tele size humbucker - Super Distortion T, Duncan Li'l '59 or Duncan Hot Tele Stack?

A

appar111

New member
I've decided I need a noiseless pickup for my Fender CS Esquire-- I've been using a 5150iii amp lately with a fair amount of gain and the single coil hum is just too much.

Looking at the following for options (some of which I've tried before, but never with this guitar or this amp):

  1. Dimarzio Super Distortion for Tele
  2. Duncan Li'l '59 for Tele
  3. Duncan Hot Tele Stack

My needs are: no 60-cycle hum, a warmer thicker sound and higher output. #1 or 2 above should easily get me there, but that Duncan Hot Tele Stack still intrigues me. Does it still sound like a tele? Because that's not necessarily a requirement-- I want it to sound warm and fat.

I've tried the Hot Rails for Tele and didn't like it-- too much of the "awwwww" cocked wah sound, so that one's out. Tried a Tone Zone S in a strat I had, really didn't care much for that, so I've ruled out the Tone Zone T as an option for this tele. I suppose the Dimarzio Chopper T is an option, but I've used them before and while great, they lean more towards the bright side of the spectrum than fat.

Any other good tele size humbucker options besides the above?
 
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Re: tele size humbucker - Super Distortion T, Duncan Li'l '59 or Duncan Hot Tele Stac

I think the Dim Super D would be a good choice for your needs.....more so than the Chopper. I would also suggest giving a shout out to 1972firebirdguy. He wound me an amazing tele bridge pup. I opted for single coil, but he offered to do it in bucker form if needed. Good luck!
 
Re: tele size humbucker - Super Distortion T, Duncan Li'l '59 or Duncan Hot Tele Stac

The tone zone t sounds really good, wire it series/split/parallel it can be big and fat to very teleish in parallel and splits well. I put one in my 69 thinline it can rock hard yet still sounds like a tele when it needs to.
 
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Re: tele size humbucker - Super Distortion T, Duncan Li'l '59 or Duncan Hot Tele Stac

If you didn't like the Tone Zone or Hot Rails then I honestly don't think you will like the Super Distortion.
From the sounds of it, you don't want the full on humbucker tone, just some of its characteristics of a hotter pickup.

The Hot Tele Stack seems like a good option. Looks a little odd though. But it will give you more output with a warmer high end while still keeping a Tele tone.
The 59 also looks good for you. If you want more output, but with a more of a humbucker sound then it would be the better option.

The DiMarzio Area Hot T might also be an interesting option.

I would just stay away from the Super Distortion if you didn't like the eq curve of the Tone Zone or Hot Rails.
 
Re: tele size humbucker - Super Distortion T, Duncan Li'l '59 or Duncan Hot Tele Stac

The Little 59 for Tele! As long as you aren't after a traditional Tele sound (and your choices suggest you aren't), this will give you exactly what you want.
 
Re: tele size humbucker - Super Distortion T, Duncan Li'l '59 or Duncan Hot Tele Stac

Whammy said:
If you didn't like the Tone Zone or Hot Rails then I honestly don't think you will like the Super Distortion.
From the sounds of it, you don't want the full on humbucker tone, just some of its characteristics of a hotter pickup.

The Hot Tele Stack seems like a good option. Looks a little odd though. But it will give you more output with a warmer high end while still keeping a Tele tone.
The 59 also looks good for you. If you want more output, but with a more of a humbucker sound then it would be the better option.

The DiMarzio Area Hot T might also be an interesting option.

I would just stay away from the Super Distortion if you didn't like the eq curve of the Tone Zone or Hot Rails.
Click to expand...

As much as I love teles, with this high gain amp, I'm totally fine with moving away from any tele twang and getting a solid rock sound this time around, as long as it's quiet, powerul and BIG sounding.

I've used the Super Distortion T and the Li'l '59 for Tele before.... the Li'l '59 was so long ago though, and both were in a different tele (maple board, alder body-- whereas this CS Esquire is ash with a rosewood board). I've heard alot of good talk about the Li'l '59 for Tele, but I remember it seeming kinda flat sounding in the tele at the time (which was probably 18 years ago).

I remember liking the Super Distortion quite a bit, but not sure if it'd sound much different in this ash/rosewood fretboard combo. Probably not enough to worry about? Seems like with the full size Super D, they always sound good no matter what they're in, but they don't quite completely cover up the character of the instrument they're in.

So I think I may have ruled out the Li'l '59 and steered towards the Super D. Just don't want a thin bridge sound-- need some wallop!
 
Re: tele size humbucker - Super Distortion T, Duncan Li'l '59 or Duncan Hot Tele Stac

It`s been years but I had a few MIM Teles and the Tone Zone T rocked big time , that would be my choice
 
Re: tele size humbucker - Super Distortion T, Duncan Li'l '59 or Duncan Hot Tele Stac

51501984 said:
It`s been years but I had a few MIM Teles and the Tone Zone T rocked big time , that would be my choice
Click to expand...

I'm wondering if the Tone Zone S that I tried in a strat a couple years ago just didn't match up well with that particular guitar... seems that most folks who comment on the Tone Zone S (or T) love it!
 
Re: tele size humbucker - Super Distortion T, Duncan Li'l '59 or Duncan Hot Tele Stac

Was hoping Securb would chime in,think he's using a SuperDistT...
 
Re: tele size humbucker - Super Distortion T, Duncan Li'l '59 or Duncan Hot Tele Stac

As soon as I read your title the Lil 59 popped into my head. Sounds like the Lil 59 is exactly what you want. Very full and warm sounding. Good output. Not very Teleish at all. You can wire it with a mini switch (or p/p) to give you series and parallel (for a brighter, thinner sound than series, but still humbucking). Doesn't sound at all like it's big brother full sized 59.
 
Re: tele size humbucker - Super Distortion T, Duncan Li'l '59 or Duncan Hot Tele Stac

If you can use the duncan/dimarzio return policy, in my case I never put them in in time. I have a 1996 mij thinline I bought on a whim brand new, never really liked it, threw in a duncan lil 59 and it was ok but kinda good for one thing only, then I installed the GFS fatbody set with 10k bridge and it really came alive in fact that set is killer but still the HUM, tried the GFS LIL puncher 15k 500k pots cap change and it was even better and a great pickup but had this slight ceramic harshness I didn't quite like, then i tried a buddies tele hot rails it was big ballsy but one trick pony but kinda muddy, then after hearing some youtube stuff I got a tonezone T and added a minitoggle for series/split/parallel and after the first strum I knew I found the tone I was looking for, In series it is just as fat and ballsy and loud as the hotrails but waaaaaay more clarity and does not sound like a ceramic pup at all (nice and warm) still has a tele sound but paired with the Angus Young SG sound drop the volume and its more vintage PAF and still clear and twangy
. Split sounds like a hot tele pup but drop the volume and it twangs like a true single coil, parallel mode twangs even more than split at all volumes but drop the volume and it sounds like single coil but noiseless. Mine is Mahogany/maple neck but stock it has a very classic tele sound, it has a treble bleed stock which I put back in, the other bonus is the neck GFS fatbody sounds even better with 500k vol/tone and it matches perfectly with the TZT bridge and the twang in the middle pos is insane. The thing about the TZ tele and strat pups and even area pups is they are super sensitive to height adjustment go about a 1/2 turn at a time and once you hit the sweet spot you will know it. I was almost about to give up on this guitar until I put the TZT in, it hung on my wall for most of its life and now I play it all the time.
 
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Re: tele size humbucker - Super Distortion T, Duncan Li'l '59 or Duncan Hot Tele Stac

Glad you got the pup situation solved. Sounds like the TZT is a perfect match for you. I know you didn't like the hum from the GFS Fatbody 10k bridge, but how does its TONE compare with the Tonezone T?

I'm curious because I have a GFS 10k in one of my Teles and just love the tone. I don't get much hum at all, and the little bit that I hear doesn't bother me at all. But if the TZT gets a similar tone with NO hum at all, and also has the option for parallel, I might just give it a try in one of my other Teles.
 
Re: tele size humbucker - Super Distortion T, Duncan Li'l '59 or Duncan Hot Tele Stac

My house has aluminum wiring and a bad ground loop that no electrician can seem to find, so when recording or just playing single coils hums like crazy. I havent had the problem gigging really. The GFS fat body 10k is killer and I would bet a 500k vol/tone would be the ticket I never tried them on mine but on the neck it improved it bigtime. I never went back to back with the GFS vs The TZT but the TZT parallel sound from memory is probably slightly hotter at full volume but maybe 7-8 volume is very close and silent. I highly recommend the TZT as it is a great pickup, I have been playing for 35 years and have 42 guits at the moment so my ears are well seasoned.
I do now usually only play through a Fractal axe FX ultra (live) and an Axe fx 2 in my studio but I have my set tone for live (a tweaked dumble OD special) and I test all my guitar PUP changes thru this setting and if I can get my "sig tone" without any major tweaks to the "amp" I know its good.
 
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Re: tele size humbucker - Super Distortion T, Duncan Li'l '59 or Duncan Hot Tele Stac

I run my 10k thru 500k pots. Sounds killer. I wouldn't consider using it with any pots of lower value.

So you think the TZT in parrallel is hotter than the 10k?! Man what's it sound like in series?!!

Wow, you've got 4 or 5 more guitars than I do! Good job. You can never have too many guitars.
 
Re: tele size humbucker - Super Distortion T, Duncan Li'l '59 or Duncan Hot Tele Stac

to my ears the TZT in parallel with 500k's vs the 10 fatbody with 250k's is just as hot if not slightly hotter sounding. In parallel it has more bite than even in single coil mode but more balls at the same time which seems strange to me. All I can say is it is a great tele SC sized humbucker and it has great clarity even with a good amount of gain, no mud whatsoever. Like I said you have to find the "sweet spot" as it is very height sensitive.
 
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Re: tele size humbucker - Super Distortion T, Duncan Li'l '59 or Duncan Hot Tele Stac

I really enjoyed my lil 59 in my Tele. I used it for years and while not like a tele at all it's a great thick PAF-ish sound with lots of ka-chunk. Think modern hard rock and metal.
 
Re: tele size humbucker - Super Distortion T, Duncan Li'l '59 or Duncan Hot Tele Stac

My suggestion was going to be the Tone Zone T, as that's what I've settled on, but it sounds like that's not an option for you. The only other one that I've tried that's on your list is the Hot Stack. I actually really like the pickup and still have one around because I may eventually want to try it again, but it's much less humbucker-like than the Tone Zone T. It's a stacked coil, not a single coil-size humbucker, so it's trying harder to sound like a thick, slightly overwound single coil. If you really drive the thing, you can get some good high-gain times out of it, though you may have to roll down the tone knob a bit, but I feel like my Tone Zone T is better suited for that sort of thing.
 
Re: tele size humbucker - Super Distortion T, Duncan Li'l '59 or Duncan Hot Tele Stac

SweetClyde99 said:
My suggestion was going to be the Tone Zone T, as that's what I've settled on, but it sounds like that's not an option for you. The only other one that I've tried that's on your list is the Hot Stack. I actually really like the pickup and still have one around because I may eventually want to try it again, but it's much less humbucker-like than the Tone Zone T. It's a stacked coil, not a single coil-size humbucker, so it's trying harder to sound like a thick, slightly overwound single coil. If you really drive the thing, you can get some good high-gain times out of it, though you may have to roll down the tone knob a bit, but I feel like my Tone Zone T is better suited for that sort of thing.
Click to expand...

You missed it...he already put in the TZT and loves it. But, good suggestion...just a little late (like my current post).
 
Re: tele size humbucker - Super Distortion T, Duncan Li'l '59 or Duncan Hot Tele Stac

was lookin for similiar thing . tried 59 chopper tone zone and area hot t in different guitars

get chopper if u want humbucker with some kind of tele tone
get area hot t if u want paf p90 ish fattness but tele tone

i got area hot t and area t neck they are awesome
 
Re: tele size humbucker - Super Distortion T, Duncan Li'l '59 or Duncan Hot Tele Stac

Chopper T is a good one as well , playing Teles for 40+ these are the 2 I use whether Blues or Rock . I have never seen a Stack stay permanant in ANY guitar i've ever worked on ~ Just my experience ( they Always have me pull them eventually . I have never heard a stack sound Anywhere as good as these 2
 
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