Who will build this pickup for me?

[Rick Lee]

L-500 Lead

 

[Rossi163]

I'm almost at that point. But my picking style tends to rub on parts of the bobbins.

Is this some sort of double entendre?

 

[kev]

If those don't work out, perhaps @Zexcoil ?

Off-topic sorta, is your guitar one of the ones Freddy built based off of the real deal?

 

[Rick Lee]

Mine's a DIY partscaster.

 

[Rick Lee]

The Donlis should be here any day now. I will throw one (I bought three) into the guitar right away and see if it sounds great in stock form. For $16 I don't think I can go wrong and the YT videos sound promising. I had a big gig last night and used my Sportscaster clone for the whole two hour set, through a '79 2203 full stack. I had to use an SD-1 to get the tone I wanted. During soundcheck I was using my EBMM Axis and it sounded soooo much better, didn't need an SD-1 to make it sound right. I'm just not a Bill Lawrence guy.

Anyway, if the Donlis doesn't cut it in stock format, assuming it's not encased in epoxy, I will send a second one to a pickup builder and have him rewind it to my specs to get closer to a Tone Zone or JB. This project will take a while, but my next Rush tribute gigs aren't until October.

 

[Multi Angle Vise]

…if the Donlis doesn't cut it in stock format, assuming it's not encased in epoxy…

They're pretty conventional, wax potted coils, cloth tape.

 

[Rick Lee]

Any chance they're four conductor wire?

 

[bluegrif]

I also suggest trying Pete Biltoff. He’s done wonderful custom work for me. Although most of what he does that I’m familiar with is vintage oriented. Still, he thinks outside the box and IME, if you can describe it he can build it.

 

[Rick Lee]

Thanks. Already asked him. No go.

 

[Multi Angle Vise]

Any chance they're four conductor wire?

Yeah, they come as:

• black/bare shield soldered together - ground
• red/white soldered together - coil junction
• green - signal

I'm using the junction for autosplit, but I've not unpicked the red/white to confirm pairs, I'd guessed black/white is one coil, red/green the other, similar to Duncan?

 

[Rick Lee]

Oh, very happy to read this.

 

[Whiskeyrebel]

What is it about the sound of the Lawrence pickup you would want to change?

 

[Rick Lee]

Well, it's fine with a practice amp at home. But with a big Marshall at band volume, I just feel like it's more of a single coil than double coil. It's almost like a single coil with no 60 cycle hum and just a tad fatter, but with a lot less body than a humbucker. Most of my other guitars have DiMarzio Tone Zone or SD JB-like humbuckers and that's just the sound I like and always go for. I don't like having to use pedals to make something sound the way I want it to sound.

 

[bugzapper]

Just to clarify…. This is the L500L, not the the L500XL?

Is it a Wilde?

 

[Rick Lee]

Just to clarify…. This is the L500L, not the the L500XL?

Is it a Wilde?

Yes, L500L. I don't think it's a Wilde. Here's a clip from last night. I usually use the coil-split option on my other guitars for this song. But the BL sounded too thin, so I kept it in double coil mode for this.

 

[RicOkc]

Duncan

 

[Rick Lee]

They said no.

 

[bugzapper]

Yes, L500L. I don't think it's a Wilde. Here's a clip from last night. I usually use the coil-split option on my other guitars for this song. But the BL sounded too thin, so I kept it in double coil mode for this.

Sounds pretty well right for DEW, IMO, especially in the high end.

I think of BL pickups as very defined (haven't had one since the 80s, however). I wonder what amp, etc. Alex used with his.

 

[HoboMan]

Well, it's fine with a practice amp at home. But with a big Marshall at band volume, I just feel like it's more of a single coil than double coil. It's almost like a single coil with no 60 cycle hum and just a tad fatter, but with a lot less body than a humbucker. Most of my other guitars have DiMarzio Tone Zone or SD JB-like humbuckers and that's just the sound I like and always go for. I don't like having to use pedals to make something sound the way I want it to sound.

Interesting. Sounds like a humbucker that I wouldn't mind trying.

 

[Sweetfinger]

L-500 Lead

The L-500XL is closer to what you want. That's the "classic" Lawrence hot pickup.