Newer HB-1s

Hammer

Senior Member
Joined
Sep 1, 2008
Messages
1,274
Reaction score
106
Location
Harrisburg, PA
My search-fu may be horrible and I missed it, but are there any comparison videos with the newer, full-sized HB-1s?
 

GAD

Reverential Morlock
Über-Morlock
Joined
Feb 11, 2009
Messages
22,583
Reaction score
17,803
Location
NJ (The nice part)
Guild Total
112
My search-fu may be horrible and I missed it, but are there any comparison videos with the newer, full-sized HB-1s?

Do you mean the Newark St. HB1s, or the even newer "normal sized" HB2s?

Either way, I don't think so. I've been trying to get an article out to that effect for years but I keep getting in my own way.
 

Hammer

Senior Member
Joined
Sep 1, 2008
Messages
1,274
Reaction score
106
Location
Harrisburg, PA
My search-fu may be horrible and I missed it, but are there any comparison videos with the newer, full-sized HB-1s?

The newer, Tim Shaw assisted, full sized pickups. I've seen them referenced as HB-2, but Guild has them for sale in their online shop as HB-1. *shrug*
 

dbirchett

Member
Joined
Oct 2, 2006
Messages
938
Reaction score
90
The HB-2 are Gibson HB sized. The HB-1 are slightly larger and are probably only usable in Guilds or custom mounts. As I understand it, the HB-2 pickups are an attempt to put a HB pickup with the clarity of the HB-1 into a Gibson-sized shell.
 

GAD

Reverential Morlock
Über-Morlock
Joined
Feb 11, 2009
Messages
22,583
Reaction score
17,803
Location
NJ (The nice part)
Guild Total
112
The newer, Tim Shaw assisted, full sized pickups. I've seen them referenced as HB-2, but Guild has them for sale in their online shop as HB-1. *shrug*

Where did you see that Tim Shaw was involved? That would be a pretty big deal.
 

SFIV1967

Venerated Member
Joined
Nov 20, 2010
Messages
18,442
Reaction score
8,956
Location
Bavaria / Germany
Guild Total
8
The newer, Tim Shaw assisted, full sized pickups.
Don't know where and when this "rumour" came up first, I read it from somebody with a user name "S-100 Addict" on the Guild site in a #AskRen post around October of 2014. The HB-1 re-issue was first used in the S-100 mid of 2014 when FMIC already had sold Guild shortly earlier that year. Definitelly the end of 2012 re-issued mini-humbucker were reverse engineered by BHK in Korea and the Koreans did all the material analysis of the wires, magnets and so on, based on the FMIC provided vintage originals. That was what I learned from talking to Mike Lewis (FMIC project leader for the Newark St.™ Collection) when I met him at NAMM 2013. So I'd assume that was exacly the same what they did with the HB-1 at FMIC at the same time, especially as Mike Lewis said, Guild/FMIC told the BHK crew to not change anything, no change in materials or design was allowed. No change to magnets, wires, windings,... Mike said to me: "The new pickups are real Guild® pickups but just not manufactured in USA." Well, it went that far that they recreated a defective pickup as we all know from the one mini-humbucker...
It was right at the end of FMIC owning Guild, so Tim Shaw for sure somehow had a say or double checked the drawings, but if he really "assisted" on the HB-1 and what this means would be totally unclear if not questionable to me. Tim was working as Fender R&D person in the New Hartford custom shop for both Guild and Fender acoustic guitars until the end of New Hartford.

Ralf
 

Quantum Strummer

Senior Member
Joined
May 26, 2015
Messages
2,382
Reaction score
118
Location
Michigan
The 5K LB-1 isn't defective, just different: thicker wire, fewer winds. The vintage set in my Bluesbird are IMO magical.

-Dave-
 

dbirchett

Member
Joined
Oct 2, 2006
Messages
938
Reaction score
90
Are people confusing the HB-2 with the Little 'Buckers?

Am I wrong or are the HB2s a new pickup that is an HB-1 in a Gibson sized case?
 

DThomasC

Senior Member
Joined
Oct 10, 2014
Messages
1,283
Reaction score
187
Location
Finger Lakes, New York, USA
Sorry to be that guy that picks nits. (Why be sorry? Picking someone's nits is actually a very kind act.)

Anyway, the original HB-1 bobbins wouldn't fit under a standard size cover, so according to the laws of physics as I understand them it's impossible to have a standard size HB-1.

I don't know what's under the covers of NS HB-1's or HB-2's...
 

GAD

Reverential Morlock
Über-Morlock
Joined
Feb 11, 2009
Messages
22,583
Reaction score
17,803
Location
NJ (The nice part)
Guild Total
112
Sorry to be that guy that picks nits. (Why be sorry? Picking someone's nits is actually a very kind act.)

Anyway, the original HB-1 bobbins wouldn't fit under a standard size cover, so according to the laws of physics as I understand them it's impossible to have a standard size HB-1.

I don't know what's under the covers of NS HB-1's or HB-2's...

Smaller bobbins?
 

Default

Super Moderator
Platinum Supporting
Joined
Jul 30, 2007
Messages
13,596
Reaction score
3,008
Location
Philly, or thereabouts
Guild Total
11
If Guild was smart (which I'm convinced they are not) they would offer a 5k set and a 7k set. Problem solved!
And you saw from my tear-down thread how chimp-simple this would be to do. I fume at the marketing bs to cover the mismatch.
 

SFIV1967

Venerated Member
Joined
Nov 20, 2010
Messages
18,442
Reaction score
8,956
Location
Bavaria / Germany
Guild Total
8
I don't know what's under the covers of NS HB-1's or HB-2's...
I assume the BHK HB-1 should look inside exactly as a Westerly area HB-1. Don't know if GAD opened one yet. The BHK HB-2 is too new to say. Both use Alnico II magnets. In any case the HB-2 naming for a guitar humbucker is stupid as it was the Guild bass pickup in the past...CMG marketing didn't know...
Ralf
 

Quantum Strummer

Senior Member
Joined
May 26, 2015
Messages
2,382
Reaction score
118
Location
Michigan
I imagine the new HB-2 is kinda like Duncan's Phat Cat P-90: the basic formula of the "real thing" with an altered form factor. Since everything affects tone when it comes to pickups, I'd expect an HB-2 to sound very much like but not identical to the current HB-1.

-Dave-
 

GGJaguar

Reverential Member
Joined
Jan 17, 2011
Messages
21,309
Reaction score
31,396
Location
Skylands
Guild Total
49
I'd expect an HB-2 to sound very much like but not identical to the current HB-1.

I hope you're right! If that turns out to be the case, I'd have to try a pair in my Bluesbird. I really don't care for the stock Duncan pickups.
 

GAD

Reverential Morlock
Über-Morlock
Joined
Feb 11, 2009
Messages
22,583
Reaction score
17,803
Location
NJ (The nice part)
Guild Total
112
I need to get a pair, because if they sound like HB1s then they're a consideration for those of us that dislike the Fender HB1s!
 
Top