Tanglewood Chicago - 335 style - pickup advice please

[wardieboy]

Hi,

I am wanting to upgrade the pickups on my Tanglewood Chicago. It's a 335 style guitar as per the pic below but is a right hander:



I've never upgraded a guitar before so am looking for some advice if anyone feels they can contribute. I have a local tech who has quoted for a full re-wire, replace pots and caps and to fit the pickups for me.

I'm looking for a balsy bluesy vintage tone. I had my first play on a few Gibsons last week at a jam with some work mates. Had a go on a Les Paul Special, Junior and Standard and loved them all. Wouldn't be averse to approaching that tone!

I'm not too concerned with the guitar feeding back as it does have a block inside. I used to gig the guitar alongside a friend who used Epi casino's and Dot's they fedback consistently but the Tanglewood has always been a more tolerant instrument.

I've been listening to sound samples and digging around on youtube for BKP examples and have a short list of:

Stormy Monday
Riff Raff
Mississippi Queen

Should I be considering any other models?

Also should I consider a mixed set? I've rarely used both pickups together in the past so wouldn't be averse to having contrasting bridge and neck models to cover a wide tonal variance.

Any comments would be greatly appreciated.

Many thanks  :D

[Telerocker]

This one screams for AII Stormy Mondays. Upgrading will definitely improve the sound. If you want to go all the way consider better tuners and  hardware like a Tone Pro's tune-o-matic bridge. It makes quite a difference. At the same time it would an expensive upgrade.

[kevinr]

AII Stormies without a doubt!

[Nolly]

Yep, Stormies are most definitely the default choice for a semi-hollow, though you could consider the Mules if you want a bit more beef.

[Fourth Feline]

After much experimenting between AII Stormy Mondays, AIV Stormies and Mississippi Queens for this style of guitar , I ended up prefering the Mississippi Queens. Rich, ( but if needed snappy ) Larry Carlton tones, through to assertive but meaty and 'plump' push. I once described the M.Qs as being 'Not shy in the showers' . Ballsy indeed  8).  Mine are no longer in my Tanglewood, as it gets lent out to friends when needed ( and I play Jazzy / full archtop stuff full time these days ) - so unfortunatley I cannot post a representative sound sample.

In my Tanglewood ( TH502 - not as nice as yours ) - I found the AII Stormies too soft and quiet in the bass, and AIV tightened the bass a tad, but gave a stiff and less characterful tone on the top strings.  Mississippi Queens, grabbed the bass by the throat ( in a nice way ) - and gave all strings a beautifully rich-yet- confident quality.

It's not that Stormies are intinsically 'wrong' - as such, for AII versions are brilliant in my Les Paul or Ibanez AF75 fully hollow Archtop - but they were too subtle for my 335 copy . They just got dampened, darkened and 'lost' in that all that  Basswood and budget Mahogany . The chemistry was wrong between my TH502 and Stormies. With M.Qs, it was very good indeed.  :)

If I ever returned to Blues playing - and bought a higher ticket 335-a-like , I would use Mississippi Queens all the way.  With them, you also have a more unique sonic signature too ; as they impart a very rich voice to a semi-acoustic.  :)

[wardieboy]

Thanks for all the input everyone, much appreciated!

Fourth,  I am leaning towards the Mississippi Queens due to your experience with upgrading a Tanglewood model. That coupled with the tone of the Les Paul Junior I recently played which was equipped with a P90.

It probably would be sensible to sell the Tanglewood and buy a Les Paul Junior and break even on the cash front. The thing is this guitar has been with me for a long time and I would be keen to have something unique. She play's well, the neck is good, low action and there is not a mark on her.

Just to clear one thing up in my mind (I've decided choosing pickups is even harder than choosing which model of HDTV to buy, but I am sure the gratification of finally making a decision will be just as rewarding!!!), would it be a no-no to mix and match the MQ's with the SM's? If it was an option which would you have in each position?

Thanks again all.   

[Fourth Feline]

Would it be a no-no to mix and match the MQ's with the SM's? If it was an option which would you have in each position?

Thanks again all.    

An interesting idea, but I would not have thought to try - due to percieved output differences of each model.

The M.Qs are surprisingly dominating for a warm, glassy, Bluesy pickup, and the S.Ms are capable, but if they were a dog, you wouldn't get them to bite people. To be more specific - IF I did mix'n match them, I would definately let each pickup occupy it's best tonal 'slot' - i.e the M.Q bridge and the S.M. neck.  I like the way B.K.P are matched as pairs, but I feel  the S.M. bridge and M.Q neck are more like the support acts to their siblings, as opposed to being notable as a stand alone item - and are therefore spot on for middle toggle position tones within each matched pair ( where I seem to spend 90% of my time ).

Theoretically one might think the M.Q. bridge ( Alnico V magnet and fat windings ) can just be physically lowered height wise at the bridge to balance the raw output with the S.M. neck, but my main concern is that M.Qs actually seem to change character/ tone a lot when you change the pickup / string gap.  At about 1-2mm from underside of fretted string, they are chewy and fat ( without losing clarity of course ) - but at lower height settings , get sharper and more 'spanky' sounding at about the same volume. Very much a M.Q. trait , that makes them more than just  another 'standard' P90 or Humbucker  sound-a-likey.

Out of interest, I believe that Geoff Whitehorm has a guitar with a bridge Crawler and neck M.Q ( which reminds us how 'confident' the neck M.Q. is - even with it's contrasting AIV magnet and softer sound ).

I would love to hear / try  a guitar with neck Stormy - and Bridge M.Q. just for fits and giggles - but if laying my own cash down, would either mix the M.Q bridge with a Riff Raff neck, or just buy a matching pair of what has already been designed to work well together. Being a fiscal coward, I always opted for the later.  :)

[wardieboy]

Thanks for the valued comments Fourth.

It's funny you mention the MQ bridge & RR Neck combination, I have been scouring the forums all day due to this clement weather and had come to the same conclusion. I am willing to sacrifice the middle position for wider tonal variance. Although as you state there are options with pickup height and the guitars volume controls.

I did toy with the idea of a mule but I will wait and order a pair once I have sourced a good MIJ Tokia Les Paul model.

I'll sleep on it for tonight, but I am pretty much ready to push the 'order' button!

I'd be happy to post some pics and some sound clips once the project is complete for those that are interested.

[Fourth Feline]

Yes, it would be good to see / hear the results .  :)

I feel that your era of Tanglewood was a better one than mine; evident by the headstock logo and fretboard edging etc. I can certainly see why a 'budget' copy would take such a place in your heart though, as my eventual '# 1' as far as playing time / quality goes - ended up being the 'Vintage' ES175(ish) copy in my avatar, with B.K.P. Manhattans.

In fairness to all that suggested the S.MIIs for yours ( and Elavd's excellent use of them in his real 335 ) - I must re-iterate that the cheaper / darker sounding woods in my Tanglewood, would not give the same airy-ness as a maple ply original - and / or copy. This was confirmed when I put the AII S.M.s in my Ibanez AF75 - where they are absolutely spot on.

I would not wish any readers of this thread to think the S.M.s were in any way deficient ( far from it, as they are my favourite B.K.P Humbucker ) - just that they had a fight on their hands in that guitar; as although the guitar was nice in itself, these things are so often a matter of what matches from pick to jack socket ( and beyond) .

I look forward to ( further ) pictures and sound clips .  :D