Humbucker Electric Guitars

The widely-known "PAF" humbucker used in electric guitars was invented by Seth Lover in 1955. Popularised by Gibson, who fit their flagship Les Paul models with humbuckers, these pickups are now used by the vast majority of electric guitar companies.

Humbucking pickups are renowned for providing a broader sound than single-coils; those synonymous with Fender's Stratocaster and Telecaster models. They have an accentuated mid-range, deeper lows and can also deliver more output; mostly in part to their dual-coil construction. However, the original intention of this design was to "buck the hum" (hence the name) cause by single-coil pickups, which are more susceptible to electromagnetic interference.

Guitars with humbuckers generally sound more powerful than their single-coil-equipped counterparts, making them adept at handling high-gain amp tones. However, clean jazz players have a preference for humbuckers as they sound warm and offer long-lasting sustain.