That's truly THE comparison video I dreamed about all my guitarist life !

Clean: Alnico 2 - 2:58 Alnico 3 - 3:07 Alnico 4 - 3:15 Alnico 5 - 3:24 Alnico 8 - 3:31 Ceramic 8 - 3:39 Medium gain: Alnico 2 - 5:26 Alnico 3 - 5:38 Alnico 4 - 5:50 Alnico 5 - 6:01 Alnico 8 - 6:12 Ceramic 8 - 6:24 High gain: Alnico 2 - 7:50 Alnico 3 - 8:06 Alnico 4 - 8:22 Alnico 5 - 8:39 Alnico 8 - 8:56 Ceramic 8 - 9:13

I like the 2's. You can do tons of things to add grit, gain, and distortion. But not so much to clean up a dirty pickup.

Busted out my monitoring headphones. Huge difference once you have headphones on. 3's are my fav

Personally I feel that Alnico 5 gives you the best of all worlds across the board. Most versatile tone capability for all genres.

I’m going to name my first son Al Nico

Please do this comparison in the bridge pickup position

ALNICO IV for me, clear note separation and warm at the same time.

Here are timestamps for each individual magnet test. Enjoy! CLEAN A2: 2:59 A3: 3:07 A4: 3:15 A5: 3:23 A8: 3:31 C8: 3:38 BLUES A2: 5:26 A3: 5:38 A4: 5:49 A5: 6:01 A8: 6:12 C8: 6:24 ROCK A2: 7:50 A3: 8:06 A4: 8:22 A5: 8:39 A8: 8:56 C8: 9:13 I personally don't hear a difference other than output volume.

I was surprised, especially on the blues bit how warm and still chimey the Ceramic was. I like the saturated breakup of the Ceramic. Probably very dynamic using the volume control.

AlNiCo-III was my favorite in all three tests. It just sounds warmer than the others to me.

this has to be one of the best comparison video's ever. Thanks Darrell for all the effort you put in your work. I'm leaning towards #2

Through my headphones the Alnico II just had a clarity I liked. Great video.

Personally alnico 4 was my favorite. They all sound great, just different sounds for different contexts. This was a great comparison for anyone looking into new pickups/ pickup magnets.

Awesome video idea Darrell, thanks for that! You're a heck of a guitarist too brother!

I've never seen or heard a demo anything like this. It's genius. Well done.

One of the most informative gear videos I’ve come across. Definitely in the top 5. Way to go!

this is great thanks for sharing your thoughts. I have been really too concerned with the possible difference and as I live in remote Canada I want to order the right parts the first time. Thanks again, i know its painstaking work to do a true comparison like this

I can say one thing for sure: Changing the magnet in the same pickup of the same guitar makes a _much_ bigger tone difference than _any_ tone difference anyone has ever shown from wood in an electric guitar!

I've been looking for a video comparison like this for YEARS. Thank you so much!

Incredible! I’ve always wanted a proper test between the different pickup magnet types, you nailed it here! The alnico III was perfection through your clean signal. Alnico II won out on both pushed tests to my ears. Awesome stuff, keep up the fantastic work! Pretty new here but, absolutely loving the channel!

Amazing Effort, Darrel. Thanks for feeding our Gear obsession

Absolutely the best comparison video I've ever seen. This will really help me focus my pup choices in the future.

Excellent comparison Darrell. Thank you for posting this. This is great insight as how the pickups behave. Great job.

Great video! I always wondered the difference between the alnicos. Thanks for doing this comparison, and your other comparisons. They are very informative and helpful! I found myself liking the 2 and 4, and sometimes 3. Interesting how it depended on the style. 5s are very good for all around, I think.

Dang, this is indeed a very in depth comparison and analysis man! Now I want them all haha!

Super helpful! This explains a lot to me about what I like about Gibson Classic 57s. It’s the lower output and clarity of the A2 that for me I preferred in every instance!

I was really surprised how much difference just changing the magnets made. Good video, very thought provoking.

Really well done Darrell. I think this provides a very good reference for guitarists who want to get a basic familiarity with the tone differences of these different magnet alloys. You did a great job of performing the test riffs very consistently which helps make the tone comparison more objective. It's not that easy to repeat the riffs with that amount of precision ;-)

For me, it was A3, then A2... same as you. Finally, for the heavy test... that was harder to pick a preference. I'd probably go for A8. The surprise, for me, was the ceramic pickup... I actually liked it in all the tests, though it wasn't my favourite in any one test. Most of the stuff I play is either clean-ish or crunchy, so after listening to these tests I checked what magnets are in my Pearly Gates and discovered they use Alnico 2. No surprise, then, that it was the A2 magnet I preferred for test #2. It's nice to know my ears haven't deceived me.

Great video, Darrell. After reading about swapping out magnets in a JB etc., on various forums, I've been waiting for a comparison video such as this. Thanks!

Hey Darrel, Recently I watch a lot of your videos because I am building my own guitar. It is just so good to hear alle the different options. Just Awesome what you have put together. Thanks a lot!

Before even watching this, you need to know one thing. There is NO standard recipe for any of the alnico grades. EACH manufacturer uses their OWN recipe. Now, as a pickup designer, this is a GOOD thing. It gives you a huge palette to play with. Example, I have A3 magnets that are super dark sounding, real warm and of course real WEAK, because A3 has no cobalt in it. I have A2 that is super super bright, and some that is really warm as well. So generalizations kinda don't work. A5 is usually quite strong and bright, but there are magnets like A5L which aren't super strong, nor bright. So, all we are hearing in this demo is magnets from ONE company in China. All magnets used in guitar pickups are Chinese, ALL of them. This is not a bad thing, it makes no difference. Back 20 years ago Korea made all pickup alnico, Chinese undercut the Koreans and sold for cost and killed the Korean market. We do have Arnold Magnetics in the USA, but in my experience, they are rather lifeless and bland sounding, back in the 90's, Arnold magnets gave Fender pickups a bad reputation for being just BAD. They hired someone to figure out why the pickups were so disliked, I don't know that they figured out Arnold mags were just nothing like what anyone was making or even vintage magnets, but I had those in my Strat and the sound was lifeless and bland. Vintage magnets are usually really very bright but can have a tiny bit soft top end. My company brought back rough cast alnico back in 2007 working thru Allstar Magnetics and Magnetic Hold. Rough cast has no magic, they just look cool, beware any hype being used there. Allstar went through Sensmag in China, Magnetic Hold wouldn't tell me who they used, and their 2nd attempt to make them completely failed as the magnets all came out extremely thick, we had to grind them down to thickness and the rough texture was ground away. Sensmag still sells my magnets and they are very good. Vintage magnets were all pretty much quite WEAK too. I've worked on tons of vintage PAF's and typically the magnets all measure about 400-450 gauss. By '61 the magnets were getting stronger as alnico technology improved, and some could reach 600 gauss in a hot recharge measurement. By '65 they were A5 magnets, very tiny and thin, but strong.

Really brilliant test. Not sure whether it'll influence future purchases but get way to test kudos to Darkmoon

This is the answer I’d been waiting for, for months! Thank you sir for this full rundown👍

Great video Darrell exploring the topic !!

Great video ,!!! thank you Darrel , without a doubt THE best youtube video about guitar pickups magnets xD

My favorites were 3 for clean, 4/3 for blues rock, and 8/ceramic for high gain. Nice test. This stuff is invaluable

Dude, phenomenally well done. Like others have already said, this is what we all needed when we searched this topic!

Great video.... you are dispelling myths with every video you come out with thanks for for all the effort!!

This one was on my "to do" list for a LONG time! What were your favorite tones? I keep oscillating between A2 and A3. On some clips I like the warmth of A3, and on others the clarity and bite of A2 :)

I wish the last test would have been in the bridge position. There was just too much bass from the neck position.

Wow! That was a super test! Listened to it three times. And it has confirmed my inclination to A4 magnets in pickups. My favorites for clean were (from most favorable to less) A4, C8 and A2; for crunch A3, A4 and A2; and for gain I would choose A4, C8 and A3.

Just bought a loaded pickgaurd with 250k pots and these truly amazing vintage 60’s style pickups with Alnico 5’s for my Strat. Made locally here in Australia by this old guy. Blown away by them!! Amazing the difference between magnets! pretty impressed by the ceramics in this comparison btw. You seem to be a champion for ceramic pickups 😉

This made me want to buy 3 guitars with 3 pickup configurations. 3, 5 and 8. And I appreciated that you shared your thoughts.

Alnico II rules. I hate hot pickups. You can always add dirt. You can't add clean.

I really really like how much effort you put into making sure the only thing you change is the thing you actually want to test!

Props. Having done the experiment myself, this video is a colossal contribution to the guitar nerd world! Well done DBG

DARKMOON IS REALLY AWESOME! I NEVER SEE THINGS LIKE THAT!

I really enjoyed this vlog! I am a big fan of the ALNICO V for pickups. I love the tone and output from them! Watching this is like rooting for your favorite team in the playoffs. I am glad they made a decent showing. Thanks for sharing your "experiment" and results!

Best compare I ave ever seen!...perfect!!. Answered every question I had on each magnet

As always, just a great video. I really wonder what the 4 guys that didn't like it had in mind.

Excellent job! I liked the 4. I complained to you about my 498/490 stock pups, but I decided not to change because of your pup comparisons. I found that I simply have to use all the controls on the guitar and amp and I spent a little more time adjusting and listening to the height. I got them sounding the way I like them to. If you don’t have the money to buy new ones, work on altering your settings and adjustments and you might find they are just fine. Thanks again Darrell!

Thank you for taking the time to do this. My ears still gravitate to Alnico IIs for best/most versatile overall PUP.

This comparo mirrors my own personal tests, which helped me to decide on alnico II for my vintage pups, alnico V for my mid output pups and alnico VIII for my high output pups. I may use this video when asking clients to describe the tone they want. Brilliant.

I think they all sounded pretty good with subtle differences. I'd have to pick Anico V's for the best in all 3 tests. Alnico III's sounded very jazzy which I also liked. Kinda of an odd timing for this vid.. I've been thinking of picking up a Fender Player Strat that has the V's.. I may have to blame it on this vid when the wife sees the guitar...

The 4's had the best pitch balance and clarity on what we are hearing from KZfaq. Both from my ear and the frequency analysis. I could easily see people preferring the 2's and 3's to get more accentuation on the high end and keeping the clarity. You can always add in some low end and dirt if you want too. The 5's are what they are. The 8's would need a lot of post work unless you just looking for crunch and dirt.

this was fantastic. Really great comparison and I think this will help us figure out what we want in our pickups and how to explain why.

Darkmoon your badass! Darrell your badass!!!! Love this video man! Let’s see part 2 with the bridge pickup 😀🤘🏽

I really liked: Clean: A4, C8 OD: A2 Saturated: A3, A5, A8, and C8

Dark Moon is a great company. High quality pickups at a reasonable price considering what some companies charge for custom would pickups. I have a cheaper Les Paul Tribute and I dropped Dark moon pickups in it and i love them.

This was a very well done comparison, thanks for sharing!

I love the Alinco II's, especially on the clean and lower drive sounds, it's really awesome. Great comparison Darrell!

That. Was. AWESOME! Today I like the A3. Tomorrow maybe the A2.😅

I think I'd personally pair a set with Alnico III in the neck with Alnico IV in bridge, the distortion on the IV sounded really clear for me, not too saturated, hit in a nice way, but the III was very warm yet clear and could see that being thrown into a neck pup

I really appreciate what you do and the work you put into these videos and you channel. I can tell you love guitar as much as I.

I’m really liking both A-II, A-III. I can’t see more than A-IV. Ran it back n forth several times with earphones. Thanks, Darrell for this cool, very well done test.

Tha'ts a pro-level comparison right there! There's just one thing I think you could improve, and it's not hard at all: do quickier A-B's between a pair of magnets, instead of whole chunks of music. This way we can have a better feeling for the difference in the spot

Clean: A5 Medium Gain: A2 High Gain: C8 Best Overall: A4 A3 seemed to me like it had a mid-range honk. Which might sound very good through mid-scooped amps like black-face Fenders... A4 seemed to me like the most versatile of the batch. Given the tone pots are subtracting, you might tame the top-end of A5/8 with the tone knob...

Great job (three years late)! You answered all the questions I had on the magnets and more! Thanks a lot!

I would agree, 4 and 8 are similar... Totally not my cup of tea, but interesting to hear back to back. This backs up my preferences with 2 and 5 as the mags I like to use.

Neck position on a LP can be mushy, loved the A2. Bridge is where A5 rules. Thanks, great test!

Alnico 2 all the way, what a revelation!! 😀😀 thank you Darrel!

AlNiCo 2 FTW!!! Thanks Darrell, for doing this awesome and informative comparison!

I don't know if it's my 60 year old hearing or my headphones (beats studio, maybe 5 years old), or maybe just not knowing what to listen for, but aside from a gradual progression from "slightly cleaner" to "slightly grittier" I have a very difficult time perceiving much difference between these. Still, it's really interesting to see such a direct comparison and to have that in mind when viewing or reading all the inflated claims about this or that type of pickup. I have about 10 electric guitars, some humbuckers and some single-coil, and they all sound different (even listening to their acoustic sound not plugged in) but I remain fairly puzzled about how to account for the differences adequately.

Great video. My ear prefers the A2.

Looking for new pickups for my guitar, so this video had a lot of really good information. Thank you for uploading.

I love Alnico V and on the last test was the best so far (my taste). Thank you so much for the best comparation I've ever seen, the most accurate it on KZfaq as you always do.

It seems that they get progressively hotter. Would be interesting to see this done with single coils, if that were possible. Great video!

Alnico 5s for me. Alnico 2s sound really good too.

Great video! Two was my favorite on each sound.

Man, congrats on your channel! You and Rick Beato are the best! Thanks for all the information! This is the best video EVER about pickup magnets!!!!

I've always liked a3 magnets better, especially in a neck humbucker. I like a2 and a4 in bridge pickups. I rarely like a5 pickups in any position. You should do the same comparison in P90s.

Alnico III for me. When it comes to overdrive and distortion I believe the bridge pickups would have been a better choice to model.

This is a great demo, super helpful for someone trying to decide what type of magnets to look for.

Oh thank you I've been waiting for this forever !!!

Bruh.. this video just had me realize i like A3 way more than the popular A5

A2 and A3 were my favorites for clean and light gain. However, they lose too much definition with higher gain. A4 and A5 were best with higher gain.

👌🏻🤘🏻 I believe that this has become the only thorough video of how the sonic of different magnets work in the pickup. Really, it gives a better understanding, even to a simple person like myself who has tried to understand the inner workings over 25 years. The one opinion that I have with any of this, is that it would be wonderful for you to follow up and do a video of them in the bridge position as well - just to give people an idea of how to complement different magnets together for their styles and tastes.

Great Video Darrell !! I am a big Fan of Alnico V

Great video, but what about A5 unoriented❓

the Paul Harrell of the guitar world lol. For those of you who know, you know. Keep up the great work!

Thank you for this! It really helped me decide which type I want in the tele style guitar I just built!

Another awesome video. Thanks very informative. I love your videos.

Be awesome if you could do the same with a bridge pickup :)

After 40 years of live gigs and recording and having 40 plus guitar models, I can say that magnets or pickups mean very little! Why?...simple ...with a good compressor and EQ you can tone shape any pickup , humbucker or single coil. A small EQ cut or boost here, a little bit more compression and presto! instant tone shaping.

2) 3:00 3) 3:07 4) 3:15 5) 3:23 8) 3:31 C) 3:38 2) 5:27 3) 5:38 4) 5:50 5) 6:01 8) 6:13 C) 6:25

This might be your coolest test yet! I have studied the magnet types and read reviews. This is the first side by side test I've ever seen. I have a Simon Neil Squier signature strat that uses 3 Alnico pole pieces on the 3 high strings and 3 Alnico 5 poles on the lower strings on each of the 3 pickups - giving it a nice organic sound.

This might be one of the best things on KZfaq, can we now put tone wood to bed and accept it’s the pickups and scale length that make up most of the tone 😊

They all sound like legitimately good tones in their own context of desired output, but I am surprised how well the Alnico 5 stands out in comparison after hearing first the great sounding Alnico 2. The more bland/neutral A3 and A4 in between makes the A5 sound like a clear winner in the category of best of both worlds, the tone of the A2 with more output but not so high like the A8 and ceramic that the pole pieces have become over-saturated/less dynamic.While this test was executed with great skill in keeping the static conditions perfectly unchanged so that the variable could be examined in depth, there is one fault with the experiment in that the nature of side-by-side humbuckers to sum and cancel the extreme highs and lows. This is not a criticism because this question is meant to educate guitar players of what effect magnet types have in a humbucker, but to really 'hear' the effects of magnet composition, some sort of single coil made from a moulded plastic bobbin (to be able to pull out and replace rod magnets) or a P90 would display some seriously interesting audio artifacts to compare against. I'd do a video of it myself if I had the quality of video/audio recording available to me that you have; in the meantime I'll just subscribe to your channel, all sorts of interesting stuff I see. Take care and thank you.