Strat too bright-Pickup change HELP!

[Thor]

Hello wise members of the forum.

I am a BONEHEAD. :smack:

I assembled a frankenstrat from parts and I got more wrong than right!

Right-Ebony fretboard, big frets, strung with heavy strings....sounds nice! Great funky original paint job.

Wrong-Hard northern ash body (never use this for a strat!), Fender hot noiseless pickups.

The result- a strat that is PAINFULLY bright! I mean whiny and and just not full!

Other variables:
Before you say it...yes I have tried rolling down the tone pots, then it just gets muddy.
Amp-Fender Hot Rod deluxe-Like the tubies, and I imagine that this amp is brighter than some on the market. I'm wondering about an amp like a Marshall or a Mesa (for mucho pesos!). If the guitar being plugged into a great amp is a whiny-b*^ch then how much can the amp help?
I checked to see if there are 500k pots on this thing...nope all 250k:eek13:

NOPE!! I'd love to hear that I'm wrong, but I am thinking that I might have to change the pickups in this beast.

How do I warm it up? Will that hard northern ash body make it shrill no matter what? Do I stick some full-size humbuckers in this whiner or ideally, it would be three warm PAF sounding single-coil size replacements.

I just don't want to keep screwing with a guitar that FEELS wonderful when playing and sounds ok acoustically, just to have money disappear and the same damn result.

Maybe a humbucker in the bridge position only? Keep the sweet single coil for neck position solos for blues?

I wish I knew more about this.

SRV used to get a fat sound out of his strat....maybe it was the fretboard woods and his setup? I dunno. I am not a Stevie Ray-Wannabee....but I do like a fat sounding strat.

Guys and gals....you have forgotten more about this stuff than I will ever know.

I would really be grateful for any and all advice or experiences shared. :bowdown:

Many thanks,

Your fan,

Thor

 

[Jeffrec]

Re: Strat too bright-Pickup change HELP!

You've got a lot of factors that can contribute to your problem there. An ebony fret board is going to be bright, and the wood used for the body isn;t helping. You might try looking into the Little '59 or JB, etc. The SSL3 Hot is a nice single coil, and not too bright.

Good luck & let us know how you make out with it.

 

[Soulman]

Re: Strat too bright-Pickup change HELP!

Put some Alnico 2 pickups in there and SMILE!

 

[Voxman]

Re: Strat too bright-Pickup change HELP!

Hi,i`m reading some stuff about the fender Greasebucket Tone Circut and
i think that might be what you`re looking for.It lets you roll of the hights
without adding bass. fender is using them on the new higway 1 strat and teles.
i`m not sure where to get this kit,though.

 

[Artie]

Re: Strat too bright-Pickup change HELP!

The SSL3 Hot is a nice single coil, and not too bright.

Yup. I don't like brightness either. A pair of SSL-6's neck and middle with an SSL-3 in the bridge gives me a nice smooth, yet powerful tone. Get the pups "tapped" and you have even more choices.

 

[Vasshu the humanoid typhoon]

Re: Strat too bright-Pickup change HELP!

If you do not like bright....get a Tubby guitar(Les Paul) Fat and lazy and unbright
On a more serious note, it sounds like the neck and body just do not like each other much!

 

[Lake Placid Blues]

Re: Strat too bright-Pickup change HELP!

Yup, ebony fingerboard + heavyash = painfully bright. To salvage this guitar, try some alnico II magnet pickups. You may just wind up using the ebony fingerboard neck on another project (perhaps chambered mahogony), and get a rosewood fingerboard neck for this body. Along with the alnico2 pickups.

 

[BigDaddy]

Re: Strat too bright-Pickup change HELP!

If the guitar play great and sounds great acoustically than you are on the right track. I'm not a big fan of the Fender noiseless pickups.

I think if you want higher output you go one way and if you want low output you go another.

Higher output- do you want a true single coil or something noiseless?

If you want noiseless you can go with one of the Duncan ceramic magnet stacks or side by side pickups like the 59. If you don't care about the noise the SSL series features a large choice. The SSL-5 and 6 are great and an SSL-3 for the bridge would be fine. For more the quarter pounder works well too.

For a lower output pickup you have a huge selection also. I would use something with an A2 magnet or one of the hybrid 52's to cut some of the highs. For lower noise again a stack or side by side coil pickup with an alnico magnet.

Adjustment of the pickup height is critical in eliminating problems such as too much bass or treble and are to changes more sensitive with single coil strat type pickups.

Also that speaker in the Fender amp could be a problem too and I would look to change that, If it's the reissue Jensen C12N or the older Eminence they both are know to have spiky highs. The C12K has attenuated highs. So again I'd look into a speaker change. I would always look to have an amp retubed and properly biased.

 

[JohnnyGuitar]

Re: Strat too bright-Pickup change HELP!

Funky paint job? I love funky paint jobs!
Send a pic!!!

As for your problem- first try lowering the pickups into the body with a screwdriver. Might solve you a few problems. If not... go for alnico 2's.

 

[Lewguitar]

Re: Strat too bright-Pickup change HELP!

Put some Alnico 2 pickups in there and SMILE!

That's it. And go for flat polepieces not staggered if you're using single coils.

If your guitar is using three single coils go for a set of the Antiquity Texas Hots or APS-2 and Twangbanger.

Lew

 

[frankfalbo]

Re: Strat too bright-Pickup change HELP!

It might also be a candidate for Cool Rails. They have a little of that top edge shaved off. It sounds like it would be a fun H/S/H strat with like an A2 in the neck and a CC in the bridge. Maybe a CC bridge with two Cool Rails or APS or something like that. The bridge pickup in that guitar is going to be hard to tame. If you're making a new guard anyway, it could also be a candidate for the Hendrix reverse-slant bridge pickup. That would be cool, too if you wanted to stick with 3 singles.

 

[Luke Duke]

Re: Strat too bright-Pickup change HELP!

That's it. And go for flat polepieces not staggered if you're using single coils.

YES YES YES!!!!

Lew is right on. You can tame some of those high if you'll put in some A2 based pups.

Like Lew also said Texas Hots for strat would work well too.

If you are willing to spend the money you might also consider getting a flat pole version of the Texas Hot Custom for the bridge. That will give you girth in the bridge slot for sure!

Luke

 

[Thor]

Re: Strat too bright-Pickup change HELP!

You guys rock!!

Many great suggestions here....:bowdown:
the only problem is that I DO want a noiseless solution.

I feel lousy :smack: throwing this into the mix.

The ebony fretboard with big-ass frets and heavy strings is heaven to my fingers and feel...just not my ears!!

I put some graph-tech saddles to warm it up a little.

I am looking at three possibilities

1. Replacing the body with something like a chambered swamp ash, or basswood body. then I gotta paint all over again...ARGH

2. Replacing the Fender Hot Noiseless single coils. NEVER been a big fan of fender quality (sorry for those that I've offended...just an opinion) and I suspect almost ANY single coil size replacements would be better.

3. Carve that pickguard up and have the router going to put a pair of humbuxers in there with a single coil in the middle a' la JEM. I would hate the look and the cost and work.....yeesh.

They CLAIM the lil 59 sounds like a PAF but opinions vary. I've also heard cool rails dissed too!!

PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE keep these suggestions going...the SSL-3 and SSL-6 make good sense....but I gotta have noiseless!

Many thanks for your input.....any more noiseless ideas?:reporter:

 

[Lake Placid Blues]

Re: Strat too bright-Pickup change HELP!

1. Replacing the body with something like a chambered swamp ash, or basswood body. then I gotta paint all over again...ARGH
...........Many thanks for your input.....any more noiseless ideas?:reporter:

Basswood is usually a warm sounding wood (at least to me), but it may not offset an ebony fretboard. Basswood gives you a wide range tonal response on an fairly equal basis, so the ebony fretboard's effect isn't usually counteracted that much. Swamp ash is still fairly bright, even with chambering, Chambered alder will probably work best if you must eventually go that route.

Dimarzio's latest noiseless single coils, such as the Area models, are alnico II.

 

[LesStrat]

Re: Strat too bright-Pickup change HELP!

I can vouch for the Hot Rails in the bridge. The Cool Rails would be fine, as well (I have it in the mid position).

<---------------

These are relatively "dark" pickups.

 

[Luke Duke]

Re: Strat too bright-Pickup change HELP!

The Stack Plus would be a good noiseless solution, but only a few guys here have tried them. Lew and The Guy Who Invented Fire are the 2 I can think of off the top of my head.

If you want a dark sounding single coil sized humbucker it doesn't get any more dark that the Hot Rails, but they are pretty hot and SCREAM!

The JBjr is kind of in between on the warmth and openness between a Lil 59 and a HR. It doesn't sound like either, but it has nice balance.

The Coil Rails are pretty warm as well, lots of bass on them too.

Luke