Hello and Fender Modern Player Telecaster Plus Pickup(s) Questions

[greypilgrim76]

Hi All! I've been lurking around here reading about pickups and guitars in general for a while now, but I've decided it's time to jump in with some actual questions. I've found a few threads that partially deal with some of them, but nothing that really addresses them directly, so I figured I'd just throw them out there and see what you all have to say.

Background: after not playing electric guitar for quite a while, I decided to jump back in a few months ago and bought a Fender Modern Player Telecaster Plus with a Boss Katana Amp (which is pretty great). I play mostly classic rock (Anything from Joe Walsh to Allman Brothers to Sabbath to ZZ Top) and a little bit of classic country (Cash, Jennings, Nelson). Of course, that variety's probably too much to ask of any single guitar, but the setup of this one makes me hopeful I can get maybe 75% of the way there on most of them, with the Katana's help, of course. The Fender MP Tele has a single coil neck and middle, but a humbucker bridge. It also has a two-way switch for splitting the humbucker. The body is pine and the neck is maple.

The neck and middle pickups are fine, but sort of unremarkable, while the humbucker is loud enough in its regular humbucking mode, if a bit flatter than I'd like. When split, though, volume (understandably) drops quite a bit, but it also just doesn't sound great, even when tweaking the amp for different "flavors."

So, I've decided that my holiday project is going to be replacing the pickups in this guitar. I can handle the wiring, but understanding many of the other "finer points" of pickup selection is bit outside my wheelhouse. For example, I've listened to a lot of the pickup options individually, and have some ideas on what I like, but I'm less familiar with how they might blend (or how much that even matters with a Frankenstein-ish guitar like this), or how polarity might enter into the picture with various setups.

Here are some of my concerns:

First, pickup selection. I want to go all SD, partially so I can make sure that polarities match between pickups as much as possible, and partially because I just really like SD pickups. Right now, the only one I'm really set on is the APTR-1 Alnico II Pro Tele neck pickup:

https://www.seymourduncan.com/pickup/alnico-ii-pro-tele-neck

I love the warmer tones, and I think it'll work particularly well in the pine body. For the middle pickup, I'm sort of wide open. I've listened to (and really like) the SLS-1 rwrp Lipstick Tube Strat:

https://www.seymourduncan.com/pickup/lipstick-tube-strat-middle-rwrp

I also like sound of the the SSL52-1m Five-Two Strat:

https://www.seymourduncan.com/pickup/five-two-strat-middle-rwrp

My favorite might be the Antiquity Texas Hot Strat pickup, but I'm not sure how its polarity would work for this guitar, and I'm probably not adept enough with pup guts to perform surgery on it:

https://www.seymourduncan.com/pickup/antiquity-texas-hot-strat-middle-rwrp

My only real desire for this middle pup is that it provides a bit more of the glassier strat sound than the warmer neck and bridge positions, though I don't need anything too hot or extreme.

For the humbucker, I want something that will still hold up volume- and tone-wise when split, but that also gives some good growl in full humbucker mode. I'd also like to replace the two-way with a three-way switch to open up more tone options. A lot of people seem to like the SH-16 59/Custom hybrid, and I think it sounds like a good bet:

https://www.seymourduncan.com/pickup/59custom-hybrid

That said, I'm also intrigued by the SHPR-1B P-Rails pickup, which seems like a great fit for a 75%-of-everything guitar:

https://www.seymourduncan.com/pickup/p-rails-bridge

My concern with this one, though, is that the wiring is a bit more complicated, and I'm not sure how the polarity of the middle pup works with trying to get all the tones out of the P-Rails.

So, here are my questions (thanks for waiting!):

1) Is there a pup combo here that sounds good to you, or am I way off base on something? I'd love for the pups to blend well, but I'm also open to unusual combos. Other pups I should consider for this guitar/music/purpose/setup/wood?

2) If I did go with the P-Rails, am I starting down a nightmare road of wiring/polarity issues? Should I just run it through a 3-way switch for the bucker, P-90, rail options, or would it be better to combine the switch with a Triple Shot mounting ring and really open up the possibilities? What would the options even be with a Triple Shot and a three-way switch? And if the two coils of the P-Rails are polarized to work together, does that mean one of them will be out of phase with the middle pup? Should I just go with the 59/Custom and save myself the headaches?

3) Since I'm going to have this thing torn apart anyway, what electronics/hardware should I replace while I'm at it? Pots? Wires? Other things? And if I switch out pots, what's the best replacement, considering the odd pickup combo? 500k for tone and volume? 250k? One of each?

Thanks for any answers. I've learned a TON just reading these forums already!

 

[Ascension]

Re: Hello and Fender Modern Player Telecaster Plus Pickup(s) Questions

I have a modern player and had the same issues with the stock pickups you are describing. Went with a 59/ Custom in the bridge Alnico II Tele in the neck then a standard wind SSL1 in the middle and am really happy with my tones. Great split tone with the 59/Custom in particular with the SSL-1 in the middle and the Alnico II neck is smooth and round. Highly recommend this combo in that guitar! Kept the stock pots and switches as once I hit the pots with some cleaner lube they smoothed out nicely.

 

[greypilgrim76]

Re: Hello and Fender Modern Player Telecaster Plus Pickup(s) Questions

I have a modern player and had the same issues with the stock pickups you are describing. Went with a 59/ Custom in the bridge Alnico II Tele in the neck then a standard wind SSL1 in the middle and am really happy with my tones. Great split tone with the 59/Custom in particular with the SSL-1 in the middle and the Alnico II neck is smooth and round. Highly recommend this combo in that guitar! Kept the stock pots and switches as once I hit the pots with some cleaner lube they smoothed out nicely.

Cool! Thanks for the info. It's good to hear from someone with the same guitar and something close to the setup I'm considering. A quick question: you said you have a "standard wind SSL1" for your middle pup. Do you mean standard as in non-rwrp? If so, I was under the impression that can cause issues on strat-style guitars. I may be misunderstanding, so i just wanted to check. Also, when you had your guitar apart, did you happen to notice what kind of pots it had? Fender is not helpful with tracking down that info!

 

[Ascension]

Re: Hello and Fender Modern Player Telecaster Plus Pickup(s) Questions

Cool! Thanks for the info. It's good to hear from someone with the same guitar and something close to the setup I'm considering. A quick question: you said you have a "standard wind SSL1" for your middle pup. Do you mean standard as in non-rwrp? If so, I was under the impression that can cause issues on strat-style guitars. I may be misunderstanding, so i just wanted to check. Also, when you had your guitar apart, did you happen to notice what kind of pots it had? Fender is not helpful with tracking down that info!

Good question on the standard wind pickup being in the middle. A Tele normally uses a RW/RP in the neck so that the position middle of the stock 3 way running both single coils is hum canceling. That's why running a standard SSL-1 or whatever in the middle will be hum canceling with the neck and it also will be hum canceling with the normal wiring of the 59/ Custom Hybrid when it's split. If you have a S/S/H guitar always run the RW/RP single in the neck not the middle like you do in a 3 single guitar. I like the SSL-1 here because it gives a good glassy QUACK when used with both the Alnico II neck and split 59/Custom plus also sounds nice on it's own.
Cant remember what the pots are but after hitting them with a tuner cleaner with lubricant know they loosened up nicely. Before they were really stiff. I use the guitar volume a LOT to clean up and such and have not had any issue with the 500K stockers in my Modern player since I hit them with that cleaner lube.

 

[Ascension]

Re: Hello and Fender Modern Player Telecaster Plus Pickup(s) Questions

Live clip of my Modern player running the 59/ Custom Hybrid through my old early 1990's Boogie Subway Rocket.

 

[greypilgrim76]

Re: Hello and Fender Modern Player Telecaster Plus Pickup(s) Questions

Good question on the standard wind pickup being in the middle. A Tele normally uses a RW/RP in the neck so that the position middle of the stock 3 way running both single coils is hum canceling. That's why running a standard SSL-1 or whatever in the middle will be hum canceling with the neck and it also will be hum canceling with the normal wiring of the 59/ Custom Hybrid when it's split. If you have a S/S/H guitar always run the RW/RP single in the neck not the middle like you do in a 3 single guitar. I like the SSL-1 here because it gives a good glassy QUACK when used with both the Alnico II neck and split 59/Custom plus also sounds nice on it's own.
Cant remember what the pots are but after hitting them with a tuner cleaner with lubricant know they loosened up nicely. Before they were really stiff. I use the guitar volume a LOT to clean up and such and have not had any issue with the 500K stockers in my Modern player since I hit them with that cleaner lube.

Well, I've definitely learned something! I spent so much time reading about three-pickup guitars that it never occurred to me that a Tele neck pup would change the calculations a bit. Thanks for the info. It'll save me a few bucks, along with lots of headaches!

So, with the 59/Custom, the Custom coil is the one that's used when split, right? And that one is the opposite polarity of the the SSL-1? Or does it need to be wired differently to work with the SSL-1?

I'm also wondering if the Antiquity Texas Hot Strat middle pup would actually work in this guitar. It's listed as RWRP, but I also know that the Antiquities are the opposite of other Duncan pups, polarity-wise, so would it actually be "normal polarity" when paired with non-Antiquity pups?

LOVE the tone you're getting in that video. Exactly what I'm looking for in a middle pup on this thing.

 

[Mincer]

Re: Hello and Fender Modern Player Telecaster Plus Pickup(s) Questions

You have some sweet pickup choices, and the one I like is the Alnico II, the Five Two (that is one great underrated pickup), and the Hybrid. There will be no phase/polarity issues, and the balance should be great. You will get great vintage and classic rock tones, too, with a really sweet sounding high end. I am not a huge Tele fan, but this guitar I would rock.

 

[greypilgrim76]

Re: Hello and Fender Modern Player Telecaster Plus Pickup(s) Questions

You have some sweet pickup choices, and the one I like is the Alnico II, the Five Two (that is one great underrated pickup), and the Hybrid. There will be no phase/polarity issues, and the balance should be great. You will get great vintage and classic rock tones, too, with a really sweet sounding high end. I am not a huge Tele fan, but this guitar I would rock.

I love the sound of the Five-Two on the SD website, and honestly, the only thing keeping from it is a bit of a fear that the A2 magnets on the high strings might limit the Stratty sounds I can get, given that my other two pups will be an A2 Tele neck and a humbucker bridge. If I did go with the Five-Two, would I want to order the bridge or neck version to match with the RWRP Tele neck pup and humbucker?

 

[greypilgrim76]

Re: Hello and Fender Modern Player Telecaster Plus Pickup(s) Questions

So I've decided to go with the Alnico II Pro Tele bridge and the '59/Custom Hybrid bridge. Based on those two pups, I've narrowed the middle pup down to three choices: Vintage Flat Strat, Five-Two Strat, and Antiquity Texas Hot Strat. Any opinions on (and reasons for) which would be the best fit for versatility and overall usefulness?

 

[Mincer]

Re: Hello and Fender Modern Player Telecaster Plus Pickup(s) Questions

Well, I love the Five Two, just because it is a great sounding pickup- but that is a personal choice, not a hit on the others. Know that the Antiquity Texas Hots are out of phase with the rest of the Duncan line, though.

 

[greypilgrim76]

Re: Hello and Fender Modern Player Telecaster Plus Pickup(s) Questions

Well, I love the Five Two, just because it is a great sounding pickup- but that is a personal choice, not a hit on the others. Know that the Antiquity Texas Hots are out of phase with the rest of the Duncan line, though.

I have to admit, that one's really tempting. Partially, I like the idea of an A2 neck and and A5 bridge with the Five-Two in the middle to sort of "bridge the gap," so to speak, though that's probably me just liking things neat and tidy more than any real benefit of the pup itself.

If I went with the Five-Two, it looks like the middle version is RWRP, which wouldn't work with the already-RWRP Tele neck pup, right? So, if I went with existing pups, I'd need to drop either a bridge or neck Five-Two in the middle? Would one work better than the other in that slot? Or am I missing some other obvious solution? (I tend to do that.)