Kinman Guitar Electrix is a small boutique Australian company that specializes in the design and manufacture of innovative Zero-Hum (hum-canceling) pickups for electric guitars that solve noise problems associated with single coil pickups.
One of its most popular products is the Kinman Hx (an initialism for Hum cancelling) pickup, a patented noiseless pickup design developed in 1996 by its founder, Chris Kinman, as a direct drop-in replacement for Fender Stratocaster style single coil pickups. Most of the models in the Kinman line carry the designation AVn, an initialism for Authentic Vintage noiseless.
In 1998 Kinman embarked on development of technology specifically for Telecaster guitars that was not introduced until circa 2001. The technology centers around a patented laminated steel H-core bobbin that functions as a noise sensing coil. It is made of 150 separate pieces of steel. The H-core is interesting because it performs more efficiently than conventional noise sensing bobbins, requiring less turns of copper wire. There is a strong correlation between sonic signature of a noiseless pickup and the number of turns of copper wire contained in the noise sensor.
Circa 2003 Kinman introduced a line of NoSoldering Harness for Stratocasters and Telecasters that allow guitar players to install pickups into their instruments without the need for soldering, which is the usual method. Some models incorporate a switching system that provides 9 different sounds by connecting various pickups in series as well as parallel and combinations thereof.
In October 2009, after an inventive development period of almost 9 years, Kinman released a hum-canceling P-90 pickup known as the P-90 Hx. It incorporates new 'patent applied for' magnetic circuit technology which allows a minimal 600 Ohm noise sensor. Kinman claims this new noise sensor technology is responsible for unusually accurate reproduction of P-90 sound. The P-90 Hx is also remarkable for its 202 individual components including 2 Alnico bar magnets, a normal P-90 has about 12 components making the P-90 Hx the most complex and sophisticated guitar pickup yet.
Kinmans new 'patent applied for' technology concerning their 600 Ohm noise sensor has given rise to a new breed of hum-canceling pickups for Stratocaster and Telecaster also with 600 Ohm noise sensors. These new models are remarkable because the 600 Ohm noise sensor allows the pickups to generate accurate sonic reproduction of the original sound of Stratocaster and Telecaster pickups despite being hum-canceling which hitherto has been impossible to achieve.
The Impersonator 54 Strat pickup incorporating H-core technology introduced circa 2010 has received wide acclaim for its authentic reproduction of the sound of Fender's CS-54 noisy single coil. Hank Marvin preferred the CS54 to achieve his 60's Shadows lead guitar sound and Kinman's Impersonator 54 was created at Hanks request for a noiseless version of the C-54. The CS-54 is used extensively for all kinds of musical environments.
Kinman holds the most number of patents concerned with increasing the efficiency of and minimizing the noise sensing coils in hum-canceling guitar pickups.
Circa mid 2011 the company released a range of innovative Gibson style humbuckers. Somewhat of a departure from single coils Kinman applied technology derived from their single coils to improve the sound of the conventional humbucker. Kinman claims to improve articulation, clarity, definition and touch sensitivity of the iconic humbucker. Kinman humbuckers also set a new benchmark for quietness where hum is concerned (most conventional humbucker construction is asymmetric to a degree thus the imbalance between the coils causes some hum).
One model, the Clean Skin, sounds close to a P-90. It has a definite single coil vibe which has been along sought after goal which Gibson themselves sought to achieve when they designed their original PAF humbucking pickup. However their PAF turned out to be a very different sounding pickup compared to a P-90.
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Chris Kinman has been awarded the following US patents:
Players who use Kinman pickups include[1]:
magazine reviews and articles: