Strat Pick-ups — Low vs High Output?

[JPMTO]

Re: Strat Pick-ups — Low vs High Output?

Re: Strat Pick-ups — Low vs High Output?

Thanks everyone for the feedback. A few points to consider:

- The Surfers are a little hotter/thicker in he neck and mid at over 6k. My CS 60’s are 5.8k and didn’t have this issue.
- I have a set of Lollar Blackface in another Strat that also doesn’t have these issues. The neck cuts really well. Just don’t find those pick ups very stratty.
- My tech and most of the winders I’ve been speaking with think 250k is the ideal pot for a vintage fender sound. I’m not opposed to trying 300 and appreciate the suggestion.
- I use a Boost (Centura) as an always on already. It helps but not with the cutting.
- One of the challenges is that I don’t mic my amp live (because I can’t in these smaller bars). Therefore I have to CRANK my Princeton and I think it makes it extra boomier.

Given I didn’t have the same issues with the neck and middle with other pick ups I’m included to try a few other options. Thank goodness for Reverb!

 

[gregory]

Re: Strat Pick-ups — Low vs High Output?

Re: Strat Pick-ups — Low vs High Output?

250k volume and 250k tone to 300k volume and 300k tone is one thing (125k vs 150k). Using 300k volume with a 300k no-load tone set to 10 is another (125k vs 300k). As a point of reference, 500k volume and 500k tone controls result in a 250k load when the tone is on 10.

 

[Diego]

Re: Strat Pick-ups — Low vs High Output?

Re: Strat Pick-ups — Low vs High Output?

Thanks everyone for the feedback. A few points to consider:

- The Surfers are a little hotter/thicker in he neck and mid at over 6k. My CS 60’s are 5.8k and didn’t have this issue.
- I have a set of Lollar Blackface in another Strat that also doesn’t have these issues. The neck cuts really well. Just don’t find those pick ups very stratty.
- My tech and most of the winders I’ve been speaking with think 250k is the ideal pot for a vintage fender sound. I’m not opposed to trying 300 and appreciate the suggestion.
- I use a Boost (Centura) as an always on already. It helps but not with the cutting.
- One of the challenges is that I don’t mic my amp live (because I can’t in these smaller bars). Therefore I have to CRANK my Princeton and I think it makes it extra boomier.

Given I didn’t have the same issues with the neck and middle with other pick ups I’m included to try a few other options. Thank goodness for Reverb!

I think we might be up to something here.

Just a question, have you tried setting your pickups LOW in the pickguard and starting from there?
I had an issue where the neck single coil in my Strat was sounding a bit muffled, and for some reason it was set way higher than necessary. Took it down a bit and the high-end opened up nicely.
I like my pickups low.

 

[JPMTO]

Re: Strat Pick-ups — Low vs High Output?

Re: Strat Pick-ups — Low vs High Output?

Yes. It helped but not enough. Thx

 

[jeremy]

Re: Strat Pick-ups — Low vs High Output?

Re: Strat Pick-ups — Low vs High Output?

spec wise the surfers and blackface are very similar which goes to show how much the wind makes a difference. id try pulling the tone control off the neck pup and see what you think. quick and easy to try.

 

[chadd]

Re: Strat Pick-ups — Low vs High Output?

Re: Strat Pick-ups — Low vs High Output?

Thanks everyone for the feedback. A few points to consider:

- The Surfers are a little hotter/thicker in he neck and mid at over 6k. My CS 60’s are 5.8k and didn’t have this issue.
- I have a set of Lollar Blackface in another Strat that also doesn’t have these issues. The neck cuts really well. Just don’t find those pick ups very stratty.
- My tech and most of the winders I’ve been speaking with think 250k is the ideal pot for a vintage fender sound. I’m not opposed to trying 300 and appreciate the suggestion.
- I use a Boost (Centura) as an always on already. It helps but not with the cutting.
- One of the challenges is that I don’t mic my amp live (because I can’t in these smaller bars). Therefore I have to CRANK my Princeton and I think it makes it extra boomier.

Given I didn’t have the same issues with the neck and middle with other pick ups I’m included to try a few other options. Thank goodness for Reverb!

I don't understand why putting a Mic on your amp isn't possible. I've always done it, especially in the smaller places where the sound doesn't have enough distance to disperse effectively. Putting even a little guitar in the mains smooths things out dramatically.

 

[JPMTO]

Re: Strat Pick-ups — Low vs High Output?

Re: Strat Pick-ups — Low vs High Output?

I just played my start w Blackface and they do sound very nice. So much clearer.

 

[JPMTO]

Re: Strat Pick-ups — Low vs High Output?

Re: Strat Pick-ups — Low vs High Output?

It’s a place that isn’t really set up for bands. Nobody Mics their amp there because the soundboard is too small or something.

 

[Jacew]

Re: Strat Pick-ups — Low vs High Output?

Re: Strat Pick-ups — Low vs High Output?

Thanks everyone for the feedback. A few points to consider:

- The Surfers are a little hotter/thicker in he neck and mid at over 6k. My CS 60’s are 5.8k and didn’t have this issue.
- I have a set of Lollar Blackface in another Strat that also doesn’t have these issues. The neck cuts really well. Just don’t find those pick ups very stratty.
- My tech and most of the winders I’ve been speaking with think 250k is the ideal pot for a vintage fender sound. I’m not opposed to trying 300 and appreciate the suggestion.
- I use a Boost (Centura) as an always on already. It helps but not with the cutting.
- One of the challenges is that I don’t mic my amp live (because I can’t in these smaller bars). Therefore I have to CRANK my Princeton and I think it makes it extra boomier.

Given I didn’t have the same issues with the neck and middle with other pick ups I’m included to try a few other options. Thank goodness for Reverb!

I had SSL-1 on the neck, which was causing me similar problems: Really boomy and didn't cut, even when lowered. I replaced that with VZ Blues, which brought in a slightly more mids, and works perfectly while still maintanining pure strat neck tone. My SSL-1 works wonders in other strat I dropped it in.

Maybe it's just wrong pickup for that particular guitar.

 

[Clint 55]

Re: Strat Pick-ups — Low vs High Output?

Re: Strat Pick-ups — Low vs High Output?

Any 6k strat pup will cut if you don't load it down for effs sakes. :barf:

 

[Jacew]

Re: Strat Pick-ups — Low vs High Output?

Re: Strat Pick-ups — Low vs High Output?

Any 6k strat pup will cut if you don't load it down for effs sakes. :barf:

Yea, but it doesn't matter if cutting the load results in awful tone.

SSL-1 in that guitar was mud with 250k volume even with tone lifted. So I switched to 500k pot and started to balance tone circuit and pickup height. No chance. It was just too scooped. Good highs meant muddy lows and when I got working low end, highs became ice pick.

 

[Chistopher]

Re: Strat Pick-ups — Low vs High Output?

Re: Strat Pick-ups — Low vs High Output?

...I got working low end, highs became ice pick.

Rumour has it that tone controls were put on guitars for this very reason.

 

[gregory]

Re: Strat Pick-ups — Low vs High Output?

Re: Strat Pick-ups — Low vs High Output?

pfft

Rumor also has it that people like a tone control that operates over a more usable range. Leo Fender and Seymour Duncan chose 250k pots to work with singles for a reason.

Anyhow, I see nothing wrong with Jeremy's suggestion to take out the tone control as an experiment.

 

[Clint 55]

Re: Strat Pick-ups — Low vs High Output?

Re: Strat Pick-ups — Low vs High Output?

Yes, sticking with 250k volume and disconnecting the tone or no loading it would be a sensible 1st step.

 

[Jacew]

Re: Strat Pick-ups — Low vs High Output?

Re: Strat Pick-ups — Low vs High Output?

Rumour has it that tone controls were put on guitars for this very reason.

...So I switched to 500k pot and started to balance tone circuit and pickup height.

:smash:

 

[Chickenwings]

Re: Strat Pick-ups — Low vs High Output?

Re: Strat Pick-ups — Low vs High Output?

Have you tried ssl1's? Pretty great pickups.

 

[JPMTO]

Re: Strat Pick-ups — Low vs High Output?

Re: Strat Pick-ups — Low vs High Output?

I have not. Wondering how different they are from what I’ve tried.

 

[jeremy]

Re: Strat Pick-ups — Low vs High Output?

Re: Strat Pick-ups — Low vs High Output?

did you pull the tone off the neck? the ssl1 is a little brighter than the surfer with a little less low mid maybe

 

[gregory]

Re: Strat Pick-ups — Low vs High Output?

Re: Strat Pick-ups — Low vs High Output?

A Duncan Designed SC-101 bridge model might work even better for something slightly more muscular than an SSL-2. An even more inexpensive experiment, provided you can find one.

 

[PicoRiveraTele]

Re: Strat Pick-ups — Low vs High Output?

Re: Strat Pick-ups — Low vs High Output?

spec wise the surfers and blackface are very similar which goes to show how much the wind makes a difference. id try pulling the tone control off the neck pup and see what you think. quick and easy to try.

Or it could be that the specs are not representative of what is actually produced.