Getting your pickups sounding their best means adjusting the pickup height to its optimal position. Too close to the strings and you may run into trouble. Too far away, and the pickups will sound weak and thin.

For Humbuckers - Set your bridge humbucker around 2-3mm from the strings. "String pull" is a thing, but it's not usually a problem on most humbuckers. For the neck humbucker, height will depend on the type of pickup. If you're using a pair of PAF style pickups with near identical power output (say 7.9K bridge 7.6K Neck) you might want to do what players have been doing for decades and drop the neck pickup down approximately 5-6mm below the strings. It's a matter of adjusting to taste.

For J-90 - Set your pickups very close to the strings, 1-2mm is a good clearance. Pole pieces can be screwed all the way in (careful not to strip threads) and then wind the 3rd and 4th (D and G strings) pole pieces up one turn to allow for bridge or fretboard radius.

For Tele® - Set the bridge pickup anywhere from 1mm to 3mm below the strings. So far we use only Alnico 2 or 3 in our Tele bridge pickups, both are not too strong and don't really cause string pull. Our neck pickup uses a cover, which you can sit 1-2mm under the strings.

For Strat® - This can be a bit of an art to get right. Generally, start out around 5-6mm from the string on the Bass side and 3-4mm on the treble. If you hear any 'warbling' or variances in pitch, try going a little lower. It does depend on the magnet type too. Example - our Fat Toney uses degaussed Alnico 2 in a modern stagger, so you can run them nice and high, close to the string. Vintage models using Alnico 5, like the V12 or the Purple Voodoo may need to go lower as their magnets are quite powerful.

In all cases, just fret the string at the last fret and make sure it clears any pickups or their covers.

That's it!

If you ever get stuck, just hit us up via email or messenger and we will help!

Cheers, Ben.



 "® Strat ® Stratocaster ® Tele ® Telecaster" are registered trademarks of Fender Musical Instruments Inc (FMIC). JJ's Guitar Pickups is in not affiliated with Fender, nor are our products authorised by FMIC.