Strat w/ a 'humbucker' question

wntbtw

wntbtw

New member
Hi--I have a nice American Standard Strat that I`m thinking of replacing the bridge pickup w/ a single coil size humbucker. So I have a few questions:

Will doing so make my Strat sound pretty close to a LP/SG? That`s how I would like for it to sound.

Or should I install a traditional dbl coil humbucker? I`d rather just replace the single coil bridge pickup w/ the same size humbucker--seems to be the easiest way. Will the single coil humbucker sound the same as the same dbl coil model [I`m interested in the 'little `59' model]?

What would be the best [single coil] humbucking pickup for the Strat? I like the classic rock sound--live Cream, live LZ, ZZ Top--that classic Gibson thru Marshalls etc sound and am thinking that the 'Little `59' model might give me that classic tone.

Thanks for any help and advice you can offer.
 
Re: Strat w/ a 'humbucker' question

i think a humbucker in a strat won't sound like an LP, or an SG, but like a humbucker in a strat.... if you want a thick tone similar to those guitars though, i'd look at something less bright with a bit more output than the 'lil' '59.
 
Re: Strat w/ a 'humbucker' question

Hi, its a tough job to make strat sound like LP. In a direct comparism you always will be dissapointed. Secondly you will have a hard time to match the humucker with the singles in the 'middle together with the bridge' sound. Best bet here a Superswitch to split the Humbucker.
Now: What humbucker? There was a guy in the end 70ies playing in a hardrock band, who liked the sound of a LP Deluxe best but the handling of his self modified strat. He decided let make his own humbucker. The winder who did that now sell this pickup under the name of '78' from his Custom Shop. Guess who the guy was!
 
Re: Strat w/ a 'humbucker' question

wntbtw said:
Hi--I have a nice American Standard Strat that I`m thinking of replacing the bridge pickup w/ a single coil size humbucker. So I have a few questions:

Will doing so make my Strat sound pretty close to a LP/SG? That`s how I would like for it to sound.

Or should I install a traditional dbl coil humbucker? I`d rather just replace the single coil bridge pickup w/ the same size humbucker--seems to be the easiest way. Will the single coil humbucker sound the same as the same dbl coil model [I`m interested in the 'little `59' model]?

What would be the best [single coil] humbucking pickup for the Strat? I like the classic rock sound--live Cream, live LZ, ZZ Top--that classic Gibson thru Marshalls etc sound and am thinking that the 'Little `59' model might give me that classic tone.

Thanks for any help and advice you can offer.
Click to expand...

Ash/Alder? Tremolo? Rosewood/Maple?

I didn't like the little 59, it's a far cry from the real 59. The little screamin' demon was much better, IMHO.
 
Re: Strat w/ a 'humbucker' question

The wood just isn't close enough to get a Gibson sound. But a humbucker in the bridge will get you thicker tones. I have a JB Jr. in my strat (no new pickguard) with a coil tap to get the original sound. I can get good heavy gain tones from it but if I want a thick tone I pick up the LP.

Now I just have to get P-Rails to get thinner tones from the LP! :scratchch
 
Re: Strat w/ a 'humbucker' question

IME, the single size buckers sound little like their bigger cousins and won't come close to replicating an LP sound in a Strat. They sound good on their own but it is almost a disservice to both the full size and single size pups to call them "Jr." or "Lil".
 
Re: Strat w/ a 'humbucker' question

One of my guitar teachers swears by his JB jr. in his bridge. It makes his guitar strat sound more like an Ibanez or ESP shred guitar than a Gibson LP, though...
 
Re: Strat w/ a 'humbucker' question

It's easy enough to drop by the local Fender Guitar shop (or Guitar Center) & just pick up an HSS strat that's the same level as your guitar (MIM, MIA, CustomShop, whatever). That's how a "stock" Fender w/a bridge humbucker will sound. That's the simple answer.:)

The more complicated answer takes some time, effort, $$$, & risk on your part, but it may be worth it. Tone can be "tailored" to your taste up to a point. The 1st option is the pickup type. Humbucker or SC. Vintage PAF (a real one - big $$$$$), Vintage PAF reproduction (like the SD Antiquity), custom made PAF, modern humbucker, noisless single coils, w/poles or w/out, rails, lace sensor, etc. You should look at the Kinman site for the Woodstock & Woodstock Plus pickups with the "K9" wiring harness, it may be what you're looking for.

The 2nd option is Active or Passive. You may find some interesting options in the Active arena, take a look at the EMG Gilmour system (DG-20). The 3rd option is in-guitar pre-amps. Guitar Fetish offers a few Pre-Amp circuits for passive pickup equiped guitars. These look interesting to me & at the GFS price point are hard to ignore. Next is effects pedals (or maybe they're 1st). You can also make your own effects box using pre-amps like the GFS circuits between the guitar & the amp. Lastly you can search for a guitar that was designed & built to offer both a strat/tele sound and a Les Paul sound. Don't know that you'll find it, but you can give it a shot.

Good Luck.
 
Re: Strat w/ a 'humbucker' question

Closest your Strat will ever get to a LP tone will be if you install a PATB-3 in the bridge. It makes long scale, floating trem shred sticks sound like a Lester (at least, it did to mine)
 
Re: Strat w/ a 'humbucker' question

You need a real full size HB for ZZ-top crunch in a strat.
JB TB-4, HSS strat wiring diagram-1vol 1tone 5way ,works great in my alder-RW strat for ZZ-top, acdc, the cult...
JB works great with alder and 250K volume and tone pots.
 
Re: Strat w/ a 'humbucker' question

The JB in a strat will not sound like a LP. It'll sound like a JB in a strat. Trust me, go with the PATB-3.
 
Re: Strat w/ a 'humbucker' question

PATB-3 will sound like a PATB-3 in a strat
Nothing can make strat sound like LP! Nothing can make LP sound like strat...
 
Re: Strat w/ a 'humbucker' question

pretty much what all these guys are telling you is true......nothing you can put in your strat will make it sound like a LP. Now, some humbuckers will fatten up the tone maybe, but a LP is gonna sound like a LP and a strat is gonna sound like a strat. It all got started by a guy in the 70's.......EVH.......(maybe you've heard of him) LOL. he had a strat and decided to put a humbucker in it. He wanted to feel of a strat and the sound of a LP. Now, the humbucker did fatten up the tone a lot, but there was still a "strat-y-ness" to his tone.
 
Re: Strat w/ a 'humbucker' question

Well, there's always the option of filling the tremolo cavity with a wood sculpture (you can buy that for different tremolo routes). That will probably be too boomy, but you can put on a scale conversion neck and saw off the upper horn.
 
Re: Strat w/ a 'humbucker' question

Absolutely not. It will sound like Strat with Humbuckers. That is a totally different sound due to factors you can't do anything about... scale size, bridge assembly, Neck Joint. wood, construction, etc.......

It is not a sound you can't use for the same purpose, but you are not going to get the same fat mid rangy mellow overdriven tone you get from a Gibson. The Strat will sound more focused, brighter and ice picky if you don't dial it in correctly. On the plus side..... you get what I think is a more versatile setup. I have two strats equipped with mini-hums, and I use them to cover more ground than I could with my Les Pauls.







wntbtw said:
Hi--I have a nice American Standard Strat that I`m thinking of replacing the bridge pickup w/ a single coil size humbucker. So I have a few questions:

Will doing so make my Strat sound pretty close to a LP/SG? That`s how I would like for it to sound.
Click to expand...
 
Re: Strat w/ a 'humbucker' question

I think for a Strat the mini's work out better. I ripped out the full size jb and 59 in my backup strat in favor of the jr's. The full size jb/59 though did wonders for one of my EPI Pauls.

The full size JB in the alder Strat just had too much mid range happening. The full size 59 was too muddy.


BigJoe77 said:
IME, the single size buckers sound little like their bigger cousins and won't come close to replicating an LP sound in a Strat. They sound good on their own but it is almost a disservice to both the full size and single size pups to call them "Jr." or "Lil".
Click to expand...
 
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Re: Strat w/ a 'humbucker' question

I want to thank everyone for their input--very much appreciated by me. I guess then that even by adding a bridge 'humbucker' to the Strat, it will still sound closer to a Strat than a LP/SG. Oh well--I guess I should go to a guitar store and sonically compare a HSS Strat to a LP/SG. Thanks again for all of your help.
 
Re: Strat w/ a 'humbucker' question

As others have said, it´s not really possible becasue of the differing construction. BUT..

wntbtw said:
Hi--I have a nice American Standard Strat that I`m thinking of replacing the bridge pickup w/ a single coil size humbucker. So I have a few questions:

Will doing so make my Strat sound pretty close to a LP/SG? That`s how I would like for it to sound.

Or should I install a traditional dbl coil humbucker? I`d rather just replace the single coil bridge pickup w/ the same size humbucker--seems to be the easiest way. Will the single coil humbucker sound the same as the same dbl coil model [I`m interested in the 'little `59' model]?

What would be the best [single coil] humbucking pickup for the Strat? I like the classic rock sound--live Cream, live LZ, ZZ Top--that classic Gibson thru Marshalls etc sound and am thinking that the 'Little `59' model might give me that classic tone.

Thanks for any help and advice you can offer.
Click to expand...

If you want to stay with single coil size, the Hot rails will tonally get you as close to the thickness of a Les Paul as it can get in that size. Unfortunately, it´s not even remotely low output, it will eat quite a few fullsize humbuckers up... and that conversely causes a bit of a problem in getting vintage tones, as tonally it´s close to an Invader which is generally speaking a very heavy pickup.

Ooh, that gives me agood idea for a Custom shop pu.. a Hotrails with screw poles.... should allow it to be backed off real far to lover teh output and increase fatness and keep transparency :cool:
 
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