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Kinman AVn Woodstock Regular Set

Summary
Manufacturer URL http://www.kinman.com/
Sound 9.9 (9 responses)
Overall Rating 9.6 (27 responses)
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Product: Kinman AVn Woodstock Regular Set
Price Paid: UNKNOWN
Submitted 06/27/2008 at 07:21am by Simon

Features :
Single coil passives. I ordered the complete K9 kit (complete with solderless loom, pots and switch).

Instrument :
I have an '83 Tokai Silver Star Strat copy (if you know Tokais, you'll know this guitar). While there is something about the feel of this guitar that I fell in love with from the moment I first played it, the overall sound just wasn't quite as warm and full as I would have liked so I started looking into the posibilities of what replacement pickups might be able to offer. I don't recall exactly where I first heard of the Kinmans, but I do know that everything I read about them (including the reviews in here) was consistently very positive, so I wrote to Chris Kinman (he was a bit easier to contact via email at that stage) and told him the setup I was using and the sound I was after and he recommended that I try this set... with unconditional refund if it didn't work out. I couldn't argue with that!

Sound : 10
My amp is a Gibson Goldtone GA-15RV. It's a great little amp, but verges on being a bit bright, even with its single tone control turned right down. This was one of the things I was hoping to balance out with the new pickups, and I wasn't disappointed. The Kinmans immediately gave my Tokai the warmth and body that I had been missing.

Interestingly, these pickups seem to be associated, by a lot of reviewers here, with BIG sound players like Hendrix, Gilmour and others. I don't tend to play much like that. I tend to prefer the cleaner, fingered sounds of people like Knopfler and Larry Carlton, and these pickups seem to suit my style. I love how responsive they are to touch. Mostly, I just turn my amp right up (a whole 6.5 watts in triode mode) and control the levels and dynamics through my fingers. I've never known a guitar I could do that with before.

With my old Strat, I often used a compressor to get the sustain I like. Now I don't. The sustain is all there. In fact, I rarely use any pedals with this setup at all, apart from a bit of Tubescreamer when I really want to get dirty. I just love the naked sound of this guitar/amp combo.

I tend to use middle and bridge mostly for the funkier stuff, and the neck pickup for lead, but one thing that has really grown on me with this pickup config, is the ability to run the neck and middle in series, giving an almost humbucker sound with awesome sustain. I never really liked the Les Paul to play, but this gives me something approaching that sound, while still having the Strat feel - nice combo and very handy at times.

I'm not all that good at describing the sound of these things. Do they have that classic Strat sound? Well, yes and no. To me, the sound is somehow "bigger" than other Strats I've heard or played. It's far more distinctive and has a personality all of its own. I guess I'd almost describe it as extroverted, but not in a brash kind of way. And yet, as I said, it's so responsive as to be very tame-able and subtle if played that way. It's a sound that people seem to notice and ask about, even when played "in a crowd".

Overall Rating : 10
I've been playing for close on 35 years. I'm not a great guitarist, but I think I'm reasonably versatile, having played in all kinds of covers and original bands over the years. I've owned Srats (with original Pups and then SD stacked 'buckers), Teles and a 335. This current amp/guitar/pickup combination is the first in all that time that I can honestly say I am completely happy with, and the Kinmans were the final element in the mix that made it. In fact, I've had them installed for over a year now, and I feel like I'm still discovering them somehow. Nothing about them has disappointed me. There is, honestly, nothing about the sound that I would want to improve upon (other, of course, than my own playing). ;-)



Product: Kinman AVn Woodstock Regular Set
Price Paid: UNKNOWN
Submitted 06/09/2008 at 09:59am by DB

Features :
They're hum canceling single coils, I'll let you all debate the semantics of whether or not they are technically humbuckers.

Instrument :
* What model guitar or bass did you install this in?
-Standard Strat

* What pickup are you replacing?
-Stock

* Reason for changing the pickup?
-I was fairly happy with the sound of my stock pickups, but the level hum/buzz I was getting in live situations was getting to me.

Sound : 10
* What's the output level like?
-As it states on the Kinman website, The height of these pickups greatly affects the output level and tone. I would say they're on par with the output level of the original single coil stock pickups. Maybe a little hotter depending.

* What amps and effects are you using it with?
-Fender Twin, TS-808, RAT, and an array effects...

* Tone - Bassy, middy, muddy, trebly, balanced?
-Very Balanced. They are definitely designed to replicate the late 60's Hendrix tone, and they do so very well. That said they are very balanced and wide variety of tones can be created. They are incredibly dynamic and (for better or worse) show a great deal of definition in your playing. Most likely if you're reading this you're a serious tone freak or audiofile type person... The one thing I'd like to get across in this review, is that these pickups will require you to adjust your settings across your entire amp and FX chain to get things sounding just right. Kinman states explains this on his website and he is correct. It requires some initial patience, however I am very pleased with the final results.

And yes, they're noiseless.. I have zero shielding in my guitar and these things are near dead quiet. It is very impressive.


* What style of music do you play? Is this a good match?
-Alt Rock. I'm A big fan of Radiohead and U2 guitar sounds. Most of this reviews seem like they're from blues guys, but these pickups work great in a rock setting.


Overall Rating : 9
* If it was destroyed or stolen, would you buy it again or get something else?
-I would buy again. The single coil sound plus the hum canceling is impressive.


* What do you love about it? What do you hate?
-The only thing I dislike about these pickups, was that process of buying them. Although the crew at the Kinman website is super helpful. It does take a while to get these things after you order as they are located in Australia. They are fairly expensive. The website is a little hard to navigate (and looks like it was designed 10 years ago). It does however contain a wealth of unique and helpful information. The sound clips are a little misleading, and honestly don't do the pickups justice. They are a small boutique company and they give you personal attention if you desire, which is very cool.

* Did you compare it to other products? Which ones? Why did you choose this one?
-I bought them on their justified reputation.

* Anything else you'd like to share?
The solderless switching system is a must. Very cool.


Product: Kinman AVn Woodstock Regular Set
Price Paid: 250
Submitted 04/08/2008 at 08:14pm by verlag

Features :
Passive single coil

Instrument :
What model guitar or bass did you install this in?
- Fender Strat Japan (1986)
What position is it in?
- All pickups (AVn-69/AVn-69/AVn-69b)
What pickup are you replacing?
- Stock (not sure)
Reason for changing the pickup?
- have the sound

Sound : 10
Output level is good, higher comparing to stock pickups.
I am using a Fender Hot Rod Deluxe with Jensen C12N speaker and JJ tubes.
In terms of effects, a Fulltone OCD for the overdrive and a Maxon AD900 for delay + MXR boost
I play blues / rock
All positions are excellent but my favorite are 2 and 4, but I use all position, so good.
The pickups are very good in clear mode and fantastic with crunch and overdrive, even you can have hi-gain.
I have never seen a so nice sound with a Strat (I am a Strat guy), and they are really noiseless (more that Gibson hambuckers), that is impressive.
If you like the '70 sound (SRV, Hendrix, Gilmour, Gallagher, ....) you will love these pickups. Everyboby in the band like them.
I recommend a tube amp, with my Hot Rod, this is a very good set.

Overall Rating : 10
If it was stolen, I will get another set.
I play from 10 years, I have an Ash American Deluxe Strat with SCN pickup and S1 switch and there is no comparison with my old japenese Strat with the Kinman, really. Actually, I am going to install a Traditional MK2 set on the Deluxe
Kinman pickups are the top, thanks to Chris to deliver so much fun.
In addition, www.kinman.com a very interesting site.


Product: Kinman AVn Woodstock Regular Set
Price Paid: UNKNOWN
Submitted 03/06/2008 at 01:51am by Tommi

Features :
They're pickups, how do you rate the features? I have a Woodstock regular set, with the No-soldering K9 harness. For those that don't know, it's a prewired harness made by Kinman, that'll drop directly to your existing pickguard with very little work. Master volume, master tone, and an individual volume for the neck pickup that works on pickup selector positions 1-3 (bridge alone , bridge+middle, middle alone) and allows you to blend in the neck pickup in parallel configuration. I especially like (or use a lot) the neck+bridge and the all-3-on-at-once -settings. The 3 knob also pops out, and on position 2 (bridge+middle) connects those to pickups in series, resulting in increased output and a fatter tone. On this position too, you can blend in the neck pickup. I'll give the features a 10 however, as the knobs work beautifully. The pickups retain their great tone when turning down the volume (highs and attack remain), and the tone pot doesn't rob you of those important high mids. You can actually use it. If you should desire so, there's also a switch on the harness that allows you to choose a regular tone pot action.

Instrument :
The instrument is a 2005 Fender American Deluxe stratocaster, with 3 single coil pickups. I replaced the stock Fender SCN pickups on my 2005 Fender American deluxe (3 single coils) with these pickups. The SCN pickups were very quiet too, but I had problems with their tone. For me, they were undefined on the wound strings and turning up the treble on the amp resulted in an unpleasant, harsh tone. Finding a pleasing middle ground for that was a struggle. However, I didn't want to give up the noiseless feature, so after a while I ended up on the Kinman website. I read reviews, listened tone samples and after a long consideration, decided to take a plunge with the regular woodstock set.

Artists using this pickup-set: e.g. Gary Moore, David Gilmour

Sound : 10
Output level: well, pretty high.

I had a grin on my face after 2 seconds of first playing with these after the (easy) installation. I started from the neck pickup..clear, defined and strong bottom (at last), with that ATTACK that great single coil pickups have. Next I tried the bridge pickup, as that is the one that usually gives me trouble on a strat. Result: more grinning. Awesome attack and aggressive tone, but not anywhere even approaching harshness. Warm, punchy and very detailed. I have never played a real vintage strat (mid fifties to early seventies), but that doesn't matter to me. These pickups just sound so damn good. I play almost all sorts of music, but my main love is the harder side of rock. I still don't like my pickups to be flamethrowers, they have to have TONE, be that a humbucker or a single coil. I use only as much distortion as I need to give me the sustain and crunch that I want. Too much distortion hides the nuances of your playing and your tone. with distortion, most of the time I use either the neck or bridge pickup alone. When playing clean, I use more of the given combinations. It's very hard to get these pickups to sound harsh, they just seem to get more aggression and fire as you turn up the highs on your amp.

The pickups are very dynamic and capture nuances very well. I'm often pretty heavy handed on my playing and I want it to be heard. Playing more lightly results in a different tone, as does picking on different points on the string. You can pick lightly and these pickups provide you with a softer tone that retains the character of your guitar and the way you pick and hold the strings. Or you can pick harder and hear the pickups SPIT the notes at your amp. Expressiveness is the word, and one more reason why I don't like too much compressed distortion.

The controls work beautifully, you can lower the volume on your guitar and the pickups retain the character, high end and dynamics while cleaning up. Wonderful. And the tone control just works..rolling down the highest frequencies while retaining those upper mids. For those used to the regular tone control curve, this might take a little getting used to.

I gotta give these pickups a 10. I don't mean that they are ideal for all conditions, no pickups are. They don't have the same amount of twang like a fifties-early-sixties strat pickup. Try the Kinman Traditional MK-II set for that. However, for a player wanting a true single coil spit fire attack and punchy, detailed but warm tone, these are THE pickups. That's what I wanted, and that's what I got. SRV, Blackmore..they're in there. Jimi of course, too. But most importantly..your own tone. However, take into account the characteristic of your guitar. I have alder-bodied strat with a rosewood fretboard. I did careful reading on the Kinman website when deciding which pickups to order.


Overall Rating : 10
They were worth the money. I would definitely buy this set again.


Product: Kinman AVn Woodstock Regular Set
Price Paid: UNKNOWN
Submitted 07/18/2007 at 01:17pm by Doctor Blues
Email: rcomolli at fastwebnet<dot>it

Features :
Single coils, passive, Vintage flavour, NOISELESS (they really are!).

Instrument :
Self built stratocaster-oid, alder body with spalted maple top and birdseye maple neck with rosewood fingerboard. This guitar was born with these pick ups, I ordered the set just for this baby.
I love (as everybody does) the classic strat sound and hate the boring hum.
It's whispered that H.M. David Gilmour himself was seen playing around with these pick-ups installed on a 57 RI Strat.
I e-mailed Chris Kinman to have some hints about the p.u. choice and he suggested the Woodstocks: Thanks a lot, Chris!

Sound : 10
The sound is amazing; I can't tell about difference in output, as I didn't replace any other pick-up, but TONE is something you heard just in your sweetest dreams!! When used clean: Neck is beefy, fat sounding though clear; it doesn't lack in highs or mids, it's just BIG! Mid (this may come as some surprise!)becomes usable by himself as only SRV dared to do; it's well balanced, singing and highly defined; Bridge is PERFECT: tight low end, bell-like highs, lots of harmonic complexity. The in-between positions have a slight loss of volume, but are quacky the right way and toneful.
When used overdriven: Neck can cover any territory from Hendrix to Eric Johnson or David Gilmour (think of the "what do you want from me" solo); Mid is SRV resurrected; Bridge is incredibly versatile, spacing from Billy Gibbons in the Tejas/Rio Grande Mud age to Gilmour in The Wall and may even stand playng some harder stuff like Van Halen I. Lots of tone and pretty good sustain, but most of all NO noise and incredible definition in your sound.

Overall Rating : 10
I'm completely satisfied with these Pick-ups. I bought another set for another strat I'm gonna build. It just takes a while to find the right balance between the p.u.'s and it was a little boring in the first 2 weeks to try different adjustments in p.u. heights (I'm really picky about these things)but once I found my sweet spot I coudn't play with any other pick ups. I've been playing for 35 years and it's the first time I feel I found MY pick ups (I've been waiting for a 6 months to write the review, to cool down my Kinman fever, but it wasn't enough!). Add that Chris Kinman himself spent some of his precious time to answer my e-mails when I was in doubt and you can understand why I will never change...


Product: Kinman AVn Woodstock Regular Set
Price Paid: USD 360
Submitted 05/03/2007 at 10:12am by JNG

Features :
stacked single coil

Instrument :
2006 G&L S-500 - replacing the scock MFD pups - the MFD pups are very dark sounding, noisy single coils, & lack the bite and attack you expect from a pup in a strat-type guitar. I wanted that great twang & bite that you only get from a true alnico single coil, but completely noisless -

Sound : 10
good output level -- about the same as the MFD pups -- I play through a vox tube amp - no effects but a TS-9 tube screamer

The tone of the woodstocks is just as described on Kinman's website...for the most part. The woodstocks have a very well-rounded tone - very very even - powerful tight lows, strong mids - particularly pleasant upper mids, and clean highs. These pupus are definitely warmer than a typical alnico strat-style single coil -- they don't have the twang you might be looking for -- but if that is your goal, then try the Kinman MK-II set - those are spectacular in that regard.

the woodstocks - give you clarity and fullness and lots of punch - and all noiseless - without being lifeless like all the other noiseless pups I've tried. The woodstocks have been a joy to use in a live setting -- they take all the licks you can throw at them, and they really allow your guitar's sound to shine through. They are warmer sounding than the single coils I like best, and they don't seem to break up as much as I'd like. However, they have what no other brand of noiseless pups offer -- a true tone FULL OF LIFE -- these pups come to life when you play -- nothing dead or boring about them -- Kinman has figured it out. Best of all, kinman has a couple of different options depending on the noiseless sound you are looking for. I have not had an opportunity to hear all of his pupus in live settings -- his lengthy descriptions are pretty accurate, where the sound clips are a bit deceiving.

Overall Rating : 9
I've been playing guitar for 22 years -- I am completely sold on kinman pups -- I've always been a G&L lover, and have always put a good alnico single coil and my #1 pup -- but the noise/hum drives me nuts - it always has. The kinmans are very quiet, very good pups - kinman has done it right - these are well-balanced, strong sounding, clear, and full of life.

Again, kinman has a number of options depending on the sound you want -- the sound clips on kinman's sight do not do the pupus justice -- the Woodstocks don't break up as much as they do in the soundclips - but boy do they come to life in my ax. If you want the truest twang and shimmery highs, then go for Kinman's MK-II set - it is really a matter of preference. and you can't go wrong with either - Kinman makes high quality pups, well built, and heads & shoulders above the other noiseless competition.

Get the no-soldering kit -- makes set up a breeze.

kinman's site is full of useful information, and his customer service is great. I have absoutely no complaints.

With my S-500 set up perfectly now -- it is really the only ax I play out live - and it is pretty much perfect for shows -- but I must admit that I only gave these an overall 9 because if I had to do it again, I'd likely go for the MK-II set --



Product: Kinman AVn Woodstock Regular Set
Price Paid: EUR 237
Submitted 01/24/2007 at 07:47am by RauchC
Email: rauchc27 at googlemail<dot>com

Features :
Bought a matched 'Woodstock' set consisting of AVn-69/neck & middle plus an AVn-69b/bridge. Passive stacked single coils. No stock 4-wire cable, PUs come factory-prewired with the coils in series. Did not use the 'no solder harness' as I have 20+ years of soldering experience :).

Instrument :
Original plan was to install the Woodies in my '91 Blade R4 (hard nothern ash body, maple neck w/ ebony fingerboard) so that I could mount its current Ultrasonic pups (Ref2/Ref2/Ref3) in a Blade Texas Standard pro (alder body, maple neck w/ rosewood fingerboard) I'd recently bought as a bargain (display model that some doofus dropped & damaged the paint - price down from 490 EUR to 350 EUR, whoppee :)). While I was very satisfied with the sound of the Ultrasonics on the R4, I now mainly use a dito Ultrasonic-loaded Parker NiteFly for 'HiFi sounding' parts & thought that my ashen beauty was in for a more traditional-sounding set of PUs. Plus the Texas' stock pups weren't anything to write home about, so that plank needed replacement PUs anyway.

The R4 is a bit of a tricky guitar & has seen quite a few PUs over the years - with the exception of the aforementioned Ultrasonics, none managed to bring out its focused, chompin' low end and its articulate, shimmering highs quite the way I wished. Previous PUs either sounded dull (stock Blade "Vintage" SCs, DiMarzios HS1/HS1/HS2, Duncan Cool Rails) or aenemic & edgy (Evans Eliminators, Duncan Vintage Rails, EMG SA/SA/S). I ran the 'sonics wired in parallel on 2 & 4, plus a series/parallel option for the neck & bridge pups.

A guy from a music store who I've known for almost 20 years (who normally is a dedicated stacked SC-hater aka "trve vintage SC snob") had recently made first contact with a Kinman PU equipped plank & recommended them as "the best no-noise SCs you can get, eat _everything_ DM & SD offer for breakfast, they even come close to Fralins". Woulda normally discounted that as sales blabber (hey, _every_ PU producer in history has _always_ produced the best possible pups ever :D), coming from him, though, this quip instantly put Kinmans on my radar knowing that a) this guy knows his stuff, b) knows me for far too long a time to try sale BS with me & c) isn't really a fan of stacked pups anyway.

So I checked the website, found the local distributor & ordered the above mentioned set, following the web site's advice that recommended the Woodstock set with a bright-sounding hard ash guitar.

Sound : 9
Ampage: Hughes & Kettner TriAmp head, Mesa Boogie Mark III combo, Roland JC 120 combo I borrowed from a friend, Laney 2x10 cab, Marshall 4x12 cab, direct to mixer using a Reussenzehn Daniel D tube booster, direct to mixer using a BOSS GT-8 (clean w/o speaker sim, dirty w/ speaker sim), Intellifex, Ensoniq D/P 4.

I have to say that after mounting the pups & restringing the R4, I was a bit disappointed. The Kinmans sounded good, but not great - while they had a good deal more clarity than the Duncans & DiMarzios I'd used, they exhibited that upper-mid edgyness I've come to dread with other stacked pups, though significantly less pronounced than the Eliminators or the Vintage Rails did. Switching to from the 500k pots I used before to 250k pots did alleviate this somewhat, but took some high-end sparkle away. The latter was not much of an issue when played through the TriAmp or Mark III, but made the direct-to-mixer clean sounds as well as the JC120 sound a tad lifeless, forcing me to either constantly engage the Blade's active treble/bass boost circuit or inject some more presence via EQ.

Oh well. Sighing, to took the Woodies out of the R4 & connected the Ultrasonics & their old 500k pots again - lesson learned, never change a winning team. While toying with the idea of putting the Kinmans up on ebay, I (thank God!) remembered that my newly acquired Texas plank was aching for pups that'd do it justice. What the heck, I thought, let's see what "the world's best noise free stacked SCs" would do for this one. Off with the strings, off with the pickguard, out with the stock pups, mount the Kinmans, slap on strings again. Tune. Get cable, connect to the Mark III and...

...all along my watchtower the wind started crying Mary...

"Surprised" isn't quite what I felt, "completely blown outa my socks" is more like it. A metric ton of spank, spark, sizzle & jangle; I just had to get out that extra fat 2mm pick because the pick attack & letting the strings snap when digging in hard sounded oh so very good. All the quack on 2 & 4 you'd ever want. Warm & punchy on the bass strings, but not wooly or dark. Biting like a panther on PCP, but nowhere near edgy or thin. Enough output to kick the amp, but without adding extra mids or losing clarity. Very responsive to changes in picking style and right hand position.

After noodling blissfully for an hour or two, all thoughts of selling the Woodies again were gone - while they didn't quite work out in the guitar they should have gone into, they turned that meek 350 EUR bargain Blade into a super strat that eats stock Mexican or even American Standards strats for breakfast, asks for seconds & doesn't hum while at it. I especially dig the Woodstock set's added bite and punch - taming 'em for less spanky clean or warmer lead sounds is easily enough done by backing of the tone pot a bit (first time ever I found a practical use for a tone pot!! beyond "make the neck pickup sound dark so it sounds like a cheap jazz guitar").

All in all, a very, very cool turn of events - sound rating would be a '7' on the R4, and a heartfelt '10' on the Texas, so overall I'll give the Woodies nine points.

Overall Rating : 8
Buy again, yep, any minute, provided I want to equip an alder or swamp ash axe. If you are after a slightly more punchy & aggressive, but nonetheless 100% "stratty" sound without hum on such a guitar, the Kinmans indeed do a _vastly_ better job than any other "voiced for vintage" humbucking SC I've played. Seeing as DiMarzios & Duncans aren't a great lot cheaper than the Kinmans, the additional dollars / Euros / Rubles you spend are very well invested, IMHO.

As for the hard ash R4, I'm slowly coming to the conclusion that fate simply decided this plank wasn't meant to jive with "traditional sounding" stacked SCs - it now happily sports its Ultrasonics again & has its warm bass, sparkly highs "HiFi tone" back.

Beyond my experience & the "decent, but not great" sound on the R4 I outlined above, I have one more smallish gripe with the Kinmans - it would have been nice to toy around with parallel / series switching, even if Kinman advice against this. Whether you like the thinned-out parallel sound or not is subjective; not giving users the option to try it out (without the hassle to re-wire the pups themselves) is a wee bit overprotective. Hence an "8" as my overall rating.


Product: Kinman AVn Woodstock Regular Set
Price Paid: UNKNOWN
Submitted 01/09/2007 at 08:25pm by good guy

Features :
- Single coil or humbucking? Active or passive?
Single coil sized passive stack pickup. Sounds like a overwound single coil.

- Impedance or other specs?
Bridge, Middle and Neck: Resistance 7.5Kohms; Resonance 3.2KHz; Inductance 3.4H.

Instrument :
- What model guitar or bass did you install this in?
Fender Stratocaster.

- What position is it in?
All.

- What pickup are you replacing?
Fender SCN set.

- Other pickups installed on the instrument?
I also have replaced the original alico single coil pickups to install Fender SCN before trying Kinman's.

- Any artists using this pickup?
No Idea.

- Reason for changing the pickup?
The original pickup set has hum. Fender SCN set is too bland.


Sound : 10
- What's the output level like?
About the same as Fender SCN.

- What amps and effects are you using it with?
Playing with Fender Blues DeVille, Marshall Jackhammer, Electro Harmonix Small Clone, Dunlop Cry Baby Original and MXR Micro Amp.

- Tone - Bassy, middy, muddy, trebly, balanced?
Here is the point: Imagine Jimi Hendrix, Deep Purple and SRV No 01 guitar. This pichup set nails these sounds. Sounds and feel like and overwound sigle coil pickup, with plenty of alnico character. Middy, dark, punchy, dynamic, with good quack on positions 2 and 4. The bridge pickup is perfect. Not trebly. It is possible to use it alone without bleeding your ears. It takes some experimentation with height adjustment until you get the sound you want. I spent two weeks tweaking the pickups and the amplifier to get where I wanted to. I bought with K9 switch, so it is possible to get the sound of bridge and neck (Tele sount), three pickups together (very quacky) and bridge and middle in series (P90 sound!). So my guitar is very versatile now. Kinman also added a slide switch which is possible to chose the cap tone. If you choose Hi-Def, the sound doesn't get muddy when you lower down the volume pot. In fact, it gets more presence.

- What style of music do you play? Is this a good match?
Special for 70's Rock'n'roll and SRV blues, which are the styles that I love to play, specially Hendrix.

- For which positions is this pickup (un)suitable?
Each pickup is made for a determinated position. It is not a good idea to swap positions.

Overall Rating : 10
- If it was destroyed or stolen, would you buy it again or get something else?
I would probably buy another set or perhaps the MK-2 set, that is more vintage sounding.

- How long have you been playing? What other gear do you own?
I have been playing for 22 years. I am a Strat lover.

- What do you love about it? What do you hate?
I love everything about this pickup set. It is too expensive, though.

- Did you compare it to other products? Which ones? Why did you choose this one?
I played all the models you can imagine, like Vintage 60's and 70's, Eric Clapton, SRV, Bonnie Rait, Mark Knopfler, Buddy Guy and others. I have no doubt that this pickup set sounds and feel like a dynamic single coil. I would like to congratulate Chris Kinman for this achievement. However, if you want the most quacky and sparkly sound, please try MK-2 set. Woodstock set is too middy and 70's sounding for vintage lovers.


Product: Kinman AVn Woodstock Regular Set
Price Paid: UNKNOWN
Submitted 12/31/2006 at 05:04pm by valvehead

Features :
Single coil noiseless p/u's specified by customer for new strat build.
We installed the solderless AVn Woodstock set for them.

Instrument :
As above - complete set for new custom strat build. Swamp Ash body, maple neck with rosewood fretboard. Typical late 1960's design with improved neck radius and spring steel saddles, trem block, and bridge from Callaham. The neck had a Corian nut installed by Warmoth.

Sound : 10
We road-tested this axe through a tweaked Marshall SLP, a Budda 18w SD, and a 65 Amps London. We played Hendrix with lots of foot pedal action and feedback, blues (clean and dirty)and classic rock. These pups are the best-sounding noiseless models I've ever played on. There was almost no loss of dynamics that typically accompany noiseless single-coil designs. There is a company in the US that makes a similar product, but there is "virtually" no comparison to the Kinmans. If you are heading into the studio with a strat, these are THE ticket. Even if you are not heading into the studio, they sound damn special. Even the bridge position had tone instead of the usual brittle, harsh vibe. As the name suggests, they definitely have that plenty of that classic strat quack from the Woodstock era.

Overall Rating : 10
I've been playing 35+ years, and am a dedicated single-coil and tube amp player. I play mostly stratocasters and British amps or amps with British tubes. In the early 90's I started assembling guitars for myself because I was unhappy with off_the_shelf quality. Folks started asking, and I design and assemble strats at times on demand. I say assemble because I use pre-cut and shaped woods from Warmoth, for the most part. I prefer Fralins or Stephens Design for my own taste, but the Kinmans actually were in the same league. The fact that he can do this with a noise-cancelling design is truly remarkable. Kudos to Chris Kinman for a great product!


Product: Kinman AVn Woodstock Regular Set
Price Paid: US $360
Submitted 12/07/2005 at 09:08pm by deedeeru

Features :
Pickup features: Single coil passive
Impedence or other specs:

Instrument :
Model of guitar or bass: Bill Nash S Model
Position: all positions
Pickup being replaced: Lindy Fralin's Reissue's
Other pickups on guitar:
Artists using this pickup:
You musical style(s): Progressive
Reason for pickup change: The quest for 'tone' heaven.


Sound : No Opinion
Perceived output level:
Tone: So balanced you could use a fork, but use a spoon.
Sonic evaluation: Vox AC30 with blue celestions. All Fulltone pedals except for the Carl Martin compressor which is not seeing much action after these Woodstocks were installed.

For which styles and positions is this pickup (un)suitable:

Overall Rating : 10
Comments: After stumbling onto the web site and reading every page on it I thought it was worth the gamble to buy a set. Heck, people are paying OVER his web site prices for USED older model Kinman's on eBay (go figure), so there was little need to worry if they were a bust, I could dump'em and be ahead a few bucks. But I digress, I bought mine with the 'solderless' kit after reading his insights on 250k volume pots...7 days later and after 20 minutes of easy install I plugged, played and immediately ordered another set for my James Tyler Strat. This guy is onto something really big for us single coil devotee's. Don't waste your money and time buying the Dimarzio's, Fralins, Lollar ect. ect. buy a set of Kinman's and enjoy the fruit of this man's labor. Noiseless, vintage, dead on Strat nirvana...it's not 'crock hunter' hype, he's nailed it. In fact I installed the new set on my Tyler and order another set for my Clapton. Yep, three set's in a month... man is my wife pissed but when I play 'You look wonderful tonight' she smiles that smile...btw I love the question, 'If it were lost or stolen would you buy it again?' NO, I would ask myself 'why does gear keep getting stolen or lost'and then find new friends and venues to play at. There's that!



Product: Kinman AVn Woodstock Regular Set
Price Paid: AUD $495
Submitted 11/09/2005 at 12:47pm by Tony

Features :
Pickup features: Single coil, noiseless
Impedence or other specs:

Instrument :
Model of guitar or bass: Bill Lawrence Challenger 2 ('56 Strat copy, made in Japan)
Position: all positions
Pickup being replaced: Bill Lawrence
Other pickups on guitar:
Artists using this pickup:
You musical style(s): Rock, blues
Reason for pickup change: Couldn't tolerate the noise from regular SC pickups any more. Kinman's website had some fantastic info and I liked his style, so I splurged!


Sound : No Opinion
Perceived output level: High output that isn't harsh or overblown
Tone: Crystal Strat tones, lots of presence and plenty of balls
Sonic evaluation: As soon as I had installed these pickups and plugged in the guitar, I thought I must have made a mistake with the wiring. There was literally no noise whatsoever. And the tone! The sustain was striking, it just seems to go on for days. The pickups sound very 'natural', with very fast response and incredible dynamics. Now that I have these, every position on my switch is useable and has distinct character. A massive improvement over anything else I have ever played.

For which styles and positions is this pickup (un)suitable: I play lots of 70's rock, blues etc. The sound I get from these pickups fits right in anywhere from "Sweet Home Alabama" to "Highway Star" to "Voodoo Chile" and beyond. Very fresh and inspirational pickups.

Overall Rating : 10
Comments: Been playing over 20 years now. Have treid just about everything to get that Strat sound without the hum and noise. Fender noiseless pickups were simply awfull. Stacked Duncans and DiMarzios were bland and lifeless. EMGs were characterless and sterile. DiMarzio came close with their Virtual Vintage, but Kinman just raised the bar to an astronomic height with these pickups. I've got the sound I've been hearing in my head for so many years. To top it off, I've gotten excellent service from everyone at Kinmans.



Product: Kinman AVn Woodstock Regular Set
Price Paid: US $286
Submitted 09/30/2005 at 12:09pm by Anonymous

Features :
Pickup features: noiseless single coil
Impedence or other specs:

Instrument :
Model of guitar or bass: 93 strat plus with warmoth neck
Position: all positions
Pickup being replaced: gold lace sensors
Other pickups on guitar:
Artists using this pickup:
You musical style(s): rock, jazz, funk
Reason for pickup change: lace sensors were very clean, but didn't have any growl or twang on the low strings, which i wanted.


Sound : No Opinion
Perceived output level: the harder you pick, the louder it gets. i love that about them.
Tone: the neck pickup is nice and fat, without being muddy. the bridge pickup is super sweet and cutting without being harsh.
Sonic evaluation: i play my strat with 11 gauge strings through a hot rod blues deluxe. i also play through a silverface pro reverb and it sound great through that too. these pickups have such amazing tone, i don't want to stop playing my guitar. it's that good. they are super responsive, with great dynamics. the lace sensors could get only so loud before they compressed your sound, but with the kinmans, the harder you pick, the louder it gets. that's such an amazing feature about them. the low frets on the wound strings have a great growl with the middle and bridge pickups which was exactly what i was looking for. (think jerry garcia playing his 57 strat on "europe 72") the bridge pickup is also so sweet and pure sounding in the upper register and is not harsh - it's perfect. the sound is pure strat heaven - positions 2 and 4 have that cluck that you want, the neck is fat and warm, the middle has a very balanced sound, and the bridge slices through a mix. chris kinman talks a big game on his website, but these pickups back every word up.

For which styles and positions is this pickup (un)suitable: rock, jazz, funk. these pickups just plain sound great. you can use them for anything, except metal. but if you play metal, why would you have a strat?

Overall Rating : 10
Comments: i've been playing for 15 years, i play professionally in NYC. i've always been unsatisfied with my sound - until now. i can't wait to record with them. did i mention that they are completely noiseless? if you are looking for the best sounding strat you ever played, stop searching right now and just buy the kinmans, they're expensive, but worth every penny, IMHO.



Product: Kinman AVn Woodstock Regular Set
Price Paid: US $260
Submitted 08/23/2005 at 01:21pm by Bob Derryberry
Email: proscene at comcast<dot>net

Features :
Pickup features: Single coil
Impedence or other specs: N/A

Instrument :
Model of guitar or bass: 2005 Left-Hand MIM Sunburst
Position: all positions
Pickup being replaced: Stock Fenders
Other pickups on guitar: N/A
Artists using this pickup: Various (Not Important)
You musical style(s): Blues/Rock
Reason for pickup change: Entry level Pup?s are not up to my standards and Kinman does left-hand pickups at no extra charge.


Sound : No Opinion
Perceived output level: Volume normal, but much richer in tones in all ranges.
Tone: Dynamic, balanced- Lots of famous Strat twang and sparkle. Chris Kinman knows his stuff!
Sonic evaluation: Lots of range! Clean or Crunched, Rich Tones in any position stack.
I have 2 and a "half" Amps: Fender FR, Line6 Spider modeling amp
and a terrific little battery powered Roland Microcube.
These pickups sound amazing on ANY Amp.

For which styles and positions is this pickup (un)suitable: : Terrific playing blues and really can crunch down for rock. I haven't found anything they don't sound terrific playing.

Overall Rating : 10
Comments: If stolen-I'd buy them again. I have a Strat, Telecaster and LP.
I hate that I couldn't personally go to Austrailia and pick them up myself!
I did comparision shop as well as talk to others. Kinmans were highly regarded.
I recently purchased a 2005 entry level Left-Hand Strat. Knowing that the electronics aren?t the best with tone versatility I put the real money in the electronics. Kinman has a reputation for very good pickups and the optional ?No Solder? package was well worth the extra $80 because you get finely matched pots and components to compliment the Pup?s. After reading and listening to the sound files on Kinman's site, I thought the Woodstocks would be best along with the solderless kit (highly recommended). Chris can and does back up his bold statements and the proof is in the sound! Shipping was extremely fast and quality of the materials and the workmanship is excellent. The pickups sound terrific with brilliant tones and they?re extremely responsive. All cables are carefully prepared and shielded. Each cable has been cut to precise length and with the solderless kit, installs in just a few minutes. With this kit all you have to tweak is the pup height and you?re playing music. I would recommend reading Chris's comments on pickup height. In fact, you can spend quite a bit of time getting a free education on sound, pickups and R&D from the website. These pickups are very responsive to adjustments to height and do require you to experiment a bit. By the way, these pickups are so noiseless; you?ll look to see if your amp is on! Chris Kinman & Company was a pleasure to do business with.
I plan to rep[lace the SD's in my Tele with these before too long.



Product: Kinman AVn Woodstock Regular Set
Price Paid: US $335.
Submitted 08/02/2005 at 08:08pm by Mitchell Gittelman
Email: mgittelman at starband<dot>net

Features :
Pickup features: Single Coil Passive
Impedence or other specs:

Instrument :
Model of guitar or bass: Fender Strat Squier 1981 Pre-CBS
Position: all positions
Pickup being replaced: stock
Other pickups on guitar:
Artists using this pickup:
You musical style(s): rock, modern, blues
Reason for pickup change: The stock pickups had little bite


Sound : No Opinion
Perceived output level: These pup's have much greater output at similar settings to original pup's
Tone: The tone is crisp, gritty, powerful
Sonic evaluation: I've been playing this guitar through a Marshall JCM 2000 TSL 602 Combo Amp or direct to the PA through a Line 6 Pod at various settings.

For which styles and positions is this pickup (un)suitable: Modern rock, classic rock, southern rock, popular, country

Overall Rating : 10
Comments: If lost or stolen would definitely replace. Playing > 20 years, in a cover band for 2 years. I love the 7-position switch. In addition to the "noiseless" single coils, I have shielded the body cavity at "10" on the amp and get essentially no hum/feedback when I place the guitar right up against the amp.
I chose these from prev reviews and reputation. Chris Kinman has a great comprehensive website with practical info on guitars. I have found the sound I want. Now the guys in the band keep telling me to turn down because these pup's cut through everything



Product: Kinman AVn Woodstock Regular Set
Price Paid: GBP 160
Submitted 04/19/2005 at 02:09pm by Roger

Features :
Pickup features: Noiseless Single Coils
Impedence or other specs:

Instrument :
Model of guitar or bass: Fender Strat + Deluxe
Position: all positions
Pickup being replaced: Lace Sensors
Other pickups on guitar:
Artists using this pickup:
You musical style(s): Classic Rock, Blues, Pop/Rock Covers band
Reason for pickup change: Buzzzzzzzzzz


Sound : No Opinion
Perceived output level: Definately full. The pickups can drive an amp hard if set high - there is plenty of room to lower them and still get a killer sound.
Tone: Very well balanced - some have described them as bright - I would say that they have a little extra presence than normal.
Sonic evaluation: Fender Strat + Deluxe into Marshall TSL602. These are beautifully balanced, very dynamic and responsive and can go from crystal clear to seriously cranked (TSL ultra channel can be wound right up) without problems. They respond quite beautiffuly to pick attack. The sound is never harsh but full of detail. They can really scream if you want them to. Harmonics fly off effortlessly.

For which styles and positions is this pickup (un)suitable: These can do most styles except possibly the low pitched / downtuned metal riffing. But you don't use a Strat for that anyway.

Overall Rating : 10
Comments: If lost I would buy again without hesitation. The whole package shouted 'quality'. My guitar sounds like ?2,000 not ?200 anymore. Oh, and they are really noiseless. Highly recommended. The only alternative could be the Kinman Mk2 Traditionals which I understand have a slightly more vintage tone.



Product: Kinman AVn Woodstock Regular Set
Price Paid: ? 200
Submitted 03/01/2005 at 11:57pm by Colin Clews
Email: colin dot clews<at>dsl dot pipex dot com

Features :
Pickup features: Single coil, passive
Impedence or other specs: No solder install kit with custom switching

Instrument :
Model of guitar or bass: Fender American Stratocaster 2000 (onwards)
Position: all positions
Pickup being replaced: Stock American Standard pickups
Other pickups on guitar: n/a
Artists using this pickup: David Gilmour and others
You musical style(s): Rock, and Christian worship
Reason for pickup change: The neck pickup died one evening with no warning, and needing to replace it without being able to solder, i thought a no solderinstall kit that replaced all the orginal dodgey wiring was a good idea. Also has 2 extra pup selections (7 in total) which are both useful!


Sound : No Opinion
Perceived output level: Similar to a humbucker, drives a pedal well.
Tone: Balanced, across the various selections
Sonic evaluation: Strat into Morley Wah, Proco Rat Distortion pedal into AXL hybrid valve amp (15 watt). They sound very superior. The clean sound is great and the overdrive is smooth but drives the rat quite hard, it almost sounds like a humbucker at times, but still has that distict single coil tone.

For which styles and positions is this pickup (un)suitable: Rock, Christian Worship, it is a great match for the style

Overall Rating : 10
Comments: Would buy this again, and would opt for the no solder install kit that gives you two extra pickup selections! Have been playing for nearly 2 years now. I also play an electromatic grestch malcom young. I play them though an A/B switch so I can swap between them.
Liked my old strat before, love it now. The Kinmans make it sound like a strat should, and the install kit gives you two extra pickup selections. They lives up to the hype with regards to the quality of the sound and the noiseless aspect. They are well balanced and sound beautiful clean, or overdrived. I compared it to some seymour duncans but the bargin install kit and and reputation convinced me to try them. The extra selections are controlled though a mix control that replaces a tone pot. Details on the kinmans website. They allow you to add the neck to any other selection on the switch. You can get neck and bridge together, which sounds smooth and clean kind of like a tele but without the twang (have seen Mark Knopfler use this selection on his Schecter Strat), you can also get all three which reminds me of some blur songs or a 3 pickup les paul. The kit was easy to install with clear instructions and went together perfectly first time! (it also changed all the wiring, soldering, switches, jack and pots for much better quality stuff). It even reached me in the uk from australia in 2 weeks! I am perfectly satisfied, and would love to try the tele pickups.



Product: Kinman AVn Woodstock Regular Set
Price Paid: US $260
Submitted 01/29/2005 at 04:35pm by Anonymous

Features :
Pickup features: Noisless, Stacked Single Coil
Impedence or other specs:

Instrument :
Model of guitar or bass: 2004 American Deluxe - Ash Body
Position: all positions
Pickup being replaced: SCN's
Other pickups on guitar:
Artists using this pickup: Who cares
You musical style(s): Blues/Rock
Reason for pickup change: While the SCN's aren't bad, they lack tonal characteristics I crave.


Sound : No Opinion
Perceived output level: Volume normal, but they hit the amp much harder.
Tone: Dynamic, balanced - exactly as Chris Kinman describes
Sonic evaluation: I play through a Crybaby Wah, Carl Martin Hot-n-Boost to a Reissue Deluxe Reverb. With these pickups I find myself playing straight into the amp more often than not.

For which styles and positions is this pickup (un)suitable: Any style, but they shine with blues and rock.

Overall Rating : 10
Comments: I recently purchased a 2004 Am. Deluxe Ash Strat. Absolutely loved the neck, but very quickly I became dissatisfied with the SCN's. The tone versatality is there, but it is somewhat lifeless. What was worse is they don't have the classic quack in position 2 and 4. My prior favorite replacement pup has been Fralins (I currently have a set in my 62 strat), but I did like the noiseless feature with the SCN's and decided to gamble on the Kinman's. After listening to the sound files on Kinman's site, I thought the Woodstocks would be my preference and I also elected to get the solderless kit (highly recommended). Chris makes a lot of very bold statements on his website, but thus far has lived up to all of them. My pups and kit arrived in Florida in 5 days (no US Dealers so you must oder direct from Australia). Discounting a mistake I made, the installation took about 40 minutes. These pickups, thus far, have more than exceeded my expectations. Brilliant tones, can hit the amp very hard give that much sought after blues overdrive, and respond to every nuance of your pick attack. The solderless kit provides pots and capacitors which Chris believes brings the best out of the pups, and I can't argue. First strat I've owned, and I've owned many, that I actually use the tone pot. I would recommend reading Chris's comments on pickup height. These pickups are very responive to adjustments to heighth and do require experimentation, which I am still going through. That is not to say they ever sound bad, just to tweak them and get your sound requires some time. As I have had these pickups a short time, I will repost my thoughts later; but I have sufficient experience to immediately identify a good product. These, in my opinion, are a great product and highly recommended. My hats off to Chris Kinman and crew for a job well done.



Product: Kinman AVn Woodstock Regular Set
Price Paid: US $60
Submitted 12/17/2004 at 05:00pm by Cow Parsley Man

Features :
Pickup features: passive
Impedence or other specs:

Instrument :
Model of guitar or bass: BatDropping Stratocaster
Position: neck
Pickup being replaced: Stock BatDropping
Other pickups on guitar: Lace Sensor Holy Grail 1500, Seymour Duncan JB Jr
Artists using this pickup: no idea
You musical style(s): Larry Carlton, Hendrix, Be Bop Deluxe, Ollie Halsall, Ralph McTell
Reason for pickup change: BatDropping pickups live up to their name. I wanted something that excited me.


Sound : No Opinion
Perceived output level: High-ish
Tone: Listen to Cawstles made of sand - these are very similar but more punch - even dry
Sonic evaluation: BatDropping Strat, Sunn 15W, Zoom GFX-5 (don't need it - the sound is so good)

For which styles and positions is this pickup (un)suitable: All sorts, not really good for anything 335 ish

Overall Rating : 10
Comments: The sound is perfect. BIG TIP: Use original Fender pots and the suggest Neck pickup modified wiring diagram you get with the pickup, this gives such flexibility, you get sound you never dreamed of. The quality of the pickup is really top drawer. I now have the best guitar in the world. I've been playing 35 years, had all sorts of Gibsons, Fender etc... My other guitar is a Tanglewood 335 copy with Kent Armstrong PAF's (another really lovely sounding instrument). If you want quality sound with quality manufacture, there is no other option. If it was stolen I would manage to live again, but only just....What else would I like to share? - practise what you can't play, listen to Ollie Halsall (google for the web site) and get into Triathlon!



Product: Kinman AVn Woodstock Regular Set
Price Paid: N/A
Submitted 05/19/2004 at 12:57pm by Anonymous

Features :
Pickup features: Single coil hum canceling
Impedence or other specs: see www.kinman.com

Instrument :
Model of guitar or bass: Fender Stratocaster Highway 1 HSS
Position: all positions
Pickup being replaced: Stock
Other pickups on guitar: Atomic Humbucker
Artists using this pickup: Plenty
You musical style(s): Blues, Rock.
Reason for pickup change: Stock tex/mex sounded crappy.


Sound : No Opinion
Perceived output level: Much louder than stock, much better tone.
Tone: Very balanced and ajustable.
Sonic evaluation: Using a Mesa Boogie Lone Star, also have a Berhinger ac-112 and a Fender Frontman practice Amp, These pickups sound magic through all my amps however they are a real show stopper then played through the Lone Star, These pickups have the most well rounded tone and bell.
NEWS: STOP PRESS.

Many individuals in the Canberra region have been blown away by man armed with a Stratocaster fitted with Kinman pickups.

Australian distributor of Mesa Boogie had to keep picking his jaw up of the floor on hearing this guitar.

The entire store stopped what they were doing (staff and customers) and stood in stunned silence as a man with a lethal weapon plugged into Mesa Boogie Lonestar and proceeded to play Cream and Hendrix numbers like they had never heard them before.

Man with guitar had never seen such a reaction, neither had store owner.

Everyone wanted to know what was making such an incredible sound.

For which styles and positions is this pickup (un)suitable: I play blues and rock, I think these Pickups could be used for anything.

Overall Rating : 10
Comments: Would Buy More, I have a Mesa Boogie Lone Star, also have a Berhinger ac-112 and a Fender Frontman practice Amp, a Cry baby and a Maton Acoustic.
Tried Duncan, EMG, Lace.
These Kinman pickups have the sound.



Product: Kinman AVn Woodstock Regular Set
Price Paid: N/A
Submitted 05/15/2004 at 04:46pm by Jon
Email: jfrancey at iprimus<dot>com<dot>au

Features :
Pickup features: Single Coil
Impedence or other specs: See www.kinman.com

Instrument :
Model of guitar or bass: Fender Stratocaster Highway 1 HSS
Position: neck
Pickup being replaced: Fender stock
Other pickups on guitar: Atomic Humbucker
Artists using this pickup: Many, Soon to be many more
You musical style(s): Blues, Rock
Reason for pickup change: Stock singles had very average tone, were noisy and do not combine well with the Humbucker.


Sound : No Opinion
Perceived output level: Fantastic tone, no noise, crisp and punchy, lots of bell, great sustain, very ajustable
Tone: Very balanced, you can set them up how you want.
Sonic evaluation: Have tried these pups with many amps, I was using a Behringer AC112 but these pickups really exposed this amps weakness, its a good amp for the money but it is not quite good enough when played loud through the clean channel and that is probably fair enough as its not a full valve amp, I found these pickups work best through the best quality amp you can afford, I have just tried them on a Mesa Boogie Lonestar and the reaction in the store was enough to convince me that the Kinmans were a very good choice, Every one in the store was blown away by the sound these pups made when played through the Lonestar and I have now ordered one of those amps even though I cannot really afford one at the moment.
The combination just sounds fantastic, every one wanted to know what pups I was using and how I got that wonderful sound.
I should add that the humbucker works very well with these pups, Chris Kinman told me how to setup a trick wiring rig that allows me to blend the humbucker into the Kinmans in a way that provides almost endless combinations.
So its possible to have a very sweet noiseless tonefull classic strat sound and I can also get lots of other sounds like a tele or a tornado, plus a magic sound using all 3 pickups that is unique.
I don't use any effects except a Dunlop Wah and a bit of overdrive, why muddy such a fantastic sound.

For which styles and positions is this pickup (un)suitable: Blues, rock, some power fusion.

Overall Rating : 10
Comments: If stolen I would buy more, Playing 27 years, I also have a very nice Maton acoustic/electric, a 15 watt Fender practice amp, These Pickups just sound fantastic, Tried Duncan's, EMG and Lace and the Kinmans were the best.
I have found the SOUND, Chris Kinman is the KING and his service is very good.
Visit www.kinman.com



Product: Kinman AVn Woodstock Regular Set
Price Paid: US $$260.00
Submitted 03/09/2004 at 05:42pm by Anonymous

Features :
Pickup features: Single coil, Passive
Impedence or other specs:

Instrument :
Model of guitar or bass: Fender USA strat custom
Position: all positions
Pickup being replaced: fender noiseless
Other pickups on guitar: n/a
Artists using this pickup: vines guitarist
You musical style(s): rock/funk/blues/jazz
Reason for pickup change: To get rid of my annoying hum and to have that classic 60's/70's tone.


Sound : No Opinion
Perceived output level: Slightly more output than my previous p.up's. The bridge is a bit weak compared to the neck though.
Tone: A vast improvment over my previous p.up's. Very nice in positions 2 + 4. not balanced, but I don't think the original 60's are either. Bridge is just too weak for me!
Sonic evaluation: I am using my strat into a Traynor YCV 40 with modified speaker and tubes... Also a Cornford. Very dynamic, sweet.

For which styles and positions is this pickup (un)suitable:

Overall Rating : 6
Comments: I've been playing for 20 years and have tried various p.up's for strats including Duncan's, Fralins, Original 50's/60's/70's, Fender, Lawrence. These would be on par with the Fralins. The reason I gave an Overall 6 was that the Customer Service could have been better, otherwise I would have scored them a 9 on pick-ups alone. My advice would be to buy from a dealer or if you can, second hand.



Product: Kinman AVn Woodstock Regular Set
Price Paid: US $245
Submitted 02/20/2004 at 07:31pm by hudson

Features :
Pickup features: 3 single coils - passive
Impedence or other specs:

Instrument :
Model of guitar or bass: American Strat
Position: all positions
Pickup being replaced: EMG DG20 (Active)
Other pickups on guitar:
Artists using this pickup:
You musical style(s): Mainly blues, some classic rock
Reason for pickup change: EMG's were flat in mids


Sound : No Opinion
Perceived output level: Normal (of course less than the active EMG's)
Tone: BALANCED
Sonic evaluation: Strat into Delta Blues 30w Tube amp (12AX7's & EL84's).

For which styles and positions is this pickup (un)suitable: Very good for raw Hendrix style & blues in general

Overall Rating : 9
Comments: Definetely replace if destroyed or stolen. I've been playing for 17 years and I am completely satisfied with the tone of these pickups. I compared it to Fralins, DiMarzio & SD similar pickups. When installing, make sure you use your second tone knob as a "blend" to get the full tonal range. If blues (ala SRV, Trower & Hendrix) are your thing, then try these out. I doubt you would be disappointed.



Product: Kinman AVn Woodstock Regular Set
Price Paid: US $250
Submitted 10/30/2003 at 05:25pm by Anonymous

Features :
Pickup features: Passive Stacked Single Coils
Impedence or other specs: Don't really care

Instrument :
Model of guitar or bass: Warmoth Strat
Position: all positions
Pickup being replaced: None
Other pickups on guitar:
Artists using this pickup:
You musical style(s): Rock, Pop
Reason for pickup change: Jusy wanted to try them.


Sound : No Opinion
Perceived output level: Never used single coils before, so I can't make any comparisons. They seem to have enough beef for the music I play.
Tone: Nice bottoms with cutting highs.
Sonic evaluation: I am using Vox Valvetronics which has many amp sims. I normally use UK 70s that is supposed to be a 70s Marshall copy. I set the amp clean and plug through a series of pedals including Rat, Boss Blues Driver, Line6 Modulation box, Vox wah, and Digitec Whammy. These PUs still sound alive after going through these pedals, and that is really important to me.

For which styles and positions is this pickup (un)suitable: I think these PUs can cover a wide variety of music.

Overall Rating : 9
Comments: If it were destroyed or stolen, would you buy it again. Maybe I'll try Hx-85 for the bridge position since my Strat is made with all maple and has very edgy tone. I often have to roll off the tone control when I play with the bridge PU alone. Soloing with the neck PU driven is just addictive. It screams with a lot of juice. Positions 2 and 4 give nice hollow sound that many players are in love with. Also good for rhythm for funk music since articulation is really effortless with these PUs. I am going to put 9, not 10, because they are a little too expensive. Mr. Kinman provides the explanations for this and I thoroughly understand, but still...you know? Oh, almost forgot to mention that these PUs are very silent. I usually play in front of a computer for DTM. They never gave me a noise problem.



Product: Kinman AVn Woodstock Regular Set
Price Paid: US $260
Submitted 05/12/2003 at 01:20pm by Paul M.

Features :
Pickup features: Noiseless Single Coils
Impedence or other specs: same as other reviewers stated here

Instrument :
Model of guitar or bass: Fender Hwy 1 Strat
Position: all positions
Pickup being replaced: stock pickupes
Other pickups on guitar:
Artists using this pickup:
You musical style(s): rock, surf, ambient
Reason for pickup change: stock pickups are noisy, have very low output, and have terrible tone


Sound : No Opinion
Perceived output level: Compared to the stock Fender pups, these things are very hot compared to any standard single coil, almost as much output as a humbucker. I had to turn down the gain setting and back the pickups waaay off the strings in order to avoid rattling the windows.
Tone: Bridge pickup is balanced. Neck and mid can get really bassy if you get them too close to the strings, so adjust with care
Sonic evaluation: Line6 PodXT for amp simulation through roland KC-100 amp--my all puporse gig-rig. Fender Twin is my preferred setting for this guitar. These are the greatest pickups I have ever used, hands down. They are absolutely dead silent, even under fluorescent lighting. They are more responsive to playing dynamics than any other "noiseless" single coil made--PERIOD. The tone would make Jimi weep with joy and give every surf guitarist something to wriote home about, too.

For which styles and positions is this pickup (un)suitable: I play all sorts of styles, but I can't think of anything this would be inappropriate for, maybe very traditional jazz.

Overall Rating : 10
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