Ultimate Tele tone!

[callous_frigid_chill]

I love the way my telecaster sounds through my epi amp. I can get pretty close to Jimmy Page's tone with the volume at 3 o'clock and the pup selector in the middle position. With the bridge pickup, I can get the "la grange" tone. Also, I can approximate SRV's lead tone with the tube screamer added.

And if anyone cares, I think jimmy page used a vox(?) tonebender fuzz pedal.

[dr.barlo]

I, too, had bad experience with fralin's real 54's (a3 magnet rods). I think they were not what I was looking for in a strat. I think I have to have a5 strat pickups.

BUT, I have some doubts whether or not that observation of mine is gonna hold in the case of tele lead pickups. Because, I love the Duncan JD which has a2 magnets. I think Fralin a5 tele blues sp is great on the wound strings but somewhat too wild on the highs. It is dark and screaming at the same time, but overall great pickup. Thus, a3 being somewhere in between a2 and a5, I think, might be an excellent choice for tele leads. I am gonna try them Hamel's, not only because of this magnet issue and them raving reviews in the TDPRI, but also due to Falstaff's review. I trust his ears and figure that those Hamel's can't be bad.

Anyway, I can sell them pretty fast if they end up not doing that well on my tele.

Best,

B

[the guy who invented fire]

B,

Now, Im gonna flip it...when you get them installed you let me know what you think. Im just not sure I would dig them but if I hear many more good reviews Im gonna give them a shot anyway...

[dr.barlo]

B,

Now, Im gonna flip it...when you get them installed you let me know what you think. Im just not sure I would dig them but if I hear many more good reviews Im gonna give them a shot anyway...

Sure Christian, will do!

B

[Falstaff]

Anyway, I can sell them pretty fast if they end up not doing that well on my tele.

Best,

B

That's the good thing...if you don't like them you can unload them really fast.

I hope you do end up liking them.

[Stratsky]

It's amazing this thread is still going. I posted the second reply when it was started a year and a half ago. I still have my MIA tele with the JD in the bridge, but I've made it into a Nashville tele with an Antiquity neck and with an Alnico Pro II strat pickup in the middle. Great sounding guitar. My 52 RI tele has an Antiquity bridge and an Antiquity II neck. It has a tone similar to Vince Gill's tele. I love those Antiquitys. I crank up my amp and add a little compression and that thing just sings.

[dr.barlo]

Guys,

I contacted Ron Ellis and ordered 2 Hamel tele leads. One that people refer to as the blackguard lead (a3 moagnet rods) and the other is a broadcaster lead (good old a5 magnet rods). I cannot wait to get them.

Will let you know of what I think about them if interested.

B

[Falstaff]

Sounds good...I hope it works for you.

[OlinMusic]

ummm I'll cheat here and say PRINCE with his HOFNER TELE was the best TELE sound. More women have shaken their asses on the dance floor to the funk of PRINCE a la Erotic City or Kiss... if you are a red blooded male - PRINCE wins!

I love the Fender NO CASTER. EMG's are a tad too perfect, but great for country. I loved the Dimarzio Virtual Hot T, but it was a little too high output for the classic twang.

[Hellion]

I won't argue about Prince's tone, but I don't remember hearing a Tele on "Kiss". Seems like that was maybe a 175 or some other hollow body.

[OlinMusic]

OK forget KISS, he has too many other TELE laced hits from Controversy to 1999, Batdance - hell you name it! Point is, he proved a tele can make every girl around the world take her clothes off while dancing drunk on a table top!

[teleblooz]

Dr. Barlo....I'll be very interested to hear your Hamel report. I have not had the pleasure myself, but several I've spoken to that have them, RAVE about them. I've yet to hear a discouraging ( other than the horrible wait and lack of communication ) word on Hamels.

Olinmusic....I too dig the VV Hot T. I've had one in my tele for quite sometime. Tried several other nice vintage wind bridge pups recently and came to the realization the Hot T fits my needs much better. While not quite as treble laden as others, I find it to have a nice blend of twang, spank and corpulence.

[Lewguitar]

Been selling alot of my guitars lately and in deciding what I can bear to part with, I've been comparing them all to each other. I have to say that my '54 Tele with the Fralin Blues Special lead and Fralin Tele Stock neck is still my favorite and it's the one I decided to keep. The alnico 5 BS and Stock have more bass and a deeper fuller tone than my Teles with alnico 2 pickups. To me, the Fralin BS lead sounds the way a Tele is supposed to sound. I rarely disagree with Doc Barlo, but I don't hear any of the wildness he mentioned on the unwound strings. To me, that guitar sounds pretty much perfect. I also love my Tele Custom with the Duncan Custom Shop Antiquity Surf Strat neck pickup and Custom Shop Jerry Donahue bridge pickup.

Neither sound exactly like I remember my '51 sounding, but that was a long time ago that I had that guitar and it's hard to say now how much of my recollection of the tone of that guitar is fantasy!

Still, I'd say that the tone of that ax was somewhere between the tone of the Fralin Blues Special lead and the Duncan Jerry Donahue.

[dr.barlo]

Lew I hear you man. That wildness (from the unwound strings) I am talking about, I think, is not something too serious. Indeed, these two pickups are the best pickups I have come across when it comes to tele leads. It is just that I maybe am too much accustomed (and love) the tone from the unwound strings on the surfer custom bridge. See? Am not comparing the JD and Fralin BS to any other tele leads, because I think they beat all the ones I have tasted. On my mind I think I am comparing them to the surfer strat bridge. Sure, apples and bananas!!!, but still...

I dunno if the hamels will do what I want. We'll see.

B

[OlinMusic]

Yeah, Dimarzio has some amazing new products that are undeniable TELEBLOOZ. I almost went all Dimarzio for a while, but believe it or not, the girl I date says my Duncans are fatter sounding (but hey DMZ's are smooth as hell)

[ES350]

That Dimarzio Pre-B1 is a hot overwound bridge pu that is pretty muddy---I've got a 70's one and it's more like a bad P90 with a blanket over the amp. Might be OK for a heavier 70's rock tone (which is what it was made for---duh). My faves so far are a early 50's Broadcaster I found in a parts bin, the SD Broadcaster (I have a few hot ones from back in the 80's), and the JD...but that older 11K Nocaster CS thing was a monster; instant Kid Ramos...

[Stratman]

I have a 51~52 broadcaster (Have not been able to determine the actual year because of differences between the neck and pot data) that I found in Korea in 2002 and it has the best broad (Tele) caster tone of any that I ever played.

HOWEVER, since it is a collector's piece, it is very seldom taken out of it's humidity / temperature controlled case.

[Stratman]

ummm I'll cheat here and say PRINCE with his HOFNER TELE was the best TELE sound. More women have shaken their asses on the dance floor to the funk of PRINCE a la Erotic City or Kiss... if you are a red blooded male - PRINCE wins!

I love the Fender NO CASTER. EMG's are a tad too perfect, but great for country. I loved the Dimarzio Virtual Hot T, but it was a little too high output for the classic twang.

Come on PRINCE sucks

[Falstaff]

Guys,

I contacted Ron Ellis and ordered 2 Hamel tele leads. One that people refer to as the blackguard lead (a3 moagnet rods) and the other is a broadcaster lead (good old a5 magnet rods). I cannot wait to get them.

Will let you know of what I think about them if interested.

B

Doc-
Are you sure the Broadcaster is A5? I thought they were A3, so I emailed Ellis and he said that the B-caster are A3. Did you do a special order thing?

One thing I noticed is that the Broadcaster really came to life when I raised the pickup very high.

I just got the Hamel Tall neck pickup, hopefully that will match the bridge better than the Firebird that's in there now. The guitar just sounded too Sybil-esque.

[Lewguitar]

I don't understand the appeal of alnico 3. To my ears it's cold and steely and ice picky sounding. And none of the alnico 3 pickups (mostly thinking of the Nocaster pickups) I've played sounded like the pickups in any of the old Teles I've owned.

I do like alnico 2 (like the Duncan Antiquity I and the Jerry Donahue) but alnico 3 in a guitar like the Tele, a guitar that is often to bright and steely to begin with??? I just don't get it. Lew