I've got a question for you guys. I have an American Standard Strat that I am thinking of changing pups on. I am considering a Hot Rail for the bridge. My question is this: Can I get a slighty crunchy blues tone out of it or is too hot for that sort of thing? We mostly do classic and southern rock but with a smattering of old blues thrown in for good measure. I hate to go through the work and expense of changing only to be disappointed and have to switch back.

I haven't tried a Hot Rail in the bridge yet. In the past, my single sized hum experiences weren't very good.

But nowadays, I have to eat a little crow and say that I'm becoming a bigger fan of them as opposed to the past when I've been noted as saying they're not worth using.

I'd recently bought a Samick Valley Arts Strat copy. When I went to swap the pickguard for a HH Strat pickguard, guess what? They don't fit. So I went hunting for a couple Single sized hums for it and made some interesting discoveries..

GC only carries a few different types of them, SD Hot Rails being one of them. But both stores here only had neck/mid positions. Then I ran over to Sam Ash and they didn't have anything but a Dimarzio Fast Track 2 bridge. I already had a SD JB jr. neck/mid.

I'll tell you this, Hot Rails are dark sounding. I became VERY happy with the Dimarzio Fast Track 2 pickup in the bridge. Initially, I wasn't sure about it. It does have a good dose of mids. But in a mix, it sounds great!!

After a couple of experiments, I decided that my Hot Rail was best suited for the middle pos. It effing chomps through everything. When it was in the neck, it was so bassy, it wouldn't cut through. Just got lost in the mix. But in the middle, it's a freaking beast. More mids come through than bass, and I actually use it for more than half of my clean rhythms when I use that guitar. I'm not sure whether I'd like something quite so dark in the bridge.

If you're looking for a big boost in the bridge when you switch to the bridge, you'll get it. But don't expect to get brightness. I'm not really sure which of the hot single hums get that, but if my memory serves me, not many do.

If you plan on keeping singles in the mid and neck, and you want to keep a balanced output between them, maybe someone like Martian can help direct you to one of the Dimarzio Area types that could suit what you're after. I personally have no experience with them.

I like a balanced output throughout all selections, so what I have now has me very happy with the setup. Once I dropped a hot pickup in it, they all had to be (my personal choice of course).

Bridge- Dimarzio Fast Track 2
Middle- Duncan Hot Rail-N
Neck- JB jr.-N

I like this setup a lot. It really screams, and I've been using it a lot lately. One thing you won't find in a setup like this, however, is any treble bite within the pickups. And I'm pretty sure you won't find that by using a Hot Rail in the bridge either. They chunk, they're powerful, but it's all mids and bass. As odd as it may sound, the most treble I get is by switching to the JB jr. in the neck.

Hope this helps a little. Good luck. Peace!!

_________________

My first Strat had three SD Hot Rails installed as the person I bought it off on eBay must have been using it for Metal. These pickups are very hot and very heavy. I wouldn't recommend them if you are trying to get any clean or even crunchy tones. Everything is over driven with them. The also take away everything that makes a Strat a Strat. You will lose a lot of versatility.

_________________
2012 Fender American Standard Stratocaster
2013 Fender Pure Vintage 65 Stratocaster
2003 Gibson ES-355
2015 Gibson Les Paul Traditional
2002 Gretsch Duo Jet
1980 Rickenbacker 360/12 Fireglo
2014 Martin 000X1AE
2014 Fender Blues Junior III

Hi kbuschfan, take a look at a set of Dimarzio area pups. I put a set of area 58, 67, 61 in my MIM strat. Not much that they can't do. BTW welcome to the forum.

Thanks guys for all of the input and advice. I really appreciate it. I think I'm gonna do a little more research and most likely give the SD Hot Rails for Strat a shot. I'll keep you all posted on what happens. Once again, thanks so much for the help.

i've got one in my MIM. in fact, it's the only pu in the guitar. it sounds nothing like a strat anymore.