The Steel Guitar Forum

Looking for real world answer's for Live work..Cut through in the mix, and 'Low' to 'No Noise' issue's. I'm thinking about going to a 'TT' but i don't want to go to a noise issue if they are single coil with normal Buzz issue's..Before i went to George L some clubs were unbearable, not looking to go back to that...I'm looking for a 'Sweeter Tone'..Kind of like fender Noiseless over the EMG.

1979 Sho-Bud!

I went to a TrueTone from the E66 on the front neck of my Zum.
The E66 Has a pretty sound, but seems relatively soulless. The TrueTone has the bite of a single coil and seems more expressive to me.
Of course I will point out that you do not have my hands, and I don't have yours.
But that is my experience from making that swap on my guitar.
If your Bud has the coil tap switch, I would think about getting a pick up straight from Jerry with a tap at 12K. there is something awesome about a Sho-Bud with those lighter wound pickups

I've only been playing steel for about a year, but I've played much electric guitar for decades. I've played both humbuckers and single coils extensively. For my taste, and it is entirely a matter of personal taste, a single coil is the way to go - for steel. There's something about the way they sing, a clarity, that a humbucker just can't quite match. I prefer humbuckers for flatwound jazz applications and loud distorted rock, but that's not a steel sound, obviously. Steels are supposed to sing and cut through. Regarding noise, a single coil is a bit noisier, but the Wallace TT on my Williams is not that noisy at all. When you're not playing, just turn down the volume pedal. That's what it's for. I would like to try a humbucker on the steel though for kicks, but honestly, I think I'd prefer single coil.

Brent, the E66 was designed to get as close to that Blade tone as a 'bucker could get.
IMO, the tone is spot on, but the bite and bark don't show up, so the personality doesn't shine through.
I've shared before that when I ordered my Zum, I asked for the E66, and it bugged me that Bruce said "I'll build it how you want it, but from talking to you, I'm pretty sure you'd be happier with single coils."
It bugged me then that he tried to tell me I didn't want what I ordered. It REALLY bugged me that a couple years later I realized he was right.
The moral of the story; listen to Bruce.

Larry, it would seem that you play in some pretty noisy environments...clubs can be brutal what with weird A/C wiring, dimmers and neons, etc. As much as I like single coil pickups, like the Truetone, I wouldn't advise them for your guitar. I won't advise any particular humbucker, because a given pickup can sound different from one ax to another, but I'd say you need to stick to a humbucker.

Single coils can be shielded, filtered, and modified, etc., but they still are antennas for stray magnetic fields and will be a constant challenge. That's just the way it is. So, you can fight the hum when it arises, or stay with a humbucker and change the battle to fighting for the tone you desire.

If I still played clubs, I'd use a 'bucker, no doubt.

The other side of the "live playing" view is this - if you are playing with a drummer he is going to bury any and all 60 cycle hum & you will need to do all you can to cut through the mix.

Now in the studio (which is where I work a LOT)I definitely like buckers for the silence factor. But that said I have guitars with Bill Lawrence pickups & 1 with a True Tone and don't find the noise of the Truetone objectionable at all. And I agree with Lane - Truetones have the soul that is missing from most buckers.

or - Listen to Bruce!!!! He knows!


Jim

I played a club in Oklahoma years ago, [can't remember where or name] the noise was so bad we had to turn the steel side ways and i staired at the wall that was the worst i ever had it, and that was with the sho-bud single coil, [ground lift's and gates no good] then i went to E66 and wow!! But...I'm tone itching again.

Well, I've had the opposite experiance than Lane. I have True Tones on my Williams and E 66's on my nonpedal Remington. The TT's sound mellow to me compaired to the 66's. Infact I was thinking about changing the
Williams to BL 705's ( have this on my Bud and like it the best). But as Lane said you gotta factor your hands, attack on the strings, amp, hall, effects, ears, etc.

I like swing music and that "old time" sound and find the 66's are very close to the "vintage" sound.


My two cents.

Mack

I like the BL-710 pu.

Well different strokes for different folks but out of the six pickups that I have had in my Carter my least favorite was the E66. It may have been wonderful in a different guitar but in mine it sounded dry and brittle and I simply could not get a pleasing tone using that pickup. My Truetone, which is still on standby, sounded great...sweet and musical throughout its range. A bit of hum though. Right now I'm using a Telonics pickup and although I'm still tweaking it now and then it is an amazing pickup.

It is very hard to beat the Jerry Wallace TruTone pickups.