Fender Jaguarillo pickup recommendations

[acaldera]

Hey guys - Just got a Fender Jaguarillo 2010 - I fell in love with offsets recently and this one is a pretty interesting mix of Jaguar and Strat I think. It has three pickups, neck and middle are single coils (supposed to be strat pickups) and the bridge is an Atomic Humbucker. I'm digging the humbucker but not the other two - anyone has any experience or recommendations to swap these for something that a) will give me more of the strat quack on the neck pickup and b) middle that will play nice with a better neck pickup plus the humbucker?

Andres

 

[Benjy_26]

Re: Fender Jaguarillo pickup recommendations

FWIW, the neck pickup alone won't "quack". That's a sound that comes from the middle pickup combined with either the neck or a bridge single coil.

Now, if the Jaguarillo comes with the standard, ceramic singles that come on the MIM strat, you can definitely get more quack and sparkle from those positions by swapping the singles out for something like a pair of SSL-1's or APS-1's. If you set the 'bucker to auto-split in position 4, you'll have an approximation of the sounds of a 3 single coil strat, plus the full humbucker sound in position 5.

 

[acaldera]

Re: Fender Jaguarillo pickup recommendations

Thank you man, that's super helpful, particularly the idea of position 4 with humbucker auto split, didn't know that was possible. I might be using the wrong language, I know what you mean by the out of phase sound from positions 2 & 4, how do you call that unique sound of the Strat on neck pickup that is kind hollow? (Think Hendrix) - that is what I'm mostly missing in this guitar.

Here is an article of someone who even tested the pickups for output https://www.harmonycentral.com/expert-reviews/fender-pawn-shop-jaguarillo maybe that can shed some light on what it has from factory.

Andres

 

[jeremy]

Re: Fender Jaguarillo pickup recommendations

the 24" scale of that guitar will always make it sound different than a strat. the single coil pups in that guitar are ceramic, getting something like a pair of ssl2 alnico pole piece strat pups would be a good start. the "out of phase" strat thing in the notch positions is a mis-nomer. the sound in the 2 & 4 positions is from two pups being parallel, in-phase

 

[acaldera]

Re: Fender Jaguarillo pickup recommendations

Thanks Jeremy - What do you use for middle with that, this guy: SSL-2 rwrp?

Can you share your thoughts on why SSL-2 vs SSL-1 or APS-1 as suggested above?

I'm new on pickup land so super thankful for the insights!

 

[Benjy_26]

Re: Fender Jaguarillo pickup recommendations

Thank you man, that's super helpful, particularly the idea of position 4 with humbucker auto split, didn't know that was possible. I might be using the wrong language, I know what you mean by the out of phase sound from positions 2 & 4, how do you call that unique sound of the Strat on neck pickup that is kind hollow? (Think Hendrix) - that is what I'm mostly missing in this guitar.

Here is an article of someone who even tested the pickups for output https://www.harmonycentral.com/expert-reviews/fender-pawn-shop-jaguarillo maybe that can shed some light on what it has from factory.

Andres

No prob. If your humbucker has 4 conductor wiring, you can auto split. I have a MIM strat with a PG+ in the bridge and a pair of the stock Mexican singles wired up that way.

As far as the hollow, deep toned sound from a good strat pickup, it comes from a good alnico pole'd pickup and strat construction. I can get close with one of my tele's that has an uncovered neck pickup, but only my strats really nail that tone.

Unfortunately, like Jeremy pointed out, the short scale of your guitar will make that position sound different on your guitar; probably warmer and with more mids, if I had to venture a guess.

Jeremy's suggestion of the SSL-2 and APS-2 isbprobably more appropriate than my suggestion of the -1 version of those pickups. The -2's have a flat pole arrangement and the -1's have staggered poles, like that used on vintage strats. If your guitar has a fingerboard radius greater than 7 1/4 inches, you're probably better off with the flat poled pickups, although I have a set of Fender's 57/62's in an Alvarez with a 10" radius and they work fine.

 

[Benjy_26]

Re: Fender Jaguarillo pickup recommendations

Ok, just read the article. Looks like a NICE guitar!

Your Atomic IS 4 conductor, so you can set it to auto-split in position 4 for a more stratty sound.

As far as the single coils, those MIM's are pretty darned hot and too dark for a good vintage strat sound. I think that anybof Duncan's vintage style singles would get you closer to a Hendrix tone than the singles that are in the guitar right now.

 

[Ayrton]

Re: Fender Jaguarillo pickup recommendations

I always thought the Fender Jaguarillo was a cool take on the Jaguar. I would like to build one with three singles myself.

 

[Benjy_26]

Re: Fender Jaguarillo pickup recommendations

I always thought the Fender Jaguarillo was a cool take on the Jaguar. I would like to build one with three singles myself.

After looking at that article, I think one of those may be in my future. I'm thinking a trio of SM-1's would kill in a guitar like that.

 

[TD9]

Re: Fender Jaguarillo pickup recommendations

This is what I did to mine.. Took some minor dremel work and a custom pickguard.. Nothing big though.. Wouldn't trade it now.. (Lollar P90's in there) Never like it with 3 p/u's .. and never cared for the Atomic Humbucker it came with..
But everybody has their own thing...

 

[acaldera]

Re: Fender Jaguarillo pickup recommendations

Very cool!