Seymour Duncan JB – The JBJ Era

The JBJ.  Go back and read that again, I’ll wait.  Is there any other guitar pickup in mass production, like the JB model, that has a sub-genre with such a cult-like following?  Not even the best 1950s Gibson P.A.F. humbuckers can be sorted out in such a way.  Flipping a humbucker to see that “stamped” style sticker on the base plate is akin to having found the Golden Ticket to the factory. At least for some players.

Not Just The “J”

Let’s be fair.  You can find other initials on the end of that code.  And this evaluation is really more about the JB during the era of these type of “stamped” labels.  Into the mid-90s, the labels looked more like a P-Touch sticker.  Subsequently, the labels moved into a format where the builder is not reflected in such a manner… which I suppose makes sense, as the production model JB is wound on a CNC these days.

If I’m going too fast, this was during a time when the initial of the person that made a pickup would be shown on the label.  Right there next to the model name, or the code used for that model.  The JB model is pretty simple:  JB.  The J is for Maricela, who was making production floor pickups at that time.  A humbucker with L would be for Lidia.  D is for Debbie and M for Martha.  G is for Gloria.  That is not to say that they all did or didn’t make the JB model.

The Marketing

The “J” seems to be the most common.  Or is it? It is clearly what gets the most attention. How so? Well, read my article discussing The Myth Of The Magic for an editorial on how marketing tricks can put the finger on the scale to suit a company’s agenda. In that article, I touch base on how there were several winders all making the same model on machines that made multiple bobbins at the same time. A JBL is just as valuable as a JBG or a JBJ.

In fact there were not JBJs until 1983. That means there are people paying a premium on a product from 1984 from an employee with only a year experience. Wouldn’t you want something from a winder that has been there longer that has more experience? And that’s my point, the company has marketed the personality to be larger than the product.

Back In The Day

This was a time when the JB Model was still has long mounting legs and an Alnico 5 magnet and long before the logo was stamped on the top of the bobbin.  Before the end of the JBJ era, the trem spaced version was released… they do have the short mounting legs and was about the time the logo started to appear on the bobbins.

Mid-to-late 80s.  That’s up to, and including 10 years since ‘The JB Model‘.  Outside of the content of the label, the base plate might be the biggest difference… going to a version with the familiar Seymour Duncan logo stamped in to the bottom.  The bobbins were predominantly poly at this point.  The Duncan company asserts that the wind remains the same.

Specs

Let’s check out a sampling of some specs.  I have some standard spaced and some trem spaced samples from this era.

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Understanding the specs

Why is the resistance higher on the trem spaced pickups?  It’s the same number of turns… or at least, it should be.  The spacing from low E to high E is longer, so it takes a little more length per turn.  By the time you fill up a bobbin, you have a little more wire.  So… more resistance.

Otherwise, I have more samples of each, but they don’t reflect anything different from what you’re seeing there.  Fairly symmetrical coils with pretty consistent readings from one pickup to another (within the respective SKU).

How do they sound?

If you are new to guitar or new to the JB model and a current production model JB is what you know… well then, imagine something with more polite low end and a sweeter high end.  The “stamped” label era is what made the JB a pickup that became one of the highest selling aftermarket humbuckers.

Don’t want to pay the stupid prices that people are asking for these older ones? Who can blame you? If you want to stick with the Duncan brand, look at the Antiquity JB. I know, the whole marketing pitch says the Antiquity sounds like the earliest one from the 1970s. I have 10 of the earliest ones from the 1970s, and no. The Antiquity JB will get you closer to the 1980s JB than anything else.

Wanting to go off the reservation? From Bare Knuckle, check out the Nailbomb with the Alnico 5 magnet. That’s right, not the Holy Diver and not the Rebel Yell. The alnico Nailbomb. From DiMarzio, consider the Tone Zone and the AT-1 for the closest. I think the Air Zone, the Double Whammy, and the Breed put you in the same place. A dark horse would be Gibson’s Eruption model bridge humbucker. Some people suggest the SSH+ from Suhr, but I think that sounds more like the CNC era of the JB.

Who was using this?

Relative to the era, players and their band at that time would include: Warren DeMartini and Robbin Crosby (RATT), Jake E. Lee (Ozzy), Steven Stevens (Billy Idol), Jerry Cantrell (Alice In Chains), Andy Timmons (Danger Danger), Steve Farris (Mr. Mister), and Seymour said he heard that Joe Satriani used the JB on Surfing With The Alien.

With those artists in mind, how about some examples of how a JB Model from the 1980s to the mid-90s would sound:

Demos

Don’t underestimate the Grammy-nominated “Broken Wings”:

Be sure to visit THIS LINK to see all the articles about the different stages, iterations, and influences of The JB Model humbucker.

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