Roswell vs. Gretsch Filtertron // Pickup Shootout!
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- Опубліковано 18 лип 2021
- Let's compare a Roswell Filter'Tron style Pickup with a Gretsch Filter'Tron.
Some of you are familiar with Roswell pickups in Harley Benton guitars.
The Filtertron is Gretsch's own humbucker, designed by Ray Butts for Chet Atkins.
The patent on them was granted later, but the prototypes seem to predate Gibson's humbuckers.
Typically they are around 4 to 5K with much larger magnets and a smaller but higher coil than a typical humbucker.
How does it sound? Imagine a Gibson PAF Humbucker and a Fender Single Coil having a baby.
They are very jangly & open-sounding for humbuckers, much closer to a single-coil sound. - Навчання та стиль
The Gretsch sounds more like a single coil, brighter & cleaner. The Roswell has more growl like a PAF.
Agree
gretsch better sound is to me
The Roswell was definitely a pleasant surprise! I did not expect that
I like them both , although I do prefer the gretsch filteron , because it seems to have a clearer top end sparkle .
I think I'd always prefer the cheap one. As you say, the difference is minimal and any subtle details that are audible at home are usually swamped in the stage mix. But my favourite part of this is all country/rockabilly riff goodies there are on show here - I'll be closely examining this for tips! Cheers Fabian, so good to see you on UA-cam again.
Thank you Mark! I truly appreciate that! :)
Both sound great but my vote goes for the Gretsch. It's a bit brighter and more open. I agree that they are very close and may not make a difference at stage levels. The guitar and pedal display behind you is really cool!
Thank you for the comparison. In got a Roswell myself for DIY buildt.
Your videos are joy to watch. Thank you very much.
I was looking forward to another video with your filtertron teles!! Great video brother
Thank you! Appreciate it!
They both sound great and very similar! The difference would be negated in a live show!
Great video, great playing!!
I started following you for your amazing word working and then you started with the guitar builds and review stuff. AWESOME!!!! I’m a woodworking guitar player/builder as well. 👍🏻👍🏻 Excellent channel my friend. Always look forward to your videos.
Crazy how good the Roswell Pickup sounds
Just sounds hotter and duller. You can always increase the gain on your amp if you want more gain but you can't get back high end that's not there.
@@Thoracius Are you sure? Ever tried an EQ Pedal?
@@void0094 It seems like eq pedals and adjusting amp settings and pickup height/pole pieces are foreign concepts to most guitarists!…
Seemed to me that the Rosswell had a richness of depth and softer warmth to it, thanks for the demo!
Vielen Dank für das Video. Hat mir bei der Kaufentscheidung geholfen 🙂👍
Liked them both. The Gretsch sounded more open and had a brighter top end, but the Roswells have a bit more mid range. Would have the Gretcsh in the neck for a bit more clarity but the Roswell in the bridge for that bit more midrange drive.
The Roswell sounds a lot like a mini humbucker to me. That’s not a bad thing just a little different. The Gretsch has that jangle and compression that filtertrons are known for.
nice video! I would like to hear both pickups with overdrive and fuzz too though
Well, this was very insightful. I was thinking to swap Roswells in my HB Bigtone trem with Filtertrons, and decided not to after this video. The reason why - difference was minimal between the two and impossible to distinguish in live setting, I reckon. I'll save some money instead. 😁 Vielen Dank, Fabian!
I wonder how much of the difference between them was because they were in two different guitars. I would've loved to swap the Roswell into the maple-topped Tele as a back-to-back comparison.
Assuming they both passed through the same amp and effects chain (if any), the Gretsch pickup sounds sweet and clear. The Roswell pickup has a darker growling tone. I prefer the Gretsch Filter’Tron Humbucking pickup. Nice guitar playing.
I have a Fender bridge tele pickup. Would there be polarity issues between the Gretsch neck Filtertron pickup and fender bridge tele pickup? Thank you. Loved the demo!
I don't think so
In your comparison I would prefer the Gretsch Pickup, it sounds cleaner or has a little bit more sparkle. I used a Roswell Filtertron in a guitar I build for a friend, with a light basswood body, a Rockinger Birdseye Maple neck and a cut off Tele bridge. And it was fine. It really surprised me. Often it depends on the basic sound of the guitar.
Exactly. I think it would have been fairer if I had compared the two pickups in the same guitar ;-)
Hej Fabian. Is there a solution to put some Gretsch FilterTron HS and NL in a Harley Benton HB35 plus? Gretsch are 2 wired and the rosewells on that guitar are 4 wired ....?
Both good. Preferred the Gretsch. Loved your playing.
cool looking guitars
I guess the Rosswel is more impedant. Very nice rock'n roll sound. Still prefer the clarity of the Gretch. Anyway I agree that if you want a filtertron sound there's absolutely no need to spend 250Euro on a TV Jones set. You can have the sound for at least half the price. Thanks for posting, really helped me to make a choice to replace the humbuckers of my Cort Yorktown VB
I'm really impressed with the Roswell, I think the Gretsch had the brass saddle tone bonus. To my ears the Gretsch sounds more compressed. Loved the spank of the Roswell. Very interesting shootout 👍😎
The Roswell pickup guitar had steel saddles vs the Gretsch pickup guitar which look to be brass saddles, how much could this have affected the sound? Either way, it is very minimal with the sound difference, price difference would probably help me decide in this instance. Thank you for the great review!
Also a different brand of strings on both guitars.
All I can say is the Rosswells are excellent,,a bit bright but with a tone control adjust it will work well. The Gretsch sound "Musical" and familiar.
So good this comparison. Thank you.
Wich model of roswell is ? Theres two models alnico v and II
FLT-B Alnico II
Hi Fabian! Das war Chain Gang von Fame ,super! Gruß Hans , jetzt wieder unterwegs mit
JAXXON Five aus Mühlheim....... keep on rocking!
Hey ganz genau 😁 viele Grüße 🎸
Klingen beide super, top Video! 👍
Danke dir 👍
Hi, very useful comparison. You know, I have the Roswell and like them, although I find them to be very dark. The worst limit of them is given by the fact that they have just one white wire (hot) surrounded by a metallic shield, but that's NOT equivalent to having the black wire for the mass. So every wiring width dpdt switch for neck& bridge in series or bridge out of phase does NOT work. What about the gretsch, how many wires?
It's the same with the Gretsch FilterTron but I don't mind. I like the classic wiring best. Neck/ both/ bridge, that's all I need 😉
Really enjoyed your licks! The Gretsch was much better to my ear. Better clarity and more pronounced tight bass which to me is awesome for country and rockabilly playing. The Roswell's sounded pretty good but seemed muddy in the low end. Other than that they sounded nice. Thanks, appreciate your video!
The Roswell are pretty good!
The Gretsch Filtertrons sound bit brighter but more refined, the Roswell slightly harsh but more bottom end and growl.
But the saddles were different too, brass can provide more brightness…
Considering the price, I would choose Roswell.
Wich Roswell FLT did you have here? Alnico II or Alnico V?
Grüsse //Rudy
It's the Alnico II
www.musicstore.de/de_DE/EUR/Roswell-Pickups-FLT-B-Alnico-II-Bridge-Nickel/art-GIT0043277-000
Roswell was thicker
Gretsch was brighter
The biggest difference between them would be the price
Ich hab selbst einige Roswell pups in meinen HB-Gitarren. Schlecht sind sie auf keinen Fall, lassen sich allerdings auch nicht als hervorragend bewerten. Meines Erachtens schneiden in deinem Test um den halben Preis die Roswells auch halb so gut ab im Vergleich zu den Gretsch pups. Die mit den Gretsch Tonaufnehmern lässt sich mit guten Ergebnissen im Tonstudio aufnehmen.
I think the difference is much due to the different bridges, steel single vs brass double and that
Was the Roswell the Alnico 2 or alnico 5?
what value pots were you using in each guitar for these sound samples? thanks
500k
@@FabiansTinyWorkshop ta
I think the Roswell pickups sound great and certainly hold their own......slopes off to look at a 'filtertron' equipped tele-style HB on Thomann ;-)
The Gretchen pickup was clearly snappier with a certain ring absent in the Roswell.
Schönes Video, Fabian.
Interessanter Test.
Gut ich spiele kein Musikinstrument, für mich klang der Rosewell voller. 🤷🏻♂️
Hoffe euch hat es mit dem Wasser nicht so doll erwischt? 🤔
Bei mir ist alles super, haben kein Hochwasser. reicht wenn ich es in der Hose habe, das Hochwasser. 🤔🤣😝
Danke! Glücklicher Weise ist bei uns kein Wasserschaden entstanden, wir hatten nur kurzweilig ein paar cm in der Garage :-)
too many variables were ignored. Different strings (maybe on the first guitar they were half a year and on second fresh), different bridges, different everything.
Hallo, du testest die Pickups in zwei verschiedenen Gitarren, mit verschiedenen Saitenreiter, verschiedene Hölzer? Das macht schon von der Gitarre aus einen anderen Klang! Gruß, Rainer.
Hölzer sind beides Linde. Aber hast Recht. Trotzdem bleibt ist die Charakteristik der beiden Pickups sehr ähnlich.
There is a difference in tone because of how they are built up...
The Roswell is as someone say like a mini humbucker why it has more growl to it.
The Gretch is a filtertron and the benefits of that is also what we pay for in the end.
I love the filtertron on a hollow body giutar that's just another level!
On a telecaster I do believe the Roswell do a bit better job specially in the bridge position... in the neck I believe we had herd a bigger difference in tone.
Best regards from Scandinavia Sweden 🇸🇪
In terms of structure, the Roswell has the same dimensions as a filtertron. A mini humbucker is much narrower and flatter. I suspect, however, that the copper wire, the number of windings and possibly the strength of the magnet could differ.
I think the saddles made a difference,,brass sweeter,,steel a little more harsh,,would like to hear with same guitar..
The Gretsch FilterTron clearly sounds better. Nice videos you make.
I believe the differences folks are hearing are in guitar construction rather than pickups. A maple cap is going to sound brighter and cleaner. The black tele might be mahogany body or poplar, or alder, none of which is going to sound as bright as maple. Even saddle material and numbers thereof can make a sonic difference. A 6 saddle chrome Assy will sound different than a brass 3 saddle assembly. Even nut material can make a sonic difference if the guitar is really responsive and dialed in.
The Roswell has more low end, for a brighter sound put a capacitor in series with the hotlead of the Roswell or adjust the equalizer of the amp.
Hi!
Can you explain more, please?
Thanks
Just keep in mind, that caps never add something to the sound, instead they filter out. So, removing low end actually does not add top end.
Do you mean put a capacitor’s leg on one side to the hot lead and the other capacitor leg on the Earth side/screen side?
OR do you mean splice a capacitor into the hot lead side?
kinda sounds like the roswell is a tiny bit hotter, maybe closer to the strings compared to the gretsch?
Also, which roswell filtertron did you get? they have multiple types with different specs.
FLT-B Alnico II
@@FabiansTinyWorkshop thank you👍
Very very similar 😮😮
What manufacturer is your black telecaster from?
It's a partscaster. Like on most of my gutitars I used parts of cheap guitars and/or parts I bought online.
Maybe one should test the pickups in the same guitar to get better idea of the differences.
Granted, that would be ideal.
Do the vintage brass saddles enhance the tone and clarity of the guitar?
I don't know. Maybe.
Yes, they do. I answer by personal ear and by, perhaps more importantly, the opinion of a highly regarded luthier that I use. This said, pickups are the biggest single factor, imo.
The roswell is a good pick up
Where are they made? the link you've previously shared takes us to a german page?
Don't know. Maybe you can find something on the webpage?!: roswellpickups.com/
@@FabiansTinyWorkshop I'm trying to decide on a set of these for a G5420
Very surprising. I have a Harley Benton with a stock roswell filtertrons and find that it sounds very dull and lifeless. But your video makes me think that maybe the electronics of the guitar are the real issue rather than the pickups. These roswells sound damn good compared to mine.
I'm curious what you mean by electronics. Value of pots maybe? That could make some difference. But too often people say they changed to brand such and such pots, with the idea that there's be a tonal difference with better pots. There might be more longevity, smoothness of turning, smoothness of taper, and such factors, but when they're at a particular setting, they're just resistors. Wiring? Some wires might have a little more capacitance, but the length of wire in the control cavity is so short, it's hard to imagine that making an audible difference.
Of course if it's a guitar with active electronics, then the electronics could surely make a big difference.
Consider also that there's adjustment of pickup. The distance from the strings can make an audible difference. Capacitance of guitar cord. Guitar cord is relatively long, thus the accumulation of capacitance over distance can make a difference.
I figured out that the cap was the issue with my guitar. HB guitars come stock with a capacitor with a value of . 047µF which sends too many treble frequencies to ground. I swapped the cap out for one with a . 015µF value and it brought the Roswells back to life. They now sound as good if not better than the ones this video and I no longer am planning on swapping them out. Very solid pickups with the right capacitor.@@lonpollard902
Hi there, is there a big output difference?
I didn't notice any.
I don't know why so many commenters thought the Gretch were better on the high end because to my ears the roswell's had that higher in Clarity just a little bit more. And therefore I preferred the sound of the roswell's I don't know how much each One's cost but I know what my ears like
switch them fr guitar to guitar. it matters. i like the roswell sound a bit better but sounded like tone wasnt set higher on the gretsch
Exactly. I think it would have been fairer if I had compared the two pickups in the same guitar.
Roswell´s rocks your socks off !
Guitar madness filtertrons in a Ibanez rg copy I’m going to try it I’m not a shredder, marvel, blues person
Interessanter Test. Der Unterschied ist deutlich zu hören. Die Gretsch-Pickups klingen weniger scharf, allerdings kann es auch an den doch sehr unterschiedlichen Saitenreitern der beiden Teles liegen.
The Gretsch one had more twang and top end
prefer the Gretsch, the Rossies are good but a bit harsher tone.
I like the Roswell. What model would that be?
It was the AlNiCo II Version.
@@FabiansTinyWorkshop Thank You. At a quick glance on the internet I am not seeing any USA sellers.
@@garyp5522 I got mine frome here: www.musicstore.de/de_DE/EUR/Roswell-Pickups-FLT-B-Alnico-II-Bridge-Nickel/art-GIT0043277-000
Don't know if there is an US seller. Maybe on ebay?!
@@FabiansTinyWorkshop Thank You also nice playing.
Not the same tone woods
Not the same bridge and saddles
Difficult to find out where do come the tone changes...
Was this the Alnico II or Alnico V Roswell?
It was the AlNiCo II Version.
Since this comment I've bought the Alnico V Hot Rod version and once had an actual Gretsch in a solid body. The A5 VERSION Roswell is a terrific compromise right between the two. Fantastic pickup.
Can i have a linck to buy a sot of roswel Flts?
Thanks!
www.musicstore.de/de_DE/EUR/search?SearchTerm=Roswell+Pickups+FLT
Thank you so much!
roswell hot rod is great !
The Gretsch Pickup sounds better, however, it also has a better sounding bridge.
Gretsch for the snobs, Roswell for the smart ones
The Roswells sound a little hotter and more throaty. Both sound good to me.
I like grestsh sound
I liked the Roswell....more "cream" 😊
Gretsch has more sparkle
Is it true that neither the Gretsch or the Roswell are true Filtertrons, just have covers that of the Filtertron type?
I can't tell for the Roswell because I did not remove the cover but the Gretsch is a true Filtertron. From resistance, copper wire, bobbin size up to the larger magnet all typical Filtertron.
The Roswells are built in the same fashion as the Gretsch and could well be considered a true Filter'tron pickup.
The Roswells are made identical size and materials outside of magnets and screw length. Roswell are Alnico, Gretsch are Ceramic magnets. Even the impedance is identical.
@@grilledspaghetti "my" Gretsch Filtertron has a AlNiCo magnet not a Ceramic. Don't mistake it with the Electromatic pickups.
Preferred the Roswell sound, the Gretsch highs were to pronounced.
I prefer the Roswell
to me the Roswell is much tinnier and metallic, more like a banjo. The Gretsch has a much more melodic high middle range.
the Gretsch has a lot more life to the tone.
scrue them gretch filtertroons i take the rosswell 24/7
Gretsch's sounded thinner, by a hair.. I prefer the Roswell's.
huge difference for my ears. the gretsch sounds way more open. sounds good. i don't like the roswell at all.
you lost weight, i hope you are fine.
Thank you I'm fine :)
Offenbach
Roswell sounds more like a single coil pick up...
Gretsch more like a humbucker...
bridges of different types made with different materials will sound significantly different. this comparison is bogus.