G&L S500

[Tigerdaisy]

Having got totally fed up with uneven/staggered pickups on various Starts I decided to get a G&L S500 with the adjustable pickup poles. The neck has a much flatter radius (12") and wider than most Fender offerings which are usually 9 1/2", however I soon got used to this after a few days. I don't like the two tone 'adjustments',which work in conjunction, the 'bridge end' tone control being quite difficult to hear what's happening...if anything. Another serious problem is the sound of the pickups...they don't sound like a normal Strat with an 'odd' harshness towards the end of the note, plus the fact that adjusting the pole pieces can be tricky as they don't screw downwards so you need to start from the 'loudest' string and work from there- the claim is that these pickups are the same as the US ones- not so sure about that... Owing to my dislike of the pups and the tonal control issue I've started a total pup change (pig irons- as recommended by Dave Robinson) and a total swap out of all the wiring and pots- I'll report later on how this pans out.
On the plus side I can totally recommend the tremolo system which works better than any Fender offering I've used in the past, the system has a 'push in' trem arm and also the whole guitar stays acceptably in tune after considerable use.
Incidentally I discovered after I had dismantled things the middle tone knob had a push/pull operation which I had suspected but owing to the shape of the knob couldn't operate- I've no idea what this is supposed to do as there were no instructions with the guitar and I could find nothing online. Anyway...

[dave robinson]

I too have a G&L S-500 Tribute and they are the best pickups I own and would never even think of swapping them out. Also the tone circuit is second to none and far superior to any Strat apart from my own Strats' to which I've fitted those very features because they are actually useful. I have the G&L style tone controls of three of my Fenders'.
I've also yet to witness harsh sounding pickups on any G&L guitar and I play quite a few, meaning I'd take a step back before messing with the guitar and look at myself and my amp settings first.
The push pole switch activates the neck pick up, allowing you to have it on with the bridge similar to a Telecaster.
Also the tone controls are based on treble cut and boost and it is said that in the centre positions they are the same as the old Fender Strat tone, though I'm not certain of that. all I know is that they make a vast difference in a good way if used correctly.
I'm assuming of course that your G&L S-500 has the same kit installed as my own, which is an old £300 Tribute model, which do have the USA parts as the American built ones.

[Tigerdaisy]

Thanks for that insight Dave- my ears must be playing me up... To me the MFD pups don't sound typical Strat ( I've owned over 7 basic Strats). Could be my imagination...

[dave robinson]

I'm only telling you of my own and my fellow guitarist's experience with the G&L because I'd hate you to make a big mistake because you haven't understood what's going on with the tone controls & pickups.
You've prompted me to dig my S-500 out of the pile to investigate further.
The last time I used it I was over the moon with the sound of the pickups and how I could go from a modern Strat sound to a 1960 vintage Hank sound by turning down the bottom tone control and hearing what the Ariab, Gemini, EF86 and all the other fancy gadgets do to get THAT SOUND. As an example if you select the middle pick up and turn the bottom control off, you should have the instant 'Gonzales' & 'Frightened City' tone. If not then it's not working correctly, but my own S-500 has THAT SOUND built in, massively !

[Tigerdaisy]

Could be my ears...I don't have good hearing in my left ear... I tend to only use the middle tone control as that has an obvious response- anyway I was already well on the way to a total rewire, so...

[dave robinson]

Could be my ears...I don't have good hearing in my left ear... I tend to only use the middle tone control as that has an obvious response- anyway I was already well on the way to a total rewire, so...

It's well documented that my hearing was shot over the past twenty odd years and only revealed due to my illness, but the good news is that it's now sorted out.
I had countless arguments with people on this site about sound and have since apologised and admitted I was wrong, so my advice is move forward and try to get the problem fixed and then you'll hear things as you should. Back then, I would never have heard the subtleties of the tone controls on my G&L S-500, but they do work in a good way and I had another three Strat plates made up with the G&L type knobs fitted and never looked back.