SD SSL-1s VS SSL-5s

[dystrust]

Re: SD SSL-1s VS SSL-5s

You don't have to go through the Custom Shop, just search ebay for SSL-5T

http://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_trk....A0.H0.Xssl-5t&_nkw=ssl-5t&_sacat=0&_from=R40

'Shop Floor Custom' and 'Custom Shop' are NOT the same thing. A shop floor custom is ordering an optional feature on an otherwise standard pickup, like blue bobbins on your humbucker or a tapped single coil like the SSL-6T in my Strat.

I wouldn't do flat/flat/staggerd, either go one way or the other: staggered ssl-1s and an ssl-5, or flat ssl-2's and an ssl-6. Duncan stagger heights are more shallow than the traditional Fender stagger, coming closer to the flat stagger in terms of balance, so it's more of a cosmetic difference than anything. I'd got for staggers to preserve the vintage stagger appearance.

Agreed that you wouldn't want to mix flats and staggered in the same guitar. The difference isn't 100% cosmetic, and you really should take fingerboard radius into consideration when ordering a set. If your Strat has a vintage Fender 7 1/4" radius, the string balance will be a bit 'off' with flat-pole pickups; I've tried it. Likewise if you have an ultra-flat 16" radius, the balance with staggered poles isn't quite right. With the modern Fender 9 1/2" radius you could go either way, but I'd lean toward staggered for cosmetic reasons. My Strat is actually a Charvel Model 1A with a 12-16" fingerboard radius, hence my selection of flat pole SSL-2 / SSL-6T.

 

[elboonio]

Re: SD SSL-1s VS SSL-5s

question to the OP: whats your amp?

Ah. I had a bad time with my amp. I sold my beloved Fender Blues Junior to pay for the strat. I'm working to buy it back, at the moment i'm using a Blackstar ID:15TVP. It's a great amp, very versatile though not as characterful as the fender, which I would've primarily used.

 

[elboonio]

Re: SD SSL-1s VS SSL-5s

Ah. I had a bad time with my amp. I sold my beloved Fender Blues Junior to pay for the strat. I'm working to buy it back, at the moment i'm using a Blackstar ID:15TVP. It's a great amp, very versatile though not as characterful as the fender, which I would've primarily used.

While using my Jazzmaster, the tone is rounded and full. I'm sure it's not the amp, if thats what you're saying.

 

[DreX]

Re: SD SSL-1s VS SSL-5s

'Shop Floor Custom' and 'Custom Shop' are NOT the same thing. A shop floor custom is ordering an optional feature on an otherwise standard pickup, like blue bobbins on your humbucker or a tapped single coil like the SSL-6T in my Strat.



Agreed that you wouldn't want to mix flats and staggered in the same guitar. The difference isn't 100% cosmetic, and you really should take fingerboard radius into consideration when ordering a set. If your Strat has a vintage Fender 7 1/4" radius, the string balance will be a bit 'off' with flat-pole pickups; I've tried it. Likewise if you have an ultra-flat 16" radius, the balance with staggered poles isn't quite right. With the modern Fender 9 1/2" radius you could go either way, but I'd lean toward staggered for cosmetic reasons. My Strat is actually a Charvel Model 1A with a 12-16" fingerboard radius, hence my selection of flat pole SSL-2 / SSL-6T.

I forgot about that difference, but if ebay offers tapped coils new and you have paypal set up, you can get the pickups with tap leads with a few clicks and not have to make any special requests. That's how I got all my SSL-4Ts

I did say Duncan's shallow stagger was "mostly cosmetic", but it depends on how picky your ears are. I think if a pickup is mid heavy with less highs, the stagger difference is easier to perceive. Jason Lollar IIRC pretty much recommends flat poles for any neck radius, and I don't think he's necessarily wrong. The main problem with stagger IME seems to be losing the high E and B in the mix, the extent that plucking them harder and turning up the treble on your amp doesn't even help matters, so as long as that doesn't happen you're OK.

 

[Boogie Bill]

Re: SD SSL-1s VS SSL-5s

Hi,

I've got an American Strat Special and I really don't like the Fender Texas Special pickups that came with it. They're far too trebly and provide no warmth or rounded, bassy tones that I want.

As I said, I prefer the thick mid/bass tones, and for the high ends to be well rounded and not have as much bite as the texan specials have...

I have to differ with you on the Texas Hots, and I had a set in a guitar now. IMO, I don't think they're such a great all around pickup. They're not real hot, in fact the wind is the same as the Ant II Surfers, the only difference is that the Texas Hots have the weaker A2 magnet, giving them a darker, older sound. By older I mean both literally sounding like weaker aged magnets, but also lacking in vitality. You strum the strings, they reach up for that Strat chime, but then fall well short of it. They have poorer dynamics. Basically look at the usual list of "pros versus cons" of the far more common A5 single coil strat magnets, and then know that they A2 is basically the opposite of that list. They're probably better suited for smooth jazz or rhythm guitar work. I keep a set around for what I consider to be their real value, which is as a concept pickup; if you had a Strat sitting in a closet for 40+ years and took it out and played it, it would probably sound like that. That name "Texas Hot" is a misnomer of the highest order.

True, the THAs don't sound like the SSL-1s...what we might think of as traditional, bright, snappy Strat tones. Another example: you won't like them if you're going after Clapton's "Slinky" tone on his first solo album.

You are absolutely correct about the construction of the THA, they do use aged magnets. In my experience, they do have more output than the SSL-1/2s that I have used. No, they are not Invader humbucker "hot".

What you term as,"...lacking in vitality..." another user might describe as, "...thick mid/bass tones, and for the high ends to be well rounded and not have as much bite as the texan specials have."

But in terms of TONE, and reading again what the OP wants, and what he doesn't like about the Texas Specials, I think my recommendation for the Texas Hot Antiquity pickup set is more than valid.

These are very good pickups. I think the neck pickup is probably the best sounding neck single coil I've ever heard--rich, warm and full. The middle pickup is perfectly balanced, and I find myself using it far more often that I do the stock middle pickups on my Legacys. The Custom Hot bridge is thick, meaty and juicy. This a great choice for anyone who's played a Strat and wanted "just a little more." The smoky mid-range of these pickups is complex and delicious, like a fine deep red wine that lingers on your tongue.

The "real value" of the Texas Hot Antiquitys is not sitting in a closet. Their value is in making great music.

Bill

 

[DreX]

Re: SD SSL-1s VS SSL-5s

What you term as,"...lacking in vitality..." another user might describe as, "...thick mid/bass tones, and for the high ends to be well rounded and not have as much bite as the texan specials have."

But in terms of TONE, and reading again what the OP wants, and what he doesn't like about the Texas Specials, I think my recommendation for the Texas Hot Antiquity pickup set is more than valid.

I would agree, if not for the Ant. I Texas Hots having less dynamics and output than you would get from the SSL-5, which might have a similar peak resonance, but a lot more output. That's the essence of why "Texas Hot" is a misnomer, because from a "hot" pickup you expect a dynamic response and sustain that you will not get from that weaker A2 magnet.

 

[AlexR]

Re: SD SSL-1s VS SSL-5s

^ Well its the thicker mids that is where the 'hot' comes in. The mids is where the crunch is, so if you play with OD then you're more likely to get a more driven sound with the A2....its 'smoky'. I look at A5 strat pickups as 'polite'. They are scooped and jangly. The A2's allow you to get a thicker tone for a more singing sustain. Its like the A5 pickups are 'little wing', and the A2's are 'Pride and Joy'

 

[tc]

Re: SD SSL-1s VS SSL-5s

The obvious answer is SSL1/SSL1/SSL5, N/M/B. You can look into getting a tapped SSL5 as well.

I've found that set to be pretty much what most people want when they say they want aftermarket pickups but aren't 100% sure of what they want. I like sets with less output (even the SSL1 is a bit hotter than most vintage Strat pickups), but most people don't.

Ah. I had a bad time with my amp. I sold my beloved Fender Blues Junior to pay for the strat. I'm working to buy it back, at the moment i'm using a Blackstar ID:15TVP. It's a great amp, very versatile though not as characterful as the fender, which I would've primarily used.

On the other hand, I'd say don't even bother with buying pickups until you recover your Fender, which you clearly prefer. Amplifiers are much more important than pickups as far as your signal chain goes, in my opinion.