I have a American Fender Telecaster, love the guitar don't care for the pickups. I was stupid I put a set of Fender Pure Vintage 58s in it, and sold the original pickups. I have change the height up and down they seem to me life less . They are just a little to bright to me little to much bite . i have retired since I change the pickups and don't have the money I used to have. So what pickups would you suggest at a decent price and you know what i mean decent price. Before I got my Tele I played mostly humbucker guitars, are something like a USA Jackson with S/S/H EMGs. What would you suggest, I have guitars with humbuckers I would like to stay with single coils
This: https://tonerider.com/product/hot-classics/ You can buy them here: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0050U7WVK/?tag=squiertalk-20
Check out Planet Tone pickups. I have a set in my Tele partcaster, and couldn't be more pleased. They're running a 15% off sale for the holidays. Hand-wound in the USA, top quality and sound, for about 1/3-1/2 the price of the big names. https://planettone.com/
I bought some Alnico 3 Bootstrap pickups recently (extra crispy set), can’t say enough good things about them for the price. To me, it’s the perfect balance for a tele, slightly hotter and a smoothed out high end.
Why do you insist on single coils when they always sound too bight to you? I think you need to get hotter and warmer sounding single coils, like Texas Specials, or Quarter Pounders, or maybe even some single coil sized HBs like rail types. And, no, we don't know what you mean by a decent price. Some people think $100 for a good set is a good price, and some people think that's too high and never want to spend more than $20-50. Guitar Madness has several hotter Tele pickups, from Hot alnicos and ceramics to rails.
If its too bright get a humbucker in the bridge, Dragon Hotrails kick Arse, and are very affordable. Around $50, i have them in my homeade Thinline sound awesome. http://rover.ebay.com/rover/1/711-5...0001&campid=5338148356&icep_item=254101797154
I think you misunderstand what treble bleed does. It has no effect when the volume pot is all the way up, but keeps the tone brighter when turning the volume pot down.
And it's technically "treble bypass," as the treble frequencies are bypassed from ground when the pot is rolled back. What's being bled is frequencies below the threshold "selected" by the bypass cap.
Yep, the treble frequencies above the threshold set by the value of the cap, stay at 10, as all the other frequencies below that threshold are rolled off when turning the pot down.
Well you could roll your tone pot back a smidge but that would be free and therefore no fun at all...
And yet on the two guitars I had that CAME with it, and others I’ve installed... when bypassed, were much brighter... Especially on my G&L Bluesboy on the neck bucker. Because now your threshold is fixed (instead of wide open). Your starting point is darker. RC networks are funny, and do not always do just one thing to tone. Full Shielding can also darken a guitars tone (pleasantly sometimes). What I don’t know is how a set of Pure ‘58’s can be lifeless. Not someone’s cup of tea maybe, but lifeless? Any suggestion we give Gary is a “try it and see what happens” thing at best. Some guys replace perfectly good pots, and think their guitars “come to life” just because the span on the tone control has changed (same with a cap value change, they think it’s the PIO magic).
Try changing strings to heavier. I recently took some old 10s off my tele and put on 9s (carpal tunnel issues). The tone is completely different, and bridge p/u is basically unusable to me. Way too bright and it literally sounds like switching to an AM radio. Couldn't believe how much difference a small change in strings can make.
I’ll go out on limb here and say you will get probably 20-30 different opinions so I’ll throw in my $.02 cents, DiMarzio or Rose
I make ceramic pickups into Alnico...Here is how that sounds.. The neck is a modded ceramic that is now A3.. The bridge is 62 US Fender... click this link: https://rumble.com/van5x5-telecaster-demo.html
I lower them down quite a bit, like even with the pick guard . Now they have sweeter warm sound. I a very happy boy now
I've had , back in the early 70's, a '66 Telecaster, and through the years , 6 more of various series . I had the same issue on my last one, a 2014 limited edition ash body maple neck. I was looking for some sounds that I was used too. Dan Shinn at Lay's Guitar shop (renowned for custom repairs and refins) try the Fender Vintage Noiseless...not being a fan at all for those...he said if I didn't like them , he'd buy them from me. Well I was floored by the sound...natural sparkle, not too bright, combined with both pickups on together, it was and still is my favorite Tele pickups..various prices everywhere, and ratings are always great... Flush-mount pole pieces for even string response Alnico 2 magnets for warmer attack and less-aggressive midrange Through the years below....but I'm still a Stratocaster fan #1
throw away greasebucket, i had a loss on highway one. i changed him pickups and it didn't sound good take some simple schematic and solder it, you might be surprised. the sound changes beyond recognition