UBC pickup test.

Pickup from a Spectrum ST
While ripping this piece of crap out thought I'd test it.
Certainly wouldn't call this unbalanced. Nothing the human ear would hear at any rate.
It's no wonder someone had removed the pull/push coil tap.

Yeah, those numbers look depressingly familiar.  

Does anyone have (or can easily take) photos of the inside bottom of the UBC pickups (I and/or II) showing the ORIGINAL placement of any magnets, especially in relation to the pole pieces?
I have a theory concerning asymmetrical magnetic field distribution...   
...which could be totally shot down by a good photo.

My Spectrum ST's supposed "Magnaflux I UBC humbucker" looks different to the one in the photos above.
It has crosshead pole pieces and there's a metal plate at the bottom.

Unfortunately I'm not allowed to post photos yet.

I just tried to take it apart but the metal plate did not want to come away.
It looks like it's stuck to a plastic or epoxy plate. A chisel might help.
I didn't remove the tape around the coils because it didn't look like that would get me anywhere.

So no luck here getting to the magnets on that one.

BTW, DC resistance in circuit is 6.31 kOhm / 3.47 kOhm split.

Can anyone help with the question I asked in the post above?

The readings you show would indicate that you have the latter made UBC humbucker, i.e., poor output and lacklustre performance unless you EQ the daylights out of it!

The original humbuckers were stamped MMK45 on the bottom plate and were comparable to the DiMarzio Super Distortion of the day with an output of around 11K. Production was changed sometime around 1985-86.

I mentioned on another post that I expect the UBC magnets are ceramic but I have no info on their type or configuration.

Here's a question for the pickup guys. Are the neck and bridge pickup identical in all but pole spacing?

Pretty much, yeah.

Like a lot of people here, I was never very impressed with the UBC pickups in my Spectrum ST.
They're the "Magnaflux I UBC humbucker" - 12x cross-head screw pole pieces and a 6.31k DCR.
I thought they were under-powered shall we say. I like distortion.

Years ago, I put an Entwistle Dark Star in the bridge position - nice.
I left the neck UBC in.

Recently, I was playing the ST through a Boss Katana Mini amp.
That UBC in the neck, with a bit of overdrive or full-on distortion sounds so sweet.

So, I just wanted to point out (to myself included) that while it's tempting to say "this pickup/guitar/amp/pedal is rubbish", it's all about context and of course the sound you WANT to hear.
What seems like a rubbish pickup through a certain amp could really shine through a different amp, or just be someone else's nirvana.

Now where did I put that brige pickup...

Many years ago when I was gigging with the boys, I replaced the bridge UBC in my ST with a Schaller but left the neck pup in.

The Schaller was pushed through my Roland 100w amp and had more than enough "umph" to compete with the two Fender Strat players in the band, which was important since I was the rhythm guitarist and I very much needed the drive.

I have to say though that on the quieter numbers the UBC neck didn't sound too bad at all, even if it was often mixed with the Schaller for some additional body.

I have long since changed those pups out for an MMK45 in the neck and a GFS Crunchy Pat in the bridge.

I tried for years to justify using the UBCs in my ST, but in the end, tore them out and whacked in some spare 45s I had, which was a massive improvement. However, I then nailed in a set of Kent Armstrong P90s, which I really liked, so the P90s went into another project and the ST became a Telecaster with a set of Toneriders and that, said Jack, was that - epic, epic guitar now!!  
It is, in fact, one of 5 guitars I have out, ready to go at a moments’ notice… along with a Vantage VA900, Vantage X-33, Westone Corsair (very, VERY heavily modified!) and a Westone GTbass.

I will say that the Aria Pro II PE Supra I recently acquired, which has MMK75 pickups is absolutely mega in every way; doesn’t do distortion very well, but takes overdrive like a good ‘un. It is, however, a heffalump of a guitar, enough so that I won’t hang it on the wall…

the ST became a Telecaster with a set of Toneriders

I vaguely remember your doing that Johnny, an interesting ballsy move.

Did you use single coils in that bad boy?

Yeah, mate… these;

https://tonerider.com/products/vintage-plus

… and they’re impressive!