Mini Humbucker Electric Guitar Pickups
Get More at Sweetwater
Refine Your Search
Availability
Brand
Price Range
Financing What is this?
Type of Deal
Sale
Series
Type What is this?
Quantity
Position What is this?
Magnet Material What is this?
Number of Conductors What is this?
Connectivity
Covering What is this?
Configuration What is this?
Format
- Strat-sized (248)
- PAF (123)
- Tele-sized (97)
- P-90 (67)
- Filtertron (57)
- Stacked Coil (57)
- Soapbar (51)
- Jazzmaster (23)
- Mini Humbucker (14)
- Dog Ear (13)
- Jaguar (6)
Related Searches
If you want to compare another product, please remove one of your earlier choices.
Gibson/Epiphone’s mini humbucker pickup design holds a special place in the hearts and axes of any guitarist with a penchant for rock ‘n’ roll’s heyday. What was originally created to be a jazz specialty pickup ended up being a blues-rock staple for such legends as Pete Townshend, Johnny Winter, and our personal favorite neoclassical wunderkind, Paul Gilbert.
To those not in the know, these space-saving tone machines have a lot more going for them than just being slim. Buckle up as we take a look at the venerated mini humbucker pickup.
Mini Humbucker History
The mini humbucker refers to several styles of noise-cancelling pickups used in Gibson and Epiphone’s heritage models built between the late ‘50s and ‘70s. These include the Les Paul Studio and Deluxe, the Nighthawk and Blueshawk, the SG Special, the Emperor Regent, and of course, the inimitable Firebird. Contrary to popular belief, the original mini humbucker IP belonged to Epiphone before it was acquired by Gibson in the 1950s and soon after implemented into many of its electric guitars.
Sound
Though the mini humbucker pickup has enjoyed several updates throughout the years, devotees tend to agree it lands somewhere between a full-blown Gibson humbucker and traditional single-coil — only without the noise. Clear and articulate. Spanky without being slim. Punchy without being tubby. This makes the mini humbucker pickup a solid choice for neck, middle, and bridge positions alike.
Styles
The traditional “shrunken PAF” mini humbucker pickup boasts an expressive low output and fast touch response that dynamic players love. The later and hotter Firebird/SG mini humbucker pickup employed discrete bar magnets for each coil and were tailored to handle high gain without relenting under assault. Splitting the difference between these designs is the Johnny Smith mini humbucker pickup, which featured a single bar magnet for higher output and adjustable pole pieces for greater punch and string balance.
Legacy
There are many pickups today that are miniature and possess humbucking properties. But if you’re looking for that real-deal spunk, snarl, and spank of a classic Les Paul or Firebird, only a true mini humbucker pickup will do. Whether it’s a cool and creamy Gibson/Epiphone original or a higher-output Mojo Tone, DiMarzio, or Seymour Duncan iteration you’re after, we at Sweetwater stand behind each of the mini humbucker pickups we carry.
Did you know…
Mini humbuckers often fit the rout of a P-90 soapbar. So, if you’ve got an axe that’s itchin’ for an attitude adjustment, call your Sweetwater Sales Engineer at (800) 222-4700 to see if we’ve got a drop-in solution for you.
