Which Duncan Humbucker to Sound like a Telecaster - Video uploaded

[Butch Snyder]

I'm looking to replace the pickups in my PRS Swamp Ash Special SE. Currently, I have the following:

1. Bridge position: DiMarzio Air Zone
2. Middle Position: DiMarzio Chopper
3. Neck Position: DiMarzio Air Norton

That setup is great, but very fat and loud. At one time, I had an OLP EBMM Axis copy. Remember those? I put a DiMarzio Fred in the bridge position and it sounded like a good, beefy Telecaster bridge pickup. No kidding. I could probably go with a Fred again, but I would like to stick with Duncan if I could find a pickup that gave me what I was after. Is there a Duncan pickup that would get me close to the tone of a Telecaster bridge pickup?

 

[uOpt]

Phat Staple.

 

[beaubrummels]

T-Deco
Custom Custom wired in parallel

 

[Butch Snyder]

T-Deco
Custom Custom wired in parallel

Hmmm, I have a Custom Custom. Maybe I'll try that.

 

[Butch Snyder]

Since I have a DiMarzio Air Zone currently installed, I think I'll wire it in parallel and see what I get. I would've asked in the DiMarzio forum, but I think that place is dead.

As far as wiring, I'm thinking connect the Red wire (DiMarzio's hot wire) and the Black together for the hot output, and the White and Green/Bare together for the ground. Usually, for regular humbucking, you solder the black and white together and tape off. Does that all sound correct?

 

[jeremy]

seems like a good start. i like parallel buckers, but i dont find them overly tele like. but then a strat pup doesnt sound like a tele pup and they have way more in common than a tele and a bucker

 

[Butch Snyder]

OK, I finished the rewiring this morning. It's actually the red and white wires to be soldered together for the hot connection. Black wire does to ground with the green and bare. The tone is great. Not really single coil-like, but the Air Zone is a very fat pickup. Honestly, it's more like a bright PAF but it works for me. I need to put them side by side, but it doesn't sound much different than my Hades Gates.

 

[amdkj]

A few companies make adaptor rings to enable an actual Tele bridge pickup to be put in a humbucker ring or pickguard spot. So if you get bored of the Air Zone, I'd just try that.

Otherwise, for future reference, I highly recommend the Stag Mag. It's got the rod magnets so you get the snappy feel of a Strat/Tele/Jazzmaster pickup, but being a twin coil in series, you get a much fatter sound than any actual single coil. I used to use one in an HH Tele which I wanted to get a bit closer to the normal Tele sound, and it split the difference between Tele and humbucker perfectly evenly.

 

[Butch Snyder]

Otherwise, for future reference, I highly recommend the Stag Mag. It's got the rod magnets so you get the snappy feel of a Strat/Tele/Jazzmaster pickup, but being a twin coil in series, you get a much fatter sound than any actual single coil. I used to use one in an HH Tele which I wanted to get a bit closer to the normal Tele sound, and it split the difference between Tele and humbucker perfectly evenly.

I have thought about the Stag Mag before. Interesting option.

 

[beaubrummels]

Of all the humbuckers, the Duncan Custom family does among the best single coil sound when split (sure a few others can get there also). But related to that, parallel on a Custom inherits a bit of the Fendery sound. The Custom Custom, having A2, retains the midrange needed when it thins out in parallel, giving just enough girth to get a Tele-like sound. It isn't ANY pickup in parallel that will sound like a Tele, only certain ones.

Stag Mag is a great option for similar split and parallel tones. The Custom Custom and Stag Mag are close neighbors tone-wise. But in humbucker mode, the Stag Mag is rounder, warmer and looser than the Custom Custom IME. Getting real twang out of either of them requires longer Fender-scale guitar, however.

But if you are replacing the pickup just for that, you might be best off with the adapter and an actual Tele pickup, as mentioned. Get a bright snappy one if it's going in a Les Paul type. Not sure how bright your swamp ash PRS is.

 

[Butch Snyder]

Of all the humbuckers, the Duncan Custom family does among the best single coil sound when split (sure a few others can get there also). But related to that, parallel on a Custom inherits a bit of the Fendery sound. The Custom Custom, having A2, retains the midrange needed when it thins out in parallel, giving just enough girth to get a Tele-like sound. It isn't ANY pickup in parallel that will sound like a Tele, only certain ones.

Stag Mag is a great option for similar split and parallel tones. The Custom Custom and Stag Mag are close neighbors tone-wise. But in humbucker mode, the Stag Mag is rounder, warmer and looser than the Custom Custom IME. Getting real twang out of either of them requires longer Fender-scale guitar, however.

But if you are replacing the pickup just for that, you might be best off with the adapter and an actual Tele pickup, as mentioned. Get a bright snappy one if it's going in a Les Paul type. Not sure how bright your swamp ash PRS is.

I get what you're saying. I have a Custom Custom. I used it in my Swamp Ash Special before. I could reuse it and install my Pearly Gates neck pickup too. As far as getting a mounting ring to support an actual Telecaster bridge pickup, I'm not interested in that.

 

[freefrog]

Beside the Custom family, most if not all hi inductance humbuckers wired in parallel can sound close to Fender SC's.

If I had replied sooner to this topic, I'd have evoked the Dimebucker for that... "No kidding": the SH16 has the kind of hi Q factor making easier to obtain a Fender style tone.

Other beefy HB's might require adaptative strategies based on manipulation of resistive / capacitive loads... but as soon as a humbucker has an inductance in the 6 to 10 H range, it's almost designed to be wired in parallel rather than split (DiMarzio started to exploit this idea with the Dual-Sound decades ago).

FWIW.

 

[Butch Snyder]

The Custom Custom, having A2, retains the midrange needed when it thins out in parallel, giving just enough girth to get a Tele-like sound. It isn't ANY pickup in parallel that will sound like a Tele, only certain ones.

Will it get me that much closer than the Air Zone? The Air Zone is A5, so there's that.

 

[beaubrummels]

Will it get me that much closer than the Air Zone? The Air Zone is A5, so there's that.

Unfortunately, I don't have experience with the Air Zone. I can't say. I just know I have two Teles, one with a Duncan Broadcaster, one with a Fender Twisted Tele set, and the Custom Custom when switched to parallel coils on my Jackson enables me to play things I play on the Teles without feeling much of a difference (a little twist of the tone knob and I'm there).

 

[Mincer]

The Custom Custom also sounds good split in parallel with a coil from another humbucker (I use an APH-1).

 

[Butch Snyder]

I went ahead and replaced the pickups and reinstalled the Pearly Gates in the neck position and Custom Custom in the bridge. I wired the Custom Custom in parallel. I can tell a difference and it does have more of a Tele bridge pickup character. Does it sound like my JD? No, but it sounds closer than the Air Zone did. It's definitely usable. I'll take a video and post it.

 

[Masta' C]

Heck yeah, that sounds like a winning combo! Looking forward to the video!

 

[Artie]

Sweet. Also looking forward to the vid.

 

[Butch Snyder]

Here is the video.

 

[Mincer]

Damn, that JD pickup sounds fantastic! What kind of delay are you using? I am not a country player by any means, but I love that slapback setting. It is interesting how close the PRS and Tele are. The PRS is maybe a little thicker.