Hank Guitar Pickup Height

[caddyshak6]

Whenever I see pictures of HBM's Strats the Pups seem very high, this is not in line with Fenders recommendations, so does anyone know if the high pups mean that Hank sets his strings high too

app.box.com/s/1qxjyos7brr1cumxbk0ecr66ky401bq8

Regards
Tony

[brightcaster]

The picture does not show genuine fender pickups but kinmans.They can be set up much closer to the strings without getting stratitis.

Regards, David

[sheendigs]

Hi Tony
I have a notice of Kinman on his pickups (impersonator), I hope that helps.
Pickup adjustment is crucial for tone. For maximum output adjust the neck pickup so that both outside magnets have no less
than a 2mm(5/64 ins) gap between the poles and the strings with the 12th fret closed.
For the bridge pickups there can be a similarly 1.5 mm (1/16) gap.
Some players prefer a large gap and set the pickups slightly above the pickguard for low output.
(Could that be what Hank was trying to obtain??)
HX pickups are more sensitive to this adjustment and consequently more flexible in the tonal range.
Try different setting to see what you prefer. Start low and adjust until you find the sweet spot.
Sheendigs

[caddyshak6]

Hi David and Sheendigs,

Never notices the Kinsman, although I have Fender Vintage Noiseless on my Strat, does the same apply to those?

Regards
Tony

[somebodyelseuk]

Depends how strong the magnets are charged. Knowing Fender, they'll be between 800-1200 Gauss, so stick with the Fender advice, otherwise you'll have 'harmonic issues'.
Single coils, with AlNiCo V magnets are typically charged to the same spec - 1200 being about the maximum charge possible on magnets of that material and dimensions.
Some makes can be raised closer without issue, EMGs for example use very low magnet charge, low windings/impedance stacked coils with an inbuilt preamp to bring the level back up. These can be, EMG recommend it, set as close as possible.
Cheers, Julian

[peterbower]

I think Charlie mentioned the word 'Wolf' tone if the pups were too near the strings

Peter

[Charlie Hall]

I saw the Kinmans on one of Hank's Strats at the Millennium show rehearsals at the end of 1999. They were very close to the strings, that was without even depressing the strings at all. Hank also has his strings higher than I can comfortably play as I have tried to play one of his Strats when testing an echo patch.
Regards,
Charlie

[caddyshak6]

Julian
Thanks for the advice, I will do as you suggest

Charlie

My theory was sort of correct then, which surprises me, he must have very strong fingers as he always seems to produce such a clear and sustained sound on every note he picks

Regards
Tony

[burns]

We must all know, that the pick up setting for the strat recomended by Fender, is from the early days , with the guitar straigth in to the amplifier, no pedalboards no effects, just the pure tone, and that does`nt really work very well nowadays, and you cannot really jugde the pickup heigths on Hank`s strat now, because he can have a very high setting, but he has so many steps to go trough befofore he reach the amp, : wireless with controls etc, in the early days I suspect he had a close setting : pick up strings, but the tube echo did also create a big boost to the playing with it`s tube preamp, those echoes had up to 11 tubes in it !!!

[bor64]

Charlie, in 2009 it was the same with Hanks string heights although he use CS '54 pu's and those were not that close to the strings as his kinman's.

Cheers Rob

[Charlie Hall]

Hi Rob,
Right, CS54's shouldn't be as close to the strings.
Regards,
Charlie

[Deleted]

hi,

I actually spoke to Hanks fender guitar setup technician. When his strats leave the factory they are normal setup like the fender recommendations. He does adjust the strings so they are a tiny bit higher. With pickups they are just standard setup. Some times his personal tech will adjust them according to the height of the strings so they are perfect. 

I recently setup my guitar and i have to say if you follow fender instructions its a beautiful setup and sound!

Hope that makes sense and helps you out!

Joe

[rogerbayliss]

Also the different types of Alnico like 5 , 3 , 2 will behave differently. Typically 5 is the brightest and the higher the number the less the bite and you can put them closer to the strings as stratitis is less problem.