Tele Tone Experts: What Tele Pickups Would You Suggest???

[gt5litre]

I have a MIJ Tele Deluxe with 3 single-coil pickups. The body is solid alder, the finish is poly, the neck is made from 1-piece of maple and uses vintage-style Kluson Tuners. The body has a tummy cut and a forearm contour. It is a very resonant guitar. Right now it has a 5-way switch and the middle and neck pickups are both traditional chrome covered Tele Lipsticks. I want to keep that look. The middle and neck position is good for noisy environments and is a bit humbucker-ish and I like that tone. I do not use the middle-only position and I was thinking of doing the neck amd bridge combination in its place.

I don't use it for chicken-picking, but trying to emulate Brad Paisley (I wish) would be nice. I tend to play alternative, blues and alt-country. I want a thick tone that cuts from the bridge. Would the Duncan or Fender Broadcaster be a good choice and starting point? What would you recommend for the neck and middle positions? I do not want to emulate a Strat-tone since I have a Vintage Player Strat that I really like (equipped with Texas Specials).

Thanks for the help.

gt5litre:bowdown:

 

[guitarslinger213]

Re: Tele Tone Experts: What Tele Pickups Would You Suggest???

dimarzio does Virtual Vintage tele pickups I think. I sure like some of the strat ones. You might ask around and see how people like these.

 

[Lewguitar]

Re: Tele Tone Experts: What Tele Pickups Would You Suggest???

A "thick" tone sounds like you'd like the Jerry Donahue...but a "thick tone that cuts" sounds like you'd like the Tele Hot. I'd go with one of those two.

The Tele Hot is alnico 5 and has more treble and bass...the Jerry Donahue is alnico 2 and has more mids and smooth treble.

I've read that Brad Paisley likes the Lindy Fralin Tele pickups, I'm thinking the Blues Special...it's an alnico 5 Tele pickup.

Lew

 

[Luke Duke]

Re: Tele Tone Experts: What Tele Pickups Would You Suggest???

I would go with Lew's recommendations.

Additionally for the neck and middle take a look at the 5/2s, and Alnico 2 Pros. I've got a 5/2 neck in the neck and it is very balanced sounding. Bubbly, bouncing tele bass, and smooth upper mids and highs with the right amount of tele bite. The Alnico 2 Pros were also in the running, but I opted for something different at the last minute, they will be warmer still than the 5/2 with a looser low end.

In the bridge of my Tele I have a SD Floor Shop Custom Broadcaster. It has Alnico 2 poles instead of Alnico 5. It is very nice sounding, it has the nasal thing going on but it has more mids than the regular broadcaster, but not quite as many mids as the Donahue. My thought was I wanted the bite of the broadcaster, but the warmth of the A2P. Thus I came up with the pup I currently have.

Luke

 

[BachToRock]

Re: Tele Tone Experts: What Tele Pickups Would You Suggest???

I'm usually not a DiMarzio fan, but the DP413 Virtual Hot T Bridge is an excellent pickup and it's noiseless... that said, I have the Donahue in 2 Teles and I will second Lew's recommendation because it is my favorite vintage with balls Duncan pickup.

 

[gt5litre]

Re: Tele Tone Experts: What Tele Pickups Would You Suggest???

I got another recommendation for the DiMarzio VV T. Sort of a P-90 with Tele tone. Guys thanks for the recs, keep em coming.

gt5litre

 

[Lewguitar]

Re: Tele Tone Experts: What Tele Pickups Would You Suggest???

If MJ in the Duncan Custom Shop is really making clones of the Joe Barden Tele bridge pickup (as I've read she is...) THAT's the one to get. The Barden Tele pickups are among my very favorites that I've owned and Joe is not making them anymore. I suggested to Evan that Duncan licence that design from Joe and start making them like they do the Bartolini's. Hope that's what's in the future because the Bardens are incredable.

The other one I love is the Duncan Tapped Tele Hot with alnico 2 poles...MJ makes that one too.

 

[Bludave]

Re: Tele Tone Experts: What Tele Pickups Would You Suggest???

I have a JD in the Bridge of my MIJ 52 RI. I paired it with a vintage 54N. Its a good amrriage. Bothe PUPS balance well and the tones are so vintage.

 

[dr.barlo]

Re: Tele Tone Experts: What Tele Pickups Would You Suggest???

Have been a long time JD fan. Fender and Duncan Broadcasters did not work in my tele, they were both too icepicky for my tastes. Not that they are bad, its is just that I have a very alive and resonant tele on the brighter side. The same goes for Fender NoCasters. Texas SPs were too uppermid heavy, and I don't like that. I think that texas sizzle thingy of TXsp's and Rio Grande pickups are kinda too much emphasized.

But JDs are kinda soft. Its highs are very nice but if you want to have that clear and lively response from the wound strings, you might not be satisfied.

I think your best bet is a Fralin Blues sp. Then again it might be a little bright especially on the non-wound strings (again depending on the guitar). But comparing to Broadcasters, Fender TXsps, Nocasters, they were darker. Overall, this is a great pickup.

Recently have been trying others. What I wanted was JDs tone on the nonwound strings and fralin blues sp's tone on the wound ones. Me thinks JD is more clear than the Fralin Blues sp. It is more open. Yet, the softness of the bass was somewhat annoying in my case. Don't get me wrong, after doing lotsa swapping JD is the one that's been sitting in my tele for like 2 years.

Anyways this search of mine lead me to two manufacturers, Alan Hamel and Owen Duffy. I bought a Blackguard and a Broadcaster Hamel lead. Blackguard pickup very much sounds lika a JD but a little bit more steely. It is a very good pickup, has tonsa harmonics pouring out of the pickup. But the broadcaster is a winner. Unlike Duncan and Fender's Broadcasters, they have a3 magnet rods. I personally do not favor them in strat pickups. Had a set of Fralin 54's that I hated. Too steely, not soft like a2s, but not punchy like a5s. So in my opinion a3s on strat pickups lack the nice aspects of both extremes, rather than combining the good sides.

Anyways that was not the case on the Hamel Broadcaster. They are somewhat pricey and hard to come by. But that pickup did exactly what I wanted. Very clear, its highs are just right, its bass is solid but not over the top. Excellent pickup. It sounds raw, meaning it is as if somebody lifted the curtain overing the amp (this is the first time I have ever used that expression for a pickup, I know lotsa people use it but this is the first time I confidently say it).

Another one that I got while I was on the market is a custom wound Owen Duffy pickup, again in order to combine the tone of a JD on the nonwound strings with that of the Fralin Blues sp. in the wound ones. The Fralin Blues sp of mine is like 7.30K #42 poly with a5 rods. What I got from Owen is a 8.00K #42 Plain Enamel with a5 rods, very slightly staggered. This too sounds great. VEry nice pickup, has clear bass, biting but non icepicky highs, very solid and textured mids. The only thing is that it is not as open as the Hamel Broadcaster (measuing 8.90K with #43 wire and a3 rods). And it does not have the harmonics of it. But I like it better than the Fralin Blues sp. and the JD. I gotta be honest.

Owen is a great guy by the way, and is not that pricey.

Peace,

B

 

[Zhangliqun]

Re: Tele Tone Experts: What Tele Pickups Would You Suggest???

I wonder if a Four-Two would do the trick.