Pickup cover

The metal or plastic cap fitted over a pickup, which protects the coils and changes the sound.

A metal cover, being conductive, forms a screen that reduces hum and high-frequency interference, but it also adds eddy-current losses that take the edge off the highest frequencies, which is why some players remove them or order pickups uncovered. Plastic and open-pore covers do not affect the sound appreciably but also do not shield. On some designs the cover is plated for appearance alone and is acoustically cosmetic.

Example: taking the metal cover off a neck humbucker typically adds a little brightness and a slightly more open top end.

Pickup cover

See also