Turning a Fender Highway One HSS strat into a versatile rock n roll animal?

[SmokeDaddy]

Hi all, you guys seem knowlegeable so I was wondering if you guys could help me... I just bought a gorgeous looking black 2008 Fender Highway One strat, with HSS pickup configuration. It looks and handles lovely, but the pickups themselves are honestly rather crap. So, I need to find out what pickups I should use to put in them!

I want to change all the pickups, so I need 2 single coils and a humbucker for the bridge. I have a JB-Jazz in the bridge/neck of my Epiphone Les Paul and it sounds ABSO****INGLUTLY AWESOME, I love it, but would like to try something new for the Highway One...

I've been reading up and I guess what I want out of the guitar is some versatility, but also a humbucker bridge pickup that will have the clarity and yet balls (kind of like the JB), distortion yet control... But also have that strat 'quack' and 'honk' quality to it. I do more rhythm than lead guitar, and go from lightly overdrive to full on distortion crunch. I have a bunch of other guitars (les paul, an epiphone sg with harmonic designs pickups, a telecaster with p-90 in the neck and harmonic design s90 in the bridge, a stock 50s reissue stratocaster, a j mascis edition jazzmaster...) so I wanna make this guitar do stuff that the other guitars don't already cover...

I play all sorts of rock n roll, Lou Reed, David Bowie, Iggy Pop, Dinosaur Jr, Motorhead, Sisters of Mercy, Velvet Underground, Bauhaus, Love and Rockets, Pere Ubu...

I want to make it this strat a versatile, rock n roll animal.

So what pickup suggestions do you guys have for the neck, middle, and bridge humbucker positions? I've heard good things about duncan customs (or custom custom? or custom 5?? Pearly Gates? I don't know... so many choices!)

Oh yeah, and I play straight into a Fender Deville amp and rely on tube amp overdrive. Any suggestions and explanations why are appreciated!

Thanks!

 

[Left_Hand_Strat]

Re: Turning a Fender Highway One HSS strat into a versatile rock n roll animal?

ooooh, would say look at the Full Shred models or even the Invaders, however for the music you play, i think the invader will be too aggresive, I would check out sound samples for the Full Shred model.

(coming from another Motorhead fan )

 

[Kam]

Re: Turning a Fender Highway One HSS strat into a versatile rock n roll animal?

It'll be easier for us if you tell us a little about how the guitar sounds at the minute and what you'd like to change about it. Is it bright at the minute and you want to add more beefy low-end? Or is it dull and lifeless and in need of some sparkle and top-end clarity?

Are you looking for true single coils for the neck and middle or single-sized buckers? If you're looking for 'buckers then I quite like the Hot Rails for really hot, thick tones. I've also heard great things about the l'il '59 in that position, though I haven't tried it personally.

If you're looking for true singles then you'll have to wait for someone else to come along as I'm afraid I haven't much experience with them. I will say that if it was me, I'd probably go for a pair of SSL-1s...I've heard geat reviews of them here and I'm a huge David Gilmour fan.

For the bridge...the Custom is a great family of pickups. The stock Custom can sound nice in the bridge of a Strat. It's fat and meaty for rhythms, though because of the ceramic magnet the highs can be a little thin and brittle, especially in a Fender style. Personally, I didn't care for the cleans from it, either. They seemed quite thin and cold. The Custom Custom is great in a bright instrument, though sometimes a little dark and muddy for rhythm in a naturally darker instrument. Leads sound awesome with it and it cuts through a mix life a knife. A Custom 5 might be a little too bright and scooped for a Strat, though it can sound excellent in an SG or a Les Paul.

Personally, I just got finished putting a Custom 8 back in the bridge of my Pacifica, which is a HSS Strat copy. A C8 is any of the other Customs with the magnet swapped for an Alnico 8. It's a very cheap and easy to perform mod. The Alnico 8 gives it a similar EQ curve to the regular Custom but with more mids and A LOT more warmth and life. Cleans are very usable and it handles any amount of gain you can throw at it. I tried all the other Custom variants and came back to this one. It really is an excellent pup for the bridge of a Strat.

Another good option would be a '59, which works nicely in a Strat bridge, though it can be a little bright.

 

[AudioWonderland]

Re: Turning a Fender Highway One HSS strat into a versatile rock n roll animal?

Hi all, you guys seem knowlegeable so I was wondering if you guys could help me... I just bought a gorgeous looking black 2008 Fender Highway One strat, with HSS pickup configuration. It looks and handles lovely, but the pickups themselves are honestly rather crap. So, I need to find out what pickups I should use to put in them!

I want to change all the pickups, so I need 2 single coils and a humbucker for the bridge. I have a JB-Jazz in the bridge/neck of my Epiphone Les Paul and it sounds ABSO****INGLUTLY AWESOME, I love it, but would like to try something new for the Highway One...

I've been reading up and I guess what I want out of the guitar is some versatility, but also a humbucker bridge pickup that will have the clarity and yet balls (kind of like the JB), distortion yet control... But also have that strat 'quack' and 'honk' quality to it. I do more rhythm than lead guitar, and go from lightly overdrive to full on distortion crunch. I have a bunch of other guitars (les paul, an epiphone sg with harmonic designs pickups, a telecaster with p-90 in the neck and harmonic design s90 in the bridge, a stock 50s reissue stratocaster, a j mascis edition jazzmaster...) so I wanna make this guitar do stuff that the other guitars don't already cover...

I play all sorts of rock n roll, Lou Reed, David Bowie, Iggy Pop, Dinosaur Jr, Motorhead, Sisters of Mercy, Velvet Underground, Bauhaus, Love and Rockets, Pere Ubu...

I want to make it this strat a versatile, rock n roll animal.

So what pickup suggestions do you guys have for the neck, middle, and bridge humbucker positions? I've heard good things about duncan customs (or custom custom? or custom 5?? Pearly Gates? I don't know... so many choices!)

Oh yeah, and I play straight into a Fender Deville amp and rely on tube amp overdrive. Any suggestions and explanations why are appreciated!

Thanks!

Custom and 2 Cool rails

 

[SmokeDaddy]

Re: Turning a Fender Highway One HSS strat into a versatile rock n roll animal?

Ok, well in regards to how the guitar sounds at the moment... for the bridge pickup, it's just a muddy, clarity-less mess. I'm playing on it right now as I type this, and I'd say it lacks color, the quality of the distortion is just kind of "blah." I can get a great distortion sound out of my other guitars, so it's not the amp settings or anything. The bridge pickup doesn't really have much character, and it lacks balls. So yes, it sounds dull and lifeless, needs some sparkle and all that...!

The middle pickup sounds ok, but could be better... I like how they seem to be slightly warmer than my 50s stratocaster middle pickup, but this one doesnt have the THUNK and the BOINK of the other one that i like. Same goes for the neck, except the neck pickup gets way muddy when I try to introduce a higher level of overdrive/distortion. I'm open to vintage single coils in the neck and middle, or even some hotter-style pickups... Like I said, I'm opened to ideas and suggestions and your guys' suggestions just might end up in my guitar

Left Hand Strat: Hell yeah, Motorhead! \m/ I just saw them live for the 3rd time on tuesday (4th time if seeing HeadCat counts) and they rocked, I read that Phil Campbell rocks the Full Shred... haha, would Full Shred be only suited for soloing and really hard n fast Motorhead stuff, or is it more versatile than that? Yeah, I think the Invader might be a bit too aggressive for it too...

 

[Kam]

Re: Turning a Fender Highway One HSS strat into a versatile rock n roll animal?

Ok, well in regards to how the guitar sounds at the moment... for the bridge pickup, it's just a muddy, clarity-less mess. I'm playing on it right now as I type this, and I'd say it lacks color, the quality of the distortion is just kind of "blah." I can get a great distortion sound out of my other guitars, so it's not the amp settings or anything. The bridge pickup doesn't really have much character, and it lacks balls. So yes, it sounds dull and lifeless, needs some sparkle and all that...!

In this case I feel pretty safe recommending the Custom or the Custom 8. The great thing is that if you get one Custom and a bunch of cheap magnets, you pretty much have them all. The only difference between them is the magnet. The Custom 8 will add plenty of balls and a lot of clarity and articulation. I've said before that one of my favourite things about this pup is the note seperation available under gain. I love that I can play full chords under moderate levels of distortion and still hear each note ringing out, without it turning into a muddy mess.

Another option would be one of the PATB series. I've heard great, great things about these pups and they were pretty much designed to beef up a trem-equipped guitar. Articulation is apparently another one of their strengths.

Another possibilty is the Pearly Gates+. I think you might only be able to get them used, as they were designed specifically for Fender to put in the bridge of their Lone Star Strats (I think that's the model). They should have plenty of sparkle, clarity and character.

 

[loudriver23]

Re: Turning a Fender Highway One HSS strat into a versatile rock n roll animal?

I have a PATB3 in the bridge of my HSS strat and love it! I have APS1's in the neck and middle positions as my strat is a bit bright.
If the guitar was a bit warmer I would have gone with some SSL1's for the chime.

 

[Ayrton]

Re: Turning a Fender Highway One HSS strat into a versatile rock n roll animal?

2008 would have been the better Hwy 1 pups, no?

Well nonetheless, my suggestion would be a Custom 5 with a pair of SSLs.

 

[Despair]

Re: Turning a Fender Highway One HSS strat into a versatile rock n roll animal?

Custom 8s are awesome, but if you aren't going for hot neck & middle, pickup balance can be tough.

I'd probably go for an STK-S7 Vintage Hot Stack Plus in the neck, and an STK-S4 Classic Stack Plus in the middle. Slightly hot but still vintage tone from neck, with a cooler mid for 2+4 position quack.

If you want a hot bridge pickup that is still flexible, and will give usable brightness without being shrill or harsh, I'd check out the PATB-1b Original Parallel Axis. PA pickups do wonders for livening up a dull guitar, add depth without muddying on a bloated guitar.

The PATB-3 Blues Saraceno is pretty awesome as well, but where you mention Motorhead, I'd probably go with the -1b.

The PATB-1b is a bit like a smoother, broader Full Shred (which is a bit like saying it's nothing like it at all, heh). It's got articulation and tightness, and extended harmonic response, and prominent mids, though the balance is a bit different from the FS. But it's not as biting, easier to go from a punchy rhythm to a smooth lead. It's crunch and lead tones can sound like two different pickups, really unusual to get such a brash crunch and not have trouble with leads being harsh, in one pickup.

I have a PATB-1b in my basswood Ibanez RG570, a rather different beast from your guitar, but it's the most ludicrously sculptable pickup I've ever used. Both with pick articulation and with tone/volume knobs. I can easily wander back and forth from a smoother Custom 5 to a beefier take on the Custom Custom. It's not too hard to get it to approximate what I liked about the JB in this guitar, without the weak points, too. Though harmonics are more even, which I find an advantage, others prefer the craziness of the JB.

If you are more comfortable with a hot PAF, the PATB-3 is amazing as well, but it's not the same sort of thing as the hotter pickups.

The Full Shred is tighter, but it's also got a heavy upper mid focus and what can be pingy highs. In the right guitar, like an all-mahogany superstrat or some Les Pauls, it's amazing. One big difference between it and most of the other pickups discussed is it's rather compressed, where the PATB-1b & 3 are extremely open feeling for their output.

Also, on the Pearly Gates+, you can get fairly close to that by swapping an A5 magnet into a Pearly Gates bridge pickup. If you want exactly a PG+, contact the Seymour Duncan Custom Shop and have them make an overwound Pearly Gates with A5 magnet for you.

 

[SmokeDaddy]

Re: Turning a Fender Highway One HSS strat into a versatile rock n roll animal?

In this case I feel pretty safe recommending the Custom or the Custom 8. The great thing is that if you get one Custom and a bunch of cheap magnets, you pretty much have them all. The only difference between them is the magnet. The Custom 8 will add plenty of balls and a lot of clarity and articulation. I've said before that one of my favourite things about this pup is the note seperation available under gain. I love that I can play full chords under moderate levels of distortion and still hear each note ringing out, without it turning into a muddy mess.

Awesome! YES! That's exactly what I'd like to have, to be able to play full chords under good amounts of distortion and still hear each note ring out. I like a lot of Neil Young and stuff too, so I do play a lot of chords (and power chords as well) under mid-to-high gain.

I see a lot of you guys are recommending the Custom series... Where can I find info about the Custom 8, I don't seem to see it on this site's pickups list? I don't think I like the sound of the Custom 5 as much (judging by the audio sample on here)... but the Custom and Custom Custom seem like they might be good...!

Just listened to some samples of the PATB series and I must say, wow! These sound REALLY nice, looks like we might have a new contender in this competition... Kind of similar to the Custom (to my ears) but with a little more high end, would that be a correct assessment? How would a PATB compare to a Custom? (These two seem to be the best contenders so far, for the bridge...!)

And under your guys' recommendation I checked out the Lil' 59 the neck, and I'm really digging it! Can't find audio samples for the Vintage Hot Stack in the neck (though it sounds like something I might be interested in), nor anything about the Classic Stack Plus for middle... I'll look for audio clips though... I'm torn between single coil sized humbucker in the neck position or just a hot vintage-style single coil... I think I'd like to have a hot single coil in the middle position because I LOVE the jangle of the middle position with barre chords and high distortion, would that be a good idea with a Humbucker bridge and possibly a single-coil sized humbucker in the neck?

(PS, thank you guys so much for the help so far, keep em coming! )

 

[AlexR]

Re: Turning a Fender Highway One HSS strat into a versatile rock n roll animal?

Its said that the PATB1 is like a custom 5 in power.....but they have a curious blend of note separation, drive, and sustain, but with clarity that you only get from a lower output pickup.

I have the PATB 3 in the bridge slot of an ash strat and its really incredible. It deals with high gain well, but its open enough to sound like a PAF if you stick it through a blues pedal/slightly driven amp.

The PATB 1 I think would give you the sweet lead tones the JB gets, but with the rhythm growl of a Custom. Well worth getting if you lean toward flexibility from 1 guitar.

In fact I've just received my '1', but its waiting on a little spare time to install into the Jackson dinky. This will be the 'versatile axe' for me. I've got a 'lil 59 for the neck, and a normal sc middle pickup for authentic strat 2/4 position tones

 

[Despair]

Re: Turning a Fender Highway One HSS strat into a versatile rock n roll animal?

The PATB-1b has less of a gritty presence than the Custom [best way I can describe the ceramic presence. Bugs some people like me, others don't notice it at all. For a ceramic, the Custom is pretty non-harsh, though].

IMO the TB-5 Custom is brighter, but the PATB-1b is by no means dark. I've heard the ceramic Custom get uncomfortably bright in a few guitars, the only time I've heard the PATB-1b do that is when it was far too close to the strings.

The Custom 8 is any Custom series pickup with the magnet swapped out for an A8. Not an official Seymour Duncan pickup [yet]. Note that the TB-5 Custom is the ceramic Custom. TB-11 is the Custom Custom, with an A2. TB-14 is the Custom 5, with an A5.

The ceramic and A8 Customs are rather hot pickups. The PATB-1b is actually fairly hot [weaker magnet, but appears to be more of the same wire], but it's touch responsiveness and oddly variable feeling attack make it more controllable. The ceramic is a bit more compressed than the A8, but it's brighter and punchier, where the A8 has a more open roar.

It's possible that in the middle a STK-S7 [Hot Vintage] or even STK-S6 [Custom Stack Plus] might balance better with a hot bridge humbucker. A lot of people are more concerned about the quack in the notch [2+4] positions than the middle pickup by itself, which is why I suggested the STK-S4 middle. You could easily do two STK-S7s if you prefer, or even go for an STK-S6 or the Hot Rails in the neck.

The Classic Stack Plus is very close to the SSL-2 [which is a flat polepiece radius variant of the SSL-1]. Classic A5 strat pickup sound.

If you prefer a genuine single coil in all it's buzzing glory, you might also check out the Five-Two, which gives the A5 glass & punch on the low strings, and A2 smoothness on the high strings. [I REALLY wish SD would do a 5/2 Stack Plus...]

 

[Despair]

Re: Turning a Fender Highway One HSS strat into a versatile rock n roll animal?

Its said that the PATB1 is like a custom 5 in power.....but they have a curious blend of note separation, drive, and sustain, but with clarity that you only get from a lower output pickup.

Actualy, it's a bit higher output than a C5, but it's oddly uncompressed. Different coil architecture...

I have the PATB 3 in the bridge slot of an ash strat and its really incredible. It deals with high gain well, but its open enough to sound like a PAF if you stick it through a blues pedal/slightly driven amp.

The PATB 1 I think would give you the sweet lead tones the JB gets, but with the rhythm growl of a Custom. Well worth getting if you lean toward flexibility from 1 guitar.

In fact I've just received my '1', but its waiting on a little spare time to install into the Jackson dinky. This will be the 'versatile axe' for me. I've got a 'lil 59 for the neck, and a normal sc middle pickup for authentic strat 2/4 position tones

PATB-3 is killer as well, someday I intend to have guitars with all 3 of the bridge Parallel Axis pickups...

I find the PATB-1b leads tend to run somewhere between JB and Custom Custom territory. Rhythms are like a really crunchy Custom 5, but if you back off the volume & tone a bit, it smooths out a bit more like a CC.

 

[AlexR]

Re: Turning a Fender Highway One HSS strat into a versatile rock n roll animal?

Yeah, I knew the 1 was like one of the customs, just couldn't remember exactly which one, LOL
I knew the power was higher too, but the uncompressed nature of the sound reminds most first time users of a much lower o/p pickup as they're sweeter toned than similar resistance pups.

I'm really looking forward to having a good thrash of the Jackson once the 1 is in....you've really got me eager to install it asap after your many recommendations of it. Also my '3' is the pretty much the best sounding bridge pickup I own.

 

[bluesbend]

Re: Turning a Fender Highway One HSS strat into a versatile rock n roll animal?

Welcome to the Forums!

I'd go with a Pearly Gates at the bridge and SSL-5's at the neck and middle.

If you want a rock 'n roll animal, that'd do it.

 

[eviltobz]

Re: Turning a Fender Highway One HSS strat into a versatile rock n roll animal?

I see a lot of you guys are recommending the Custom series... Where can I find info about the Custom 8, I don't seem to see it on this site's pickups list? I don't think I like the sound of the Custom 5 as much (judging by the audio sample on here)... but the Custom and Custom Custom seem like they might be good...!

I loved the sound of the custom custom from the audio samples, but in my mahogony body superstratish guitar it is just all lows and mids with no top end, so as you seem to already have a sound along those lines it may not be ideal for you either. Following the advice on this forum I'm going to be trying a magnet swap to an A5 that I happen to have lying around to see what that does for me.

 

[Kam]

Re: Turning a Fender Highway One HSS strat into a versatile rock n roll animal?

Custom 8s are awesome, but if you aren't going for hot neck & middle, pickup balance can be tough.

This is a pretty good point. I just assumed he'd want something with more output since he's relying on tube overdrive for his dirty sounds.

Totally correct, though. If you're thinking about a Custom 8 then you should maybe think about going a little hotter with the middle and neck...though I have mine matched up with two fairly low output singles and have no problems. Any time I used that guitar live I rarely used anything except the bridge pickup, though.

As a side-note: You and Alex really need to stop with the posts talking about how awesome the PATBs are in the bridge! You're killing me with GAS over here...

I see a lot of you guys are recommending the Custom series... Where can I find info about the Custom 8, I don't seem to see it on this site's pickups list? I don't think I like the sound of the Custom 5 as much (judging by the audio sample on here)... but the Custom and Custom Custom seem like they might be good...!

The Custom 8 isn't an official Duncan product so you can't just walk into a shop and buy it. It came into existence because the modders, hot-rodders and assorted lunatics here on the forum decided to cram a bunch of different magnets into every pickup they could find to see what happened. The C8 is one of their most successful creations. There's more information on it than you'll ever need in this thread.

Don't worry about mag-swapping, either. It's honestly the easiest mod you can do. Ten minutes with a screwdriver and you'll already be tuned back up and ready to jam.

 

[SmokeDaddy]

Re: Turning a Fender Highway One HSS strat into a versatile rock n roll animal?

Wow, so much information, I'm new to the forum and I must say, you are such a kind and helpful bunch! I really appreciate it...!

OK, so I've been listening to the audio samples over and over to the point where my brain and ears are going crazy, examining the tone charts, etc, and I've finally narrowed them down to some possible configurations that I think might work for me. I've decided that I DON'T want a sc-sized humbucker in the neck or middle, just a hot vintage style pickup for that THUNK and BADUNKADUNK and articulation without compression... since it's a strat, I'd like to keep it stratty and just basically give it a bit hotter-than-vintage in the neck and the middle (but not full on humbucker-style) and a hot, rock n roll action bridge that roars a bit, with a good low end as well as high end and will handle stuff like Pixies, Talking Heads, Devo, Warren Zevon, Joy Division, even some Ministry, etc... :14:

Without much further ado, here are the choices that I've boiled it down to:

Neck: Vintage Hot Stack Plus-S7, OR Custom Staggered SSL-5
Middle: Vintage Hot Stack Plus-S7, OR Custom Staggered SSL-5, OR Custom Stack Plus STK-S6
Bridge: SH-5 Custom, OR PATB-1 Original Parallel Axis Trembucker

It sounds to me like the Custom has a little bit more compression as well as a little bit more distortion/output than the Trembucker.. I'm leaning more toward the Trembucker currently though, since it seems more versatile and can (hopefully) still put out a good load of distortion when needed, and seems to sound a lot more 'wide open' than the Custom. I basically want to be able to play a barre chord at high distortion and hear each string ring (growl, snarl, scream) out! And be able to pull off palm mute chugga chuggas, etc., etc.

Also, how would you configure the neck and bridge pickup options there? Should I go with something like a Vintage Hot Stack Plus-S7 in the neck AND middle, or just in the neck and a Custom Staggered SSL-5 in the middle (for variety)?
Which pickups would you use and in which place?
How do these specific neck and middle pickups compare in sound, tone, and distortion handling/output? Would it all be balanced?

If I got the Trembucker or Custom in the bridge, how would you arrange the neck pickups based on these options? (Feel free to suggest any other random stuff too, I'm learning so much here and taking note!)

 

[Despair]

Re: Turning a Fender Highway One HSS strat into a versatile rock n roll animal?

That should be a TB-5 (TremBucker, or Floyd/Fender spacing) Custom. SH-5 is the "classic" Gibson spacing, which is mainly used for neck pickups these days, though it's of course still used for classic reproductions and in antiques.

I'd go with the SSL-6, Custom Flat. Unless you have a really low radius on your neck, I think the modern radius makes more sense in majority of new guitars. Though if you are used to the string balance/tone quirks of the old stagger, have at it...

Note the STK-S6 Custom Stack Plus is the same pickup as the SSL-6, just with a carefully tuned noise-cancelling coil added. The Stack Plus are among the best noise-cancelling single coils available, also you can split them and use without the noise-cancelling, for a pure single coil tone (especially useful for the 2 position, when mixing with conventional single coils, or a split bridge humbucker).

I'd probably go STK-S6 neck, STK-S7 middle, but I tend to go for max quack. Can try it both ways, see which way works for you. If one of the pickups just doesn't do it for you, swap it for a second of the other. Seymour Duncan has a 21 day swap guarantee, for US dealers anyways.

 

[SmokeDaddy]

Re: Turning a Fender Highway One HSS strat into a versatile rock n roll animal?

Note the STK-S6 Custom Stack Plus is the same pickup as the SSL-6, just with a carefully tuned noise-cancelling coil added. The Stack Plus are among the best noise-cancelling single coils available, also you can split them and use without the noise-cancelling, for a pure single coil tone (especially useful for the 2 position, when mixing with conventional single coils, or a split bridge humbucker).

Really? The Duncan page says it is familiar to the SSL-5 Custom. Either way, how does splitting work? Is there an extra switch or something to install to activate it? It also appears that the Custom Stacks and Vintage Hot Stack Plus are (cosmetically) a bit fatter and stick out more than the SSL-5 and SSL-6. I wonder how noticeable the elevation would look compared to other single coils (especially if theres a combo on both elevated and 'normal' on the same guitar)!

PS-- Decided i'm going with the TB-5 Custom (thanks for clearing that up) in the bridge afterall. Compared whatever videos I could find on youtube and it sounds rather cool and unique, and I think I enjoy the sound of that ceramic quality to it. It sounds cool to my ears.

Still researching for the perfect single coils in the neck and middle to achieve that sonic nirvana.