Tele Pickups

[Spitfire]

Hey, i have just got a CIJ '71 tele... ive been messing about with it a lot.. but i know nothing at all about tele pickups.

can anyone tell me a lil bit about tele pickups.. id be going for a sort of jeff buckley vibe.. maybe a gilmour (even tho he obv is a strat player mainly) and radiohead.

do i want to be going for a bit of a higher output pickup than the stock??

[Twinfan]

I find with hot single coils you lose a lot of dynamics, which is what makes single coils great in some applications.

The Blackguard set seems to be a great option for classic tones, but with a more useful neck pickup than a true vintage one (they are really dark).

[AndyR]

I've not got much useful info except "I love my Blackguards" :D

They are actually quite hot - they drive my amp models a fair bit harder than my Irish Tours, for example.

I've just acquired a CIJ 52 re-issue tele which looks as if it contains Texas Specials. The Blackguards in my Baja seem more lively - the CIJ is producing a slightly more "compressed" tone, and possibly slightly less powerful. BUT, with different amp models, either guitar can drive the amp more than the other... I suspect that the pups are pushing out different amounts, or frequencies, of mids or whatever. (Or maybe it's the guitars themselves? see below..)

The Blackguard neck pup is a lot darker than the Baja's original neck (a "Twisted Tele", I believe), and thicker sounding than the neck in the CIJ (and this one isn't as sweet sounding as the Blackguard or the Twisted Tele). But like Twinfan says, the Blackguard neck doesn't seem (to me, anyway) to be as dark sounding as the original vintage ones are reputed to be - I happily use bridge, bridge/neck, and neck.

I happily use all three on my CIJ as well, but funnily enough, I can forget that I'm on the neck pup sometimes if I don't look down - both guitars feel very similar, and the CIJ neck pup responds to stuff I'd normally play on the the Baja bridge!! go figure... :lol:

I believe I shall be replacing the CIJ pups, but I'm not rushing into it. After some height adjusting, the Texas Specials are doing a fair old job themselves (as long as I don't play the Baja in the same session!).

Candidates for me are another set of Blackguard 50s (front-runner at the moment), or possibly a set of Yardbirds (but I was expecting to get a 62 reissue to put those in!! :roll:). I understand the Yardbird neck is VERY sweet sounding (might help on the Gilmour front? I'd have said the Blackguard neck was too thick for that...)

One thing I'm learning first hand now though - it definitely depends on your guitar (its wood, etc). I am not expecting the CIJ to sound like the Baja with the same pups. They're both resonant, but accoustically the Baja sings and "bites you", where the CIJ sings and "thumps you".

My gut feeling is you might be looking at Yardbirds - but really I'm advising you from my own GAS rather than any experience! :lol:

[38thBeatle]

I am restricted in my knowledge of BKPs so far as Teles are concerned as I have Country Boys which I love and would swap out. A set I would dearly like to have would be Blackguards ( I'd love to think we pronounce that Blaggard incidentally) but I haven't tried them but it is not out of the question for me to get another Tele with the sole reason of getting the Blackguards. If I were you I think I would be thinking vintage spec though. I love the Tele tones on Grace and have achieved that kind of sound with my Tele. Sorry, not a lot of practical help here.

[Philly Q]

A set I would dearly like to have would be Blackguards ( I'd love to think we pronounce that Blaggard incidentally)

 :lol:

I will from now on!

[Spitfire]

thanks guys, there is some good stuff there... im thinking maybe some yardbirds, with anything it may be a little hit and miss... try some and go from there.

[PhilKing]

Check out these 2 threads.  I have added a bit of detail about all the BK tele pickups between the 2 of them!

http://bareknucklepickups.co.uk/forum/index.php?topic=14427.0

http://bareknucklepickups.co.uk/forum/index.php?topic=10657.0

[HTH AMPS]

Seems I'm in the same position as a few of you here - I'm happy with the pickups in my Tele (Fender CS nocaster) but feel that something from BKP will give me that magic that the best pickups have. 

[Twinfan]

You'll have the stock neck pickup then, HTH?  They're quite dark on NoCasters I believe.  I've got the Twisted Tele neck pickup in mine and it's very Strat-like.  It's also sounds better than the supposedly identical pickup in my old Baja Tele.  Could be the wood, might not be the same pickup i.e. a Mexican made version.....

I love the pickups in my CS Tele, they're going nowhere.

[HTH AMPS]

You'll have the stock neck pickup then, HTH?  They're quite dark on NoCasters I believe.  I've got the Twisted Tele neck pickup in mine and it's very Strat-like.  It's also sounds better than the supposedly identical pickup in my old Baja Tele.  Could be the wood, might not be the same pickup i.e. a Mexican made version.....

I love the pickups in my CS Tele, they're going nowhere.

not quite Dave, my Tele is an old MIM '72 Tele Custom thats been pimped up with a CS Nocaster bridge p/up and an old 70s Wide Range neck humbucker.  They're both just 'ok' to be honest - the bridge is better and really prefers to rock out, it likes a bit gain.  However, I want more trad Tele tone, not painfully bright, but still plenty twang with a midrange that isn't quite as hard sounding as the Nocaster.

Thinking Black Crowes/Stones/Faces.

[PhilKing]

[However, I want more trad Tele tone, not painfully bright, but still plenty twang with a midrange that isn't quite as hard sounding as the Nocaster.

Thinking Black Crowes/Stones/Faces.

Look at the Brown Sugar bridge then - it nails that tone in my rosewood board guitar.  You could have BK rewind the neck too - I think they are oversized compared to a regular hb.  I have an old Gibson made Silvertone mini-hb in the neck of my tele with the Brown Sugar.  You can see it really well in this picture - it looks like the Fender with the 3+3 screw setup.  I also have the 4-way switch in it for the extra series tone.

[AndyR]

I've got the Twisted Tele neck pickup in mine and it's very Strat-like.  It's also sounds better than the supposedly identical pickup in my old Baja Tele.  Could be the wood, might not be the same pickup i.e. a Mexican made version.....

TF - I've heard the Twisted Tele in the more recent Bajas might not be the CS pickup, BUT!! I've just done something to my Baja that might go some way to explaining why the pup sounded different in your old Baja.

Has your CS Tele got a treble-bleed capacitor across the volume pot? I suspect not, but the Baja certainly has, and I've been eyeing it with some suspicion ever since I first opened her up 8 months ago :lol:.

Now, my Baja has Blackguards in it, not the originals, but I've just removed the capacitor, and Hey! does it improve things for me. It was already good, but now...  8)

I tend to roll use my volume controls a lot, and on a strat I've always taken advantage of the slight loss of top-end when rolling off volume, the treble-loss that a treble-bleed is intended to "fix". I tried a bleed on a strat years ago, immediately didn't like it so I ripped it out again - couldn't have explained why I didn't like it though :roll:. What has never crossed my mind in all these years, is that this "retaining of treble" is likely to make the pickups seem slightly weedy to some ears as you turn the volume down... your lose some of yer "beef" :lol:... and that's what I don't like about it.

Results:
a) Blackguards in my Baja even more scrumptious than ever...
b) Original pickups from my Baja will now go into my CIJ for a test - that Twisted-Neck was obviously not as "thin" as I thought it was, and it's good bits (bell-like clarity) might well be what I want in the CIJ...
c) Anyone with a Baja, who uses the volume control, try opening her up and disconnecting one end of the treble-bleed cap - you might like what you find :D

[HTH AMPS]

[However, I want more trad Tele tone, not painfully bright, but still plenty twang with a midrange that isn't quite as hard sounding as the Nocaster.

Thinking Black Crowes/Stones/Faces.

Look at the Brown Sugar bridge then - it nails that tone in my rosewood board guitar.  You could have BK rewind the neck too - I think they are oversized compared to a regular hb.  I have an old Gibson made Silvertone mini-hb in the neck of my tele with the Brown Sugar.  You can see it really well in this picture - it looks like the Fender with the 3+3 screw setup.  I also have the 4-way switch in it for the extra series tone.

the Brown Sugar is the obvious choice, I'll certainly look into it.  the only thing concerning me is the A5 magnets - it always sounds too 'brash' to me unless you're throwing alot of overdrive into the mix.  I think the A3 Country Boys seem more my thing, but I'm worried they might be a bit weak and lack punch.  defo need to talk with Tim I reckon.

as for the Wide Range in the neck, I'm not crash hot on humbuckers in Teles - they 'look' cool, but the tone isn't that inspiring imo.  I'd much prefer a nice classic Strat neck single coil tone, but I'd prefer it to 'look' like a Tele neck pickup with the metal cover - ideas?

[PhilKing]

as for the Wide Range in the neck, I'm not crash hot on humbuckers in Teles - they 'look' cool, but the tone isn't that inspiring imo.  I'd much prefer a nice classic Strat neck single coil tone, but I'd prefer it to 'look' like a Tele neck pickup with the metal cover - ideas?

The black guard tele neck is more stratty than the regular tele necks.  I put a Slow Hand into one of my teles but it looks like a Strat pickup - I'm not sure if anyone does metal pickup covers for them.  I used to have a Danelectro in the neck of my MIJ 62 tele custom, and that had a great sound, very stratish but with a different overall tone.