Mickey Mouse Pickup Appreciation Thread!

[Ixtlan]

Thought I would start a thread after loving my new T-100 Slim Jim.

Feel free to share your thoughts on the mickey mouse pickup: the good, the bad, and the goofy.

Also here is the reference thread link: https://letstalkguild.com/ltg/index.php?threads/micky-mouse-pickup-reference-thread.211925/

 

[chazmo]

I like their name.

 

[GGJaguar]

I like the MM (even if it's only in the neck position).

 

[Default]

Still trying to find a loose one! If anyone sees one for sale, let me know!

 

[Ixtlan]

These on my 1967 T-100D

 

[chazmo]

So, anyone know why they're called "Mickey Mouse" pickups?

 

[GAD]

So, anyone know why they're called "Mickey Mouse" pickups?

Nickname given by the people in the plant because they were small.

 

[walrus]

I had them (or one) on a few of the guitars in my signature below. I always liked them!

walrus

 

[The Guilds of Grot]

Somebody on one of the facebook Guild groups posted a photo of a Mickey Mouse pick-up with a black bobbin.

Somebody else responded they were made by Hagstrom. Of course they were corrected!

 

[Norrissey]

I like the MM (even if it's only in the neck position).

Gorgeous. What model is that? Looks like a Guild Studio ST-202 with only one pickup.

 

[Ixtlan]

I think I saw somewhere that the MM is “cheap” and that’s how they got their name. But they don’t sound cheap, they are not really a P90, but similar. More like a unique single coil on a hollowbody? They can be buttery and also snappy.

 

[Canard]

Ted Greene said, in the most affectionate of manners, that they were very poorly behaved in relation to the politeness of Gibson HBs. Good enough for me! Edit: actually what he said was they were a little unruly.




I have been told that they can be very Strat-like in sound and that there are capacitor mods/removals that can enhance this tendency. I do not know this to be true for myself.

There is a T-100D for sale (long for sale now) at some distance, which I have asked about. The seller repeatedly refuses to provide pics of the action and the bridge. The seller is asking a price, which if Reverb listings are anything to go by, should get one a VG+/E grade instrument with an OHSC. There is no money room in the pricing for the cost of a neck reset, so my car has stayed in the driveway. And gas isn't getting any cheaper either.

https://www.letstalkguild.com/ltg/index.php?threads/looking-at-a-66-t-100d-with-mickey-mouse-pups.211404/

 

[GGJaguar]

What model is that?

ST-301

 

[The Guilds of Grot]

This is an ST-302:

 

[Ixtlan]

The Oliver Wood video captures the sound also. He has some gain and tremolo on the amp. There are more sounds to get out of these pickups, and the pots work well.

 

[walrus]

That's a great video!

walrus

 

[teleharmonium]

I like these pickups a lot, and kind of wish they had been used on some full depth hollowbodies.

 

[hansmoust]

I like these pickups a lot, and kind of wish they had been used on some full depth hollowbodies.

You will find them on X-50s from the second half of the '60s.

Sincerely,

Hans Moust
www.guitarsgalore.nl

 

[teleharmonium]

You will find them on X-50s from the second half of the '60s.

Sincerely,

Hans Moust
www.guitarsgalore.nl

Hans'd !

 

[matsickma]

I had added comments to one of the threads a while back about my new found love of the Mickey Mouse pickup! I didn't fully appreciate it years ago when I had my 1st S100 Polara with MM pickups. But today I just can't get over how great they sound! Really an awesome sounding pickup that was under rated and known only to Guild guitarists. The interesting thing is it seems that Guild didn't have ideal quality control or were aware of the significance of the magnet and winding sense. I have receintly went about testing the various guitars with MM pickups to identify how the magnetic poles are setup. Similar guitars with MM pickups can have any combination of N/S magnet and winding. To be fair Fender didn't control their single coil pickups either!

Bottom line these are great pickups!

And here is my ST-303!