I like Fender Noventa as well as strats with mini humbuckers. Would Squier have an audience with either? I like the idea of the EBMM/Sterling St. Vincent model ($599) but in a Squier strat body. We've already done lipstick pickups in a Squier strat, so why not two or three low cost, fat sounding mini-humbuckers (or P-90s) https://shop.fender.com/en-US/electric-guitars/stratocaster/noventa-stratocaster/0140923338.html
That would be nice. In terms of cost I think it would be lateral to what they have right now with the bridge hot rail and neck humbucker tele. They should be able to pull it off for $429. GFS makes p-90s and Squier could scale it up to a lower cost per pickup. https://www.guitarfetish.com/GFS-Alnico-Vintage-Soapbar-Black-Pickup_c_103.html
Just my personal opinion but I'm not a fan of either p90s or mini buckers in a Strat. I feel like they need a more substantial wood body like a Tele or LP style to get the best out of them.
Having more wood mass would probably be ideal for these bigger sounding pickups. A double bound strat, like some old Fender teles and esquires that were built this way, could give that mass, and hard tail like the Noventa would be nice. There's not a giant demand for bound strats but here's one by the Custom shop though I can see Squier putting the concept into mass production with a mahogany-like nato body. https://reverb.com/item/39525906-fe...MIhvze6eHs7wIVJRvnCh3X0gm1EAQYASABEgI2rfD_BwE
This could be done very affordably by Squier in a probably a ceramic magnet setup. But if they're made in a large enough quantity they can be made on the cheap and the Contemporary series is onto something. https://920dcustom.com/products/920...blue-shell-chrome?_pos=1&_sid=a05d06b02&_ss=r
None of that would surprise me, given the growing popularity of some of the lesser-used pickups out there. Wouldn't even shock me if Squier rolled out some gold foils or something. On a tangential note: I was thinking the other day, if I was in charge of Squier, I would open up a parts ordering depot, kind of akin to GFS. Squiers are very popular with modders, they may as well get in on the Frankenstrat action directly. How cool would it be if you could order a body of one guitar (finished or unfinished), neck from another, whatever style pickups you wanted, etc etc etc. All Squier branded stuff without having to hunt things down second hand. I know I'd be into that. A la carte guitar building.
You mean you don't think this is any good? I think Mr. Winwood, and a whole lot of his most iconic records prove otherwise.
Lots of companies have minis, and many for less money than those, like GFS and GM. Their Strat sized one on that page is 19k, so it's gonna sound like a hotrail, not like a real mini. I don't think anyone makes a mini sounding pickup in a Strat single coil size package.
I know Hot Rails is its own thing. The ceramic Fender strat pickup has more mids and compression than an alnico strat pickup, but not quite as big on mids as a mini humbucker. I wonder if the Duncan Quarter Pounder or Cool Rails sounds like a mini humbucker. Tte demo in this video below makes it sound a lot like standard strat ceramic pickups. It's warmer and bigger than strat pickups but not as much as a full humbucker. Even though I expect no chine from the mini humbuckers there is enough single coil chime.
I think his Non-Reverse Firebird is pretty awesome and sounded great, but that's a pretty large set neck all mahogany guitar with a vibrola. My comment was my opinion of those types of pickups in tremelo equipped Strats in particular.
They'll be brighter perhaps in an alder or poplar bodied guitar with a bolt on maple neck, but they'll still sound great, IMO
I have never played a Strat, or any guitar for that matter, with mini humbuckers, so I can’t comment on that. But I like P90’s in a Strat. This is my P90 equipped Squier.
