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OX4 Spec - What Did You Get?

BurstWurst

Member
Joined
Jan 24, 2008
Messages
568
Hey guys,

I'm new to this forum and above all a proud new owner of a 2004 1960 RI Les Paul! It has equipped OX4 PAF humbuckers (which I adore). My question.... does anyone know if these pickups have 4 way wiring? I really want to have the Jimmy Page 21 tones mod done to this guitar with 50's wiring. Any help would be greatly appreciated!

Happy to be here,

Brian.
I was looking for a pickup set that would be as reminiscent to the double whites in my 59 burst as possible. Mark suggested "low wind" and we did not discuss magnet type. I put them, along with an RS vintage 335 wiring harness, into an early CS ES-339. The combo gets as close as I think I could hope for to the sound and dynamics of my old burst's pickups. With Gibsons, I'm convinced lower output is the way to go, more like the 50s HBs. Very happy with my OX4s.
 

Mr. Papa

Well-known member
Joined
Jan 14, 2002
Messages
1,418
I'd love to know the specs on the Hot Duane set if anyone cares to share.
 

Stow

Well-known member
Joined
Nov 14, 2002
Messages
1,857
Duane are hot pups, I used to use A4 mags but recently been using A5, they are as hot as 9k in bridge
 

Grayd8

New member
Joined
Feb 6, 2016
Messages
58
There's been plenty of positive comments and feedback about OX4 pickups but most of it has been about OX4 pickups in general. Very few customers have been specific about the wind or magnets they received.

I'm thinking of getting low or medium wind with A4 mags

Would any of the happy users care to share the specs they went for?


Here are the notes I have for all of the Ox4's I have/currently own, they were all A4 mags:

Hot Duanes
8.95 bridge
8.21 neck


Ox4 cream humbuckers
8.54 bridge
7.63 neck


Ox4 zebra low wind
7.53 neck
7.83 bridge

The hot duanes were pretty fat, but articulate. they brought down the house on the neck playing sunshine of your love or victim of love - wish i never traded them sometimes. I defintely plan on getting another set.

The regular winds are my ATF, very Pagey sounding. They have a very nice balance between hotness and articulation.

The low winds are very similar to the regular winds in voice, but don't push the amp as hard. They basically sound like the custombuckers I pulled out, but it's like there was a blanket over the front of my amp, and now it's been pulled off.
 

Nick-O

Active member
Joined
Aug 12, 2015
Messages
223
I have the low winds in one as well, similar to the above readings IRRC. I think Mark said they were A4.
I call them the Matthewz...cause Mark shipped them during the hurricane in October and we took a direct hit.
But the pickups arrived in top shape!
Very pleased, no plans on changing those at all.
 

Mr. Papa

Well-known member
Joined
Jan 14, 2002
Messages
1,418
I have a set of Hot Duanes in the mail. Will report when I get them in and install.
 

corpse

Well-known member
Joined
Jun 9, 2007
Messages
4,876
I bought a set after hearing Randall's (on this site) Smoke Stack Lightening. A hint of percussive micro-phonics going on. I bought regular wind for my R9 '13. They sounded great. 8.4 and 7.6 ish when they left Mark's bench.
I was shocked when they arrived on MY bench 7 DAYS LATER from the UK.
Mark- as I am sure most of these vendors do- cares about what you put in your guitar.
 

duaneflowers

Well-known member
Joined
Aug 13, 2013
Messages
2,522
FWIW, here are mine:

Ox4 Standard Ed King Set (8.46kΩA4/7.69kΩA4)
Ox4 Limited Run Beanos (7.87kΩA3/7.45kΩA3)
Ox4 Hot Duane Set (8.48kΩA4/9.07kΩA4)

:salude
 

lpnv59

All Access/Backstage Pass
Joined
Jul 15, 2001
Messages
10,725
The pickups on Duane's Darkburst read: 8.31K-neck & 9.04K-bridge. Before Kurt sold this guitar to Duane he did a reading on the pickups and the one that is now in the bridge was originally in the neck.
Duane's Cherryburst: 8.21k-Neck & 7.46k-bridge.
I wish I could get some readings of the pickups with my LCR meter and my Gauss meter...These readings were taken by Steve Morse's tech.


I recall a story about when the darkburst was delivered to Duane and he decided he wanted it, he and the seller went out to dinner and Duane instructed his tech to swap the pickups out from the Les Paul he had been using up until that point.
 

RavenTooth

Member
Joined
Oct 18, 2016
Messages
56
I just received my new OX4s, medium wind alnico 4. They measure 7.9k bridge, 7.7 neck. Very comparible in output to my Wolfetone Legends which are 8.3k bridge and 7.5 neck. The first time I strummed my guitar on the bridge pickup after installing them I thought 'this is it.' Still need to tweak the neck a little but its good too. Lots of warmth but also clarity and string definition. I think this might be thanks to the A4 magnets. I've had A5 and didn't like them. Too modern sounding. The Wolfetone Legends are A2 and very good. Vintage sounding, warm, a little mushy. The OX4 A4s are a bit more to my liking. They are similar to the A2s in a lot of ways but the low notes stay a bit better defined and they aren't quite as mushy. They have a bit more attack.
 

Pellman73

Well-known member
Joined
Aug 9, 2016
Messages
1,762
I recall a story about when the darkburst was delivered to Duane and he decided he wanted it, he and the seller went out to dinner and Duane instructed his tech to swap the pickups out from the Les Paul he had been using up until that point.

if I'm thinking of doing it what should I put in this guy?... or should I leave it "stock"...alterations would lessen value? or just put back the originals if I ever want to sell.... it does sound pretty good already.

http://

http://
 

Mr. Papa

Well-known member
Joined
Jan 14, 2002
Messages
1,418
I installed a set of Hot Duanes into a Les Paul Special last weekend. They came in nice packaging and had a great finish. I've played them for a few days through my JCM800 and Fender reverb style amps and here's what I think:

Up to around 7.5-8 on the volume dial, it sounds like your pick of the litter of PAF clones, only with a more pronounced thump in the fundamental note that I have heard in many others except at the higher end of the range. There is a very solid and satisfying sound here, like you are very firmly pressing the keys of a piano, but not overloading them. The surrounding note envelope is also there, and the balance between that thump in the strong fundamental note and high end response is pleasing. These are not DiMarzio chunk monsters, although they do have a pretty solid chunk.

As I dial the pickups up to 10, that solid chunk remains but the top end starts to sizzle and overdrives the clean channel of the JCM800 amp. I dialed the preamp volume back a little to compensate, but didn't like that tone from the amp as much, so I resolved to rely on the guitar volume controls (RS Superpots). This extra overdrive and compression in the pickups is very cool, and I get a huge range of usable tones from the pickup volume control that I haven't experienced before. I think the overwound nature of the pickup provides for this, but I have never heard it so well executed. Same thing for both the bridge and neck, different usable valuations of saturation, compression, and grind. The Duane slide tone is there. On the overdrive channel of the JCM inspired amp, that chunk and sizzle translates into a great Thin Lizzy tone, but at lower gain also does a range of cool classic rock tones. I have a push pull switch for out of phase, and those tones are wicked quacky and have lots of variation based on the volume control settings on each pickup--many shades of yay there.

To be fair, I felt that the tone controls (Silver Russian caps, CTS tone pot neck, push pull Alpha tone pot bridge) had less of a pronounced effect with these pickups vs. pickups with a brighter voicing. Tone controls dialed from chunky to beefy to fat. Also, I would encourage anyone about to install a set to put your screws through the baseplate once before you start to assemble the spring and pickup ring, just to make sure they travel easily. Mine were a little bit of a tight fit and because I am not good at this, the extra tension resulted in me slipping the screw driver off the screw several times trying to torque it.

I am very satisfied with these pickups, 100%, and would buy another set of OX4s in a minute. I would like to hear a lower wind version in a different guitar, like an ES-335, just to hear the difference. I bet they would be equally satisfying.
 

Pellman73

Well-known member
Joined
Aug 9, 2016
Messages
1,762
I installed a set of Hot Duanes into a Les Paul Special last weekend. They came in nice packaging and had a great finish. I've played them for a few days through my JCM800 and Fender reverb style amps and here's what I think:

Up to around 7.5-8 on the volume dial, it sounds like your pick of the litter of PAF clones, only with a more pronounced thump in the fundamental note that I have heard in many others except at the higher end of the range. There is a very solid and satisfying sound here, like you are very firmly pressing the keys of a piano, but not overloading them. The surrounding note envelope is also there, and the balance between that thump in the strong fundamental note and high end response is pleasing. These are not DiMarzio chunk monsters, although they do have a pretty solid chunk.

As I dial the pickups up to 10, that solid chunk remains but the top end starts to sizzle and overdrives the clean channel of the JCM800 amp. I dialed the preamp volume back a little to compensate, but didn't like that tone from the amp as much, so I resolved to rely on the guitar volume controls (RS Superpots). This extra overdrive and compression in the pickups is very cool, and I get a huge range of usable tones from the pickup volume control that I haven't experienced before. I think the overwound nature of the pickup provides for this, but I have never heard it so well executed. Same thing for both the bridge and neck, different usable valuations of saturation, compression, and grind. The Duane slide tone is there. On the overdrive channel of the JCM inspired amp, that chunk and sizzle translates into a great Thin Lizzy tone, but at lower gain also does a range of cool classic rock tones. I have a push pull switch for out of phase, and those tones are wicked quacky and have lots of variation based on the volume control settings on each pickup--many shades of yay there.

To be fair, I felt that the tone controls (Silver Russian caps, CTS tone pot neck, push pull Alpha tone pot bridge) had less of a pronounced effect with these pickups vs. pickups with a brighter voicing. Tone controls dialed from chunky to beefy to fat. Also, I would encourage anyone about to install a set to put your screws through the baseplate once before you start to assemble the spring and pickup ring, just to make sure they travel easily. Mine were a little bit of a tight fit and because I am not good at this, the extra tension resulted in me slipping the screw driver off the screw several times trying to torque it.

I am very satisfied with these pickups, 100%, and would buy another set of OX4s in a minute. I would like to hear a lower wind version in a different guitar, like an ES-335, just to hear the difference. I bet they would be equally satisfying.

Great description.

I always thought the first opening chord of "the boys are back in town" was what I'd want to hear when I play an open chord on a Les paul... wondered if they were playing deluxes (they both had deluxhes on live vid) and if that had an effect
 

Mr. Papa

Well-known member
Joined
Jan 14, 2002
Messages
1,418
Great description.

I always thought the first opening chord of "the boys are back in town" was what I'd want to hear when I play an open chord on a Les paul... wondered if they were playing deluxes (they both had deluxhes on live vid) and if that had an effect

I got the Jailbreak album out and put it in my car stereo on the way in to work after writing that review. It is EXACTLY that sound.
 

Pellman73

Well-known member
Joined
Aug 9, 2016
Messages
1,762
I got the Jailbreak album out and put it in my car stereo on the way in to work after writing that review. It is EXACTLY that sound.

that is so funny

I blasted the album in the operating room today too. (before reading your last post)

so good!!

the opening three chords to Jail Break might be even better !

was that album recorded on a Neve console? I wonder if that is a 1073 preamp deal too...

edit-

I looked it up... not sure anyone cares about this level of geekdom but

Jailbreak was recored in Ramport studios

http://www.philsbook.com/ramport.html

looks like Jailbreak was recorded Dec 75-feb 76

says they had a Helios 69 desk that they "sold in 1976" and then went to Neve consoles

hard to say if it was helios or neve
 
Last edited:

RavenTooth

Member
Joined
Oct 18, 2016
Messages
56
Stilling tweaking my medium winds. I put a fresh set of GHS Boomer strings on and I got to say, it's too boomy. Too fat and I wish I had a little more double tone. I lowered the neck below the ring a bit and its nicer. I'm wondering if I should have got the low winds now. Going to try some Thomastik-Infeld SL 110 Blues Sliders as they are supposed to be the best strings ever and see if that hits the tone I'm chasing. Any string preferences on these puppies? (The Boomers were the best for the Wolfetone Legends).

Maybe I'm just adjusting to the A4s coming from A2s. Not rushing to any conclusions yet as I know new pups need some time to settle in.
 

Scottg32

New member
Joined
May 10, 2022
Messages
11
I have a set of low wind and regular wind. I will be getting a set of Duanes in a couple weeks. Mine have the Alnico 4. These are my favorite PAF type pickups by a large margin. I have tried a ton of different PAF's including Stephens Design and Throbak. Any specific things you are concerned about?
Hi! How do the low winds and medium winds compare? I just ordered a set of medium winds.
 

Stow

Well-known member
Joined
Nov 14, 2002
Messages
1,857
I have had every wind and mag combo in my LP, SG, 335 etc its all personal preference.. low was the 1st ever production sets, the benchmark Ox4 tone.
 
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