WHy choose an Anodized pick-guard?
To be honest, I’ve never really delved into why guitars with anodized guards sound different. I just loved the look and probably just took for granted how amazing my 58 P-bass sounded.
When I speak with my mate Wayne at Tone Guard who makes my anodized pick-guards here in LA, he tells me his thoughts and theories about superior shielding against interference and reduced noise resulting from a para- magnetic influence on the pickup and shielding of the electronics. Pretty heady stuff!
My thoughts are that the aluminum guard directs the body vibration towards the pickup and then works in conjunction with the magnetic pickup to form a larger magnetic field. Which in my mind leads to a louder more aggressive and focused sound.
That’s my dumbed-down version.
I do feel that anodized pick-guards can provide a more reactive pickup environment to changes in your playing style and volume etc.
As I said, I never really felt the need to analize it—I just enjoyed it…
Your choice.
— GGB
Aodized pick-guard
Garry’s main stage/gig bass, “Old Faithful” showing a well-worn anodized pick-guard.