Pickups for a Fender Stratocaster (HB-SC-SC)

[Slartibartfarst42]

When I had my Holydiver/Trilogy Suite set I very nearly used Slowhands instead but didn't because a regular forum member on here (can't recall his name as he's not been around in a while) tried Slowhands with his Holydiver and said they didn't match well. It has to be said that I never tried that combo myself so I'm going purely on his word. The addition of baseplates would help. The thing is, a lot of the bands referenced aren't exactly obviously 'vintage' and the Holydiver is an excellent choice for the bands mentioned. I never found the Trilogy Suites particularly modern in their tone, at least not with the neck and middle as I tend to prefer more vintage tones there and I liked the Trilogy Suites. However, if you want a more vintage vibe overall, either the Crawler or Abraxas would be good choices with Slowhands. I found the Crawler beautifully fat, rich and growly. It's my favourite Bare Knuckle pickup and is extremely versatile. The Holydiver nails the 80's Metal tone better and will stretch to more modern styles, while the Crawler is happier with Blues Rock, Classic Rock and Hard Rock. It will do 80s Metal too but is less at home there. I feel a Holydiver/Trilogy Suite set will be better for your stated bands but the Crawler/Slowhand set will be far more versatile and give you a more vintage feel.

[Skaven]

I understand your opinion, for better matching purposes it would be better to use hotter SCs with the Holy Diver or softer HBs with the Slow Hand.

Well... I guess I'll go with the Crawler/Slow Hands than but... just out of curiosity (please):

Let's think on Steve Ray Vaughan, Jeff Beck and Hendrix will the Trilogy do the job without sounding too harsh or too powerful (not sounding almost like a P90 too) ?

[Telerocker]

I understand your opinion, for better matching purposes it would be better to use hotter SCs with the Holy Diver or softer HBs with the Slow Hand.

Well... I guess I'll go with the Crawler/Slow Hands than but... just out of curiosity (please):

Let's think on Steve Ray Vaughan, Jeff Beck and Hendrix will the Trilogy do the job without sounding too harsh or too powerful (not sounding almost like a P90 too) ?

Stevie Ray/Hendrix = Pat Pend/Mother's Milk/Irish Tours. Trilogies are not the best choice for those sounds.

[Skaven]

Well, I can't have everything and for matching purposes I guess the Crawler+Slow Hand will have to do... .

ty very much for your kind help!

[FRockStar]

I think you'll be fine with the Crawler &  SlowHands. I've got them in a G&L Legacy  Swamp Ash strat with maple board & they are superb. The Crawler is very versatile & surprised me with how easy it is to get into metal territory when needed  (& I like a hot  bridge pickup!)  The Slow Hands are great for phat blues sounds, work well with a maple board  & match  up really well with the Crawler.

[Skaven]

ty FRockStar!

[Telerocker]

Just to know: Crawler is not that hot, mediumoutput I would say, just a tad hotter than a VHII.

[Skaven]

Yes I understood it completely, it won't be possible to have high-gain (for Metal/Leads) on the bridge and still make the single coils (neck and middle) match the HB without compromising them for my Blues.

So, the Crawler won't be as powerful as I would like the HB to be but at least they will allow me to have a better matching instrument in terms os pickups and probably even more versatile.

Seems obvious to me that the best choice would always be the Trilogy with a higher output HB but that will compromise my slightly overdriven sounds on the neck and middle and that is an absolutely NOT!

So... the Crawler and Slow Hand will have to do.

[Telerocker]

Yes I understood it completely, it won't be possible to have high-gain (for Metal/Leads) on the bridge and still make the single coils (neck and middle) match the HB without compromising them for my Blues.

So, the Crawler won't be as powerful as I would like the HB to be but at least they will allow me to have a better matching instrument in terms os pickups and probably even more versatile.

Seems obvious to me that the best choice would always be the Trilogy with a higher output HB but that will compromise my slightly overdriven sounds on the neck and middle and that is an absolutely NOT!

So... the Crawler and Slow Hand will have to do.

Actually I don't have volumetroubles when I switch from Crawler to Irish Tour-neck. I think you worry a little too much about that. The Crawler has power enough, but the Slowhands have decent output too. A good match I think. Anyway, lower to mediumoutput pickups sound to my ears better on highgainamps, and you can control the gain easier with the volumeknob.

[Skaven]

Ok I got you and "just for the sake of curiosity", even though I already have the IT's, in your opinion which ones wil match the Crawler the better, SH or IT? And which ones will work better with Overdrive?

Anyway, lower to mediumoutput pickups sound to my ears better on highgainamps, and you can control the gain easier with the volumeknob.

True but... the definition with High-Gain of a higher output HB is "normally" a lot better than something softer (say a PAF for example).

This is actually another problem (that I guess I will have to live with) you take for example Gibson Pickups and they do the "Rock Thing" wonderfully well but if you fire on them "Petrucci style Metal" the neck will get muddy and the bridge won't be articulate and will lack definition so to a certain extent (IMHO) if you fire your gain too high you better have powerful pickups and I don't know how well the Crawler will do the job but... .

[Telerocker]

Crawler I'd take over most Gibson-pickups. It's fat but still articulate with good noteseperation.
Crawler pairs well with both IT and SH. Choice is a matter of preference. Want mids, go Slowhands. Want a little more hollowness go IT.

[Skaven]

ok, ty very much for your help Telerocker !