James Rock
Active member
So I have just finished a tele build, Japanese parts; Alder Body, Maple Neck, 50s style bridge etc. I put some Antiquity IIs in it and I am a little underwhelmed. I think it may be combination of the pickups and the guitar but I was kind of hoping for a wide sound clean tone with a chimey high end but instead its kind of weak with a thin bottom end and typical telecaster high mids which Im not sure I am fan of (almost like a bandpass filter with a medium Q where it peaks and then drops off). I am kind of looking for a woody sound with a chimey high end. I think partially the problem is the light resonant body and thicker maple neck adds alot of mid high jangle and not alot of low end, also only being wound to 6.2K it is just a bit weak compared to my other tele (Ash and Maple with Brierly Modern Vintage) and my drive pedals and amp dont get much punch out of them. I have previously tried Alnico IIs, JD Bridge, Antiquity Is and came to realise I dont like alnico II pickups at all (generally like punch in the lows and highs with cleaner mids). I also found the neck pickup to be both thin and dull compared to m other guitars which is disappointing because unplugged this guitar sounds great and is possibly the nicest guitar to play unplugged.
So I am now looking for similarly priced (cant really afford super high end but want something pretty nice) pickups the options Im considering are
Creamery Pickups Tapped Tele Bridge with Extra Width Neck - Basically this bridge is his 64 style pickup wound 7.5K with the extra tap wound to 9.5K which could mean I get chimey highs and then a more mid boosted untapped sound for distorted stuff and the neck is wound with 42AWG and tall magnets for a more strat like sound similar to the Fender Twisted Tele Neck.
Creamery Pickups Sonic 60 - Completely different sound but Im hoping itll sound bigger
TV Jones Starwood - All the clips of the neck pickup sound awesome had more width with less of that weird resonant peak but I am yet to hear a good demo of the bridge which might be too thick and not chimey at all.
Curtis Novak Fat 41 AWG Tele Bridge and tall magnet 42AWG neck - Wound with thicker wire for more scooped mids
Brierly Modern Vintage - Put the same pickups I have in my main guitar and let the acoustic properties determine the differences....
I dont play country style clean licks at all more clean jangly parts, fuzzed out rythmn and leads or more high gain rock leads. The kind of sounds I am hoping from the tele are like the following songs
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pJh9OLlXenM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=azNq-XaaS9Q
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VvKw6ptHDbg
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vm2fCn6g1wU - The U2 songs my other tele can get pretty convincingly but struggle with the chime of the smiths and balls and mids (or lack thereof) of the Pink Floyd song (which Im pretty sure is a telecaster). Im a painful perfectionist but anyone that has experience with the above pickups or similar sounds I'd appreciate it.
So I am now looking for similarly priced (cant really afford super high end but want something pretty nice) pickups the options Im considering are
Creamery Pickups Tapped Tele Bridge with Extra Width Neck - Basically this bridge is his 64 style pickup wound 7.5K with the extra tap wound to 9.5K which could mean I get chimey highs and then a more mid boosted untapped sound for distorted stuff and the neck is wound with 42AWG and tall magnets for a more strat like sound similar to the Fender Twisted Tele Neck.
Creamery Pickups Sonic 60 - Completely different sound but Im hoping itll sound bigger
TV Jones Starwood - All the clips of the neck pickup sound awesome had more width with less of that weird resonant peak but I am yet to hear a good demo of the bridge which might be too thick and not chimey at all.
Curtis Novak Fat 41 AWG Tele Bridge and tall magnet 42AWG neck - Wound with thicker wire for more scooped mids
Brierly Modern Vintage - Put the same pickups I have in my main guitar and let the acoustic properties determine the differences....
I dont play country style clean licks at all more clean jangly parts, fuzzed out rythmn and leads or more high gain rock leads. The kind of sounds I am hoping from the tele are like the following songs
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pJh9OLlXenM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=azNq-XaaS9Q
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VvKw6ptHDbg
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vm2fCn6g1wU - The U2 songs my other tele can get pretty convincingly but struggle with the chime of the smiths and balls and mids (or lack thereof) of the Pink Floyd song (which Im pretty sure is a telecaster). Im a painful perfectionist but anyone that has experience with the above pickups or similar sounds I'd appreciate it.
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