Where Pickups Should Go on an Electric Bağlama

Electric bağlamas use electronic receivers called pickups (manyetik) to convert the sound from the saz into electrical signals. Detailed information on the technical structure of pickups will be given in later parts of this series.

This section focuses on how the pickups should be positioned on the saz. Electric sazes usually have 2 dual-coil (humbucker) pickups fitted. The position of the pickups on the top is one of the important factors that directly affect the tone of the saz, and if the positions are wrong, it is hard to get an efficient tone. The picture below gives the ideal pickup positions on the top. For a 39-41 cm body, the positions are given with some tolerance: the bridge pickup should be 2.5-3.5 cm from the bridge, and the distance between the bridge and neck pickups should be 9-10 cm.

Also, some pickup makers produce pickups with different characteristics for the bridge and neck positions. If you use these, the pickup marked B (Bridge) goes in the position near the bridge, and the pickup marked N (Neck) goes on the neck side of the saz. If these pickups are installed the wrong way round, or if two B pickups or two N pickups are fitted to the same saz, the tone will be seriously affected and the desired tone will not be achieved.

Some pickup models from certain manufacturers have no such restriction, so those pickups can be fitted in either position.

The picture below shows the pickup positions.

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How Pickups Affect Tone in an Electric Bağlama