The Chetboard

Anybody out there in Chetland ever do any adjusting of pole screws on their NC since they got it? Just wondering, Al

I have done a very minimal amount of balancing the bridge pickup with regards to the G string. When mine was delivered, it had the solid G string, and I changed to the wound version. I had to raise the pole pieces about one turn toward the string to balance it out. I used an oscilloscope, but people with good hearing could probably do it by ear. I am just not one of those.

Hi Al,
I have fooled around with the pickup polepieces many times on my NC. I've forgotten where they were originally. I don' think that matters for me because I played with the bridge height too. I don't change the bridge height anymore and tweak the poles occasionaly.
GaryL

Hi Al,
I'm still tweaking the pole pieces. I recently changed string gages and tweaked it again.
10, 12, 16, 26, 38, 48. Sounds good to me.
Regards,
GaryL

This is the best advice I ever saw regarding pickup pole adjustment. It was from a list of 'how to play/sound better'

33. Pickup Balance
“To balance your pickups, plug your guitar into something with level meters, such as a 4-track recorder. Play each string individually, and adjust the pickup height until the level of each string hits the same point on the meters. Typically, you’ll have to lower the bass side of the pickup. If your guitar’s overall output is quieter than what you had, simply turn up your amp to compensate. The benefit here is string-to-string clarity.” —Dave Wronski

Hi Norm,
I think that's good advice. I've been using my ear and found a good balance for my picking style.
GaryL

For me having the pups low 3/16 to 1/4 does more to balance the strings than adjusting the polepieces.This low setting gives the pup lots more character and nuance.If the guitar body(the balsa wood in my Tennessean seems to do this) compresses the signal enough string balance will be perfect anyway.A little brightness and of course some volume is lost but for me it's worth it for the added tone.As far as adjusting polepieces I screw the B string as low as it will go and the G(plain)down a lot also.The D is up higher than the rest(gotta allow for fingerboard radius)The high E is up somewhat and the A and low E are quite low.If the pups are set close the output changes more obviously as you note higher up the fingerboard(as string is closer to the pup).Just my humble opine. God Bless, Ty M.

I tend to set my e/a string lower because the thumb natrually hits harder.

It's still more in your hand than it is the pickup