Catswhisker Pickups are about good tone and innovation. The great sounds developed by the pioneers of electric musical instruments haven’t been lost and there is certainly no black art involved in recreating them, it’s just a matter of how to approach it.
One aproach is to micro analyse what was done back then and attempt to re-create it, which is a credible way of going about making a mechanically correct replica, but not neccesarily making a good sounding pickup.
My approach is focused upon the sound, accepting the classic tones as bench marks and then utilising modern materials and a touch of innovation to acheive it. There are no shortcuts, it requires a lot of experimentation but it is a progressive process rather than a historical exercise.
Many of the early electric instrument pickups were hand wound and I have found from experience that hand winding produces a unique clarity and complexity of sound that is rarely achieved by machine winding. It is a far slower process than machine winding but for good tone, it really is the way to go.
The winder that I use today is actually Mk3, the rotational speed is the ideal balance between time taken and control of the coil as it builds. It enables me to produce a coil count to within two turns consistently and dropping coil taps in is a cinch. Its predecessor, the Mk2 winder featured a tracking cam to feed the wire across the bobbin automatically. Unfortunately, the coil was far to evenly wound and the difference in tone was really quite obvious. So Mk3 dispensed with the tracking cam and I went back to using my fingers to guide the wire but with the luxury of the speed optimisation and count control.
It is worth pointing out that the use of quality components is also a key factor in creating good tone both quantifiably and consistently and all of the proprietry components used in the manufacture of Catswhisker Pickups are the same as those in many “Boutique” pickups.
Lets also acknowledge that a good valve amp, a good quality lead and an individual style and playing technique are major contributors to a quality sound, but a good sounding pickup gives you a great foundation to build from!
Most pickups are custom made to order, but I do usually have a few items available for immediate dispatch.
Catswhisker pickups are proud to endorse
Guitarist Mark Thomas uses the 72 Classic and 72 Classic Dogear