Best Tele Pickups for Chickin' Pickin'

[Butch Snyder]

Man, am I going nuts with all the different pickups out there to choose from and even more opinions about them.:wah

I just don't know what to choose. As some of you may know, I have a Fender American Nashville B-Bender Tele. The body is poplar with a maple neck. I love the guitar. While the stock pickus are okay, I know I can do better. The neck and bridge pickups are Am Std models while the middle pickup is a Texas Special Strat pickup. The only replacement I have tried so far has been a Duncan Jerry Donahue pickup. It was okay; but wasn't really my cup of tea. I liked the stockers better. I'm looking for a really snappy, sparkly sound that's perfect for chickin' pickin'. That's what I do. I would, however, like them to do some Blues and Jazz as well.

My first thought was Texas Specials. More output, punch, and edge. I thought that if I lowered them they would be an optimal solution. Then I started reading about Kinman's. The reviews sound fantastic. They sure are expensive though....

My wife, who is sharing this quest with me (mainly because she's going to be buying these for me for x-mas), asked, "Well, why don't you just use was Brent Mason, Brad Paisley, Danny Gatton, and others use?" I replied, "They all use something different and all have different tone." I don't want to be a copy. I want my tone to be "mine"...

I really could use some help here...

-Butch

[60burst]

Butch, I really wouldn't worry about sounding too much like those guys you just mentioned. I am sure that won't prove to be too much of a problem. The best vintage Tele pickup copies I have heard are made by Bill Lawrence. I gave them to a friend of mine who called Lawrence and he said he only made these pickups for Roy Buchanan and did not ever make them for the public. We installed these pickups in a vintage Tele and the bridge pickup sounded the same as the other old Teles we compared them to. You can call Lawrence and he will probably make you a set. :60burst

[davey]

Although I was after an entirely different sound as what you're describing, I've been really happy with the Harmonic Design Super 90 in the bridge and the Vintage Plus in the neck. I also complimented both the tone and my string breaking habit with the NEW Graph Tech saddles. They really kick ass.

About the pickups, the Super 90 really does the best job of making a Tele or Esquire do the LP Jr. thing. Like I said, it doesn't seem to be what you're after, you also might want to try Wolfetones. Email Wolfe at: wolfetonepups@earthlink.net or give him a call at: (206) 417-3548. And of course visit his website at: http://www.wolfetone.com/

Wolfe is a great guy to deal with and so is Scott from Harmonic Design. Best thing about Wolfe is that he really wants you to get the sound you're after, he'll keep winding his pups until you do.

[jim in texas]

Butch...

I think this is what I'd do.....

1. call Bill or Becky Lawrence and introduce yourself and then tell them what sound you hear in your head.

2. send them a tape of your excellent playing so that he can wind the pickup to complement your style.

I wish I had your problem. My playing is so average that the stuff off the shelf suits me fine. On the other hand, your playing is stunning.

[Butch Snyder]

I believe I'm going to end up going with a set of Kinmans - the AVN Custom 60's Tele set.

I know they're pricey, but this is my workhorse guitar. I've heard and read that they're the best. I guess I'm going to find out...:nelson

[kottkewannabe]

Have you ordered the Kinmans yet? If not, my tech in Minneapolis here is a dealer and could get them to you relatively quickly. (you're in Ohio, right?) I just called him and he could get a set out to you soon. His name is Dave Rusan...phone number is 952-941-8935. Excellent guy and I know that the experience would go well (questions, pricing, etc.). I don't know where you're at in the ordering process, but I know that it'd be easier and cheaper to get them from MN than it would be from Australia.

[Butch Snyder]

Actually, I know a guy who has a new set for $175. That's the cheapest I have seen so far...

[Teleologist]

Have you considered a tapped single coil??? Unlike a humbucker or stack, the tap can be anywhere within the coil i.e.~ 6.5-6.8K for a nice clean '60s Bakersfield sound with the full coil wound to ~7.5-8K(#42 wire) for Texas blues, distortion, etc....

The late Red Rhoades Velvet Hammers are like that(I have one in a '58 Esquire) and someone(stringpull.com???) has started building them again. The real Clarence White Tele has one and those fat sounds Marty Stewart gets("That's Country") is full-tilt Hammer. I don't know how the new ones compare to the oldies(Red didn't wind 'em all the same), but you could ask around - try the Clarence White Forum.

I'd guess that most PUP builders could wind you one to spec(Fralin, Duncan Custom Shop, etc.) and if you have an unused PUP laying around, you could probably get it rewound that way or have the boost coil added(but you probably don't want A-II magnets like the SD JD).

Is your bridge plate the older non-magnetic brass version(see if a magnet sticks)??? That would have an effect on single coils that have bottom plates. The newer steel ones are supposed to alter the magnetic field like a vintage bridge does. I'm not sure exactly when Fender switched materials, but the altered field sucks some of the mids out.

[Butch Snyder]

My Tele is the one you see in my avatar. It's a 2001 Am Std bridge.

[kottkewannabe]

Wow...who's your dealer?

[Butch Snyder]

No dealer... Just a guy from another forum who bought the pickups new and then got a Nocaster and decided against putting the Kinmans in there.

[halouis]

no matter what you get Butch. you'll sound amazing!!! i heard some recent Mp3s of your playiong and was dumbfounded. really terrific stuff.

i wish i had 1/4 of your talent.

[kuntikin]

Butch, I remember you man, that drop d boogie of yours was just a kick ass! (from HC vets)

Hope that you find the following helpful.

I have a muy grande bridge on my hard ash tele. Very much on the fat side but still a tele bridge pickup. and the nice thing is that playing with the volume does tons of tricks, unlike the stock ones (at least i could not do that).

Two weeks ago I've received my Torres blues tele bridge, and installed it to my new mary kay white american standard strat (needed to do some careful wood carving under the hood). A very nice pickup, balanced and lots of definition. Now I like it more than the muy grande.

But still both of these are on the fat side, not exactly for c&p'ing.

[Butch Snyder]

Hey guys,

Here's a quote from a guy from another forum.

"Butch, you may remember me from, that other forum regarding one of you pedals but...

There is an old phrase I got from some country pickers, and it goes "if it is over 8 (DC), it ain't a country picker".

I agree with that in regards to the bridge pu. The best country axes have a bright bridge pu, like the 52ri or Nocaster or similar pickup by another manufacturer in the bridge. Something big an beefy in the neck, like the TS or a humbucker.

I am not saying you can't twang with other pu's in the bridge, I am just saying that you will find your self gravitating back to the "below 8 DC rule" in the bridge one day."

What do y'all think?

[Teleologist]

I'd agree assuming we're talking PUPs with #42 wire and Alnico-5 magnets in a fairly bright Tele. The 10K Texas Tele, early Relic, and original Broadcaster PUPs have thinner #43(more resistance per foot) so they're not as overwound as the resistance reading wound suggest. 8K with #42 and weaker A-II or A-3 magnets is probably too much - your SD JD is ~7.3-7.5K with A-IIs. And a 7K '52RI PUP might even be too much in a dark Tele if one is looking for more of a James Burton/Carl Perkins type sound as opposed to the warmer/fatter modern Nashville sound.

[tombuur]

Got the Kinman 60's and they are okay. Don't know much about Telecasters, since I just bought my first one this year. I do, however, have Kinmans in my two Strats so there was no doubt about getting them for the Tele too.

I think the bridge pup sounds better than the stock I replaced. Not so sure about the neck pup. But that may be a matter of taste.

They are noiseless when close to electric equipment, except when I don't touch the Tele, then there is a hum. My two Strats don't do that, they are completely noiseless all the time, so I guess I have to fix something inside the Tele. Probably something else not sufficiently shielded, not the pups.

[Butch Snyder]

Okay, Nocaster Clean...

Any thoughts or opinions?

[Guildx700~]

I have a 10.5k Nocaster Clean in my franken-tele that you'd have to kill me in order to pry it from my hands, I rarely say anything about pickups but this one's THE SHITE!!


Now as far as the new lower output ones, 8.5k or so, I've not heard them, but I've heard thay too are very good, just not as hot as the original cleans were.

[pc]

Butch,

In both the "old" forum and this one, I've always been a big advocate of the Kinmans (AVN 60s) in my AmSe Tele.

That said, I think they're all wrong for what you want. I can't speak for the other Kinman Tele pups, but the AVN-60s are NOT for chickin' pickin' IMHO.

Also don't think the Lawrence's are for you.

However, FWIW, you can get Kinman's by ordering them from Australia (let alone your local source) about 6 times faster than ordering from BL. However, I don't disagree with Jim In Texas about talking to Becky and Bill, and also Kinman (via email) about your needs, because they're all extremely cool about giving ideas for sounds you're looking for.

I'd say Nocaster Clean is definitely something to consider. I also played an Ash Tele with Bardens, and although they weren't quite what I wanted (I play more R&B, Funk and Fusion), I remember thinking they'd be awesome for chickin' pickin' and the like.

Just some thoughts...

[Butch Snyder]

I have a Nocaster Clean coming...

We'll see what happens.:nelson

[Butch Snyder]

I just got a DiMarzio Virtual-T bridge pickup from one of my local dealers. He was very instistant that I try it. I told him that I have a Nocaster pickup coming. He told me that I might like the Virtual-T better. I warned him of my experiences with stacked single coils. I had a Duncan Vintage Stack once. I said it was nice; but that was just it... It too nice. I need something more along the lines of Brad Paisley. He handed me the Virtual-T and said, "Try it for a couple of weeks. If you don't like it, bring it back. If you do, which I'll bet you will, just bring me the money." I fell for it. I'll install it tonight.