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JAG/Baytone Pickup Founder Passes

2K views 0 replies 1 participant last post by  Mateo2006 
#1 ·
I was recently surprised to hear that the founder of John Anthony Guitars who wound a pickup for me earlier in 2018 had passed away:



From his website:
"Baytone Pickups were the creation of my husband John ( Anthony Blakey) of John Anthony Guitars. They became highly acclaimed stringed instrument transducers and John created them to offer a different flavour to all of the other mass produced pickups available for general retail. John handwound each one using a totally unique and unusual pattern, unlike any others.
They were hand built, hand wound and hand finished using both traditional and some unusual but beautiful raw materials and enhanced any instrument that they were installed into, aesthetically and in sound quality. John made them in his guitar making workshop at Cayton, a small North Yorkshire village near Cayton Bay near Scarborough in the United Kingdom.

Although sadly since John passed away these (pickups/products) no longer will be available to buy, these pages hopefully will give guidance and inspiration to many projects all over the world and also serve as a memory in recognition of the true Artist that John was!"


In Memory of John Anthony Blakey

After having difficulty matching up a bridge pickup to my Lollar CC neck pickup in my tele, I got John to wind me up a pickup for the bridge. Although I did not end up sticking with the Baytone pickup in that instrument John was very responsive and took the time to answer the questions I had, delivered a quality product and was helpful when Canadian customs delayed their delivery.

I was actually selling that pickup on kijiji when someone informed me of his passing. I took it down thinking, "That was a good pickup. Even though I don't have another telecaster, I won't be able to get another one."

The Baytone JAG CC bridge pickup I have is closer to a Broadcaster pickup with a further softening of highs. With 42 gauge wire, Alnico V bar magnet and 8.5K output, ironically it was a lightweight pickup compared to the 3.2K, 38 gauge CC neck pickup. But if you wanted traditional tele in the bridge and were willing to use a boost on the bridge or roll back the volume on the neck, this would be the pickup for you. It had the best middle position sounds of the four pickups I had in my tele by far.

I will probably match it up at some later date with a neck pickup that is a tad less powerful than the Lollar.

You can see the pickup he wound for me here. It was hands down the most attractive of the pickups I had in that tele.
https://www.jazzguitar.be/forum/att...184036-jpg?s=663159a2722390ab0690fce6ffc5b0d5
 
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