GGJaguar
Reverential Member
I really like the single coil “frequency tested” pickups in my ’64 S-100 Polara and S-50 Jet Star. They are like slightly underwound P-90. I wondered what they would sound like in an archtop and could not pass up the opportunity to acquire this ’65 T-100D. From what I can tell, these pickups were used on the T-100D from late 1963 to maybe mid 1965 before changing to the Mickey Mouse single coils. Hans would know for sure.
I love the neck and playability and the sound is quite good. The bridge pickup is bright and chimey with some bite and neck pickup oozes blues and jazz tone without even trying. The sound with both pickups together is out of phase with the accompanying loss of volume. Out of phase is not my favorite tone, but it’s still pleasant enough and useful (at times). When I compared it to my ’64 S-100, I was surprised at how much richer and more 3-D the pickups sounded in the Polara. Plus, if you dig in on the S-100 you’ll get some of the growl that P-90s are known for. If nothing else, the comparison confirmed and reinforced my opinion that the ’64 S-100 is totally killer and one of those guitars that have a certain je ne sais quoi.
I’m thinking the difference between the T-100D and the S-100 is simply due to the thinline hollowbody versus solidbody and maybe pickup placement. I did a very cursory investigation because I was too lazy to get things like pot values and draw up wiring diagrams. That’s a job better left for GAD to do.
Measuring the distance from the center of the nut to the pole piece center, the neck pickup is 18.25 inches (46.4 cm) from the nut. By comparison, the S-100’s neck pickup is located 19.25 inches (48.9 cm) from the nut, meaning the Polara’s neck pickup is a full inch (2.5 cm) closer to the bridge. That helps explain the warmer sound of the T-100D’s neck pickup. The bridge pickup is 23.25 inches (59.1 cm) from the nut on both guitars. The DC-resistances of the pickups on the two guitars are very similar: 5.5K/5.6K ohm (neck/bridge) for the T-100D and 5.4K/5.5K ohm for the S-100. Interesting!
All in all, it’s a very nice guitar that’s fun to play and works well for the music I like. What more can I ask for, right?
I love the neck and playability and the sound is quite good. The bridge pickup is bright and chimey with some bite and neck pickup oozes blues and jazz tone without even trying. The sound with both pickups together is out of phase with the accompanying loss of volume. Out of phase is not my favorite tone, but it’s still pleasant enough and useful (at times). When I compared it to my ’64 S-100, I was surprised at how much richer and more 3-D the pickups sounded in the Polara. Plus, if you dig in on the S-100 you’ll get some of the growl that P-90s are known for. If nothing else, the comparison confirmed and reinforced my opinion that the ’64 S-100 is totally killer and one of those guitars that have a certain je ne sais quoi.
I’m thinking the difference between the T-100D and the S-100 is simply due to the thinline hollowbody versus solidbody and maybe pickup placement. I did a very cursory investigation because I was too lazy to get things like pot values and draw up wiring diagrams. That’s a job better left for GAD to do.
Measuring the distance from the center of the nut to the pole piece center, the neck pickup is 18.25 inches (46.4 cm) from the nut. By comparison, the S-100’s neck pickup is located 19.25 inches (48.9 cm) from the nut, meaning the Polara’s neck pickup is a full inch (2.5 cm) closer to the bridge. That helps explain the warmer sound of the T-100D’s neck pickup. The bridge pickup is 23.25 inches (59.1 cm) from the nut on both guitars. The DC-resistances of the pickups on the two guitars are very similar: 5.5K/5.6K ohm (neck/bridge) for the T-100D and 5.4K/5.5K ohm for the S-100. Interesting!
All in all, it’s a very nice guitar that’s fun to play and works well for the music I like. What more can I ask for, right?
