Zums now.

Post by **Dave Mudgett** » 24 Jun 2009 8:11 am

My error on the warranty thing - I was projecting from my experience with the plastic Lawrence wide-mounting plate that is riveted or glued to the back of the pickup. It is nontrivial and invasive to remove the plate on the ones I have. Good move to attach these with screws.

I guess I'm gonna have to try these. I like the Lawrences a lot, but when studying with Mike Sweeney earlier this month, I certainly appreciated the difference between his single-coils and my humbuckers. But I get in situations where the single-coil hum drives me (and sometimes engineers) completely batty.

Randy Karstetter · Post by **Randy Karstetter** » 28 Oct 2019 8:12 am

I installed a alumitone pickup into a carp steel, what a great sounding pickup plus I use the Sarno black box with a peavey 112 great sound

Mike Perlowin · Post by **Mike Perlowin** » 28 Oct 2019 10:00 am

Ned McIntosh wrote: Installation took a couple of hours,...

The installation took a couple of seconds on my MSA. I think every builder should license the MSA modular pickup system and incorporate into their design.

The beauty of the system is that allows you to compare pickups instantly. I've tried out Trutone, an E-66, a Tone Aligner, a Telonics, and an active EMG.

IMHO the alumitone sounds better that all the others.

Kudos to the folks at LACE for making these great pickups, and to the late John Fabian for discovering them and introducing them to the steel guitar.

Mike Perlowin · Post by **Mike Perlowin** » 28 Oct 2019 12:13 pm

BTW, I am under the impression that the pickups we use in our steel are actually bass pickups. Does anybody know if this is true?

Ned McIntosh · Post by **Ned McIntosh** » 29 Oct 2019 1:41 am

Mike, I believe that's how the Alumitones started out, but, guitarists being what they are, people began experimenting. Whoever first thought of trying them in a steel-guitar was truly inspired.

Can't believe it is ten years I've had them in my Carter. Still love the sound.

Mike Perlowin · Post by **Mike Perlowin** » 29 Oct 2019 2:59 am

Ned McIntosh wrote:Whoever first thought of trying them in a steel-guitar was truly inspired.

Thar was the late John Fabian at Carter.

Craig A Davidson · Post by **Craig A Davidson** » 29 Oct 2019 6:38 am

I just bought a new Williams with Alumitones and love it.

The Steel Guitar Forum

The Alumitone Pickups have landed!!!

Here's one on my GFI

Alumitone