Last Updated: November 19, 2019
Want a tone with some power and meat, but without all that irritating hum? You’re in the right place, as the humbucker delivers almost everything the modern guitarist needs.
Humbuckers are hugely
popular pickups in the world of modern rock and metal, although have actually been around for a long time. Technically as far back as 1934, when the first twin-coiled guitar pickup was created as an alternative to the noisier, weaker-signaled
single-coil pickup.
However, it was Gibson employee Seth Lover who developed the hum-cancelling PAF pickup – considered the first true popular humbucker – in 1955, with Gibson’s Les Paul the first guitar model to bring humbuckers to the masses.
As time went on, humbuckers became a popular pickup with many brands – even seen on Fender Telecasters and Stratocasters, which are famously single-coil guitars. These days it’s quite common to see a Strat with two standard single-coil
Strat pickups sitting above a humbucker, in a H-S-S configuration.
We’ve put together a short guide to everything you need to know to get started with humbuckers, as well as a chart that highlights seven awesome models. While there are certainly more than the seven pickups we suggest, these are some of the most popular on the market today, showing great power, style and value.
The Top 7 Humbucker Pickups:
How Humbuckers Work
While single-coil pickups offer a beautiful clean, clear, sparkly sound, they also pose a problem. As soon as the gain or volume increases, so too does the interference from ambient magnetic fields around the guitar – arriving in the form of hum. Which is no fun.
Humbuckers were created to remedy this. Their overall construction is not too dissimilar to a single-coil, comprising magnetic poles/slugs wrapped in a hair-thin wire, sandwiched between two ‘flats’.
However, unlike a single-coil, humbuckers have two coils (and therefore two sets of pole-pieces). These are wired out of phase with each other, so the hum generated by the first coil is cancelled out by the second, and vice versa.
This ultimately boils down to a pickup with no unwanted hum, keeping guitarists happy as they crank up the volume and the gain.
What They Sound Like
A guitar loaded with a humbucker is capable of some delightful sounds. While the exact tone will differ depending on the brand, price and the construction of the pickup, as well as the actual guitar they are fitted to, a typical good-quality humbucker delivers a thick, round, rich and warm sound, with a meaty low-end, emphasized mid-range, and rounded trebles, as well as great sustain.
In modern music, humbuckers are a huge deal. While jazz players love the warmth of a humbucker, pretty much every heavy style of music relies on them for their rhythm and lead capabilities – classic rock, heavy rock, and punk rock in particular, while humbuckers are also undoubtedly the
best guitar pickups for metal and its many subgenres.
As for legendary humbucker players, just take your pick from this list of mega stars: Eddie Van Halen, Dave Mustaine, Tony Iommi, Jimmy Page, Dimebag Darrell, Joe Bonamassa, Randy Rhodes, and Steve Vai.
Any Disadvantages?
While they may seem perfect due to their tone, power and interference-cancelling abilities, humbuckers are not without a drawback.
In particular, humbuckers don’t have the brightness or clarity on offer from single-coils, so aren’t ideal for musical styles that rely on chime or twang – surf or country music for example.
Active vs Passive?
When it comes to pickups, you have a choice between active and passive. If you’re not sure what pickups are on your guitar, chances are they are passive. These are the most popular, and used in most styles of music – from classic rock, punk and early metal, to blues and jazz.
However, since the 1980s, active pickups have become more common, especially in the heavy rock and modern metal genres, where their unrivalled power and zero hum make them a sensible choice.
There are several pros and cons of each style, and it’s worth checking out this excellent
comparison article on active and passive pickups from pickup kings Seymour Duncan.
Why Replace Your Pickups?
It’s a good question. Some guitarists won’t think twice about keeping the stock pickups on their guitar. However, changing the humbuckers is a great way to wake up your
favorite guitar – adding some extra depth, clarity and power.
When it comes to cutting costs, especially on budget models, most guitar manufacturers will usually look towards the pickup area to keep their profit margins intact, inserting stock models whenever possible.
Not that there’s anything wrong with stocks. But as you and your playing become more advanced, a new humbucker from the likes of Gibson, DiMarzio, Seymour Duncan, or EMG can have you sounding another level, very quickly.
The Final Word
Whether you’re chasing the perfect metal sound or just want to give your favorite axe a new lease of life, a good humbucker will usually do the trick. And the seven we highlight in our chart should give you a little inspiration when making your shortlist of humbuckers to suit you.
Make sure you don’t dive straight in and buy the first ones you see – read some reviews, check out some videos, and listen to a couple of audio files of your shortlisted pickups before you make your decision.
All the best with your new humbuckers!