Twangbanger or SSL-3 for Strat bridge?

[tenniso]

i just got a nice mexi-strat. i am thinking that i want ssl-1's at the neck and middle. as for the bridge i am thinking either a twangbanger or the ssl-3 hot.

which would be the better match? i dont play any one style of music in particular, so i am looking for versitility. i only know that i want vintage tone at the neck and middle for clean sounds, and a bad-ass at the bridge for distortion. i want all single coils. i am not interested in the "rails" or 'lil series pickups.

any advice?

 

[flank]

Re: Twangbanger or SSL-3 for Strat bridge?

heh......Twangbanger is my favorite pickup, but i love it WAY more for cleans than for distortion lol (never thought i would say that about a strat bridge pickup, but its true)......... never played the SSL3

 

[Lewguitar]

Re: Twangbanger or SSL-3 for Strat bridge?

I love the Twangbanger and use it with a pair of APS-2's. I think that is a great combo. The SSL-1's are brighter and snappier than the APS-2's and not as thick, chunky and smooth...but I'd think they'd sound fine withe the Twangbanger. I have not tried the SSL-3, but I suspect that the Twangbanger would have more mids and a thicker tone. The Twangbanger is a sure thing, IMO...that's the one I'd recommend just because I know I really like it. Curly, I think, is a fan of the SSL-3...maybe he's had a chance to compare the two. Lew

 

[tenniso]

Re: Twangbanger or SSL-3 for Strat bridge?

bump

 

[brisk]

Re: Twangbanger or SSL-3 for Strat bridge?

SSL-3 Hot is great for the bridge postion in a strat. It's not only hot but also warmer and thicker with less high. I used SSL-3 with SSL-2's in neck/mid because they are all flat. SSL-1 is staggered so I would use with SSL-5 custom, which is another excellent strat bridge pickup.

 

[MattPete]

Re: Twangbanger or SSL-3 for Strat bridge?

I have a swampash Warmoth strat with 2 APS in the neck and middle position and Twangbanger in the bridge. I first tried an SSL1 I had laying around, but I didn't think it matched well witht the Twangbanger, so I stuck with the APS's. Don't get me wrong, the SSL1 is great (I think it's the staggered verision of the SSL2), but I thought the APS's sounded better when transitioning from the bridge to neck or middle.

So, if you're going to use SSL2's, maybe the SSL3 hot bridge might be a better choice than the Twangbanger.

 

[Farkus]

Re: Twangbanger or SSL-3 for Strat bridge?

What about the Twangbanger and a set of Texas Hots? I was thinking of using this combo, but heard there were polarity issues? This might be a good choice...

Farkus

 

[tenniso]

Re: Twangbanger or SSL-3 for Strat bridge?

i am not stuck on the twangbanger, although i do really like the clips i have heard. i do want a traditional strat tone at neck/bridge, so i think that the ssl-1 or ssl-2 is the way to go there.

i want my bridge to match well with the other pickups, so maybe i will consider the ssl-3. thanks guys.

by the way, anybody got any sound clips of ssl-1's and ssl-3's?

 

[Lewguitar]

Re: Twangbanger or SSL-3 for Strat bridge?

If you want what many think is the ultimate in a traditional Strat tone at the neck and middle and a ballsier tone with more mids and less glass from the bridge, I'd recommend the alnico 2 Antiquity I (Texas Hot) Custom bridge and alnico 5 Antiquity II (Surfers) neck and middle. That's what I have in the Strat I play the most.

Everyone I've shown it to loves that guitar's tone and I prefer it just a bit over my two other favorite Strats: one has a full set of Antiquity II Surfers and the other has a set of Fralin Vintage Hots in the neck and middle and Fralin Steel Pole 43 in the bridge.

Those are my three favorite Strats that I own and I prefer the tone of any of those three to my real '63 Strat with original pickups.

Lew

 

[the guy who invented fire]

Re: Twangbanger or SSL-3 for Strat bridge?

you guys really should check the vault, Lew did a fantastic thread on the ultimate strat tone, It helped me alot. As for the polarity issues when mixing Ant I's and II's or other Duncans...The Antiquity pups are completely correct...The Ant I's are made like the 50's pickups while the Ant II's are made like 60's pickups...Fender made a change to the polarity and so did Duncan, if the pickups you pit in are out of phase simply switch the wires...this and many other great things are discussed in Lews ultimate strat tone thread.

The guy who invented fire

 

[Curly]

Re: Twangbanger or SSL-3 for Strat bridge?

I love the SSL-3!!!!

the problem with stock vintage, or vintage type strat pickups in newer guitars, is thin, weak, piercing tone. The SSL3 is an antidote for this, though not the only one.
I believe that Seymour recognized the "weak strat bridge" syndrome, and addressed it with several pickup: the Antiquity Custom, the Antiquity II Custom, the SSL 5 and 6 Customs, the Twangbanger, and the SSL-3 Hot, as well as a Custom Shop model wound to around 9.5k or so.

By the way, the current American Series Fender strat uses a bridge pickup wound to around 7K (I think), and has the mid tone pot wired to the bridge as well.

I love the warmth, punch, and sustain of the SSL-3. I feel that it excels at crunch chords, and others will love the lead tone as well. (I usually prefer the neck for solos.) I feel like the SSL3 gave me two positions I rarely used before - the bridge, and bridge/ mid.
I have two strats with APS-2s neck & mid/ SSL-3 bridge. This is my favorite combo now, although I consider the Antiquities in a class of their own for their complex, "better than vintage" tone.

I did try the Twangbanger briefly, but just felt the SSL-3 Hot was fuller and fatter. I would like to try the SSL-6 Custom some day for the sake of comparison; I just haven't had the chance yet. However, the specs show the SSL-3 has more prominent mids, and I believe that helps the bridge slot.

I got an email from "Slowhand" recently. Here's part of what he wrote:
----------
Curly,

I bought a SD SSL-3 for the bridge position in my Strat partly because of your enthusiasm for it on the SD boards. GREAT DRIVING TONE! Kicks the front-end of my amp harder but can play clean with less volume. I have Rio Grande Tallboys in the neck and middle and the volume is even across the board ( I was worried about that). It's startling to hear such midrange out of the Strat. I've tried several PU before in the bridge and they were always too bright. This can handle single note leads with ease.

Gene
"SLOWHAND"
-------------

I have clips of the APS/ SSL-3 set on my Lake Placid Blue page, as well as a separate page for the SSL-3 on my site.

 

[the guy who invented fire]

Re: Twangbanger or SSL-3 for Strat bridge?

I knew Curly would chime in soon...

Curly,
is the SSl-3 still a vintage tone with more output, or is it different?

 

[STRATDELUXER97]

Re: Twangbanger or SSL-3 for Strat bridge?

I love the SSL-3!!!!

the problem with stock vintage, or vintage type strat pickups in newer guitars, is thin, weak, piercing tone. The SSL3 is an antidote for this, though not the only one.
I believe that Seymour recognized the "weak strat bridge" syndrome, and addressed it with several pickup: the Antiquity Custom, the Antiquity II Custom, the SSL 5 and 6 Customs, the Twangbanger, and the SSL-3 Hot, as well as a Custom Shop model wound to around 9.5k or so.

By the way, the current American Series Fender strat uses a bridge pickup wound to around 7K (I think), and has the mid tone pot wired to the bridge as well.

I love the warmth, punch, and sustain of the SSL-3. I feel that it excels at crunch chords, and others will love the lead tone as well. (I usually prefer the neck for solos.) I feel like the SSL3 gave me two positions I rarely used before - the bridge, and bridge/ mid.
I have two strats with APS-2s neck & mid/ SSL-3 bridge. This is my favorite combo now, although I consider the Antiquities in a class of their own for their complex, "better than vintage" tone.

I did try the Twangbanger briefly, but just felt the SSL-3 Hot was fuller and fatter. I would like to try the SSL-6 Custom some day for the sake of comparison; I just haven't had the chance yet. However, the specs show the SSL-3 has more prominent mids, and I believe that helps the bridge slot.

I got an email from "Slowhand" recently. Here's part of what he wrote:
----------
Curly,

I bought a SD SSL-3 for the bridge position in my Strat partly because of your enthusiasm for it on the SD boards. GREAT DRIVING TONE! Kicks the front-end of my amp harder but can play clean with less volume. I have Rio Grande Tallboys in the neck and middle and the volume is even across the board ( I was worried about that). It's startling to hear such midrange out of the Strat. I've tried several PU before in the bridge and they were always too bright. This can handle single note leads with ease.

Gene
"SLOWHAND"
-------------

I have clips of the APS/ SSL-3 set on my Lake Placid Blue page, as well as a separate page for the SSL-3 on my site.

Curly has me pretty intriqued with the SSL-3 and i've not tryed this pickup..With that being said,I have been using the Twangbanger and I really like it alot...
Like Lew though....The one strat I have that has all Texas Hots is the one I feel just always sounds great...This guitar sounds great on any day and through all of my gear...
Also...The Surfer neck and middle is great..I didn't care for the brighter Surfer bridge pickup and opted for the Twangbanger in it's place...There's something about these Antiquities(Magic dust) or whatever,that just makes these pickups excel over all the other single coils I use...

John

 

[Curly]

Re: Twangbanger or SSL-3 for Strat bridge?

Curly,
is the SSl-3 still a vintage tone with more output, or is it different?

the SSL-3 is not a vintage strat tone, but a warm, fat strat tone with prominent mids due to the hotter wind. The somewhat surprising thing is that, despite the hotter wind, it has great sustain.

by comparison, the Antiquity Custom is a vintage tone with more output - sweet, smooth, and complex.
I also have a separate page with clips for the Ant Custom. It's a little surprising how fat that pickup can get with a little OD and some tone rolled off.