I just finished putting some CS '69 Strat pickups into my HWY1. What a great sound. To me it sounds pretty different than the CS '54s I have in my 50th Anv. Am. Series. Strat.

Aren't they supposed to be different sounding and differently made?
Toppscore

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Paris...pay no attention to the previous poster...you like the pickups and you have a different flavor for another Strat...Good on you! And if you find another of your Strats lacking some oomph or you are looking for a change, might I suggest the Texas Specials, they have a nice growl to them and I have them in two of my Strats and I love em. Of course they sound different from my 57/62's in my 57 AVRI...but then no two Strats sound exactly alike anyway!

Have fun with those new pickups.

T2

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What time is it? It's Fender Time.

Previous poster? It's cool. America is a great place where everyone can speak freely.

I have 5 Strats, all with different pickups.
'79 Strat w/ Van Zandt True Vintage & bypass pot that connects the neck and bridge pickup together (I bought the guitar as is).
EC Strat w/ Lace Sensors (Still love this guitar).
Home built '62 Style Strat w/ Texas Spc. (Was my main guitar for years).
Hwy1 w/ CS '69s
50th Anniversary Strat w/ CS '54s

I have a pretty wide choice of tones.

On a side note I also had a home built Andy Summers style Tele made. This is truly a very unique sounding guitar.

Thanks for your input.

I'm contemplating a decent neck pickup for my build.

How would you 'rate' the '69 for sound? I've been intrigued by it for some time. What are the crucial differences compared to the '54 and any others you've experienced, i.e. Texas Special/American Standard?

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'01 American Deluxe HSS Strat.
'87 Japan HSS Strat.
'11 Custom Shop FMT HSS Strat.

"Without music, time is just a bunch of boring production deadlines and dates by which bills must be paid."

I'll have to get back to you on that, but from my memory I feel that the CS '54s sound most like a vintage Strat sound; very clean.

The '69s so far sound a little more hot to me. More like that classic 70s rock and heavy metal sound. Tone pots and resisters make a difference as far as sound too. With the 250k and .22 resister (Fender standerd for years) the tone sounds a little darker. When using overdrive or dist. and turning down the tone to about 2 or 3 the sound becomes a little more "knarly." I have the wiring set up so the bridge pickup can use the 2nd tone knob. This is a really simple mod that it is awesome.

Texas Spcs. are really nice, but don't sound like either of the other two pickups. The bottom end is very thumpy. When you play a song like SRV's version of "Marry Had A Little Lamb," you can really feel it.

Believe it or not my current faverite pickups I've heard so far are the Van Zandt True Vintage.

My advice to you would be to find guitars with these pickup and then play them. Keep in mind that the electronics, neck, body, amplifier and all sorts of other things will color how these pickups will sound.

1. Use an amp that's most like the one you have at home.
2. If you want the same type of tone control, get the same electronics.

Hope this helps and good luck!

Paris











I hope this helps.

Cheers Paris. I have CS Texas Specials in my blue $@! Strat, and love them. Always a fan of gritty tones, but also happy to try out something slightly more vintage- bidding on some '54s on the bay of evil now!

I'm more of an opportunist guitar modder- whatever comes up cheap, I'll give it a try.

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'01 American Deluxe HSS Strat.
'87 Japan HSS Strat.
'11 Custom Shop FMT HSS Strat.

"Without music, time is just a bunch of boring production deadlines and dates by which bills must be paid."

WTF? to T2S = DW

=================
Anyway, Paris. I'm making a Jimi Hendrix reverse Strat and was advised to get the
Fender Custom Shop 1969 Strat Reissue Pickups to complete a more original tone/sound.
Following are the EBay pictures.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/261033949038?ssPageName=STRK:MEWNX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1439.l2649
I was told to add the strap button, reverse the nut and get the Fender CS 1969 Pickups.


Do you still like the 1969's?
How do they sound compared/differences to the stock Highway One's
or the 50th Anniversary CS 1954 Pickups?

Where did you purchase the CS 1969's?
Are there different pickups for the neck, middle & bridge position?
Did you have to change your original Highway One potentiometers or capacitors?

Would you suggest something like this with the pot & caps and wiring already setup?
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Fender-Custom-Shop-69-Strat-PICKUPS-loaded-pickguard-BLENDER-mod-Hendrix-Tone-/300699239232?pt=Guitar_Accessories&hash=item4603124340


Or, something like the following:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Fender-3-Custom-Shop-69-Strat-Pickup-Set-stratocaster-/330631746801?pt=Guitar_Accessories&hash=item4cfb3014f1

Special beveled edge Alnico 5 magnets and enamel-coated magnet wire produce the brilliant clarity, definition and harmonic attributes of a vintage Strat in a "Noiseless" package.
• One quantity-Vintage "Noiseless" Strat Bridge Pickup:
•DC Resistance: 9.8K
•Inductance: 3.0Henries
=========
• Two Quanitiy - Vintage "Noiseless" Strat Neck / Middle Pickups:
•DC Resistance: 9.8K
•Inductance: 3.0Henries
=========
•Aged White Covers, Sold only as a set of 3
=========
Each Vintage "Noiseless" Strat pickup comes with
•3 pots,
•a capacitor
•and resistor to enhance your "Noiseless" experience

Thanks for your response. My new Strat will arrive later this week.
I will share some cool pictures. Toppscore

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Paris, I really liked the 69 pus, I didn't find them too hot though.
But I totally agree roll the tone knob and add gain, and your
in tone euphoria.
Toppscore, the 69s are a perfect set for your reverse 60s
custom Topscoreacaster. Can't wait to see pics of it

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"Yesterday is history, tomorrow is a mystery, but today is a gift. That is why it is called the present."

oogway, kungfu panda 2008

This may be true (and I believe it is) but the Stratocaster -- in 1954 -- was intended to be played through a 1950's-era Fender amp. Used with a later blackface, silverface, or a contemporary Fender model, the CS 54's are often described as "bright" and "chimey" -- often overly so (even bordering on "shrill") since an old tweed 5F6 Bassman or a 5F7 Bandmaster did not have the enhanced treble and bass response of the later Fender gear. Thus, the intended amp to be used with any Strat equipped the CS 54 pickups should also be factored into the sonic equation.

HTH

Arjay

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"Here's why reliability is job one: A great sounding amp that breaks down goes from being a favorite piece of gear to a useless piece of crap in less time than it takes to read this sentence." -- BRUCE ZINKY

That's a good point that I never thought of Arjay.

Do you still like the 1969's? Yes
How do they sound compared/differences to the stock Highway One's
or the 50th Anniversary CS 1954 Pickups? Hwy1s are great, but much hotter than the '69s or '54s. They are great for rock and maybe heavy metal. The best part about the Hwy1 was the electronics (pots and copacitors). I wanted to keep them, buuut the guy I sold the pickups too wanted to keep the whole thing wired. I sold him the entire pickguard.

The '54s are veeery vintage Strat sounding and to my ear very different in tone and texture to the '69s.

Where did you purchase the CS 1969's? Sweet Water. They are more expensive than going to MF, but SW was willing to sell them to me for the MF price. Also the 1st set had a bad middle pup, so SW sent me a new set from of charge.

Are there different pickups for the neck, middle & bridge position? There is only one DC Resistance stated on the Fender website, so they should be the same. The box lists which which is which, so I made sure to put them in the way I received them. My advice is to park them with a sharpy. The wiring guide is not that good, so look online for the Std. Strat wiring. I made one if you want it.

Did you have to change your original Highway One potentiometers or capacitors? Put all new electronics in the guitar. I used the std. stuff, 250k pots and a .22 Cap.

Would you suggest something like this with the pot & caps and wiring already setup?
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Fender-Custom-Shop-69-Strat-PICKUPS-loaded-pickguard-BLENDER-mod-Hendrix-Tone-/300699239232?pt=Guitar_Accessories&hash=item4603124340


Or, something like the following:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Fender-3-Custom-Shop-69-Strat-Pickup-Set-stratocaster-/330631746801?pt=Guitar_Accessories&hash=item4cfb3014f1

The links you gave me didn't work.

Special beveled edge Alnico 5 magnets and enamel-coated magnet wire produce the brilliant clarity, definition and harmonic attributes of a vintage Strat in a "Noiseless" package.
• One quantity-Vintage "Noiseless" Strat Bridge Pickup:
•DC Resistance: 9.8K
•Inductance: 3.0Henries
=========
• Two Quanitiy - Vintage "Noiseless" Strat Neck / Middle Pickups:
•DC Resistance: 9.8K
•Inductance: 3.0Henries
=========
•Aged White Covers, Sold only as a set of 3
=========
Each Vintage "Noiseless" Strat pickup comes with
•3 pots,
•a capacitor
•and resistor to enhance your "Noiseless" experience

Thanks for your response. My new Strat will arrive later this week.
I will share some cool pictures. Toppscore [/b][/quote]

My goal for this guitar was to build a Strat that has a '70s look and feel. Black body and maple neck. I shined the mat finish to a soft gloss black look. I added an all black pick guard, black parts and the CS '69 pickups.

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