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[ToneFiddler]

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[Securb]

I have hot necks in both of my Teles but they both have hot bridges. One has an SD Hot Rails in the bridge and a TV Jones Classic + bridge in the neck. The other has a DiMarzio Super Distortion (Tele model) in the bridge and a Maxon Super 70 bridge n the neck. In both cases when I got the right height on the neck pickups, super low for where I usually set them they sounded great. Both guitars are used for hard rock, metal, and punk.

 

[jeremy]

i use a slightly overwound traditional style a5 tele bridge pup with my antiquity ii firebird neck pup, 250k controls, and they match up well. you could use something truly vintage output, but the output and tonal balance wont be as even. i like the jd in the bridge, a broadcaster could work too if you wanted something brighter and more steely. a hotter pup like the qp or hot could match up fine and bruces suggestion of a bucker works well too depending on what tones you are after.

the firebird might be about as hot as a filterton but i havent a/b'd them, a vintage firebird pup is hotter than a vintage strat pup for sure

 

[jeremy]

they do indeed. sounds, in someways, like a more muscular strat pup which is part of the reason i love it so much

 

[chadd]

I have a DiMarzio set in my parts tele. An Area T 615 in the bridge and Firebird mini in the neck. That one definitely isn't that hot and will be fine with anything low to mid output. The Lollar in my Kauer Banshee is a little lower, about 6k

 

[Mincer]

A Jerry Donahue and a Firebird pickup would be a really cool combination likely to match pretty well in volume.

 

[zionstrat]

Agree with everything said, but it' can also nice to have a bit of a mismatched set so that you can play clean in first position and second position and drive from the neck. So I'm very happy with a stock bridge with a mini or firebird in the neck.

And in that same spirit, it's only been in the last year or two that I learned that a four-wire mini or firebird can have a wonderful parallel sound. Of course it's quieter, but it's very defined and it's almost exactly what my mind imagines a stock telecaster neck pup should have sounded like from the start.

It makes the second position almost exactly like a non-modified tele and then when you switch it back to series it's like kicking in a blower. If you haven't tried it, it's easy and worth a try.

 

[zionstrat]

That makes sense.. telecaster necks are weak and anemic for me but other people like them so I get it...

But a parallel mini and firebird is in the ballpark for a stock neck.. but yes you'd have to order a four conductor.

 

[chadd]

Thanks,
that sounds more like it will balance better with regular tele bridges than with hot ones.
well that would be good enough, but i hope to find a tele neck that‘s not a typical bucker sound that matches well with hot tele bridge singles

The Lollar sounds like a bigger single coil, like the old Firebird pickups

 

[chadd]

those warmoth guys are slow!?!?
check some FB necks.
the lollar is quite pricey and the duncan antiquity firebird is only available in aged nickel it seems.
i want shiny chrome. this will be a PITA ordering from EU. I keep looking for other options…

Duncan SM-1N in Italy
https://reverb.com/item/44928084-seymour-duncan-italia-sm1n-vntg-minihumbkr

 

[chadd]

Thanks, but it was hard enough going away from the traditional tele look. that big logo does stretch it though. that’s actually a deal breaker for meo

There are a ton of options if you look for them.

https://www.sunbearpickups.com/firebird-mini-more-pickups/mini-humbucker-moonbird