Question about pickup tone?

[LP Freak]

Has anyone noticed a difference in tone between humbucker pickups that have a metal cover vs. ones that don't?

I have many Sure Aldridge bridge pickups in various guitars. All are uncovered except one. The ones without the covers sound fantastic. The one that has a cover sounds good, but slightly more mellow with less upper mids and highs.

I set up all my guitars the same so height wouldn't be an issue.

I'd like to hear some opinions on this.

[spaceace76]

pickup covers are inherently capacitive, meaning they take off some highs, as you've experienced. how much it takes off varies a bit, but on a darker voiced humbucker it would probably be way too dark. if you like it without, they aren't hard to remove.

[fillmore nyc]

Has anyone noticed a difference in tone between humbucker pickups that have a metal cover vs. ones that don't?
I have many Sure Aldridge bridge pickups in various guitars. All are uncovered except one. The ones without the covers sound fantastic. The one that has a cover sounds good, but slightly more mellow with less upper mids and highs.
I set up all my guitars the same so height wouldn't be an issue.
I'd like to hear some opinions on this.

pickup covers are inherently capacitive, meaning they take off some highs, as you've experienced. how much it takes off varies a bit, but on a darker voiced humbucker it would probably be way too dark. if you like it without, they aren't hard to remove.

What Spaceace wrote is correct, and the other aspect is that metal covers "soften" the mag pull on the non screw slugs under the cover. Exposing those slugs definitely brightens up the tone and gives the sound some more definition, which some guys like, but it does lean slightly away from a classically vintage tone.
On my LP's and SG's, I like having covers on the pickups, partly for aesthetics, but also because it sounds more "vintage-y" to my ears. An early humbucker equipped LP came with covers, and taking them off DOES give it more bite, but IMO, it loses some of its "honk" factor without 'em.

On the flip side of that coin, I wouldnt play a Floyd equipped Jackson Soloist with covers, cause I'd want every bit of bite and snarl out of that guitar.

[LP Freak]

Thanks. I'll try pulling the covers off and see what happens.