Re: What pickups in Agathis body?
Dammit, Frank, now I'll have to try the P-Rails in my Tele as well!
I already owe a small fortune from swapping pickups ...
The description of Agathis lacking sparkle is spot on, compared to my Epi LP for sure. It sounds good and really good in a band setting. I wouldn't use it for recording, if I had an alternative.
I have two Squier Vintage Modified Tele Customs, both Agathis with Maple necks. There are similarities in their sound, but if ever there was an example of how two guitars made exactly the same way with (supposedly) the same materials can sound very different, this is it. One is well balanced in weight, the other is so body-heavy that it's hard to sit with it without it falling off my leg. The only other difference is that one neck has a slightly thicker headstock - seems to make the neck shape seem a little thicker at the top as well before coming to the modern C-shape in the middle and bottom. The other is C-shape the whole way.
The acoustically better sounding guitar is the body-heavy one with the C-shape neck. That guitar sounds amazing with the Hot P90s. I had 59s in there before and they were nice but too compressed. By contrast, the 59s sounded perfect in the other Tele.
In the neck I've liked: PAF Pro, Custom 5 (best shred pickup in this position ever), Air Norton, Alnico II Pro neck, Pearly Gates neck, Invader neck, C5/59, 59, and Hot P90 neck.
In the bridge: Custom Custom, Custom 5, Double Whammy, 59, and Hot P90 bridge.
If you didn't like the 59, from the pickups I've tried, I would suggest the Custom Custom or Double Whammy. The Custom Custom was surprisingly deep - depends on the amp as well, of course. The Double Whammy is very full in the mids and tight in the bottom end. I had the Custom 5 in the neck at the same time I tried the DW and it really exaggerated the Custom 5's mid-cut.
Someone suggested an AirZone. I like the AirZone, and also tried the ToneZone and a Super Distortion. All pickups I really like, but my Teles can produce a decent amount of bass, albeit not very articulate. So, the looser bass of those pickups probably won't do you any favours. The Double Whammy is a better choice in this respect.
Advice that Frank gave a while back about Agathis that really made sense and helped me keep my focus was to stay away from low output pickups. Seth Lover pickups were awesome in my LP but blew chunks in my Tele. That's why the above pickups I liked are all medium to high output.
