jackblues
Strat-Talker
100%. I had them ceramics in my US made squiers, i gave them to my son, he put them in chinese squier and i still take his guitar to play sometimes
)
I think I'm done. (with CS Texas Specials)
- Thread starter jackblues
- Start date
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Stratafied
Dr. Stratster
They get a bad rap , but they’re really good sounding full pickups.100%. I had them ceramics in my US made squiers, i gave them to my son, he put them in chinese squier and i still take his guitar to play sometimes
Wulfrik
Strat-O-Master
I've spent most of today messing with my amps and stuff, and I've got a borrowed 2011 American Standard strat here as well as my Mexican Standard with BKP pickups and wiring (loaded scratchplate with 280k pots) and a Callaham trem system, and my American Special.
I'm honestly happiest with the sound of the AmSpec with the Texas Specials in it, especially in the neck position. It's so throaty and wide. From experience, they cut the band mix better than the BKPs, too.
I love the sound of them. I'd fit them in my other strat but for one annoying issue that they have. That daft high G string pole-piece. If you get the pickup to where it sounds killer, the g string doesn't sustain as well as the other strings. There's no real way to fix it. I wish Fender would do a set with an alternative stagger pattern, then I'd have another set in a heartbeat.
I'm honestly happiest with the sound of the AmSpec with the Texas Specials in it, especially in the neck position. It's so throaty and wide. From experience, they cut the band mix better than the BKPs, too.
I love the sound of them. I'd fit them in my other strat but for one annoying issue that they have. That daft high G string pole-piece. If you get the pickup to where it sounds killer, the g string doesn't sustain as well as the other strings. There's no real way to fix it. I wish Fender would do a set with an alternative stagger pattern, then I'd have another set in a heartbeat.
Antigua
Senior Stratmaster
Ceramic pickups sound good for sure, with some of the qualities of a PAF humbucker in a single coil. I still find it necessary to work the tone control, because like Texas Specials, import style single coils have a lower peak frequency that can stick out in the mix, in an unpleasant way. But if you're listening to Dick Dale all the way through to SRV, that's the sound of something closer to the 57/62, where importantly, the bridge pickup is in no way overwound relative to the other pickups. Sometime between the 80's and the 90's they cater to high gain and lower price points and sacrificed some nuances in the design that made a difference that not everyone appreciated until the persistent question came up as to why the older product sounded better, or at least, what we've come to think of as Stratty tone.
eclecticsynergy
Senior Stratmaster
I agree with what some others here said about the Texas Specials. They need to be set lower than you'd expect to be at their best.
That said, matching a particular guitar is important - pickups that sound siwnright epic in one Strat might be pretty lackluster in another.
One more thumbs up for the MIM ceramics. Great pickups, and pretty democratic - they sound good in just about any guitar and with many different amps. A few years back you could get a set for $30 on eBay; nobody wanted 'em. People are finally turning on to these.
That said, matching a particular guitar is important - pickups that sound siwnright epic in one Strat might be pretty lackluster in another.
One more thumbs up for the MIM ceramics. Great pickups, and pretty democratic - they sound good in just about any guitar and with many different amps. A few years back you could get a set for $30 on eBay; nobody wanted 'em. People are finally turning on to these.
That paint job is spectacular!!!
jackblues
Strat-Talker
Thank you! Its my first time ever, and its really not that spectacular when you look closer
jackblues
Strat-Talker
Oh, forgot to mention- if anyone was wondering why the body is kinda red on the first picture, its because someone with superior intellectual abilities painted that body with red matte home depot primer before. Took me a week to peel it all off.
Paint the guitar RED and you will have unlimited tone and you will play and sound better...lol
Try a cap change.
Try a cap change.
Odell
Strat-Talker
I'll be interested in hearing your take on the Fat 50's and 60's. I'm currently using the Pure Vintage 54 set; A3 magnets and a more gentle stagger than some of the other vintage types out there. On the down side, they're not calibrated and the middle p/up is not RWRP. Nonetheless, they work well for me and, IMO, are very good paired with a tweed amp.
jackblues
Strat-Talker
I will wire three pickguards and post a video here with everything
I’ll throw in ceramics too)
jackblues
Strat-Talker
Installed Fat 60s.
sounds absolutely incomparable. Much much better. Sounds fat AND 60s
)I will work on the sound samples soon.
Just to write something pro Texas Special. I got a incomplete set (neck and bridge) from a 1994 Fender Lone Star Strat. The neck and the middle sounded really good, but i struggled with a matching bridge. I found there were two different bridge pickups made over the decades. I don’t why and when Fender changed the specs - but this was a bad move. The nowaday bridge is 6.6k with an inductance of 3.2, the older is far higher with 7.2k and an inductance of 3.6 H.
I looked used and found only the newer 6.7k bridge, which i did not like (its now in the neck of a partscaster). I asked a winder to do me a copy of this older bridge pu … and it delivers.
I looked used and found only the newer 6.7k bridge, which i did not like (its now in the neck of a partscaster). I asked a winder to do me a copy of this older bridge pu … and it delivers.
I can’t stand Texas specials they’re awful
langstoneight
Strat-Talk Member
for the typical Strat Sound Fender Pups are the way to go.
Handwound Ybarra or Campos, then Handwound retail SEs, than retail Vintage
Handwound Ybarra or Campos, then Handwound retail SEs, than retail Vintage
stratman323
Dr. Stratster
You believe that you could tell hand wound pickups from ordinary pickups in a blind test?
langstoneight
Strat-Talk Member
absolutely not.
Its all Marketing BS which gets to my wallet through my unconsciousness.
