Jazz pickups? Benedetto, Kent Armstrong or others?

[stan]

I bought a Harmony Jazz guitar on ebay (must stop going there...)
I am going to make it a lefty, bone nut, benedetto rosewood tail piece, floating roller bridge and add a pickup.

I don't mind if the pickup is the floating type that attaches to the pickguard or inset into the body by cutting a hole, or a neck mount one. In fact I am leaning towards the latter.

Before you scream NOOO, it's not an expensive guitar, and I am more interested in getting that traditional warm jazz sound than looks and dollar value.

I just am unsure as to which pickup will give a sound I like. This all depends on the guitar, string gauge, pickup, planetary alignment, and a whole host of variables...

But my choices seem to have narrowed to:
Gibson 57 classic
Benedetto A6
Kent Armstrong PAF 0 (inset) Johnny Smith neck mount/pickguard mount
Seymour Duncan SN2

All humbuckers

Any thoughts?

Here is the guitar, still in transit:

[DanMade]

P-90. Or a Carile Christian pickup(basically a p-90). Jason Lolar makes some, if you have some spare cash. Others make them aswell, though the names escape me.

Cool guitar. Now I want one.

Have you considered using flatwound strings. That reminds me I must order some. Flatwound guitar strings are rare as hens teeth in Brisbane these days. Can anyone recommend some good affordable flat wounds?. I have used the standard GHS FW strings before. They were ok. I was going to try daddario Chromes too see how the go.

[stan]

thanks or the recommendation, will the p90 give the mellow sound I'm after? Think you mean Charlie Christian

just watched a vid of Lollar vs CC Charlie Christian pickups, both sound nice!

[lawry]

/<\\/p>[]<\\/p>/Quote from DanMade on November 19, 2013, 20:10
I was going to try daddario Chromes too see how the go.

Hi Dan. I use the Chromes on my Ibanez AF105, which is my first choice for jazz. The strings sound warm and fat, and are smooth as silk. I've been using them for years and buy them in bulk from "strings and beyond"..

[DanMade]

Thanks for the nod on the Chromes Lawry. I will give them a try.

Lawry, have you tried the Pyramids or Thomas Infeild, and are they worth the coin. $20-30 a set?

[stan]

Any other thoughts on pickups?

[lawry]

/<\\/p>[]<\\/p>/Quote from DanMade on November 20, 2013, 07:31
Thanks for the nod on the Chromes Lawry. I will give them a try.

Lawry, have you tried the Pyramids or Thomas Infeild, and are they worth the coin. $20-30 a set?

Gotta be honest, I haven't even heard of these strings but I'm prepared to give them a go if there are favorable reviews about them.

[stan]

Perhaps a question for DB or Gavmeister: I have been looking at my pickup choices and was thinking about something that didnt require routing into the body...

i dont mind doing it, but I am concerned about the structure underneath.

So perhaps a dog eared p90, or a neck mount or guard mount pickup... I want that warm Benson type of sound, so that is why I was originally inclined towards the inset humbuckers - any other options or rout away and be damned!

Oh and I have the guitar now - very nice, no damage or cracks. Did a bunch of measurements and now it's gone away for Christmas...

Thinkings of putting these on it:

[stan]

Have decided on and ordered the Kent Armstrong inset PAF humbucker

[stan]

just went mad with the guitar fetish sale and bought a roller floating bridge, new trapeze, new tuners, flat wound strings, jack and end plate, all gold hardware...