Pickup for a custom built octave

[Andy88]

I'm building my first octave mandolin - hollow bodied, electric(8 string) but I'm a bit confused with pickups. Can I use any old pickup, or does it have to be specifically for a 4 stringed instrument?

Also I wasn't planning on have volume or tone controls on the mando, since my amp has a ton of features anyway, so when wiring it up can I just go straight from pickup to the jack?

Cheers

[GarY Nava]

If you go for a blade/rail style humbucker, you shouldn't have any issues with the string v pole piece spacing.
Good luck Gary

[darrylicshon]

I agree blade pickups , i have used a Seymour Duncan Hot rails pickup , they sound good, what kind of music are you going to play, i am using emg 81 active pickups in mine, but my mandos are solid bodies and i play a lot of hard rock/metal with mine

[Tom Wright]

Steve Ryder makes 4-pole pickups for octave electrics, and can customize your pole spacing. I highly recommend his stacked-single-coil humbuckers.

You can use a blade design but won't have a way to alter individual string response. I wouldn't compromise, get a dedicated pickup. Steve uses individual Alnico magnets for each pole, and I push them up or down to adjust.

Pete Mallinson of Almuse also makes custom pickups, and uses neodynium magnets under each pole. Most of his designs have adjusting screws.

[Jacob]

My preference is for both volume and tone controls on the instrument.
For me, the tone control is a real plus, but the volume control is a must have.
For use with nylon strung instruments with piezo pickups and no volume control, I use a Taylor V-cable.

[zoukboy]

I HIGHLY recommend Pete Mallinson's ALMUSE custom pickups. One of my pet peeves is seeing guitar pickups on mandos and tenors.

[darrylicshon]

Most of my electric mandos are 5 string the rails work good and the emg 81 , but on one my recent projects a 8 string flying v mandolin, i am going to use Seymour Duncans new mandolin pickup
http://www.seymourduncan.com/product...andolincustom/

[Dave Greenspoon]

I had the single-coil lipstick on my Kentucky swapped out for a Wild Bill L45s. I know that some folks also love their DiMarzio twin blade.

[Andy88]

Thanks for the input guys, I think ill go with a rail type purely because this is the frist mando i'm building, and it will be my first otcave - want to keep it simple.

I keep seeing pickups which just have a solid top, no individual magnets or a rail visible eg: http://www.seymourduncan.com/product...1_vintage_min/

Anyone tell me what they've got under the cover?

Cheers

[darrylicshon]

Seymour is really nice person,if you ask him I'm sure he will answer

[thistle3585]

Totally eliminate the pickup and go with a piezo bridge.

[GarY Nava]

Totally eliminate the pickup and go with a piezo bridge.

Have both!
Cheers Gary

[mandroid]

I got a Fender Lace Sensor (gold version), It works .. I also have RMC pickup bridge pieces .
they are Piezo 1 per string.

I think the magnetic field is also from a surrounding rim pole. the wire coil is within
and surrounding a central Permanent Magnet.

[lenf12]

DiMarzio Twin Rails humbuckers with coil cuts on my Mann SEM-5 string e-mando work very well and get a nice range of sounds. Very versatile!!

Len B.
Clearwater, FL