Are The Dual-pickup Switch Positions In A Strat Also Humbucking?

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You are using an out of date browser. It may not display this or other websites correctly.You should upgrade or use an alternative browser. Are the dual-pickup switch positions in a strat also humbucking?

• Thread starter TheInertials
• Start date Jun 1, 2015
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TheInertials

TDPRI Member

Joined May 30, 2015 Posts 58 Location Seattle There are two switch positions in a standard strat which engage two of the three pickups, either the neck and middle or the middle and bridge. When the switch is in these positions, are the pickups together now "humbucking"? I tried to find the answer to this Googling around and reading articles on Fender and different pickup manufacturer's web sites but I couldn't. I want to know just because I became curious about it.

Zepfan

Doctor of Teleocity

Joined Nov 30, 2013 Posts 14,145 Location Horn Lake, MS Yes they are in humbucking mode, but they are in parallel instead of series like a double coil would be. Like the middle position on a Tele with a 3 way switch.

chris m.

Doctor of Teleocity

Joined Mar 25, 2003 Posts 12,578 Location Santa Barbara, California In an original 50s era Stratocaster, no. However, in many of today's Stratocasters and available replacement pickup sets the middle pickup is constructed in order to be reverse wound and reverse polarity from the other two pickups. Thus, when the "2" or "4" switch positions are selected you do get humbucking and as a result the 60 Hz hum is greatly reduced. When you read about Strats or Strat pickup sets you are looking for the key word "RWRP" middle pickup or "reverse wind-reverse polarity" and you will know that you get that feature. A few purists believe that RWRP somehow diminishes from tone but I believe that most guitar players don't feel that way and generally prefer having the RWRP middle pickup option. You can't produce this just by reversing the two pickup wires on your middle pickup. This will create a much weaker and thinner "out of phase" tone in positions 2 and 4 but will not reduce hum.

JD0x0

Poster Extraordinaire

Joined Feb 22, 2009 Posts 5,919 Age 35 Location New York If the pickups are RWRP to each other. Any two single coils can humbuck if the two coils are reverse wound, reverse polarity to one another. In teles and strats the pickups are wired together in parallel, instead of series, like a typical humbucker. MOST strat sets are RWRP in the middle position, but not all. Only SOME teles have their neck and bridge pickups RWRP. Parallel = reduced inductance, higher resonant frequency, more highs. Series = increased inductance, lower resonant frequency, less highs. This is why two single coils in a strat are 'humbucking' but dont sound like humbuckers. Wire them in series, and the sound gets a lot closer to the tone of a humbucker. T

TheInertials

TDPRI Member

Joined May 30, 2015 Posts 58 Location Seattle Nice! Thanks everyone--this is the kind of info that is hard to find when you don't know what search terms to use. So this being the case what's with the HSS strats? Why does that appeal to people when you basically have it already in the standard strat configuration?

JD0x0

Poster Extraordinaire

Joined Feb 22, 2009 Posts 5,919 Age 35 Location New York Because HSS have a fatter bridge tone. The bridge pickup in strats are notorious for being 'thin' or harsh. It's more about the tone than the humbucking, because there ARE 'humbucking' sized single coils. Fender even makes their own 'noiseless single coils' so if a player wants the humbucking that bad, they'd just go for something like that, rather than limiting themselves to only having 2 humbucking positions (or 3 in the case of a HSS) Positions '2' and '4' are the only humbucking positions in a typical strat, and that tone is very different than using only one of the pickups, or even a bridge humbucker on its own. IMO, typical humbuckers are more of a tonal thing, than a lack of noise thing. You can get true single coils that are extremely quiet, or even use noise canceling 'dummy' coil systems with singles, but it's hard to get humbuckers that will behave and sound EXACTLY like true single coils. The RWRP middle pup, just gives you 2 positions that you dont have to worry about 60cylce noise, and it doesn't really cost the manufactures or the buyer of the instrument anything, which is probably why it pretty much became the standard

Chriss945

Tele-Holic

Joined Apr 3, 2011 Posts 522 Location Southampton UK I just need to clarify. They do 'buck hum' when the middle pickup is RWRP. But, those positions don't create a humbucker tone in the slightest. The sound is still a single coil sound. So an HSS strat has a humbucker in the bridge, but in the bridge and middle setting, it will still have the same sound as a standard strat, but just be a little bit fatter.

chris m.

Doctor of Teleocity

Joined Mar 25, 2003 Posts 12,578 Location Santa Barbara, California In the bridge/middle position it may not be fatter at all. HSS wiring is often set up so the humbucker bridge pickup gets split when combined with the middle pickup. I.e., it is still two single coils being combined and therefore doesn't sound fatter than a SSS Strat in this position.

JD0x0

Poster Extraordinaire

Joined Feb 22, 2009 Posts 5,919 Age 35 Location New York

just need to clarify. They do 'buck hum' when the middle pickup is RWRP. But, those positions don't create a humbucker tone in the slightest. Click to expand...

I think I covered that

Parallel = reduced inductance, higher resonant frequency, more highs. Series = increased inductance, lower resonant frequency, less highs. This is why two single coils in a strat are 'humbucking' but dont sound like humbuckers. Wire them in series, and the sound gets a lot closer to the tone of a humbucker. Click to expand...

Chriss945

Tele-Holic

Joined Apr 3, 2011 Posts 522 Location Southampton UK

JD0x0 said: I think I covered that Click to expand...

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