Asyllum Lab: Guitar Pickup Measurements, Tests and Experiments

Asyllum Lab brings together technical content designed to document how guitar pickups actually behave. The goal is to separate measurable parameters from marketing shorthand and, whenever data is available, publish the protocol together with the results.

What we will measure

• Electrical measurements: DC resistance, inductance and resonance behavior when the protocol allows it.

• Magnetic measurements: magnet type, actual charge and field change with distance when relevant.

• Geometry: coil width and height, P90, Humbucker, Mini Humbucker and single-coil architectures.

• Controlled comparisons: changing one parameter at a time whenever the construction allows a true A/B test.

Laboratory method

For comparisons to be meaningful, future tests will document relevant conditions whenever possible: pickup model, position, pickup-to-string height, potentiometer and cable values, measurement method, and winding or magnetization parameters when publishing them is appropriate. No numerical result is added here unless it has actually been measured.

Technical foundations already available

• Humbucker-Sized P90: Can It Really Sound Like a P90?

• Mini Humbucker: How It Works, Its Sound and How It Differs from PAF and P90

• 1959 PAF: How Were the Original Humbuckers Really Made?

• Alnico 2, 3, 4 and 5 in Guitar Pickups: What Are the Differences?

• How to Choose Stratocaster Pickups: 50s, 60s, Output and Character

• RWRP: What Does It Mean and Should You Use It on a Stratocaster?

• Wax Potted vs Unpotted Pickups: What Does Potting Actually Change?

• Pickup DC Resistance: Why kΩ Does Not Tell You the Output

• Heavy Formvar vs Plain Enamel: How Pickup Wire Affects the Coil

• How Does an Electric Guitar Pickup Work?

Why publish measurements

A single number does not describe a pickup. Resistance, inductance, capacitance, geometry, magnetic circuit and guitar loading interact. Publishing data with context gives guitarists, luthiers and technicians a stronger basis for comparing designs.