Suggest simple stuff I can build to use my old pickups

[VREEEEVROOOOOW]

What's something really super simple thing I can hack together to use my old PAFs? Like Merzbow's junk guitar:



Basically this is me brainstorming with ILF, looking for something haphazardly makeshift for noise music!

[fcknoise]

I built a slide thing using bent nails as a tailpiece, long screws as bridge saddles and nut, and the tuners were screws with the strings wrapped around. It was very simple to build, I am sure you could figure something out

[Achtane]

A diddley bow is about as simple as it can get.
Could make a simple zither or dulcimer too.

[John Matrix]

I once suspended a pick up in the middle of one of those plastic milk crates with metal wires. Basically turned the crate into a noisy, rattley, percussion instrument. I could fill it with crap and shake it around or just kick it across the floor with pretty good results.

[kaeth]

I don't know if it would work, but suspend it above a vibrating tub of ferrofluid.

[Heraclitus Akimbo]

Block o' wood with strings on it + pickups will get you far! I recommend digging into Tim Olive if you're into that sort of thing.

[crochambeau]

I've hung an old Hammond pick-up (single pole passive) near the metal blades of an old fan, made for a neat low frequency drone sound (albeit a one trick pony). I have thought about hanging one near a circular saw blade and then cutting wood, but have not yet embarked on that journey for what are probably obvious reasons.

Anything that is ferrous or emits low frequency information (like IR transmitter amplifiers in remote controls) is fair game.

You can also set them on a transformer and collect whatever frequencies are at hand.

It *might* be possible to even just stick it to the exposed magnet of a speaker being driven by an amp and collect a post speaker version for "reamping" or feedback fun. I actually have a little amp that I've wound magnet wire around the exposed slug of an old Alnico speaker and have run that to its own output jack. It sounds like shit though, make no mistake.

[lordgalvar]

I've hung an old Hammond pick-up (single pole passive) near the metal blades of an old fan, made for a neat low frequency drone sound (albeit a one trick pony). I have thought about hanging one near a circular saw blade and then cutting wood, but have not yet embarked on that journey for what are probably obvious reasons.

There was a photo in the Tape Loop book of a guy that strapped a fan to his guitar.

I did this a while back:
[youtube][/youtube]


I put the pickup in the wrong place though and had to play way up on the neck. Last 45 seconds are probably the ones worth watching. I think the first minute or so is me driving the carrier and modulator in a passive ring mod.

[breakdown]

Just came across this on a sale group on fb And thought it looked kind of neat.

[Schlatte]

you could go for maximum laziness and just throw the pickup in a can with nails and springs and shake it to get dem noize toanz.