Kent Armstrong floater question

[feral guitar]

I have a Kent Armstrong floater on my archtop
but it doesn't sound right - sorta ok, but not good.
The archtop sounds above average unplugged.
Is this one of the good KA's (usa vs asian)?:
* WD Music Products - NECK MOUNT JAZZ PICKUP W/ADJUSTABLE POLES BLACK

It is wired to a thumb wheel vol and tone of unknown origin.
I can't see a cap.
Also, when I turn up the amp (semi-loud) there is a weird 'digital' sounding noise that I can minimize by cutting the highs.
Vol and tone are always wide open.

Is it OK to get rid of the pots and just wire the pickup straight
to the jack with no cap or anything?

thanks
matt

[mikeSF]

that's the bad one. You want to call Kent armstrong in Vermont and buy the one that he made in his shop. I think archtop.com and maybe one or two other dealers sell them, but why not go straight to the well. He is a pleasant guy too.

[Jabberwocky]

Contact Kent directly. He's a really nice dude. I tried to PM you, Matt, but you turned off that function. I am loathe to post Kent's email here but you may Google him or you could PM me.

[floatingpickup]

I have several of Kent's hand wound pickups and they are great. The "smooth top" (formerly Kent's Benedetto pickup) sounds very nice, but I like to have adjustable pole pieces. My most recent guitar has one of Kent's gold Johnny Smith pickups with a single row of adjustable poles. It sounds great and looks very traditional. I also have one of his black single coil pickups (the one that is supposed to sound like a De'Armond) and I am really happy with that one. Very powerful and delivers that old style tone. I think my favorite, however, is Kent's floating paf. It is a full sized humbucker with two rows of adjustable pole pieces. It sounds fabulous and is very powerful, almost like a built in pu. The only thing about this one is that it is larger than the others and couldn't drop in to a pickguard that is cut out for a Johnny Smith without enlarging the cutout. It fits nicely as a replacement for Heritage floaters though.
Keith

[feral guitar]

thanks
When I dealt with him 7 years ago for a different pickup he was in Vermont.
Is he in the same place as far as you know?

thanks
matt

[Jabberwocky]

Yes. His email remains the same.

[Kalebima]

Can anybody weigh in on the differences between Kent's Adjustable Floating PAF and his Johnny Smith model? I'll be buying one his pups this coming Christmas for my new archtop and I think I've narrowed it down to these two. I'm also thinking about this one (Steve Bistrow Western Swing/Jazz floater) but Kent seems to be a more reliable name and I'm not too knowledgeable about floaters to begin with. I'd like a more traditional electric sound as opposed to the woody modern tones since the acoustic side of my instrument takes care of that just fine!

[floatingpickup]

Can anybody weigh in on the differences between Kent's Adjustable Floating PAF and his Johnny Smith model? I'll be buying one his pups this coming Christmas for my new archtop and I think I've narrowed it down to these two. I'm also thinking about this one (Steve Bistrow Western Swing/Jazz floater) but Kent seems to be a more reliable name and I'm not too knowledgeable about floaters to begin with. I'd like a more traditional electric sound as opposed to the woody modern tones since the acoustic side of my instrument takes care of that just fine!

I have both of those Kent Armstrong pickups. Although they both sound very good, I find the paf a little louder, which I like. I assume the larger coils makes it more powerful, but I'm not an expert in electronics. Overall, I think like the paf better than the Johnny Smith, but the paf is too big and "modern looking" for certain guitars. You could contact Kent and discuss the relative merits of both pickups. He is very helpful.
Keith

[Bluedawg]

Does Armstrong have his own website?

What I'm finding on the web keeps taking me to WD music ... which has the handwound versions and the Asian versions ...

but doesn't look like I'd be dealing directly with him

[floatingpickup]

Does Armstrong have his own website?

What I'm finding on the web keeps taking me to WD music ... which has the handwound versions and the Asian versions ...

but doesn't look like I'd be dealing directly with him

I don't think Kent has a website. "Jabberwocky" indicated that he had his contact info. Maybe you should pm Jabberwocky to find out the best way to contact Kent. I have generally bought the pickups from the luthiers who made my guitars, but I ran into Kent at some guitar shows and talked pickups with him. He was a great guy.
Keith

[feral guitar]

if someone can PM me kents email i would appreciate it.

thanks
matt

[Kalebima]

PM'ed, courtesy of Jabberwocky

[feral guitar]

received, thank you so much!

matt

[Bluedawg]

I don't think Kent has a website. "Jabberwocky" indicated that he had his contact info. Maybe you should pm Jabberwocky to find out the best way to contact Kent. I have generally bought the pickups from the luthiers who made my guitars, but I ran into Kent at some guitar shows and talked pickups with him. He was a great guy.
Keith

"Oh frabjous day, Callooh Callay" I chortled in my joy

Jabberwocky took care of me


Thanks Much

[Spook410]

I ordered my last one from Djangobooks as they had free shipping and archtops.com does not. Saw later the WD is $20 cheaper also with free shipping.

[Jabberwocky]

"Oh frabjous day, Callooh Callay" I chortled in my joy

Jabberwocky took care of me


Thanks Much

Them Carrollians.....

[Jabberwocky]

I ordered my last one from Djangobooks as they had free shipping and archtops.com does not. Saw later the WD is $20 cheaper also with free shipping.

The one from WD is the NON-Handmade KA, I am pretty sure.

[feral guitar]

'The one from WD is the NON-Handmade KA, I am pretty sure.'

yeah, I've learned if it doesn't say handwound, it's not.

here's the WD KA page:
Kent Armstrong Guitar Parts - Best Guitar & Bass Pickup Designer in the Industry -WDMusic

here's the WD KA handwound page:
Kent Armstrong® Handwounds

[Spook410]

Looks like it says handwound and Made in USA to me..

* WD Music Products - KENT ARMSTRONG HANDWOUND PAF - RESIN CAST -12 POLE SIDE MOUNT - BLACK

[Jabberwocky]

Baffles me. There's Kent Armstrong the trademark and Kent Armstrong the man. I think I would go directly to Kent Armstrong the man.

When is a Mark Levinson (trademark) not a Mark Levinson (the man)? When it is a Red Rose Music.

[floatingpickup]

Looks like it says handwound and Made in USA to me..

* WD Music Products - KENT ARMSTRONG HANDWOUND PAF - RESIN CAST -12 POLE SIDE MOUNT - BLACK

I am sure that is the same paf I was talking about. It looks exactly the same as mine, it says "hand-wound by Kent at his USA facility" and the the price is about right. If this is the version you want, I think it would be safe to buy it from WD.
Keith

[mikeSF]

Baffles me. There's Kent Armstrong the trademark and Kent Armstrong the man. I think I would go directly to Kent Armstrong the man.

When is a Mark Levinson (trademark) not a Mark Levinson (the man)? When it is a Red Rose Music.

If you find that confusing, try looking up Bill Lawrence pickups...

[va3ux]

Looks like WD have added Kents handmade/USA pickups to their lineup. They didn't carry them in the past. They previously only carried the KA-designed made in Asia units.

[Jazz_175]

Looks like WD have added Kents handmade/USA pickups to their lineup. They didn't carry them in the past. They previously only carried the KA-designed made in Asia units.

That's not the case of WD UK Guitar Parts UK - WD Music Guitar Parts and Guitar Spares
they don't carry the handwound PUs
(at the time of writing)

[peterpanico]

Jazz Guitar Pickups | Armstrong Pickups

here....handwounds