Kinman Hx 85 V2 Singlesets - Zero-Hum Guitar Pickups

Hx-85 v2 New version is louder, spankier and clearer

Hx-85 in an Ivory White cover

This is the bridge pickup in the Woodstock Plus set. AVn-69 are the middle and neck pickups.

October-2019: The Hx-85 has been upgraded to v2, that is some of our Gen-2 technology has been incorporated to significantly increase loudness and improve the snap of attack. The sound is also more open and detailed.

News flash Apr-2021: Now with our new Synergy baseplate that allows switching off Hum Cancelling as well as switching to 'Synergy' mode.

You will get Zero-Hum, longer sustain, minimized fret buzz and a loud n thicker sound that is great for the bridge position.

This pickup was designed especially for the bridge position of the Woodstock Plus set for those who like a hotter bridge pickup for easy overloading/distortion. It has a fatter, thicker sound on the wound strings and has the third hottest output of all Kinman Strat* replacement pickups. Only the Big-Nine-0 and Kick-in-the-Arse are louder. It delivers smooth and creamy distortion, either natural overdrive or through FX without loosing it's edge.

The Hx-85 works well in the neck and middle positions too where it produces a nice thwack attack at clean volume.

Signal chain requirements for best tone and dynamic performance: Like any pickup it's not a bad idea to use a low capacitance cable to get the incredible performance of these pickups and hear all the nuances you and your guitar can muster. Learn why here Any old cable won't do.

Works well in any Kinman Goodbye-Soldering Harness.

Some people will call these noiseless Stratocaster pickups but Kinman prefers to describe them correctly as Zero-Hum Stratocaster pickups. That's because there are 2 types of noise, Hum which is cancelled in the pickup and Buzz which can only be minimized by shielding the wiring cavities (refer to >Technical >Perfect Guitar >Shielding for newer guitars

*Stratocaster and Strat are a Trade Marks of Fender Musical Instrument Corp. Kinman is not connected to Fender.

** Alnico-K is a unique proprietary rod magnet developed by Kinman in 1985. It has 40% less string pull than Alnico-5 so sustain is longer and there is much less clatter from string crash and no Strat-itis string warble.

Under the hood of the Hx-85

Hx-85 - specification nomenclature.

US Patents 5,668,520 6,103,986

Covers - included

Special Kinman cover with intermediate height extender bushings.
Available in White, Black, Aged White.
With and without Kinman logo.
Can be tinted with food stains such as Coffee and Tea.
Generic covers are not suitable for Kinman Strat pickups. We sell replacement covers in three colors.

Connection means available

Bare wires for soldering.
Kinman connectors for plugging into any Kinman Goodbye-Soldering Harness.

Dimensions

click for dimensions page

Pot & Capacitor values

Best with 250k Ohm (measured minimum) volume pot. Less punch and more bright with 500k.
Tone pot is usually the same value as the volume but for a little more top end brightness can be 500k, 1meg or a No-Load.
Stock pots can actually measure as low as 175k. Pots in our Goodbye-Soldering Harness are guaranteed to measure no less that 250k.
Normal tone cap value of 0.022uF, 63 ~ 100 volt Polyester. Smaller uF value lessen the severity of Treble cut, higher values increase it.
The voltage rating of Caps is not important but 63 ~ 100 volt have thicker lead wires that result in a neater job.

Magnet spreads we normally ship (ensures magnets align with the strings in each position)

Narrow 49.5mm - Neck
Intermediate 51mm - Middle
Standard 52.5mm - Bridge
Option to specify your magnet spreads of sets and singles in our 'After-Payment' Additional Questions' email we send you.

Magnet Staggers

Normal improved Stagger to suit 7" ~ 14 inch uniform radius fretboards including USA Custom Guitar Compound 7-1/4" ~ 9-1/2
Flat Stagger 14" ~ 20" for specific compound radius fretboards (Warmoth 10 ~ 16 inch and Post 2010 Fender Deluxe 9 ~ 14")
Option to choose your magnet stagger for sets and singles in our 'After-Payment Additional Questions' email we send you.

Hook-up cable

2 conductor shielded is standard.
Middle pickups when supplied with a K9 or neck pickup with a TK4 harness have 3 conductor shielded.
3 conductor by request with Order.
Custom lengths by request with Order.

Output Polarity:

in-phase with Gibson and Copy humbuckers
in-phase with all other Kinman pickups
opposite phase to Fender Strat (match phase with 3 Conductor hook-up cable)

Mounting hardware included

2 x Pan head mounting screws.
2 x Silicon Rubber tube springs.

We highly recommend consulting the Install Guide in the Technical section even if you think you know it all. Kinmans' require specialized knowledge and sometimes there is updated info. There is also a handy wiring diagram available.

We also highly recommend consulting the Adjust & Set-up page in the Technical section so you get the best out of your Kinman pickups.

Sorry, No YouTube demo for this pickup.

UNITED STATES | 19-Jul-2022

Having been a player and connoisseur of Kinman strat style pickups since 2009, I tell you no other brand comes close for both tone and zer-hum. I've had the recent pleasure to upgrade from the already amazing HX-85 V1 (bridge) pup to the new HX-85 V2 (bridge) model and wow!!! Just when I thought that it couldn't get any better, the HX-85 V2 is everything and more of the V1.

More strat twang, thwack and chime - than that of actual strat pups - that cuts through in both the the studio and band setting - it's simply inspiring.

During breaks at my gigs, I get countless compliments from strat players all of whom cannot believe the tone that I get with these pups. This is nothing new as it all began once I started out with the original HX-85 V1 over a decade ago. Most of those cats have since taken the leap of faith and are now firm believers in the gospel according to Kinman. Even my students are switching to Kinman pups. In all my years, I've tried everything and Chris and his amazing crew keep on delivering the goods in their own cutting edge, zero-hum fashion. It's good to be home with my Kinman pickups.

Best in tone,

Craig Small

Ed: thanks for your Report Card Craig, we here at Kinman were thrilled to read it. One never really knows how any new model will be received and when we release one it is done with a degree of trepidation, so it is very gratifying to hear about your experience with the Hx-85 v2. We were all quite taken, actually we were very surprised, when we first heard it ourselves and so much so we decided to release it immediately and so it, and it's companion AVn-69 v2, were added to the website within hours. Boss Chris hit a home run with those two, actually it was a hole in one since he felt no need to mess with the first choice of coil specifications which, some might say, is always a wild guess. That's what comes with his vast experience. Thanks again for writing, Joe.

UNITED STATES | 19-Aug-2024

I finally got around to trying the Impersonator MV in the bridge position and then compared it with an HX-85 v2 of mine. The verdict: They both sound exceptional in their own right and better than any actual S style pups that I've had & heard over the decades.

The HX is hotter with mids that got me hooked back in 2009. It has more of a 70's vibe to it whereas the Impersonator is less aggressive, has more of a vintage (50's/60's) vibe to it and has the sexiest mids I think I've ever heard in a S style pup. Both are absolutely stunning whether they're played clean, edgy and/or overdriven.

They both are capable of covering at least as much territory and genres than any other pup on this planet. They and are more musical and pleasant to the ear, mine anyway, simply because A) there's none of that spiky, ice picking sound/frequency that is inherent with many a S style pup and... B) there's ZERO hum!

It's impossible for me to decide which one I prefer so, I now have a 50's/60's S style rig and a 70's S style rig and man do they pack some serious vibe.

Thank you for your patience, support and curiosity. I hope this message finds you, your crew and our fearless leader, the K Dude, well and good.

Best in tone, Craig Small

ED: Thank you Craig, your descriptions are pretty much in line with our impressions. It's great to know we are one the same wavelength as our customers, it means everything to me and I am so glad you agree. All the best, Chris Kinman (the fearless K dude ahahaaha)

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Hx-85 v2

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Hx-85 v2 New version is louder, spankier and clearer