A Basic Guide to Hondo Pickups

It is very important to remember that DiMarzio pickups were only an option on certain Hondo guitars. Not every Hondo guitar had DiMarzio pickups in it. For the short period they did, the humbuckers were copies of the Super Distortion model and so were uncovered humbuckers with no adjustable pole screws. If the humbuckers have pole screws they are not DiMarzios. If the humbuckers have metal pickup covers they are not DiMarzios. If you unscrew the surrounds and look at the bottoms of the pickups themselves they will have the words "DiMarzio Pickups Made in U.S.A" written on them. Single coils are a little harder to identify but the humbuckers are easy.

Don't believe everything you read

The internet has taught me that if someone writes something once and someone else reads it, it can very quickly become "the truth", even if there is no evidence to prove it. This is the case with the supposed country of origin of Hondo guitars and particularly their pickups. Sellers across the internet will post a Hondo guitar and will automatically write "Made in Japan" and "original DiMarzio pickups" on their listing with little to no idea if that description is accurate or not. In some quarters, this is called deceit, extortion, immoral and many other things but for now we'll go with... I suppose naivety and laziness if we give some of these people the benefit of the doubt.

You may wish to read up on the history of Hondo guitars before you delve into the exciting world of pickup nuances, but essentially Hondo guitars started out with very poorly manufactured Japanese instruments in the 60s, became very slightly better in the early to mid 70s, were souped up with optional replacement hardware in the mid to late 70s and then from the very end of the 70s through the 80s were significantly better, though some poorer budget models still made it to market.

It seems all Hondo electric guitars from the late 60s through the mid to late 70s were made in Japan. Contrary to what people will tell you about all Japanese guitars being excellent quality and very desirable for players, these were either very primitive looking original designs (extremely loosely based on Fender Stratocasters) or, slightly later on, cheap Les Paul and Fender copies. Some people still find them collectible, most likely due to the low prices, but it was not until the latter half of the 1970s that Japanese electric guitar production really staked it's claim for the "lawsuit" reputation it now holds.

60s Hondo EG202

70s Hondo Les Paul copy

While these early 70s copies looked reasonable upon first glance, their bodies were often made of plywood, their tuners were extremely cheap and any pickups that looked like humbuckers on the outside were often single coils disguised in a metal humbucker style case.

In an effort to shift customers' perceptions of the Hondo brand, they enlisted the help of pickup maker DiMarzio who revolutionised the guitar world in 1972 by producing the first after-market replacement pickup that could be fitted to any guitar with a humbucker route to improve it's output and overall sound - the now legendary (thanks in no small part to one Kurt Cobain some 15 years later) Super Distortion.

The Les Pauls that Hondo imported from Japan to it's markets in the US and Europe were made in the same factory for all sorts of brands (Antoria, Seville, Salvarez and several others are extremely similar instruments). Hondo saw this replacement pickup as the perfect way to easily distinguish their guitars from the identical competition and advertised their OEM (Original Equipment Manufacturer) DiMarzio pickups as an optional upgrade to all Hondo guitars in a deal that I suppose is not dissimilar to modern day guitars that have "Duncan Designed" pickups.

Hondo ad from 1978

Another late 70s ad

The DiMarzio humbuckers used were very similar to the K-10 - what is now called the Super 2 - but with the adjustable hex poles "filled in". The DC reading generally seems to have been between 8.5k and 9k but the output is reportedly as strong as a standard Super Distortion, albeit with less compression and more articulation. There were also single coil and bass models to fit Hondo's other guitars.

If a Hondo guitar had DiMarzio pickups fitted, it's normal model name would have a "D" added. For example, if a HLP-2B was fitted with DiMarzios, it would become a HDLP-2B. This was clearly displayed on a sticker to the rear of the guitar and assisted by a "DiMarzio Powered" sticker proudly applied to the pickguard.

DiMarzio Powered sticker

Hondo's association with DiMarzio appears to have ended in the early 80s when Hondo stopped importing guitars from Japan and had their guitars manufactured solely in Korea.


HONDO OEM DIMARZIO OPEN COIL HUMBUCKER

Usually black finish with no adjustable pole screws, slightly lumpy looking slugs and no pickup cover. Pickup base stamped "DiMarzio Pickups Made in U.S.A". Mostly fitted to earlier Les Paul Custom style copies. Reports of the DC reading are generally between 8.5k - 9k
Other guitars that appear to be fitted with DiMarzios include the Chiquita,







HONDO KOREAN OPEN COIL HUMBUCKER

Usually black finish with adjustable pole screws in more traditional PAF style. Adjustment screw on bridge pickup surround has been changed. No markings to the rear of neck pickup, bridge pickup will be investigated during next major string change. Likely made in Korea along with the guitar.
These photos are taken from my own Hondo Deluxe Series H935. Although the seller believed these to be original DiMarzios, unscrewing them and looking at the bottom proved otherwise. However, according to their own website, DiMarzio state that high output pickups are difficult to control on hollow and semi hollow guitars and so are unsuitable for this application anyway.



HONDO MADE IN JAPAN COVERED "HUMBUCKER"
Another Hondo aficionado on the internet refers to these as "unbuckers" given that they are simply a single-coil pickup in a humbucker case. The picture clearly shows the other half of the chrome case is filled with foam rather than the other half of a humbucker pickup! The "fakebucker" guy says he actually rather likes the tone of these pickups as it is quite unique, though they don't sound at all like a humbucker as their casing suggests.