"New" Fender Wide Range Humbuckers

lousy_player

lousy_player

New member
Fender website says they've been "re-voiced" to original specs, or something to that effect.



Anyone have the lowdown on that?
 
Re: "New" Fender Wide Range Humbuckers

Unless they're using CuNiFe magnets, they're never going to be much like the originals. They might look the same, but that's about as far as it can go.

Also, when the originals were installed into guitars, they were used with 1 Meg (ohm) pots. I think the re-issues use 250K pots.

I do know about this stuff from experience, as i have owned a 74 Telecaster Custom for over 25 years (wide-range fenderbucker at the neck, regular single-coil at the bridge). No other humbucker has ever attained the sound of the original widebuckers, and never will unless there is a return to CuNiFe, which i doubt will happen, sadly.
 
Re: "New" Fender Wide Range Humbuckers

Doesn't SD make them as a CS option?
 
Re: "New" Fender Wide Range Humbuckers

it's come up a couple times...

from memory Mr Skopp was understandably non-committal re manufacturing all-new recreations of the original design; they're pretty different, they're like 2 short tele bridge bobbins on a bigger baseplate with no bar mag and 12 (machined) cunife poles... i think, anyway.

crusty would know, he's got one and it's secksy.

i think Jeremy said the custom shop may be able to re-wind them, from an existing (original) shell

there was another guy (who's name i'm embarassed i don't recall) who i think was machining alnico for the poles and doing everything else vintage-correct; do some searches on recent threads/posts about original fender wide-range pickups and see what you get. i listened to a clip and it sounded interesting to me but i've actually never even seen or heard an original, so i really wouldn't know

seems to me that there isn't much the SD custom shop won't take on, in the pursuit of sweet tone; after designing the phat cat, they've come up with a unique cover and a way of manufacturing individually height-adjustable alnico polepieces to make the phat staple (i'm anxiously waiting for mine to arrive at present)... i'd assume the custom shop has many bits and pieces outside standard floor shop parts.

could be time for another poll, so the CS can gauge if it's doable cost-wise
if enough people show interest..?
:deal:
 
Re: "New" Fender Wide Range Humbuckers

They have just be wound to about 10K with either an A5 or A2 mag depending what model 72' you get. I've even found one with a Ceramic in the bridge....yuck :( There are a few 72 models now....Although having an A2 in the neck and an a5 in the bridge would be sweet...or go A8 bridge, A5 neck...
 
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Re: "New" Fender Wide Range Humbuckers

I was interested mostly because of the fact that Fender must have noticed the internet chit-chat about the these pickups... rewinding, custom-machining and whatnot.

They at least tried to get the reissues back to original "voicing."
 
Re: "New" Fender Wide Range Humbuckers

I read somewhere that A3 yields a similar result to CuNiFe? I think that was on the Duncan FAQ actually.
 
Re: "New" Fender Wide Range Humbuckers

dr. ad said:
there was another guy (who's name i'm embarassed i don't recall) who i think was machining alnico for the poles and doing everything else vintage-correct; do some searches on recent threads/posts about original fender wide-range pickups and see what you get. i listened to a clip and it sounded interesting to me but i've actually never even seen or heard an original, so i really wouldn't know
Click to expand...

http://www.telenator.com/
 
Re: "New" Fender Wide Range Humbuckers

Never tried an original but the one reissue I rewound for a guy sounded like pure MUD.
 
Re: "New" Fender Wide Range Humbuckers

Yeah, that big ass cover dulls the sound...once you take it off and put in a new mag its ok...but it just doesnt look right!
 
Re: "New" Fender Wide Range Humbuckers

I don't think they've been redone to original spec.

They're just unique for the Sonic Youth signature models. Meaning you probably won't be able to get them unless someone parts them out on eBay.
 
Re: "New" Fender Wide Range Humbuckers

anonymous guy said:
I don't think they've been redone to original spec.

They're just unique for the Sonic Youth signature models. Meaning you probably won't be able to get them unless someone parts them out on eBay.
Click to expand...

. . . or if you buy the guitar :D



James
 
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