Why does Fender Shawbucker HB use 49mm spacing?! Not trembucker spacing.

[cptl975]

SD's TREMbuckers with 52.6mm pole pieces pacing are meant to be used in the bridge position of guitars with tremolo bridges like Floyd Rose and Fender strat tremolo bridges. But then why would Fender's own humbucker like the Shawbucker that comes stock in Fender HSS strats not incorporate that, instead sticking with regular 49mm spacing?
I measured this on my Fender Ultra HSS strat with the Double Tap humbucker and Stew Mac clarifies the spacing in their description of the Shawbucker here.

This makes me wonder if it's really necessary to get a TREMbucker which requires a new pickguard with a custom bridge pickup hole routed to fit it which is all a hassle with pickguard makers, instead of just getting a normal Seymour Duncan humbucker that fits the stock pickguard - easy swap.

Any knowledge/background on the above? Thoughts? Is it really necessary to get a TREMbucker for the Ultra HSS strat?

 

[JamesPaul]

It really is not necessary to get a Trembucker for Fenders/Floyds. We used Regular Spaced Humbuckers in the '70s and '80s. It is mostly about aesthetics.

There is at least one other Topic discussing this now, and if you search, you will find tens if not hundreds of Topics discussing the same.

The exception may be PATB's in order to optimize their unique pole pieces.


https://forum.seymourduncan.com/foru...0-wrong-pickup

 

[Mincer]

I've heard some vintage-output humbuckers that have uneven string balance if the strings completely miss the poles. But for most pickups that would be in an HSS, it wouldn't matter. Some people who are OCD might not like it if the strings don't match up, but it is not likely to cause sonic issues.

 

[CaptainWhizz]

The Wolfgang humbucker in my EVH striped series does not match the string spacing. FMIC seem to not think it’s a major problem.

 

[dotsdad]

It’s Fender. They use it because it is the cheapest way to construct it.