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THE HISTORY OF FLATCAT™ GUITAR PICKUPS
From the owner of Wishbringer Music
Around the end of 2014 I became aware of flat pickups when I noticed a brand called Thinkbuckers. Looking further I found another brand called FlatPup, another by the Lace company, another brand by National. I was already building guitars by hand and was fascinated by the concept of flat pickups, but could find very little information on how they were built. Even the cigar box guitar communities seemed very secretive (at the time) as to the process.
Research revealed that flat pickups were nothing new; they'd been around for decades. Lace and National produce off-the-shelf models, but they are very pricey.
Gaining little or no cooperation from the community in understanding flat pickup design, I went to the Net and did some research. Very little was found there. So I started experimenting by the seat of my pants, beginning with only a slight inkling of how these were made, based on non-specific photos. Existing pickups were wax potted and wrapped in cellophane packing tape-- a process that didn't appeal to me. I wanted something sturdier and more resistant to environmental changes.
Factory-made flat pickups were pricey, starting at $145 each. I wanted to build a pickup that was especially sturdy and had a wide-range of sound ability, but at a price affordable to the everyday guitar player.
I started developing an unusual design, significantly different than prior designs I had seen. Not a quick process. Hundreds of hours were involved in basic R&D. Dozens of trial pickups. Detailed records were kept on all attempts-- gleaning the best features from each and discarding failures. Eventually, the FlatCat pickup was born.
By mid-2015 the R&D sessions had accomplished several things:
* Considerable improvement over existing design concepts both in construction and resulting sound. Testers stated it sounded better and was more versatile than other pickups.
* FlatCats are fully potted and encased in solid PolyResin, which makes them very sturdy and more immune to elements and the environment.
* Because of their design I was able to create and offer the first low-cost 6-string flat pickup on the market, intended for use on standard electric guitars. Where factory-produced pickups started at $145 and up, FlatCats are priced at $50 to $55. FlatCats extended beyond the realm of cigar box guitars.
* Flatcats were significantly more powerful than existing CBG-type flat pickups. Despite that gain in power, FlatCats remained wonderfully rich in tone, without distortion. They work well with pedals, including distortion and overdrive models.
* FlatCat was released in Cigar Box Guitar and Humbucker footprints. Both models are aboout 1/4" thick and designed to be mounted to the surface of a guitar.
FlatCats were released to the market and over the next several months earned solid 5-star reviews. They were purchased by professional luthiers, cigar box guitar builders and customers modding their own off-the-shelf guitars. Repeat purchases by existing customers proved their effectiveness.
FlatCats are often specified as the "pickup of choice" by people who order custom guitars from Wishbringer, with those guitars receiving top reviews as well.
Today the FlatCat is available in a variety of colors. Their sturdy composition assures their continued function over decades-- the wonderfully unique sound available to you for your special guitar projects.
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