A magnetic pickup is a device used to convert the vibrations of a stringed instrument into an electrical signal that can be amplified. Some synonyms for magnetic pickup include a magnetic transducer, magnetic sensor, or a magnetic microphone. A pickup coil, also referred to as a guitar pickup, is another synonym, which is a type of magnetic pickup that uses a coil of wire to generate an electric signal. Other types of pickups include piezo pickups, which use a crystal to convert the vibration of the strings into an electrical signal, and multi-sensor pickups, which have multiple sensors placed at different points on the instrument to capture a fuller range of sound.