Fender Gold Lace Sensors

[kap_x]

I went to the Crossroads Guitar Festival (Still have to post about that)

and I saw Buddy Guy.
Amazing.

His strat sounded so good.
I came to find out he uses Fender Gold Lace Sensors...but what I didn't find out is ANYTHING about the golds, besides they're more glassy.

Does anyone know anything about them?

Are they noise reduced or cancelling?

If i were going to put one in the neck of a strat, would a cool rails neck in the middle position match up well with it, and a hotrails bridge?
Maybe two Golds and a coolrails bridge?

any information on this pickup you can give me would help tremendously.

[rspst14]

Re: Fender Gold Lace Sensors

They come stock in the Fender Clapton Strat models. I've never tried them myself, but I've heard several really good players use them, and I've been very impressed with the tone. Pete Townshend has been using them live for the past few years, and his tone is as good as it's ever been. Lace Sensors aren't totally noiseless, but they have a reduced hum design. With a good shielding job, you can't hear any hum at all. I have a Lace Hot Gold pickup that I'm putting in the bridge of my Strat project. From what I can gather, the Hot Gold is similar to the regular Gold, but with a little more midrange and a tad bit more output. If you want to hear more of the Lace Gold Sensors in action, use a file-sharing program to download the video of The Who playing live at the Concert For New York City a few years ago. The tone Townshend has during the Baba O'Reiley solo is one of the absolute best Strat sounds I've ever heard.

Ryan

[Kent S.]

Re: Fender Gold Lace Sensors

Bear in mind that the Buddy guy model strats incorporated an active preamp midboost circuit ... not sure if that's still standard of not, but they model that had it had the LC golds in it. Ryan,...you know if the active set up is still stock in the BG model? Oh, did you get the latest thing I sent ya ...You gotta let me know these things ya know...

[rspst14]

Re: Fender Gold Lace Sensors

I didn't know Fender even had a Buddy Guy model. I thought I read somewhere that he was using the Clapton Strats. Kent is right though, those Clapton Strats use a mid boost circuit. Fender has recently switched over to the Vintage Noiseless pickups in these guitars, but you can probably find a Clapton Strat with Lace Gold's at your local Guitar Center...Kent, I sent you a PM earlier tonight, thanks for the schematics.

Ryan

[kap_x]

Re: Fender Gold Lace Sensors

Fender does make a buddy guy model (the polka-dot one )

I think I may end up just buying a mexicaster and adding the boost circuit in myself.

[Fusion1]

Re: Fender Gold Lace Sensors

That Buddy Guy model has been around since the 80's. I thought that was the most visible Strat Signature model ever with that horrid polka dot finish. Polka Dots were all the rage in the 80's, but on a current blues guitar... hmmm.

[Kent S.]

Re: Fender Gold Lace Sensors

I didn't know Fender even had a Buddy Guy model. I thought I read somewhere that he was using the Clapton Strats. Kent is right though, those Clapton Strats use a mid boost circuit. Fender has recently switched over to the Vintage Noiseless pickups in these guitars, but you can probably find a Clapton Strat with Lace Gold's at your local Guitar Center...Kent, I sent you a PM earlier tonight, thanks for the schematics.

Ryan

Yeah, just got the PM thanks, also sent you a lot of info, some on the BG model as well, and an early model EC as well, along with the Sambora's, the Elite and the Power House Strat all use a mid boost (well the Elite is no more, nor the old Model EC ...I think the Sambora's are still current). I think that's all the active models that Fender had (in strats anyway).

[Kent S.]

Re: Fender Gold Lace Sensors

That Buddy Guy model has been around since the 80's. I thought that was the most visible Strat Signature model ever with that horrid polka dot finish. Polka Dots were all the rage in the 80's, but on a current blues guitar... hmmm.

Hey! ...If Buddy Guy want's polka dots, you give him polka dots!

[Sweet Leaf_Sabbath]

Re: Fender Gold Lace Sensors

i think lace sensors sound fake....like.....way fake

[Shnook]

Re: Fender Gold Lace Sensors

I owned a '89 Clapton that had the midboost removed before I bought it. Without the midboost, the Gold's are pretty lifeless. I later had a chance to play a Clapton with the midboost and I liked the Gold's much better, but not enough to want to see about reinstalling the midboost in my EC. I eventually sold the guitar cause it just didn't have the tone I was hoping for. However, I will say that the Gold's are quiet and seem to work well with effects. In the end, if I had the Clapton guitar to do over, I'd bought some EMG SA's or the David Gilmour pup assembly. So basically, the Gold's without a midboost is pretty bland. At least to my ears they are.

[Inge Malmstein]

Re: Fender Gold Lace Sensors

Did you have a TBX-pot? I would try the silver, they have a bit more output and are a bit fatter. I liked them in the bridge and middle position (not so on the neck)

[Benjy_26]

Re: Fender Gold Lace Sensors

BTW, Townshend plays an older Clapton signature model with a Fishman powerbridge. This is according to an interview with his tech that was conducted by Guitarplayer magazine.

[Kent S.]

Re: Fender Gold Lace Sensors

Did you have a TBX-pot? I would try the silver, they have a bit more output and are a bit fatter. I liked them in the bridge and middle position (not so on the neck)

Although not directed my way, all the EC's had a tbx. The tbx was really a transition as the no-loads have pretty much replace them in current models of most of their guitars (they still offer the tbx though). The no-load will be a bit brighter than the tbx will in guitars with regular volume controls ( 250k or 500k), the active system is a bit different as the volume control doesn't come into the equation until after the signal has been buffered. This is why wiring a tbx up stock and tossing it in a guitar is generally a bad idea, now wiring one half for LPF (treble cut) (the 250k-A section, no-load at 5 at that ... ),and the 1Meg Linear section for HPF( bass cut), makes the unit much, much more useful. The tbx wasn't really made for passive use anyway, although this confuses people because it does it job passively before the active part of the circuit (and I just complicated things didn't I? ),
The gist is that a tbx works a bit better in the active systems.