Humbucker pickups, often simply referred to as “humbuckers,” are a type of guitar pickup known for their ability to reduce unwanted noise while delivering a robust and powerful tone. They are commonly found in a wide range of electric guitars, from jazz to rock to metal genres. In this comprehensive guide, we will dive deep into the inner workings of humbucker pickups and explore how they function to create their signature sound and reduce noise.
The Birth of the Humbucker:
To truly understand how humbuckers work, it’s essential to go back in time to the 1950s when single-coil pickups were the norm. Single-coil pickups, while producing a bright and clear tone, were susceptible to interference, often in the form of a hum or buzz. This interference, caused by electromagnetic interference (EMI) from various sources, was a persistent issue for guitarists, especially in live performance settings.
Enter Seth Lover, an engineer at Gibson Guitar Corporation, who sought to address this problem. In 1955, he introduced the humbucker pickup, which was designed specifically to “buck the hum” and provide a quieter, cleaner signal. The humbucker pickup’s design was groundbreaking, and it quickly gained popularity among guitarists.
The Anatomy of a Humbucker Pickup:
To understand how humbucker pickups work, let’s break down their key components and design features:
- Coils: A humbucker pickup consists of two coils of wire, typically wound in opposite directions. These coils are also known as “bobbins.”
- Magnet: Between the two coils is a magnet, which creates a magnetic field in the pickup.
- Pole Pieces: Metal pole pieces are placed beneath each string, within the magnetic field, to capture the string vibrations.
- Wiring: The coils are connected in series or parallel and have different polarities, which is a crucial aspect of noise cancellation.
How Humbuckers Work:
Humbucker pickups work by using a combination of design elements to reduce the unwanted noise associated with single-coil pickups while delivering a powerful and robust tone. Here’s how they achieve this:
- Coil Orientation: The two coils in a humbucker are wound in opposite directions. This means that one coil has a clockwise winding pattern, while the other has a counterclockwise pattern. This arrangement results in the coils producing electrical signals that are out of phase with each other.
- Polarity: One coil’s magnetic polarity is opposite to that of the other. For example, one coil’s north pole might be facing up, while the other’s south pole faces up.
- Series Wiring: In most humbuckers, the two coils are connected in series. This means that the signal from one coil flows into the other. This series connection adds the output voltages of the two coils together.
- Noise-Cancellation: Here’s where the magic happens. Because of the out-of-phase winding and opposing magnetic polarity, any electromagnetic interference (EMI) picked up by the coils affects them in the same way. When the two out-of-phase signals are added together, the interference cancels itself out, leaving only the original guitar signal intact. This is known as “common-mode rejection,” and it’s the primary reason humbuckers are so effective at reducing noise.
- Powerful Tone: The series wiring and the fact that both coils contribute to the output make humbuckers sound more powerful and fuller compared to single-coil pickups. This is why they are often associated with genres like rock and metal.
Coil Splitting and Versatility:
Many modern humbucker-equipped guitars feature a coil-splitting option. Coil splitting allows you to deactivate one of the coils, effectively turning your humbucker into a single-coil pickup. This versatility lets you access a wider range of tones, from the warm and fat humbucker sound to the bright and clear single-coil sound.
Conclusion:
Humbucker pickups are a testament to ingenuity in the world of guitar electronics. By utilizing opposing coils, magnetic polarity, and series wiring, they effectively eliminate unwanted noise while delivering a powerful and versatile tone. Understanding how humbuckers work can help you appreciate their design and the incredible impact they’ve had on the world of electric guitar, enabling guitarists to create music with clarity and precision in even the noisiest of environments.
