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I've seen videos and reviews for Alumitone pups.
The reviews are mixed. The pros are good frequency response and clarity, the con is a flat uncolored tone. Anyone using these care to post an opinion?
Thanks,
Dan

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I take it you mean pickups by Don Lace?
Many of his units are meant to be voiced like EMG's.... which I find sterile sounding for guitars.
(basses - OK)

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"Act your age, not your shoe size" - Prince

Thanks Chris. That's the gripe I have seen on several reviews. I guess it would be good for death metal, but I don't play death metal often. Other reviewers rave about the clarity. I may buy one out of curiosity.
They do look pretty cool.
Dan

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Don't get the wrong idea - I LOVE his pickups, but they've got to be the right unit on the right axe for what the client wants.

His Lace Sensors on Strats beat the crap out of EMG's. They have clarity AND dynamics.

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"Act your age, not your shoe size" - Prince

Sorry, I love the alumitones. I don't find them sterile at all.

They sound chimey and full in strats, and are super quiet.

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I haven't used the Alumitones yet but I have used the Drop & Gains and Dually's and the clarity is wonderful on both. Plus, they are the quietest passive pickup I know of. I wish I could vouch for the Alumitones. Frankly, the Dually's offer so much versatility it will be a while of experimenting with various configurations of those before I mess with Alumitones. They really are wonderful. The Dually's are simply two of the Strat pups that Chris vouches for above banded together to make a humbucker.

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I read Emerson on the can. A foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds...true...but a consistent reading of Emerson has its uses nevertheless.

StuMusic

Thanks, Stuart!
I'll investigate the Dually's.

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I hate to revive an old thread, but just wondering if anyone else has tried these out since? I'm building a multiscalr and may opt for these since the selection of multiscale pickups is so limited without paying out the rear. I'm considering the deathbar, but will likely go with the tamer version. They do look pretty sweet, and I like the idea of them being constructed completely different from everybody else's. I contacted a guy who winds amazing pickups to see if he would try to wind some angled ones for me, but he hasn't responded in a week, so I'm leaning towards these. I'd love to wind my own, but I'm not set up for that yet

Cool Mark,
I'm working on an LP style guitar.
I bought a Semour Duncan Sh-1 for the neck, and I am considering a Dethbucker for the bridge.
If you do purchase one, let me know what you think.
Thanks,
Dan

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Alumitones are a patented design, and aren't simply "wound," which may explain why the pickup builder you contacted hasn't responded. Not many are set up for that, or even understand the concept, as they are not constructed as a typical coil. And I don't know how important it is to angle your pickups to follow a multiscale slant anyway: Toone and Strandberg don't, and they both use Alumitones.

I didn't want him to try to make an alumitone, just to wind me a nice set of pickups with an angle to them. my understanding is that the angle is quite important to get good tone out of the pickups, as you typically position your bridge pup as close to the bridge as you can for the nice tight snarly sound, if you pup a straight pickup in, the bass side. ends up being positioned too far from the bridge, causing a bassier, looser sound. I planned to use an alumitine instead because there are no pole pieces to worry about lining up under the strings, and the 3.5" alumitone should fit the slant just fine, probably with plenty to spare

I ordered one for my current build. It may be after xmas before I install it.
I bought a Seymour Duncan '59 for the neck position.
I'll let you guys know what I think.
Dan

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If you're up for some very inexpensive experimentation you can make your own version of alumitones. All you need to start is a current sensing transformer (CSE-187 is about perfect) and some 10awg copper wire. A single turn is usually enough to peg the primary resistance. All of this will cost less than $10 per pickup. With this configuration the frequency response is flat well beyond 20kHz, so an active preamp/filter to bring the resonant peak down to where you want it is advisable.

Other things to consider:alumitones are begging to be modified and their potential for a broad spectrum of voicings is inherent to the design. On the underside you will find a transformer that wraps around the pickup frame. The next cool is current sensing, and the third handles Z-matching and voicing... Re-winding or taking turns from that coil will create huge changes to the character of the pickup. As a less destructive alternative small coils could be wound and placed next to the usual output cool. Lace also hasn't experimented with laminated frames, copper/plating, or pc boards (a one or two later board with heavy traces as coils could work very well.

For additional information and pictures search for threads on the music electronics forum. People haven't tried to change the alumintones nearly as much as they have played with current sensing transformers.

Good luck. I suspect you will find the ultra low-noise digitally programmable active pickups with a completely analog signal chain. Configurations can be changed on the fly, which is equivalent to swapping out pickups, pots, and tone caps simultaneously. The goal is to have prototypes ready to ship during the first half of 2015. Control software and interface design is being handled by a long-time friend and interaction designer for Apple. I can't wait to announce further details and demos.