Candidates for Tele sounding, hum-canceling bridge pickup for LP humbucker route?

[Jack_TriPpEr]

So I have a Les Paul type guitar that I am trying to identify pickups for its Bridge position that would get me close to a Tele bridge *singlecoil* pickup sound (not a bridge P90 type sound).

Also, I am only interested in hum-canceling candidates.

I know that even the best candidate will still only be sort of Tele like because of the difference in bridge hardware design btw the two guitars and lack of a steel baseplate that a real Tele pickup would have... but I would be happy with getting close.

So, I'm looking for recommendations.

Following are 2 that my research suggests might be good candidates:

1. What about a bridge P-Rail pup with the Rail coil facing the bridge? GuitarDoc described that split Rail coil as sounding Tele like in this older thread (reply # 51) - but he also replaced the Rail coil's original polished A5 magnet with a roughcast UOA5 mag . Anyone else get similar results? With or w/o the mag swap? If it really sounds like a Tele bridge SC, I could achieve hum-canceling by a couple different means, e.g. Spin-A-Split being one... LINK: https://forum.seymourduncan.com/sho...nd-like-this&p=2585963&viewfull=1#post2585963

2. Fralin Twangmaster, LINK: https://www.fralinpickups.com/product/twangmaster/

 

[VinceT]

Re: Candidates for Tele sounding, hum-canceling bridge pickup for LP humbucker route?

Stock (I haven’t tried a magnet swap on one), I wouldn’t go with the PRail for what you’re wanting - to my ears and fingers, the single coil in that pickup wasn’t enough of a single coil to stand-alone. That said, the PRail would give you a great set of options in that position if you added in switching options.

As for the Fralin, given reputation, I would be tempted to try one.


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[VinceT]

Re: Candidates for Tele sounding, hum-canceling bridge pickup for LP humbucker route?

Stock (I haven’t tried a magnet swap on one), I wouldn’t go with the PRail for what you’re wanting - to my ears and fingers, the single coil in that pickup wasn’t enough of a single coil to stand-alone. That said, the PRail would give you a great set of options in that position if you added in switching options.

As for the Fralin, given reputation, I would be tempted to try one.


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A second approach might be to go with a P90-tone (I personally like Railhammer Nuevo-90) and then use a bass contour to thin it out as Reverend do on their models - that’s a really flexible approach (though you’d have to sacrifice a tone pot unless you wanted to do some surgery)


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[TVFV]

Re: Candidates for Tele sounding, hum-canceling bridge pickup for LP humbucker route?

If you're open to going going active, you can look at some of the Fishman Fluence line. Off the top of my head, the Open Core series has single coil voicing as a third option. Alot of the signature models have a single coil voicing as well.

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[Artie]

Re: Candidates for Tele sounding, hum-canceling bridge pickup for LP humbucker route?

GuitarFetish makes an adapter ring to mount a bonafide Tele bridge pup into a humbucker hole. https://www.guitarfetish.com/Humbuc...elereg-Bridge-Pickup-THREE-COLORS_p_4350.html

 

[Artie]

Re: Candidates for Tele sounding, hum-canceling bridge pickup for LP humbucker route?

I've wondered that too. Like, an STK version of a Tele pup. There is another option. The Custom Shop offers the "Strat-in-humbucker" pup, where you select the pup that goes in there. A Twangbanger might be the ticket. A bit pricey, but no mods needed. Maybe.

http://customshop.seymourduncan.com/strat-in-humbucker/

Edit: I think you want noiseless. So that particular pup wouldn't do it.

 

[GuitarDoc]

Re: Candidates for Tele sounding, hum-canceling bridge pickup for LP humbucker route?

Have you considered the StagMag? Sounds great in series, but very Teleish/Stratish in split coil mode. It also sounds terrific in parallel.

 

[Clint 55]

Re: Candidates for Tele sounding, hum-canceling bridge pickup for LP humbucker route?

Do you want the sounding portion to be single coil form factor? Because I think the WLH and JB have good Tele character.

If you want it to be single coil form factor, you could use the stag mag like gtrdoc said or you could simply stick stax of your choice in the route.

 

[Lewguitar]

Re: Candidates for Tele sounding, hum-canceling bridge pickup for LP humbucker route?

Players have been trying to get a "Gibson' to sound like a "Fender" forever, but no pickup is going to make a Les Paul sound like a Telecaster. I've tried too, and eventually gave up.

I have a Duncan Tele pickup in my Strat but it doesn't sound like a Tele.

IMO, you're going to have to settle for...reality!

Maybe a JB or Custom in parallel. Those sound pretty bright and single coil-ly in parallel.

Maybe a StagMag, although I've never tried one.

Something like that.

But you're not going to get a Les Paul to sound much like a Tele.

 

[Jack_TriPpEr]

Re: Candidates for Tele sounding, hum-canceling bridge pickup for LP humbucker route?

GuitarFetish makes an adapter ring to mount a bonafide Tele bridge pup into a humbucker hole. https://www.guitarfetish.com/Humbuc...elereg-Bridge-Pickup-THREE-COLORS_p_4350.html

I deleted a prior response where I was saying the adaptor ring wasn't a good fit for the Tele pickup.
I just went back and repeated a fit check and I have an idea for a remedy. Let me explain. I already have a Dimarzio Area T 615 in hand that I planned to use with one of those adaptor rings. While I don't have one of those adaptor rings on-hand yet, I had previously did a test fit of sliding a plastic bridge humbucker ring around the Dimarzio pup. A problem was quickly evident: this Dimarzio pup has a bulge in its width on either side, centerd around where the tops and bottoms of the two coils meet. That bulge causes abrasion of the pup winding cloth with both sides of the humbucker mounting ring. And severely enough that you could not freely raise or lower the pickup height on-the-fly - you'd first have to decide whether to have the ring rest above the bulge or below the bulge. So I thought previously that this was a show-stopper to using a real-deal Tele singlecoil and one of those adaptor rings. But after repeating the test fit again just now to be sure, I realized that since the pickup mounting ring is made of plastic, I can just shave it down in those two areas on each side of the ring, to accomodate the bulge on either side of the pickup.

Once the adaptor ring arrives and I have shaved the pickup mounting ring, I will report back if this all worked out.

Thanks Artie for triggering me to re-think/re-try this.

 

[Jack_TriPpEr]

Re: Candidates for Tele sounding, hum-canceling bridge pickup for LP humbucker route?

Do you want the sounding portion to be single coil form factor? Because I think the WLH and JB have good Tele character.

If you want it to be single coil form factor, you could use the stag mag like gtrdoc said or you could simply stick stax of your choice in the route.

No, the sounding portion doesn't have to be a singlecoil footprint. I would be happy with whatever gets the job done.

I will keep the JB and WLH mind - thanks Clint! Good input.

 

[Jack_TriPpEr]

Re: Candidates for Tele sounding, hum-canceling bridge pickup for LP humbucker route?

Have you considered the StagMag? Sounds great in series, but very Teleish/Stratish in split coil mode. It also sounds terrific in parallel.

GuitarDoc, thanks. I did have a Stag Mag in the past - mounted in a Triple Shot - and while I was not evaluating it for Tele-like qualities at that time - I remember not liking it overall, so I don't think I would go back to that pup.

Do you still use the P-Rail split coil in the Bridge position facing outwards in one of your LPs to get Tele-ish tones?

 

[Artie]

Re: Candidates for Tele sounding, hum-canceling bridge pickup for LP humbucker route?

Once the adaptor ring arrives and I have shaved the pickup mounting ring, I will report back if this all worked out.

Thanks Artie for triggering me to re-think/re-try this.

Cool. That's what I'm here for.

I might try one of these myself. They're cheap, and I've got a Broadcaster sitting around here looking for a project.

 

[Jack_TriPpEr]

Re: Candidates for Tele sounding, hum-canceling bridge pickup for LP humbucker route?

If you're open to going going active, you can look at some of the Fishman Fluence line. Off the top of my head, the Open Core series has single coil voicing as a third option. Alot of the signature models have a single coil voicing as well.

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Thanks but I actually do want to stay passive. I already have ideas for which pickup I want to install in the Neck position and all those candidates are passive.

Also, I've listened to Youtube demos of the Fluence singlecoil mode and while I do think they sound decent, I wasn't hearing anything from them that had Tele bridge pup spank either.

 

[Jack_TriPpEr]

Re: Candidates for Tele sounding, hum-canceling bridge pickup for LP humbucker route?

Cool. That's what I'm here for.

I might try one of these myself. They're cheap, and I've got a Broadcaster sitting around here looking for a project.

I also have a genuine Fender Tele full bridge hardware piece on-hand that I have as a potential option to cut up with a Dremel - to salvage just the portion that is akin to the GuitarFetish adaptor ring - to use that *in conjunction with* the Guitar Fetish adaptor ring. In case after trying the setup without it, that it may need some steel added in there to help the tonez along. :14:

 

[Jack_TriPpEr]

Re: Candidates for Tele sounding, hum-canceling bridge pickup for LP humbucker route?

Cool. That's what I'm here for.

I might try one of these myself. They're cheap, and I've got a Broadcaster sitting around here looking for a project.

New complication: i went back and did a third fit check, this time attempting to seat the pickup (placed in the mounting ring) into the humbucker route of the guitar. The extended front flange of the Tele pickup causes it not to fit with that adaptor ring having the pickup at the standard Tele slant. First remedy idea would be to modify the guitar's humbucker cavity, which i do not want to do. It did actuallynfit when i rotated the pickup so there was no longer an angle, but obviously the adaptor ring is built with an angle. They make blank PVC pieces of these adalptor rings where I could dremel out by hand the pickup slot, pickup holder screws, and screwholes for attaching the adaptor ring to the mounting ring, but that feels like a pain in the a**. Think I may have to go back to looking at pickup solutions that are in a humbucker footprint.

 

[Artie]

Re: Candidates for Tele sounding, hum-canceling bridge pickup for LP humbucker route?

Hey Jack; I don't know if this will be helpful, but the GFS page showed the Tele pup mounted backwards. Maybe that's the "trick." Also, I once made a Tele adapter out of brass, for my Peavey Tele that had a humbucker route for the bridge. It took very little time to drill small holes around the pattern, and then punch the piece out and file the edges smooth.(Using a Dremel, of course.) I bet PVC would be even easier.

 

[Lewguitar]

Re: Candidates for Tele sounding, hum-canceling bridge pickup for LP humbucker route?

Hey Jack; I don't know if this will be helpful, but the GFS page showed the Tele pup mounted backwards. Maybe that's the "trick." Also, I once made a Tele adapter out of brass, for my Peavey Tele that had a humbucker route for the bridge. It took very little time to drill small holes around the pattern, and then punch the piece out and file the edges smooth.(Using a Dremel, of course.) I bet PVC would be even easier.

View attachment 105674

Cool! Might want to order a flat poled pickup?

 

[Empty Pockets]

Re: Candidates for Tele sounding, hum-canceling bridge pickup for LP humbucker route?

I don't want to read the whole thread because I can't really speak to solutions of your problem with any authority, but I can tell you the P-Rail idea isn't what you want.

I love my P-Rails in my SG because I play heavy stoner humbucker stuff like 40% of the time, P90 classic rock stuff 50% of the time, and like 10% little clean twangy riffs.

When your ears are used to the the thick humbucker or the growly P90 and you switch to the rail, it sounds thin and twangy, kind of like a Telecaster but only by comparison. And it's not hum-cancelling anymore.

If you went from playing a bonafide Telecaster and then switched to the Gibson with the P-Rail Rail coil engaged, you would notice it's not nearly "the real thing" just a reasonable facsimile.

Good for a guy like me who doesn't use the sound much but I wouldn't recommend it for what you're aiming at.

 

[jeremy]

Re: Candidates for Tele sounding, hum-canceling bridge pickup for LP humbucker route?

put a low output, bright paf type bucker in there and call it a day. 59n or seth neck depending on your flavor. a lp isnt going to sound like a tele but neither is a strat. a 59n in the bridge will be bright and steely. the twangmaster looks cool