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Post subject: Best blues pickups for Strat
Posted: Mon Mar 11, 2013 6:15 pm
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Anyone favor pickups more then others areas Texas,specials,etc?


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Post subject: Re: Best blues pickups for Strat
Posted: Tue Mar 12, 2013 2:55 pm
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I just swapped out the Vintage Noiseless Pups in my Deluxe Players Strat to 57/62's.
Awesome for blues. Just the sound I've wanted.


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Post subject: Re: Best blues pickups for Strat
Posted: Tue Mar 12, 2013 4:29 pm
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The Kinman Blues set is pretty good if you like stacked pups.
It's hard to beat Fralins for true single coils.

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Post subject: Re: Best blues pickups for Strat
Posted: Tue Mar 12, 2013 7:14 pm
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Think I'm goin wit the 62s and the areas now where do they go what sounds better in neck middle and bridge?


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Post subject: Re: Best blues pickups for Strat
Posted: Tue Mar 12, 2013 8:44 pm
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When I chose 3 different Area pups for one of my strats I organised them by output. I put the lowest output pup at the neck and the highest at the bridge. I did this with the intention of helping to achieve an overall output balance. I am quite happy with how it turned out.

67 neck
58 middle
61 bridge

I believe Martian uses the same pups as I have but I think he switched the neck and middle as compared to mine. They are pretty close in output.

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Post subject: Re: Best blues pickups for Strat
Posted: Wed Mar 13, 2013 10:01 am
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BMW-KTM wrote:
When I chose 3 different Area pups for one of my strats I organised them by output. I put the lowest output pup at the neck and the highest at the bridge. I did this with the intention of helping to achieve an overall output balance. I am quite happy with how it turned out.

67 neck
58 middle
61 bridge

I believe Martian uses the same pups as I have but I think he switched the neck and middle as compared to mine. They are pretty close in output.


Actually, I switched out the middle and bridge pickups entirely. I still use the 67 in the neck but now, I have a 54 Pro in the middle and an Injector neck model in the bridge. I did this not only for overall output balance but for overall frequency response balance as well.

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Post subject: Re: Best blues pickups for Strat
Posted: Wed Mar 13, 2013 10:14 am
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Martian wrote:
Actually, I switched out the middle and bridge pickups entirely. I still use the 67 in the neck but now, I have a 54 Pro in the middle and an Injector neck model in the bridge. I did this not only for overall output balance but for overall frequency response balance as well.

So how do you like it with the hotter pups?
Have you ever tried the Virtual Solo and if so what did you think of it?

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Post subject: Re: Best blues pickups for Strat
Posted: Wed Mar 13, 2013 10:45 am
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I have played many strats with dif pups for blues and blues based rock.
Any strat with good pups will sound great for blues and blues rock. Its more about your style, phrasing, and touch then it is the pups. Of course assuming you have a good healthy amp as well.

With that said my fave are TS set as low as they can go played through any classic well tuned SF of BF fender.


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Post subject: Re: Best blues pickups for Strat
Posted: Wed Mar 13, 2013 10:56 am
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BMW-KTM wrote:
Martian wrote:
Actually, I switched out the middle and bridge pickups entirely. I still use the 67 in the neck but now, I have a 54 Pro in the middle and an Injector neck model in the bridge. I did this not only for overall output balance but for overall frequency response balance as well.

So how do you like it with the hotter pups?
Have you ever tried the Virtual Solo and if so what did you think of it?


I'm satisfied. They aren't really 'hot' by any conventional standards though. Rather, the small bit of increased output enables a greater frequency response above and beyond a typical Strat pickup without losing any of a typical Strat pickup's identity. The biggest three factors here are:
1. They exceed the sonic parameters of any given, superior OEM type Strat pickup.
2. They are dead quiet.
3. Even with staggered polepieces (and a low G pole), the string balance is perfectly even.

I tried the Virtual Solo and found it to be a bit dark and surely, not like any kind of traditional Strat pickup. To me, it sounded like it was begging for overdrive so it could mimic a hot P-90. Granted, this isn't necessarily a bad thing but I prefer a Strat to sound like a Strat and not like an SG Junior.

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Post subject: Re: Best blues pickups for Strat
Posted: Wed Mar 13, 2013 11:40 am
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Martian wrote:
They aren't really 'hot' by any conventional standards though.


Oops! My bad. I somehow missed the word "neck" injector in your post and assumed you meant the bridge injector. Yes, I can see they are not all that much hotter.

After you changed them out did you notice any difference in quack?

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Post subject: Re: Best blues pickups for Strat
Posted: Wed Mar 13, 2013 11:48 am
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BMW-KTM wrote:
Martian wrote:
They aren't really 'hot' by any conventional standards though.


Oops! My bad. I somehow missed the word "neck" injector in your post and assumed you meant the bridge injector. Yes, I can see they are not all that much hotter.

After you changed them out did you notice any difference in quack?


I'm not a "quack" type player but I found no appreciable loss.

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Post subject: Re: Best blues pickups for Strat
Posted: Thu Mar 14, 2013 8:26 am
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I play Blues and Classic Rock. I own 6 Strats ( 1 Fender Custom Shop, 2 other American and 3 Squier) and have replaced the pickups in 4 of them. The two Strats I gig with the most (in order of preference) are as follows:
1. my "Silver Sparkle Strat" which has Neck & Middle: Seymour Duncan SSL-1 single coils and Bridge: Seymour Duncan Pearly Gates Humbucker. This is my favorite and here is an example of me playing it:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XApeQ3Ah ... yg&index=7

2. my Highway One Strat with Fender "Texas Specials".
Here is an example of me playing it:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TF8aQRsl ... yg&index=3

The only pickup swap I was not happy with was Fender Custom Shop '69s (not hot enough for me). I've switched them into an old practice Strat and replaced them with 3 Seymour Duncan single space humbuckers. Much better.

___________________________________________________________________


’04 Fender Custom Shop ’56 Stratocaster Relic RI 50th Anniv. Aztec Gold
'10 Fender American Select Mahogany HSS Stratocaster
’08 Fender American Highway One Stratocaster (Honey Blonde, Texas Special Pickups)
'07 Fender Custom Shop Vintage Heavy Relic HB Telecaster
'03 Gibson ES-345 RI
’08 Gibson Les Paul R-7 Historic Series 1957 RI VOS Gold Top
’93 Gretsch 6120SSU Brian Setzer Signature
’96 Schecter California Custom Hellcat
’98 De Armond by Guild M-75T
’10 Squier Classic Vibe 60’s Stratocaster HHH (S. Duncan: Little ‘59/Duckbucker/JB Jr.)
’10 Squier Telecaster w/Bigsby (Fender CS Texas Specials/Candy Apple Red)
’09 Squier Stratocaster HSS Standard (Pearly Gates HB/SSL-1/SSL-1/Silver Sparkle)
’02 Squier Bullet Strat (Fender CS ’69 pickups/LockingTuners)

’00 Fender Hot Rodded American Precision Bass (P/J pups/Sunset Orange Transparent)

Breedlove AD25/SR Plus Acoustic Guitar

Yamaha S90XS Keyboard

Amps: Bogner Shiva 80W. EL34 w/Rvb + Peavey VK 412; Egnater Renegade 65W. + Ampeg 4x12; Fender 40th Anniversary ’65 Twin Reverb RI; Peavey Delta Blues 115; Roland Cube-60; Roland KC-150; Eden Nemesis NA-320 Bass Amp Head + SWR 4x10T Cabinet


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Post subject: Re: Best blues pickups for Strat
Posted: Wed Mar 04, 2015 6:50 pm
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What pups came factory on your Highway 1 before you put the T specials on it ?

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Post subject: Re: Best blues pickups for Strat
Posted: Wed Mar 04, 2015 8:21 pm
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Martian wrote:
BMW-KTM wrote:
Martian wrote:
Actually, I switched out the middle and bridge pickups entirely. I still use the 67 in the neck but now, I have a 54 Pro in the middle and an Injector neck model in the bridge. I did this not only for overall output balance but for overall frequency response balance as well.

So how do you like it with the hotter pups?
Have you ever tried the Virtual Solo and if so what did you think of it?


I'm satisfied. They aren't really 'hot' by any conventional standards though. Rather, the small bit of increased output enables a greater frequency response above and beyond a typical Strat pickup without losing any of a typical Strat pickup's identity. The biggest three factors here are:
1. They exceed the sonic parameters of any given, superior OEM type Strat pickup.
2. They are dead quiet.
3. Even with staggered polepieces (and a low G pole), the string balance is perfectly even.

I tried the Virtual Solo and found it to be a bit dark and surely, not like any kind of traditional Strat pickup. To me, it sounded like it was begging for overdrive so it could mimic a hot P-90. Granted, this isn't necessarily a bad thing but I prefer a Strat to sound like a Strat and not like an SG Junior.


As someone who often uses the neck pickup for solo work (think Gilmore, Trower, Cream-era Clapton, etc) I prefer something beefier there. Thus, I installed a Virtual Vintage Heavy Blues II in the neck slot of one of my DiMarzio-equipped Strats. With the right OD, compression, and amp rig, it's perfect for "woman tones".

Arjay

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Post subject: Re: Best blues pickups for Strat
Posted: Wed Mar 04, 2015 9:47 pm
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Blue is a very expressive and personal style of music. So many things go into this equation. The amp(s), the guitar, style of blues, and personal voice.

I don't think the question is, "Best blues pickups for Strat?" The better question is, "What pickups will bring out my personal voice and playing the best." In truth, it's not the pickups, it's you as a player which makes the difference.

The best example of this is RSV. No matter what pickup he used, he always sounded like himself. His playing stood out and could be recognized by anyone.

Play a bunch of guitars and find the right pickup for YOU.


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