Newbie needs pups and help

[Shy_Boy]

I’m lost and I need help.

I’ve been playing acoustic for a while and a friend recently gave/sold me a very nice Fender American with no electronics or pickguard. It has an alder body, a rosewood neck and the stock trem. I’ve researched the electrical part and I don’t think the wiring will be a problem. The thing that’s making me crazy is the pickups. I have absolutely no experience with these things and even with the sound clips and tone wizard on this site I’m still lost. There are just too many combinations for a newbie to digest.

There are only a few things I know for sure:
1) This is a nice guitar and I don’t want to waste my time or money on cheap pickups.
2) I would like the guitar to be as versatile as possible. I don’t expect perfect tone for everything, but I would like to explore blues, classic rock and pop rock. I’m not really into the very heavy stuff, so I don’t need to get a metal tone.
3) I will gladly consider humbuckers.
4) I would consider more complex wiring schemes if it will add to the versatility. By this I mean humbucker switching, phase switching, and series/ parallel switching, or anything that may be suggested to increase versatility.
5) My amp is a Marshall G30RCD. First amp, Practice.

With my very simple goals, could someone suggest a combination of SD pickups that will allow me play blues and rock using the same instrument, or am I asking too much from the pickups?

Thanks for the help,
George

[beandip]

Re: Newbie needs pups

Hmm....I would say some SSL-1's in the neck and middle with a SSL-5 in the bridge. I had that setup awhile back, and I really liked it. For Blues, Classic Rock and Pop Rock, those pickups are the best for it IMHO.

[Empty Pockets]

Re: Newbie needs pups and help

I'd put a humbucker in the bridge for versatility's sake. You never know when you want THAT tone, y'know?

-X

[Shy_Boy]

Re: Newbie needs pups and help

I'd put a humbucker in the bridge for versatility's sake. You never know when you want THAT tone, y'know?

-X

I wanted to put a humbucker there and add a switch to run it as a single. It would seem that that would add some nice versitility. Still don't know which ones though. The SSL's suggested earlier sound like they would give a great vintage tone, but can I have more versitility? My current thought is a JB at the bridge, a Lil 59 or a duckbucker at the neck, and a single at the mid, but I don't know what. I'm still lost. I may just buy some pups and start playing. If it doesn't sound he way I want, I'll change something.

[tone4days]

Re: Newbie needs pups and help

welcome to the board shy boy

the pups you mentioned sounds pretty good to me (lil 59 / duck / JB) for what you are seeking ... i'd recommend that you put the lil 59 in the neck because it will fatten up some classic rock and blues soloing possibilities in that position ... i recommend a vintage rails over the duckbucker for the middle for the simple reason that their tones are very similar, but the rails gives you better "left to right" coverage when you bend strings as compared to the duck, which has teeny tiny little pole pieces ... the jb in the bridge can be split nicely to a single coil with a mini switch if you want to have that option as well

hope this helps - good luck
t4d