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The Pickup Place / Slimming down to 1 guitar, HSS Strat. Need it to be versatile. Help with pickups
« on: June 20, 2018, 03:25:37 PM »
So after spending a while analyzing how I use my guitars, and what I use in different situations, I've come to the conclusion that an HSS strat is the best for me. I am tired of maintaining multiple guitars.
I like a very wide variety of music, and noodle around with everything. Anything from chicken pickin country, to wes montgomery style jazz, to John Mayer/SRV blues, to pop from all decades, to a wide variety of high gain tones, grew up listening to Nirvana and early 2000's alternative/nu metal.
When I play anything with distortion, I ALWAYS use the bridge pickup, and I prefer that it is a humbucker.
When I play cleaner stuff I 98% of the time stick to either a neck single coil, or neck + middle.
So far for all of this I have to change guitars, but now want it all in 1.
I want a good balanced pickup set for a HSS configuration, with 5 way selector switch. Maybe I am asking for a lot, but I don't want there to be a massive volume shift between pickups, even going from single coil to humbucker.
One thing about single coils that I will mention is that I prefer them to be very loud. I have a 1988 American Standard Strat, no clue what pickups are in it but I believe it's the stock alnico 5's that I heard are pretty high output in strats from those years. I to this day have never played another strat that has sounded as full, bell like, and loud as my strat. Maybe the tone from other starts is the true strat tone, but if that is the case, I don't like them. Every single strat I have played in stores sounds extremely thin and trebly compared to mine. Even telecasters. I have a couple of american standard telecasters and when I play them side by side against my strat, same amp settings, when I plug in the strat, the tone is instantly louder and more full. I am afraid of taking my strat apart in fear of losing whatever magic it has, but I am still on the hunt for single coil that can rival it.
I am actually on the hunt for a early 2000's American Fat Strat Texas Special/Lonestar Strat, which has the 2 Texas Special pickups and the Pearly Gates Plus which was only made for that guitar.
I am hoping this model can give me what I am looking for in terms of versatility.
Perhaps there is a better pickup set? Advice is welcome.
I like a very wide variety of music, and noodle around with everything. Anything from chicken pickin country, to wes montgomery style jazz, to John Mayer/SRV blues, to pop from all decades, to a wide variety of high gain tones, grew up listening to Nirvana and early 2000's alternative/nu metal.
When I play anything with distortion, I ALWAYS use the bridge pickup, and I prefer that it is a humbucker.
When I play cleaner stuff I 98% of the time stick to either a neck single coil, or neck + middle.
So far for all of this I have to change guitars, but now want it all in 1.
I want a good balanced pickup set for a HSS configuration, with 5 way selector switch. Maybe I am asking for a lot, but I don't want there to be a massive volume shift between pickups, even going from single coil to humbucker.
One thing about single coils that I will mention is that I prefer them to be very loud. I have a 1988 American Standard Strat, no clue what pickups are in it but I believe it's the stock alnico 5's that I heard are pretty high output in strats from those years. I to this day have never played another strat that has sounded as full, bell like, and loud as my strat. Maybe the tone from other starts is the true strat tone, but if that is the case, I don't like them. Every single strat I have played in stores sounds extremely thin and trebly compared to mine. Even telecasters. I have a couple of american standard telecasters and when I play them side by side against my strat, same amp settings, when I plug in the strat, the tone is instantly louder and more full. I am afraid of taking my strat apart in fear of losing whatever magic it has, but I am still on the hunt for single coil that can rival it.
I am actually on the hunt for a early 2000's American Fat Strat Texas Special/Lonestar Strat, which has the 2 Texas Special pickups and the Pearly Gates Plus which was only made for that guitar.
I am hoping this model can give me what I am looking for in terms of versatility.
Perhaps there is a better pickup set? Advice is welcome.