Pickups and Polarity?

[Johnnythunders]

I've decided to learn how to change pickups and I've noticed that some of my guitars which are all humbuckers have the pickups installed differently from a visual perspective.

Looking at the guitar stratight in front of all of them have the pickup screws next to the pole pieces closest to the fretboard for the neck pickup.

Some have the bridge pickups with pickup screws closest to the bridge some have them closest to the neck?

Why is this? Is it polarity? if so how do know which way they go?

 

[Johnnythunders]

anyone? or is this question too stupid?

 

[skeeterbuck]

Johnny, first off it's NOT a stupid question.

Traditionally the adjustable pole pieces are as follows:
Neck PU - closest to the neck
Middle PU - (if used) closest to the neck
Bridge PU - closest to the bridge

This is the was Gibson has always done it. You can arrange them either way for posssibly a slight different tone. This has nothing to do with the polarity of the pickup. The polarity of the PU comes from the direction the PU coil is wound and the orientation of the poles of the magnet.
Remember that the humbucker is made up of two coils. The screw coil which is adjustable and the slug coil which is not.
If the PU has a cover, the screw poles are usually raiesd to be at least flush with the cover. That makes the screw coil sense more of the string vibration that the slug coil.
Hope this helps.

 

[Johnnythunders]

Ok thanks for the reply, still leaves the question how would screw position effect the tone?

 

[skeeterbuck]

I mount them the Gibson way just because it just looks right to me. The good thing is that at least you don't have to unsolder anything to turn the pickups. Let us know how they turn out.

P.S. I'm still loving that Aiken Tomcat.

 

[Johnnythunders]

I mount them the Gibson way just because it just looks right to me. The good thing is that at least you don't have to unsolder anything to turn the pickups. Let us know how they turn out.

P.S. I'm still loving that Aiken Tomcat.

Yeah that was cool little amp but I've moved back to big amps.

 

[andrekp]

One reason some people flip them from traditional:

My 'buckers have a coil split option. My neck is mounted as normal, but my bridge is mounted with the screw coil (the active one when split) mounted toward the neck. Purpose being that is loses less volume when split by being slightly further from the bridge.

But in the end, it really doesn't matter which way you mount them, and in most pups it won't sound different enough to tell. Flipping it does not change polarity, that requires flipping the magnet inside.