Eventually, I installed a set into one of my Dana guitars. Mission accomplished and a very happy customer. After a few weeks of testing, I had a bridge and a neck pick up for my customer. I sent up a sample to the incredible pick-up inventor Steve Blucher and with in about two weeks I had some working proto-types. I had a wonderful relationship with the DiMarzio Company at that time. I knew I had to make at least 12 units and that amount of construction time was not practical. I nailed the first one down in about a week using a mix of modified bobbins and magnets from other pick-ups.
#1987 westone guitar back panel series
My customer finally persuaded me to try and duplicate a series of pick-ups for him based on the sound of the aforementioned humbucker. I actually made my first one in the late 60’s, when I was a young teenager. I had been making pick-ups for my personal instruments for years. Great, but where was he going to purchase THAT pick-up? There was nothing like it on the market. At the time he was playing in a popular band in the local area and wanted all his “humbucking” style guitars outfitted with the same unique pick-up but, again, with more out-put. But he wanted that tone with more out-put. The customer loved the sound of this pick-up and knew it was a one of a kind piece.
The voltage output was also weak for that style of humbucking pick-up. It had bass punch, a unique mid range dip at 1K and a Tele style bridge pick-up crispness in the top end. The bridge humbucking pick-up was very unique in tone compared to similar models from that era. In the early 80’s, I had a customer that owned a mid 60’s Gibson SG. Detonator pick ups and the active mid range control Now, before I go any further I want to back up a bit. Now I was curious….(let’s see… hmmm… thousand’s instead of tens… my name perhaps in a nationally distributed catalog….) OK! Eventually, I was put in contact with the Westone product manager at SLM. Expressing curious interest in the product he asked if I ever thought of producing the product nationally. All designed by myself and sold exclusively at my shop. I explained that the instruments in my shop had Detonator pickups and an active mid range control installed in them for sales demonstration purposes. That sparkle was not audible from those amplifiers when demoed with the same model instruments in other stores. He would often comment on how the tone of the Crate amplifiers had “sparkle” when they were demoed in my shop. some sample settings that he could use when presenting the product to his customers. My staff and I would demo the products and show the rep. He also would bring in the latest and greatest of his Crate amplifier samples. In 1986, a sales representative of SLM began bringing his string instrument samples into my guitar shop for basic set-ups prior to showing them to his customers. The beginning of the SLM/Dana relationship Due to the exposure of several Dana Westone custom guitars on Ebay, I think it is time to tell the story of how my relationship with Westone and St.
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