Railhammer pickups

[Starpeve]

Has anybody here tried any of the Railhammer pickups? They certainly sound interesting by description, but I'd like some personal feedback before I forked out the moohlah.

[Zentar]

$100 a pop. Dunno why PUs are so pricey. These look like dominos. The description sounds like hotter wound PAFs.

Mentions wider bobbins which is the P90s trick but they aren't as wide as P90 bobbins since Railhammers are twin coiled.. Sounds interesting but I bought a set of Texas Specials this year. I haven't got over the sticker shock yet. TSs are only $70 a pop which aint cheap either in my book. Pocketbook I mean. What made you interested in them? Have you heard them?

[Starpeve]

Not except for audio samples and youtube demos. The technology seems sound, and several artists including Reeves Gabrels rave about them. The whole idea of the rail section improving wound string definition with oversize slugs for the unwounds sounds very convincing and logical but , hey, what do I know? They look effing great though! For what it's worth, the youtube demos seem to back up the claims.

[Zentar]

Not except for audio samples and youtube demos. The technology seems sound, and several artists including Reeves Gabrels rave about them. The whole idea of the rail section improving wound string definition with oversize slugs for the unwounds sounds very convincing and logical but , hey, what do I know? They look effing great though! For what it's worth, the youtube demos seem to back up the claims.

 

Yea the youtube demo was impressive with the metal sound. Is it metal dedicated?

The rail section is nothing new. Ie seen them on basses so maybe they are specifically good for the wound strings.

The slightly wider slugs may be logical too. The P90 uses wider bobbins to create a fatter. wider mag field that reads a longer section of the string than a tall thin bobbin.

 

$200 a pop makes you think twice doesn't it? PUs are pricey now. You may have to take the leap to find out if you like them.

[Starpeve]

Yea the youtube demo was impressive with the metal sound. Is it metal dedicated?

The rail section is nothing new. Ie seen them on basses so maybe they are specifically good for the wound strings.

The slightly wider slugs may be logical too. The P90 uses wider bobbins to create a fatter. wider mag field that reads a longer section of the string than a tall thin bobbin.

 

$200 a pop makes you think twice doesn't it? PUs are pricey now. You may have to take the leap to find out if you like them.

There's a selection to choose from- alnico through to ceramic magnets, different levels of ' hotness' the 'hyper vintage' seems to be the one to go for. The clip you watched was probably the'chisel' which seems metal orientated. There's a few interviews on the net with Joe Naylor, their creator, and the guy really sounds like he knows his stuff. From designing amps, guitars, all the way through. I really like the lateral way this man looks at things.

[Zentar]

Good luck deciding between ceramic and alnico dunno which is better if better is the correct term. However I try to ignore and avoid the hot wound PUs. I am more interested in tone than peak output. Im not even sure the hot wounds even provide higher peak output. They may just provide higher readings on an ohm meter. Dunno, but just never bought into the notion that a hot wound PU is better in any way as far as what you hear. In the 1950s they could have wound more wire on the bobbins just as easy as we can now yet they didn't. Listen to ZZ Tops early albums. That is a PU wound in 1959. Sounds pretty hot wound to me. Whoever wound those PUs put the right amount of wind.

But the rail and the slightly wider slugs on the Railhammer is not just marketing tricks and theory nor is it new. The mixing of the two are new. I don't think Ive seen that before.