does it matter, pu in the wrong way

[Distollica]

i ve finally get my guitar back from the store.i realllly don t know how to put a pickup so i asked someone to do it for me (here in belgium lol 90% of people do that sorry....).there is a problem (i think), he put my neck pickup ( a sh-1 '59 model) in the wrong side...i hope you see what i mean: the same side that the bridge one...

is it important?do i have to change it or can i keep it like that?

[FretFire]

I'm not sure if it matters for that model, but I know that a tech installed the Air Norton in my RG backwards, and when I flipped it I got a totally different sound (and the sound I bought the pickup for, the Petrucci-ish tubular tone he gets on the Awake album).

[Distollica]

may be someone who works for seymour duncan knows it... i will wait for an answer

[Distollica]

well actually i m not sure of which side is the good side si i will discribe it:

the plate poles are on the left (turned to the neck) and the "screws" poles are on the right (turned to the bridge).

for now i don t have an anormal sound from it...

[Kelsey]

I'm no expert, but I doubt it will cause a problem -- how does it sound alone and in combination with the bridge pickup? I'd go by my ears.

BTW, Keith Richards has been known to flip the neck HB around in his Teles to brighten up the neck tone, so you're in good company.

[Benjy_26]

I used to flip the 59 in the neck slot of my Paul with no ill effects. I wanted it to be a bit brighter and have less lows. I eventually ended up getting a PGn and have also used it flipped and in standard mounting, also with no problems.

[BachToRock]

Gary Moore seems to prefer it that way...

[jeremy]

gary moore does that cause he owns peter greens old lp that had the neck pup flipped and out of phase.

distollica, the pup will sound slightly different if you flipped it, but it will be very subtle. if you like the way it sound now, i wouldnt mess with with it

[Imp]

wouldnt it cause problems when it came to having both pickups on? out of phase or something?

[Distollica]

that s why i wonder... is it simple to replace it without disconnecting it?? can someone give me the link?

[mrfjones]

well it is real simple, just take the screws out of the pickup ring and pull both the pickup and ring off the guitar. unscrew the pickup and turn 180 degrees screw the pickup back to the ring and then screw the ring back to the top of the guitar. put some new stings on and you will be all set. if it doesn't cause phase issues i would leave it how it is.

[sanrafael]

It does not cause phase problems. Although the "ideal" humbucker would have two coils that are exactly the same, they do not really need to be made that way, and they generally are not. The two coils might have somewhat different sensitivity (output level) and so reversing it would make a subtle difference since you would be moving the location of the most sensitive one a bit. This is not a big deal for most.

[Distollica]

i m sorry but i am french and i didn t understand everything.which screws do i have to take out?is it only the 2 screws before and after the pickup or the screws on the pickup (the poles)???

[Distollica]

***** it is now impossible to replace it cause there is not enough cable left...i hope i wont have any problem with it in the future.
but there is something stange: the screws-poles must be on the on the neck extremity but the cable is connected on this side. i bet teh guy who did that put that pickup that way cause the cable was there...i dont understand...

[seafoamer]

I prefer my Bridge p-up flipped so the pole pieces are on the inside.

[mrfjones]

if you just unscrew the mounting ring the ring and the pickup lift out of the guitar. you can then just unscrew the only two screws that hold the pickup in place on the ring. flip it around, so that the screw poles are toward the neck then put things back the way they were. if there isn't any slack in the cable and you want it turned around then i would take it back to the place you had it installed and tell them to do it. they should do it for free.

[Davey]

i got it in the guitar that way (check my profile picture).. cos the wires are not long enough (seriously.. i didnt cut them one bit) i love the way it sounds. i imagine that it will sound a tad more bassier if you turn the screws towards the bridge, but i havent tried as i said the wire is too short to turn it

well.. what guitar do you have it in? problems occur if the switch is far away from the pup and if the tech cut the cord. if it's long enough though.. just unscrew the whole mount ring and flip it 180 degrees