March 1999 Stingray V with stock Alnico pickup???

[vesuvio681]

Hi All,
writing from Italy, hope you can give me some hints on quite a strange dilemma! I purchased in Italy end 1999 a Stingray V, both s/n search tool and customer service confirmed build date March 1999. So I was pretty sure that it was provided with ceramic pickups ("ceramic age" : 1992-2007). 10 years or more later I decided to replace the stock pickup with a Nordstrand Alnico. A few days ago I happen to lay my hands on the old pickup, and I found out that the stock pickup was already Alnico! See picture annexed. Does anybody have an explanation for it? Do you think it could be worth to go back to the stock pickup? I have never been so much satisfied of the Nordstrand, as I found it too "smooth", but I really can't remember after so many years how the stock pickup sounded, and of course today I am much more skilled on sound management than I used to be when I decided to replace! Thank you in advance for your help!! Giovanni

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[Mu5icM@n]

Hi Giovanni, looks like something happened with the picture you uploaded, I can't see it. Don't have much experience with SR5's with an alnico pickup from that era, but I do know I really like my 2000 SR5 with a ceramic humbucker. I'd be interested in a sound sample too if you have one!

 

[vesuvio681]

Hi Giovanni, looks like something happened with the picture you uploaded, I can't see it. Don't have much experience with SR5's with an alnico pickup from that era, but I do know I really like my 2000 SR5 with a ceramic humbucker. I'd be interested in a sound sample too if you have one!

Dear, thank you for your reply. I actually was wrong, as I then found out using google lens and comparing the picture with others I could find this way in the net, that it is a ceramic pickup. I am annexing the picture. I have decided for the time being to keep the Alnico, and work more on eq management and compression, to get the attack I want. Actually my problem with this Nordy is not really the tone, but the attack! Have a nice day!