$335.00
Traditional Mk-IV Set
Set of 3.
The Mk-III set has even more of a vintage sound flavor; the Mk-II set was quite strong on the plain strings and the overall impression of the sound was a little ‘in-your-face. The sound of the plain strings on this upgrade is less in your face, absolutely vintage and noticeably sweeter. Like the Mk-II this set has ‘slightly-aged’ sound for more defined midrange (less scooped) which is better for live performing.
Only the most privelleged players have heard genuine original vintage pickups because they are so rare. They had a big, bold sweet, elusive sound that modern pickups just can’t capture. The Traditional Mk-III set sounds remarkably similar to the best Strat pickups of yesteryear. Complex Alnico character, excellent dynamics, projection and definition that are retained even when distorted. Fluid, shimmery, chimey highs (never thin or Ice picky) More punch and thwack on the wound strings than a regular new single coil. Has excellent twang and growl. Absolutely authentic classic slightly-aged vintage Alnico Strat* tone, with Zero-Hum.
Low magnetic string pull for longer sustain and less string crash and fret buzz.
Very versatile. Buy this set if you want crystal clear sounds that don’t break up easily. Dramatically extended versatility with a K9 NoSoldering Harness but works in the K5 & K7 harness very well also if you don’t need the additional sounds of extended switching options.
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Description
Traditional Mk-IV set ~ spanky but SWEET vintage Strat* sound
An alltime favorite with our customers and consistently rated as producing the best genuine old vintage Strat sound of all time.
News flash Apr-2021: Now with our new Synergy baseplate that allows switching off Hum Cancelling as well as switching to ‘Synergy‘ mode for those that think hum is part of Fender sound.
15-Feb-2019: We felt the Traditional Mk-III was due for improved touch sensitivity so we made some changes. This upgrade produces more spank, liveliness and dynamics and the sound is noticeable louder and more substantial too. So now the Mk-IV set is comprised of a slightly hotter AVn-59 bridge & vintage output AVn-62 middle & neck. The previous AVn-62 Mk-III & AVn-56 have been discontinued and should you desire similar sound consider the Mayer set.
Traditional aged Strat sound without the traditional hum and wolfe-tones (Strat-itis). You can expect to get the authentic old Strat* tone flavor with a set of Traditional Mk-IV; absolutely vintage and as agressive as new pickups. This set has ‘slightly-aged’ sound for more defined midrange (less scoop) which gives you better definition for live performing. This set does not sound exactly the same as new Strat pickups, for that sound choose from the Artist Series and Non-Aged Sound singles like the Impersonator’s.
Only the most privileged players have heard genuine original vintage Strat* pickups because they are so rare and so expensive. The Traditional Mk-IV set sounds remarkably similar to the best Stratocaster* pickups of yesteryear as they sound today (aged). Complex Alnico character, excellent dynamics, projection and definition that are retained even when distorted. Pos 2 & 4 sounds are not quite as tinkly as new pickups are. Fluid, shimmery, chimey highs (never thin or Ice picky) More punch and thwack on the wound strings than many new regular non-noiseless Strat pickups. Has a good degree of twang from the wound strings at room volume and thicker, punchier growl at high volume. Absolutely authentic classic gracefully-aged vintage Alnico Strat* tone, with Zero-Hum.
Quite versatile. Buy this set if you want clear sound with more substantial high end presence and less scooped mids and a sound that breaks up under heavy pick attack at quite loud room volume.
Signal chain requirements: Any old cable won’t do. It is essential to use a low capacitance cable to get the incredible performance of this pickup.
Features Kinman’s proprietary Alnico-K** rod magnets.
Dramatically extended versatility with a K9 Goodbye-Soldering Harness.
Some people will call these noiseless Stratocaster pickups but Kinman prefers to describe them correctly as Zero-Hum Stratocaster pickups. That’s because there are 2 types of noise, Hum which is cancelled in the pickup and Buzz which can only be minimized by shielding the wiring cavities (refer to >Technical >Perfect Guitar >Shielding for newer guitars
** Alnico-K is a unique proprietary Alnico rod magnet developed by Kinman in 1985. It is Alnico-5 but has 40% less string pull than Alnico-5 so sustain is longer and there is much less clatter from string crash and no Strat-itis string warble.
* Fender, Stratocaster, Strat and Big Dipper are registered Trade Marks of Fender Musical Instrument Corp, Inc. Kinman is not associated with FMIC but they kindly permit us to refer to their Trade Marks to reference our products.
Technical Stuff
History:- Mk-I introduced 1998. Mk-II introduced in March 2004. Mk-III introduced 7-August 09.
US Patents 5,668,520 6,103,966
Covers
- Standard Kinman cover without height extender bushings included.
- Available in White, Black, Aged White.
- With and without Kinman logo.
- Can be tinted with food stains such as Coffee and Tea.
- Generic covers will not fit Kinman Strat pickups. We sell replacement covers in three colors.
Connection means available
- Bare wires for soldering.
- Kinman connectors for plugging into any Kinman Goodbye-Soldering Harness.
Dimensions
- click for dimensions page
Pot & Capacitor values
- Best with 250k Ohm (measured minimum) volume pot. Less punch and more bright with 500k.
- Tone pot is usually the same value as the volume but for a little more top end brightness can be 500k, 1meg or a No-Load.
- Stock pots can actually measure as low as 175k. Pots in our Goodbye-Soldering Harness are guaranteed to measure no less that 250k.
- Normal tone cap value of 0.022uF, 63 ~ 100 volt Polyester. Smaller uF value lessen the severity of Treble cut, higher values increase it.
- The voltage rating of Caps is not important but 63 ~ 100 volt have thicker lead wires that result in a neater job.
Magnet spreads we normally ship (ensures magnets align with the strings in each position)
- Narrow 49.5mm
- Intermediate 51mm
- Standard 52.5mm
- Option to specify your magnet spreads of sets and singles in our ‘After-Order Supplementary Questions‘ email we send you.
Magnet Staggers
- Normal improved Stagger to suit 7″ ~ 14 inch uniform radius fretboards including USA Custom Guitar Compound 7-1/4″ ~ 9-1/2
- Flat Stagger 14″ ~ 20″ for specific compound radius fretboards (Warmoth 10 ~ 16 inch and Post 2010 Fender Deluxe 9 ~ 14″)
- Option to choose your magnet stagger for sets and singles in our ‘After-Payment Supplementary Questions‘ email we send you.
Hook-up cable
- 2 conductor shielded is standard. Cut generously longer than necessary for the 3 stock Strat positions.
- Middle pickups when supplied with a K9 or TK4 harness have 3 conductor shielded.
- 3 conductor by request with Order.
- Custom lengths by request with Order.
Output Polarity:
- in-phase with Gibson and Copy humbuckers
- in-phase with all other Kinman pickups
- opposite phase to Fender Strat
Mounting hardware included
- Pan head mounting screws.
- Silicon Rubber tube springs.
We highly recommend consulting the Install Guide in the Technical section even if you think you know it all. Kinmans’ require specialized knowledge and sometimes there is updated info. There is also a handy wiring diagram available.
We also highly recommend consulting the Adjust & Set-up page in the Technical section so you get the best out of your Kinman pickups.
