Hum-bucker?

A humbucker is basically two singlecoils close together both activated at once. They cancel each others hum out (hence the name) so have less noise. They also have a warmer, fatter sound since the sound is a mix of two sources. In general humbuckers work better then singlecoils with hi gain sounds. But they are used in all genres, jazz and blues players often use buckers for it's warmth. The bridge pickup is very bright and having a single coil there can be extremely harsh and piercing, especially the cheaper singlecoils, making them near-useless. Having a bucker in the bridge is therefor quite usefull according to many, but if you're a die-hard strat fan you might want the single-coil.

A good example musically is to compare jimi hendrix (single coil) and angus young (humbucker). Both use distortion in their music but Angus' music has more "crunch" and "fullness" to the tone while Jimi's has more "crispness" to his music.

I am sure there are probably better examples but this was the first I could come up with..

Yeah, or Santana to SRV, I think that works very well.

Pretty much what Arjen said :)

In addition to the explanations, I would suggest going to the music store and trying both types through the same amp. One compromise is a "fat strat" type of guitar, which has a humbucker at the bridge and single coils at the other two positions.

Yeah, I was basically trying to decide if the starter pack that gives you an all-single-coil electric and a cheap amp was worth it over buying a guitar with a humbucker and then buying a cheap amp on the side.

It works out to $200 for a Squier SE 100 which comes with a 10-watt practice amp and a Standard Squier Strat or $200 for a Yamaha 112J or Fat Strat and a cheap Behringer 15-watt amp for $60 or $70 (GX 108 or GM 108)

Thanks!

If you can spend the extra $80 or so, I would say split the decision so that you can get the guitar you want. That way, you can upgrade the amp later and still have a guitar you like (the practice amp will still be useful too, but the main point is to try and not compromise more than you have to on the guitar.)

Yeah, I was asking just because I didn't know what I preferred, but from what I've read it is a humbucker on the bridge is considered a bit more versatile than a coil.

are there humbuckers where you can turn off one coil?

A good example musically is to compare jimi hendrix (single coil) and angus young (humbucker). Both use distortion in their music but Angus' music has more "crunch" and "fullness" to the tone while Jimi's has more "crispness" to his music.

I am sure there are probably better examples but this was the first I could come up with..

I used to believe this to be true. But I've come to believe that this is all largely a myth.

For most people who don't really do much but play the guitar "out of the box," the above is true. But much more important than the pickup is how the pickup is wired, and the rest of the signal chain.

Every pickup has different characteristics in terms of responsiveness to various frequencies. And most pickups have enough adjustments you can make to them (raising and lowering teh coils, for example) to change that responsiveness to a very large degree.

String selection (fat versus thin, round wound versus flat wound), action height, right hand technique, pre-amp, the entire effects chain, quality and settings of internal wiring, etc., all combine for at least as much impact if not more on the final sound than just the pickup.

I have personally seen single-coil setups that are indistinguishable from a humbucking setup, and I've seen humbuckers that you'd swear are a single-coil from the sound.

So what's the real difference?

I think it's nothing more than aesthetics.

are there humbuckers where you can turn off one coil?

Yes, there are. I have a Washburn that has humbuckers at the neck and bridge, but you can dial them back to single coils. I like that feature a lot.

humbuckers can be split. meaning you an turn off one side. or coil split.
it has to be designed into the guitar. spilting a coil creates another sound or tone.

that's only my feeble understanding as I am a single coil player for sure.