what pups for a strat?

motorboy29

motorboy29

New member
I have a Standard fender mexi strat that i haven't even touched (pickup wise) yet. Now, i dont know s*** about what pups to put in it. All I know is that I want to keep sort of the same sound that you get with a standard strat, but i want to make it better. I deffinitely want to lose the mud that the tex mex'es have, i want clear highs dark lows and full mids. Any Help?
 
Re: what pups for a strat?

Can you be more descriptive? While you have provided some guidance, I think more would be needed to help you get where you want to go with this guitar. What guitar do you want it to sound like? Do you want this guitar to sound like a classic strat or a les paul? Do you want it to sound like a high output superstrat on the bridge pickup? If there's a certain player who you wish to sound like, that would also be helpful.

Given what I know thus far, I can give you a couple of different answers. If you want the guitar to sound like a classic strat, I would suggest waiting until the new breed of stacked strat pickups from SD hit the market early next year and buy those. If you can't wait, you could go for the alnico II strat pickups for a more mellow classic sound or the SSL-1 pickups for a more biting alnico V tone but neither of these pickups is humbucking and will be noisy under high gain.

If you want a more versatile guitar that is noiseless, you could go with a combination of Cool rails neck and bridge with a Vintage rails middle. If you want a more high output bridge pickup for metal etc, you could install a hotrails or JB junior.
 
Re: what pups for a strat?

motorboy29 said:
All I know is that I want to keep sort of the same sound that you get with a standard strat, but i want to make it better. I deffinitely want to lose the mud that the tex mex'es have, i want clear highs dark lows and full mids.
Click to expand...

I think that's pretty clear and descriptive; motorboy 29 wants his strat to have a classic strat sound. I think that a set of SSL-1's would be the right place to start.

Welcome to the wonderful world of replacement pickups!
 
Re: what pups for a strat?

Gearjoneser said:
Twangbanger/2 SSL-1's
Click to expand...


Or, for a more distortion friendly tone, go with a pair of APS-2's in the neck and mid instead of the SSL-1's.
 
Re: what pups for a strat?

Well, Im kinda torn. I kinda want a classic strat... but I kinda want to sound like early Motorhead. :headbang:
 
Re: what pups for a strat?

I have a G&L Legacy (ash body and maple neck) with the Texas Hot Anitquity Set. I have the RW/RP midlle pickup, so it is quiet in positions 2 & 4. And I have the Custom Hot Antiquity bridge pickup.

I like the regular G&L pickups just fine, but these are very, very nice. The Antiquity set has a very warm and complex midrange and a very sweet sound overall. A little more output than the Legacy pickups, too. If my vintage Strat had sounded this good, I wouldn't have sold it!

Bill
 
Re: what pups for a strat?

You've got some great choices with SD (check out the sound samples). However, I'm using Fender Fat '50's in mine and like them a lot.
 
Re: what pups for a strat?

motorboy29 said:
I have a Standard fender mexi strat that i haven't even touched (pickup wise) yet. Now, i dont know s*** about what pups to put in it. All I know is that I want to keep sort of the same sound that you get with a standard strat, but i want to make it better. I deffinitely want to lose the mud that the tex mex'es have, i want clear highs dark lows and full mids. Any Help?
Click to expand...

In my experience, I really like the Lace Sensor Red in the bridge, silver in the middle, and the blue in the neck!!! The Blue and the red have bucker tones to them and in the 2 and 4 position you can get quack out of them like a strat!!!
 
Re: what pups for a strat?

Odie is most certainly right. No mother*ucking JB for Me! But maybe I'll do, the other two and find somethin' else to replace it with.

The ten Seymour Duncan 'bucker commandments

1. thou shalt not play a JB.

2. thou shalt not use a distortion if you can get something better.

3. Thou shalt not pair two high-output pickups together in a guitar

4. Thou shalt not replace the pickups in thy guitar without first playing with a good amp.

5. Thou shall not whine incessantly about how much pickups cost.

6. Thou shalt not covet thy neighbor's guitar.

7. Thou shalt not play Creed.

8. If yee skimp on thy pickups, thou shalt not complain about muddy tones or, as 9finger puts it, a pissed off weed eater.

9. Thou shalt not kill (thy guitar)

10. Thou shalt strive to make thy guitar sound as good as is humanly possible.
 
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Re: what pups for a strat?

I've been very happy with a set of Lace Hot Golds.

I even modded them - added the Fender Powerhouse assembly (active, with 12db boost). Goes from clean to really nasty!
 
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Re: what pups for a strat?

I've got an Antiquity Custom/Texas Hot/Texas Hot in my strat and with proper shielding(http://www.guitarnuts.com) this guitar is nearly noisless even with high gain. This set will give you vintage tone with a kick. I love everything about the Antiquities...the clarity, tone, sparkle, growl with gain....they've got so much personality.
 
Re: what pups for a strat?

motorboy29 said:
I have a Standard fender mexi strat that i haven't even touched (pickup wise) yet. Now, i dont know s*** about what pups to put in it. All I know is that I want to keep sort of the same sound that you get with a standard strat, but i want to make it better. I deffinitely want to lose the mud that the tex mex'es have, i want clear highs dark lows and full mids. Any Help?
Click to expand...




I ain't helpin you!
you said the JB sucks!:laugh2: :laugh2:
 
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