Tell me about the Little 59 Tele pickup

[papersoul]

Re: Tell me about the Little 59 Tele pickup

This was my very first thread.

I played my Little 59-equipped American Standard Tele through my Class 5 just this morning. What an incredible pickup. One of my best purchases of the past year easily.

Crank the volume through a tube amp, and this pickup really transforms a Tele. Turn it down, and you get more of the classic Tele bridge pickup sound again.

Well done, Seymour. Well done.

Cool bro, I am excited. What neck pickup you have? Mine is stock twisted tele and 250k pots.
You? Pots?

 

[Inkstained]

Re: Tell me about the Little 59 Tele pickup

A gold Lace Sensor, which has been in there since 96 or so (I still have the original pickups). It's fine for what it is, and it does offer a vintage Tele neck sound, although a bit quieter.

Stock 250 pots.

The middle position is pure Malcolm Young.

 

[loversmoon]

Re: Tell me about the Little 59 Tele pickup

Reviving a Dead thread as opposed to just making a new one LOL...


Give us a lil tone sample for those of us that are considering the same thing. Im building a partscaster and Im looking at maybe putting the lil59 in it. I have one in my strat parts caster and love it. Its a tad bright but nothing that cant be fixed.

 

[chadd]

Re: Tell me about the Little 59 Tele pickup

Reviving a Dead thread as opposed to just making a new one LOL...


Give us a lil tone sample for those of us that are considering the same thing. Im building a partscaster and Im looking at maybe putting the lil59 in it. I have one in my strat parts caster and love it. Its a tad bright but nothing that cant be fixed.

I slapped one in my mahogany parts tele and it's bright as hell. I think I'm going to go with an Area T in my thinline.

 

[loversmoon]

Re: Tell me about the Little 59 Tele pickup

I slapped one in my mahogany parts tele and it's bright as hell. I think I'm going to go with an Area T in my thinline.

did you try lowering the treble side just a bit to see if that would help? bright is def not what I am after.

 

[chadd]

Re: Tell me about the Little 59 Tele pickup

I've tried a few things, I believe it's just the nature of the pickup.

 

[scorch]

Re: Tell me about the Little 59 Tele pickup

I had one in my tele. Probably my favorite of all the bridge pickups I've tried and I've tried a bunch. I think I'm just not a tele bridge kind of guy - any single coil bridge for that matter.

The Lil '59 was a great rockin' bridge pickup. I don't remember it being bright at all. I remember a driving mid-range. It's still on the shelf. I may just throw it back in because I'm not diggin' the pickup in it now.

 

[StereoKindMusic]

Re: Tell me about the Little 59 Tele pickup

New guy here.

I have a 1993 Fender American Standard Telecaster fitted with Gold Lace Sensors.

The sensors are OK, but I've had them for 15-plus years, and I'm a little bored with them, the bridge pickup in particular. The bridge unit can get a little icepicky. I don't really play a lot of traditional "Telecaster" stuff on my Tele -- mainly I play blues, classic rock, some jazz (mostly on the neck pickup). I'm not a country player.

I'm considering Little 59 bridge humbucker. I want more power and versatility, but at the same time, I don't want to completely lose the "Telecasterishness," the fundamental Tele character of the guitar.

Would the Little 59, wired even in series, completely transform the guitar? Would it still be recognizable as a Telecaster?

Thoughts, opinions, warnings, threats, etc., are welcome. Thanks.

Tom

Sounds like an interesting idea. I'd love to hear a recording of it if you do go with it. I for the record (since I should try to be helpful if chiming in) just installed a SD Antiquity set in my Tele. If you want a blues guitar... in the neck position it sounds like melted butter dripping through velvet (ok not helpful at all sorry), with a very twangy bridge. But in my opinion it is the "classic" tele sound. Very Roy Buchanan. Otherwise the SD Broadcaster is a great Tele pick up dollar for dollar.

 

[loversmoon]

Re: Tell me about the Little 59 Tele pickup

I had one in my tele. Probably my favorite of all the bridge pickups I've tried and I've tried a bunch. I think I'm just not a tele bridge kind of guy - any single coil bridge for that matter.

The Lil '59 was a great rockin' bridge pickup. I don't remember it being bright at all. I remember a driving mid-range. It's still on the shelf. I may just throw it back in because I'm not diggin' the pickup in it now.

If you decide to throw it in there...then decide you dont like it..Toss it my way LOL

 

[Inkstained]

Re: Tell me about the Little 59 Tele pickup

Fun pickup. Great for rocking, heavier blues. Not indicated for purists/traditionalists. If you're in a Merle Haggard cover band, look elsewhere. If you want a little more oomph from your Tele, it's great.

 

[loversmoon]

Re: Tell me about the Little 59 Tele pickup

Fun pickup. Great for rocking, heavier blues. Not indicated for purists/traditionalists. If you're in a Merle Haggard cover band, look elsewhere. If you want a little more oomph from your Tele, it's great.

Def not in a merle haggard band. More like zeppelin, zz top, southern/classic rock with a bit of modern country in the mix.

 

[papersoul]

Re: Tell me about the Little 59 Tele pickup

The Lil 59 is the best bridge pickup I have ever heard in a telecaster. It is frickin great. I use it in a cover band for a completely different sound than my LP. I also love the Duncan Vintage Stack in the neck. I use both with 500k pots. Warm, smooth, fat and organic.

 

[Powdered Toast Man]

Tell me about the Little 59 Tele pickup

Warm, smooth, fat and organic.

Exactly the opposite of what a Tele bridge pickup usually sounds like.

 

[Inkstained]

Re: Tell me about the Little 59 Tele pickup

Exactly the opposite of what a Tele bridge pickup usually sounds like.

You know, it's fine that traditionalists don't like this pickup. They're right -- and they're missing the point (some of them).

The 59 is meant to be what it is. If you want the early '50s sound, you have lots of choices, from Seymour and others. But if you want more a powerful and *still bright* pickup, bucking the hum along the way, you have *this* choice.

With a good tube amp, turn the volume down, and you get a bright, plucky sound. Turn it up, and you can rock, should you be so inclined. Not a hard concept. That's what the 59 is about.

Why is that hard to understand? The Telecaster is more than six decades old. Did you really think it would never change? Music changes. Why shouldn't instruments? Or pickups?

And why would you be on a forum like this one if you can't understand players wanting to make their instruments their own? Is anyone taking anything from you? You still have your ash planks, right?

Let people enjoy what they want. Life's short.

 

[jbear]

Re: Tell me about the Little 59 Tele pickup

Exactly the opposite of what a Tele bridge pickup usually sounds like.

I'm going to say that a Broadcaster br + Small Fry + gtr tone knob + Deluxe/Twin (or a Dumble if you're mad swimming in cash) is in your face organic sounding.
My opinion anyway. Totally changed my idea about what a Tele could do (well...actually Robben Ford did that).
So...there's that.

 

[Richard Irons]

Re: Tell me about the Little 59 Tele pickup

Couple of YouTube videos of this pickup here:

 

[Richard Irons]

Re: Tell me about the Little 59 Tele pickup

and here: