Interview with ZenD Pickups
- Barış Şahin
- Apr 4
- 12 min read
Hello Don. Can you tell us about the founding story of ZenD Pickups and the inspiration behind starting the company?
Sure, but it’s not a company, just a very small business lol. The founding of ZenD Pickups itself is not quite a story, but the seed may have been dropped decades ago. I am a person of various interests and among them, music and D.I.Y. When I first learned to play the guitar at the age of 15, I had a dream to become a great guitarist, just as many young guitar learners do. However, not before long did I find that the dream went further and further when it met studies, parents’ expectations, and all the challenges of life, so just as most guitar players in my generation here in Taiwan, playing guitar becomes a hobby. When things got more settled in my early 40s, I finally had time to focus on my guitar playing skills, but it turned out that the D.I.Yer in me was more ready to make some troubles, and “pickup building” popped up during my research on guitar building, so that was how everything gets started. After two years’ research (relevant knowledge, constructions, figuring out where to buy parts, etc.), I decided to sell all my previously bought pickups. On the product selling pages, I wrote something like “I can build my own pickups now, so I am selling all these.” One week later, a guy (who is now a ZenD VIP) contacted me to buy one of the pickup sets and said he wanted me to build him a set of HSP90; that was the first sold ZenD pickup set, and more importantly, the feedback was great, mush greater than I expected. This gave me lots of confidence, and ZenD Pickups was established with that first order.
What sets ZenD Pickups apart from other pickup manufacturers in the industry? Let’s say i am an average guitar player, see your insta page and why should this random guy should give some of your pickups a try?
I would say “customizability” and “price”. By cusomizability, I don’t mean the custom orders that most pickup builder do; I mean the many options (which I call “order options”, mostly concerning the look of the pickups) we provide even to an order of ZenD models involving no customization. For example, ordering a ZenD humbucker, you can decide on the combination of screws, slugs, or blades (two raws of screws, two raws of slugs, double blade, etc.) and the color of them. Details go down to slotted or hex screws and threaded-top or flat-top slugs. You can also choose from more than 5 types of covers, or you can try our woodtops (over 10 types of wood to choose from). Look for different baseplates? No problem! We provide nickel-silver and brass (goldish or balck); we even have the Dimarzio-like triangular-sided baseplates! Other options include the types of hookup wire and the color of the mounting screws. In a word, I hope every ZenD pickup entertains its owner with both the look and the sound. Click here to take a look at ZenD humbucker order options.
As for price, I totally agree with Irongear pickups (their website) on their statement that “even if you use the best materials, it doesn't cost a great deal to make a guitar pickup”. My goal is to help guitar players find their sound at a reasonable price and now I can prodely say that ZenD pickups are the most affordable hand-wound pickups in the world!
You don’t have an official webpage. Don’t you need one for presenting your products, find it too old fasioned ;)
I know how important an official website is for a pickup builder like me. I am actually trying to build one, but I just don’t have enough time to finish it. That’s why my site is always under construction lol.
How’s the profile of your customers? Who are they and how are the feedbacks?
My customers are mostly guitar players in Taiwan, including students, luthiers, guitar techs, producers, and hobbists with a day job. Overseas orders have come from Canada and Singapore. The feedbacks are generally very good, and I am truly grateful for all ZenD customers.
I can get some of your models on your IG page since i’m a good follower, like Earthquaker, Summer Breeze or Oldtimer... But, can you give us a proper introduction for the models of ZenD Pickup line?
Honestly, there are not many models due to the lack of time for model development after I began to take orders, and by the time of answering this question, I have built to 78 custom orders. Back to the topic, ZenD has models for single coils, humbuckers, and P90s and they are introduced below. Orders of other types of pickups (tele, HSP90, Jbass, Pbass, firebird, etc.) were all custom ones.
Single coils:
(a) Hot Mint Set (A5; 6k, 6.2k, 6.7k)
You get the familiar Fender tone with a bit more compression, sparkling highs and smooth mids.
(b) Fat Boy Set (A5; 6.3k, 6.4k, 6.8k)
They have fatter coils built with heavy formvar wire, which gives you rounder but clear highs, thick mids, and moderate lows. Juicy!!
NOTE: All alnico models and alnico custom orders can be made “noiseless” by adding a tiny coil under the pickup, which, compared with “stack” pickups, reduces much less trebles. You can get the true coil sounds with no hum just with a little tweaking. More importantly, this design doesn’t sacrifice the volume, so there is no problem for these to work with other type of pickups (for example, humbuckers or P90s).
(c) Breaker-through set (Neodymium; 6.2k, 6.4k, 6.7k)
This is a more modern sounding set, warm and clear. The neo magnet brings excellent bass response, full-body sounding with high clarity, breaking through any obstacles.
(d) Shape Shifter set – coil tappable single coils (two outputs) (Ceramic; 5.7k/9.4k, 5.8/9.6k, 6k/10k)
This is a versatile single coil set. The coil tap design extands the pickups’ application to various kinds of music, country, jazz, rock, and many others!
(e) Screw Head set – P90 style single coils (Neodymium; 7.8k, 8.2k, 11.5k)
This set distinguishes itself from strat pickups by the adjustable polescrews and two neodymium bars underneath, which generates a more powerful, modern tone, performing very well both clean and dirty.
Humbuckers:
(a) Oldtimer set (A5; 7.4k, 8.4k)
A5 P.A.F. Balanced EQ, balanced output, balanced everything with clarity and dynamics, just like an old friend!
(b) Summer Breeze set (A2; 7.3k, 8.3k)
A2 P.A.F. They have more pronounced mids than Oldtimers, like the breeze in a summer afternoon, warm, but you still enjoy the clarity when the wind goes by the ears.
(c) Dark Thunder bridge (Neodymium; Standard—12k, Fierce—15k)
This is a hot bridge pickup which I make two versions for guitarists of different tastes. The standard version has scooped mids, for those who like dirty tones with pronounced highs. The fierce version has more balanced EQ, for those who enjoy thicker tones. Of course, both are clear and dynamic.
(d) Versatility Set
This set is a combination of Oldtimer neck and Dark Thunder bridge. The aim is to cover as many style of music as possible!
(e) Earthquaker bridge (A5; 16.7k)
This is currently the hottest pickup in our line, lots of mids to quake the earth but still with high clarity. Fat and juicy; Andy and Timmons! LOL!
P90s:
(a) Nostalgic P90 set (A3; 7.4k, 8.4k)
The very early P90 tone, sweet and sparkling. Think about P.A.F humbuckers with more highs and bites!
(b) Dominator P90 set (A5; 8.6k, 9.5k)
You’ll find a hotter, more modern P90 sound in this set, with the P90 grit, round and clear highs, smooth and focused mids. In short, you dominate the stage with Dominator P90s.
(c) Soul Fire stack P90 set (A5; 17.2k, 19k)
Two Dominator P90 coils stacked together, so it’s noiseless. With the 4-conductor hookup wire, you get three type of sound out of one pickup.
-Series connection: Soul Fire P90 (17.2k, 19k): warmer and more full-body tone.
-Coil split: Dominator P90 (8.6k, 9.5k): see above.
-parallel connection: lower output single coil tone (4.3k, 4.75k): imagine a more powerful Strat position 2 and 4.
Do you have some kind of expertise on making pickups? You know, some guys are known in the market for a spesific products like Fralin is famous on their Strat pickups commonly, Ron Ellis or Fred Stuart are known for their Tele pickups, Throbaks are for PAF clones etc.
As far as I am aware, no. Feedback on every sold pickup (model or custom) is generally very good, and I haven’t heard any comments on certain types of pickups. ZenD has been known for just 2.5 years; maybe it will take some more years for people to have a consensus about the models.
What considerations should guitarists keep in mind when selecting ZenD pickups for their instruments? How does your customer reach you on deciding the model and how do you help them to choose?
Well, since I don’t have a website yet, people reach me via Facebook and Instagram, and I try my best to answer their questions. Because most guitar players know little about how tone is related to the configuration of a pickup, what they can do is to decribe their desired tone, but you know, this is subjective and can vary a lot. So I ask them for a pickup model they like (maybe they have tried it or listened to it on the net), and it is better that the model is from some big brand so that the specs (at least the DCR) are available. In this way, I’ll get a better idea of their ideal sound and give suggestions accordingly.
Can you describe the design process of your own? Can you share any interesting anecdotes or stories from the development process of a specific pickup models of your own?
I think my model development process is no different from any other pickup builder’s: research > build > test > adjust. I don’t have special anecdote about my models, but I can share the stories of two models, which started as custom builds: the Fat Boy single coil set and the Earthquaker humbucker bridge. The origin of Fat Boy was a custom order for a tone similar to Fender’s Fat ‘50s pickups. The client is a renowned luthier, and that set of custom pickups’ reputation accumulated after people went and tried his prototype guitar. Several months later, people began to ask about that set and place orders. After three orders, I decided to make it one of my regular models and give it the name “Fat Boy”. The Earthquaker’s story is quite silimar except that three orders were placed within two weeks right after the initial custom build was delivered.
How do you ensure the quality of your pickups, and what makes them unique in terms of sound and performance?
Since pickup building is not my full-time job, my time on it is actually quite limited. I have been lucky enough to develop my own trusted winding technique based on those positive feedbacks, so I am quite confident about how my pickups will sound. I also order parts from the same suppliers to ensure the parts are stable in quality.
Can you mention a bit about your “raw materials”? Can you source proper materials with quality for baseplates, coil wire, magnets etc.?
Most of my materials are from China, which is part of the reason why my price is low. But lower price doesn’t always mean lower quality. I know how people think about things made in China, but producing pickup parts (plastics, metal, wire, etc.) doesn’t involve high-end technology. Parts from China can make good pickups; at least this is what my pickups and their feedbacks tell me.
Are there any pickup models from different brands that you wish you had designed? If so, which ones are they?
No, I can’t think of any. With a laser cutter, I can make many non-standard bobbins and baseplate with fibreboards and wood, so I can express my creativity to a great extent. However, there is one thing I hope to achieve some day—to make my own wooden pickup covers. That’ll need a CNC router, but I don’t have space for it, because my workspace is just around a desk in my study room.
What has been the most challenging/hardest project or product development phase for ZenD Pickups, and how did you overcome it?
The most challenging and tiring part was sourcing the parts. Since my prices are low, I don’t have the budget to do bulk orders, so finding affordable parts from suitable suppliers became a difficult task. For this challenge, I overcame it with TIME lol! I just kept searching and searching until I was satisfied with the results, and I was lucky enough to find most of the parts needed to build common types of pickups at decent prices. However, problems soon arose when people came and asked about pickups that require parts unavailable from China, for instance, gold foils, humbucker-sized filtertron covers, and open covers for P90s. This had bothered me for a long time because sometimes the shipping fee to Taiwan is higher than the parts! For this challenge, I also overcame it with time. I kept searching and searching until one day I found some “consolidation” companies, who collect the things you buy from different places/countries and ship them in one package to where you are, and their shipments are much much lower. So far I’ve done many custom orders with parts from Europe and US, and customers have been pleased with the price and the pickups!
From your perspective, how is the guitar pickup industry evolving, and where do you see it heading in the next few years?
Maybe I am not yet in the position to say anything about this. I think the best way to get your ideal tone is through customization, that is, through discussions with the pickup builder. However, big companies make a lot of efforts in addition to build pickups, for example, guitar hero endorsement and selling merch. There is nothing wrong about this, but this necessarily raises the price of their pickup models, not to mention price for custom orders. This scares general guitarists away from getting customization. Due to my lower price, customers don’t usually hesitate about doing a custom order, and the results have been much satisfying to the customers and to myself. I am glad I can offer a little help and get myself involved in the industry in this way.
For the the next few years, when heavy machines like CO2 laser cutters, CNC routers, and 3D printers, become more portable and affordable, I believe pickup customization will become more affordable, and more and more guitar players will get closer to their dream sounds!
Are there any emerging technologies or trends that you believe will significantly impact the pickup market?
Pickups are devices of simple construction, so I don’t think new technologies will have much impact. For example, you can print humbucker bobbins with a 3D printer but considering the speed and the cost, it can never replace using the plastic ones (but 3D printers are really helpful for custom orders with special specs!). Another thing that pops up is new magnets, but they may not have much impact, either. Different magnets bring different tonal qualities, and generally, humans are very good at rejecting new things lol! Just look at neodymium magnets. They are cheaper than alinco, and with the right size, they can make amazing pickups, but people seems to be afraid of using it.
What does the future hold for ZenD Pickups? Are there any upcoming projects or collaborations you're excited to share?
Actually, I am always excited to do custom orders; I see them as cherishable projects. As for collaboration, I have been collaborating with a well-known luthier (whom I mentioned above). My pickups have been on many of his prototypes and custom guitars. I am also collaborating with a talented luthier in Canada (his Instagram). Recently, I have been very excited about the collaboration with you on Tone Journey. Thank you for accepting my pickup review proposal!
Pleasure is all mine. I am very excited, too, BTW. You live in Taiwan. How is the guitar scene in Taiwan? I mean both equipment and playing-wise.
The environment and atmosphere used to be not so friendly to musicians here. Most parents of my generation viewed academic studies as the only way to success, so many music dreams were suppressed. Fortunately, things have changed in the past two decades, when people from our generation became parents. Now I see many young and talented Taiwanese guitar players being very active on social media, and some of them are just high school students! Also, there have been some Applied Music departments established in colleges, where they can major in guitar playing and theories. I feel happy for them, from the bottom of my heart. As for equipment, markets of second-hand equipment are quite popular here. Many guitarists use secon-hand equipment as a way to save budgets.
What are the pros and cons living in Taiwan in the manner of pickup making as a career? Sure i don’t know if it is your full time job, btw :)
Taiwan is small, so is the market. I don’t think one can make a living here as a full-time pickup builder, considering s/he has to compete with all those big names who have agents/dealers here. And, you know, people tend to have more confidence in products from big brands. That is why I am the only one who make and sell pickups in Taiwan. It’s never my purpose to make pickup building a full-time job, but I enjoy the D.I.Y process very much, and it is even more so when I get paid for it, ha!
You are also open for fixing pickups. You should have experienced many interesting things. Because, once, i had a custom shop that we have a repair service, too and we had very cool experiences while fixing guitars :) You should have some, i believe, right?
You’re right! Pickups can be weakened or have no signal for many reasons, and sometimes we don’t know exactly why. But as a pickup builder, I can easily rewind the coils to get them back to life, if their specs are available. I’d like to share two things I learned. First, sometimes the fix can be extremely simple. When a pickup comes in for repair, the first thing I try is to reheat or add some solder to the solder points if they are exposed. This may sound stupid, but I recently did successfully resurrect two pickups by doing so. Second, I learned that a pickup builder like me must pay attention to every detail. I was surprised to find flaws in construction when trying to repair humbuckers from big companies. Two have no spacers inside, another has slopping top, and still another has a narrow gap between the two bobbins. These are, in my opinion, acceptable as to mass production but should not be seen in/on my pickups, which are built to order.
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Guitar pickup reviews
Very interesting but how do we order pickups from this guy? Website with commerce function is essential.