The ShadowMusic Web Community

Hello Shad Friends,

I have a Made in Japan Fender Stratocaster which is a 1968 reissue made in 2017 according to the specks has Vintage Type style single coils, but they seem to be to very
bright especially the bridge pick up and when playing the high E string nearly blows my ear drums ( and I am Slightly hard of hearing and wear hearing aids)
altering the 5 way makes a difference but still far too high pitched even when I remove my hearing aids,I have no idea what make the coils are or even if they are
fitted with the correct ones, I bought this guitar new so it's not been messed with but these coils are having to go, I have looked at swapping the full scratch plate
fully loaded for ease but as I am left handed cant find one any where and they cost silly money so it will just be the pick ups of some sort, I seen some fed back
on Tonerider Sufaris and they are around £80 but could do with any views and comments from you Guys to go with these or an alternative.

Chris.

Have you tried altering the tone controls to get a tone pot on the bridge first. It usually just involves a small piece of wire and soldering. Plenty of info how to do this on a Google search.

I have the Tonerider Surfaris on an home build strat and they are very good and definitely lose the treble icepick. They are made using the Alnico 3 magnets which are less spiky than the Alnico 5.

Chris,

I've got a Squier Classic Vibe 50s and I was persuaded by a member here that the pickups are Tonerider Surfaris. I also fitted the same pickups in to an older MIJ Fender Strat from 1984. Not only do they sound similar, but they have identical specs, so I believe they are fitted to the Squier. The one difference is that on the Squier the bridge pickup can have that awful sharp treble screech. It's easy to control by backing off the volume to between 8 & 9, when it comes out perfect. I think the difference between the two guitars is probably the pots, they're full size on the Fender but only half size on the Squier.

I've been asked why I put the same pickups on two different guitars, and it's because I use the Squier for playing Shadows music and the Fender for playing anything else.

If I were you I'd take Roger's advice first, and then try backing off the volume. If neither of those work, it's a vote for the Toneriders from me.

Len

The easiest way to change the sound of your guitar is y wandering over to the amp and twiddling the knobs on that. Amazing how many people forget this.

Uncle Fiesta wrote:The easiest way to change the sound of your guitar is y wandering over to the amp and twiddling the knobs on that. Amazing how many people forget this.

Something else that can have a major impact on tone is the humble pick. The variety of tones between a .73 and a 1.4 is very noticable. Pick shape (rounded or pointed), material and the way you hold it also affects tone.

As well as having different echo settings and pickup selections for different tunes, I will also change picks!

Hello Shad Friends,

Thanks for your advice and and possible remedies will probably try rogers first, I need a string change so a good time to try and also check what coils are actually
inside, also adjusting the amp settings makes very little difference but alters everything from the guitar sound making it duller I have tried several different picks
no difference to my ears, so at the moment I turn the tone controls down and don't use the bridge pick up at all, makes it easier on the ears but makes the sounds
coming the guitar muddier, thanks again everyone who has replied.

Chris.

Hi Chris,

It seems to me that experimenting with EQ’ing is moving in the right direction, but this possibly needs to be independent of the amp. When you back off the highs this accentuates the upper lows which could well be the cause of the muddiness you describe, it’s common practice to cut both the lows and the highs via an EQ.

I often back my lows off as much as 200 Hz (via EQ), but it’s more common to be around the 100 - 120 Hz mark. You will see the guitar range of frequencies and explanation in this link:

https://soundadventurer.com/what-are-th ... equencies/

If one guitar is significantly different to the other with all other parameters being the same it may be setup related?

Regards

Gary

Chris, Gary is right try an EQ it allows you to alter the frequencies that you can't alter on a amp.

Have you tried lowering the bridge pick up?
Dave

Before parting with any cash for new pickups, from vast experience I would suggest looking at the 'set up' and pick up heights, as well as wiring the treble pickup to the bottom tone control, it's easily done and makes a massive difference. Those pickup height screws are massive tone controls , there's an optimum height or 'sweet spot' that you will find by lowering or raising them. Believe me, I've spent more than enough money on replacement pickups since I became involved here over twenty years ago listening to so called 'experts' and most of my original pickups are now back in place on the original guitars sounding terrific, it's all in the set up. You don't need to waste money on EQ boxes, gadgets or other stuff, the sound is available from guitar, echo and amp if you know what to do to get it. TBH I'm getting tired of proving it.