strat coil slant -why?

[ubertwerp]

N00b question -why the slant on the front single coil in strats-I assume it is to line up the pole pieces w/ strings ?

Does this really matter?

Is/was there any other reason(s)?

[Fikealox]

I don't know the historical rationale for the design decision (ie, the 'why'), but it does make the bass strings bassier and the treble strings brighter when you're using the bridge pickup.

[Luke Duke]

From what I remember it gave Leo the sound he wanted.

Don't be fooled though, Gibsons, Hamers, PRSi, and lots of other guitars achieve the same thing, but do it by setting the bridge in at an angle.

Luke

[blueman335]

I don't know the historical rationale for the design decision (ie, the 'why'), but it does make the bass strings bassier and the treble strings brighter when you're using the bridge pickup.

That's what it ends up doing to the sound, but I think the reason may have been more cosmetic than anything else. Looks great, fits the curves. Very artistic. But unfortunately it makes a bridge SC so bright & thin on the high strings as to be almost unuseable for many players. And having only one 250K volume pot with no tone pot, that SC bridge is treble on top of treble.

With Hendrix's Strats being upsidedown, he had a much better angle, with the bridge SC slanted towards the neck, giving more volume & body to the high strings (from the greater string energy). Sound-wise, this is how Leo should have slanted the bridge PU, but the visual lines don't flow as well with the pickguard. Tone lost out to looks.

[Zerberus]

From what I remember it gave Leo the sound he wanted.

Don't be fooled though, Gibsons, Hamers, PRSi, and lots of other guitars achieve the same thing, but do it by setting the bridge in at an angle.

Luke

Actually the angling of Tune-O-Matics and stop bar bridges is to achieve correct intonation and not for tonal reasons


the angling of the bridge pickup was done to warm upo the bass strings while still keeping the sparkle and brilliance on the high strings. IMO it would have been better the other way around, but it was Leo´s design and not mine.

[Luke Duke]

Actually the angling of Tune-O-Matics and stop bar bridges is to achieve correct intonation and not for tonal reasons

I knew it aided intonation, but I didn't know that was the only reason it was.

the angling of the bridge pickup was done to warm upo the bass strings while still keeping the sparkle and brilliance on the high strings. IMO it would have been better the other way around, but it was Leo´s design and not mine.

Lew, Dr. Barlo and a few other guys were running reverse slant bridges a few years ago, I wonder if they still are?

Luke

[apj]

Sound-wise, this is how Leo should have slanted the bridge PU, but the visual lines don't flow as well with the pickguard. Tone lost out to looks.

Exactly, it's funny how the slant almost makes the strat bridge unusable to me as far as once you start getting on the high strings. The closer you get to the bridge, the more harmonics and overtones with higher frequencies are emphasized, the pickup really should have been slanted the other way

[Zhangliqun]

And having only one 250K volume pot with no tone pot, that SC bridge is treble on top of treble.

At least that part's easily fixed. Just take the wire leading from the mid pu tone pot to the mid pu and swap it to the bridge pu.

[ginormous]

According to my best info, Leo blew his ears out testing guitar designs, and had almost no high-end perception. He may have thought the slant bridge PU "balanced" the sound.

[tc]

From what I know, it's to match the string spacing. I've always preferred reverse slants though (they are called Voodoo by most people). I think the bridge sounds so much more balanced this way. It kind of stops sounding like nails on a chalkboard...

edit: everyone said the same thing. I just trolled without intention! ooops

[cvansickle]

Leo did it to the Broadcaster (later, Telecaster) first.

[MattPete]

From what I know, it's to match the string spacing.

That doesn't make any sense, as the string spacing widens as you move towards the bridge, and slanting the bridge pickup effectively makes the pole spacing narrower.

I think Leo did it for looks, or else he was tone deaf. I've never tried it myself, but I agree with the folks that suggest that slanting it the other wa would sound better.

[BlueSnMettle]

My fathers best friends cousin actually work with Leo and the truth be told...
































He was always looking for a different slant on things.

[Empty Pockets]

it was for METAWWWWWWWWWWLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL

[super rad stuff]

why? cuz it'z kewl

honestly no it really isn't but wh'ever. though it isn't all that bad on a tele, but i suspect the fact that there's a tone pot hooked up to it might be part of the reason

[LtKojak]

why? cuz it'z kewl

honestly no it really isn't but wh'ever. though it isn't all that bad on a tele, but i suspect the fact that there's a tone pot hooked up to it might be part of the reason

There's no pot attached to a Strat... so that's not the reason.

I also think the reason was purely cosmetic.

[super rad stuff]

There's no pot attached to a Strat... so that's not the reason.

I also think the reason was purely cosmetic.

i know, i meant that the tone pot on a tele is almost always hooked up to the bridge pickup, as opposed to a strat.

[ES350]

In the late 40's, there were a few Gibson models (ES300, etc) that used a slanted pickup. The idea was to even out the tonal response. One model had a P90 type that was twice as long as a normal P90 with 4 magnets. In addition to other reasons, Leo may have latched onto that idea that was floating around at that time...

[doesitmatter]

What you have to remember was that amps in the 50's didn't get a lot of treble. The angled single coil (and no tone knob for that pickup) was leo's way of helping the amp cut through the mix. As amps evolved, they could produce high end better, making that bridge pickup a little too bright.

[Luke Duke]

i know, i meant that the tone pot on a tele is almost always hooked up to the bridge pickup, as opposed to a strat.

On the oldest Teles and Broacasters you had a different switching set up though with the back position, like on a strat, being no tone control. This gave more punch and treble for lead lines.

Luke