Ceramic Magnet Pickups Vs Alnico

Ceramic magnets are made from ferrites often iron oxides.

Ceramic magnet pickups vs alnico.

A magnet by itself has no sound and as a part of a pickup the magnet is simply the source to provide the magnetic field for the strings. Ceramic magnet pickups generally have a hotter output level as well often with a lower resistance rating. Ceramic can get a bit plastic or sterile. Alnico tends to produce a very musical pickup in most.

Alnico has a higher inductance due to the iron content technically ferrite magnets are made from iron oxide so to generalize alnico will increase the inductance a bit and sound a bit warmer than a ceramic in the same pickup. Most magnets used in pickup production are either alnico v ii and ceramic however you will also see alnico iii. There are harsh sounding pickups with alnico magnets and sweet sounding pickups with ceramic magnets and vice versa. Magnetically speaking ceramic magnets produce a stronger field than alnico.

Ceramic magnets have a lower inductance since they are not metallic. Pickups made with alnico magnets do sound different from those made with ceramic the fact that the magnets are made with dissimilar materials u is u a variable that makes an audible difference. But it all depends on the pickup. Alnico ii this provides the warmest tone as well as decreased dynamic range.

Alnico seems to be the popular favorite but on the other hand there is no shortage of popular recordings that feature ceramic. Provides some bite and sparkle. Alnico vs ceramic magnets. The result is a slightly hotter sounding pickup with more treble response.

Alnico v has more scooped mids and tighter in the low end. Alnico 5 has more punch but can be too crispy. There s always a trade off even between different types of alnico. Alnico stands for aluminum nickel and cobalt.

So we often hear. You often hear that the sound of a pickup is dominated by the choice of magnet used in its construction. Neo is punchy but a little too hot and tough to control. Pickups with alnico v magnets that are voiced more aggressively than pickups with ceramic magnets and alnico ii pickups that sound totally different from other alnico ii pickups definitely exist.

Alnico is nice and warm and great for blues. Alnico viii is generally between ceramic and alnico v with quite a bit of magnetic pull punchy with upper mids but a little more warmth than ceramic. The important factor is the design of a magnetic circuit which establishes what magnet to use. Whereas ceramic is used in metal as it sounds tight loud and cool.

Alnico vii is in some pickups but this is rare. Alnico ii is a lower output magnet that is smooth and usually has just a bit of warmth. To crown a winner in our alnico vs ceramic magnets shootout we would need a way to accurately compare the two which is not an easy task. Alnico 3 sounds sweet and even but little punch.