The ’59 Model humbucker is a very versatile humbucker. By using the same materials and methods as the original PAF pickup, a vintage-correct sound is achieved. It has vintage-level output, which means plenty of sparkle, while still having the throatiness that humbuckers are known for.If, however, your guitar doesn’t have a space where you can put a humbucker, the Seymour Duncan Little ’59 models can help you get close to that same vibe. It’s available as either a Strat pickup or a Tele lead pickup. We’ll take a look at both in this article.

For both these pickups, it’s important to realise that a single-coil sized pickup will never sound exactly like a full-sized humbucker. Part of a humbucker’s sound comes from the greater length of string being “read” by the pickup. Across that length, certain frequencies will cancel each other out, and others will be reinforced. Which frequencies are affected in these ways will change when the pickup is of a different size. So a single-coil sized humbucker has its own sonic identity, with some elements of both single coil and humbucker sounds.

It’s also important to realise that the Seymour Duncan Little ’59 is not named after its manufacturing process. It doesn’t get its name from the types of magnet or wire used, or the number of turns. It is a pickup that is engineered to give a single coil sized pickup the closest feel and tone to a PAF humbucker possible. That’s where the name comes from.

Strat Pickup

I have a Strat that has a slightly modified version of the “Everything Axe” set. Usually that set has a JB Jr in the bridge position. That pickup is a bit too high-output for me, so mine has a Li’l Screamin’ Demon, along with the standard Little ’59 in the neck and Duckbucker in the middle position.
The Little 59 on this guitar gives me a lovely smooth sound, without being muddy. It definitely feels like playing a PAF, while at the same time not completely obliterating the Strat character of the guitar.

Usually, in the Everything Axe set, it’s suggested that the Duckbucker is wired with its coils in parallel rather than in series. However, on this guitar I’ve gone the series route, to keep the volume consistent across all the positions on the switch. This means that in position 4, I have the Little 59 and Duckbucker both acting as regular humbuckers, and both active.

Here’s a clean demo:

And here’s a dirty demo:

Tele Pickup

One of my Telecasters has a Seymour Duncan Little ’59 for Tele in the bridge position. This allows me to use a “real” Tele bridge on the guitar, while getting a bit more grunt out of the pickup. As with the Strat pickup, it imparts a PAF feel to the instrument, while still retaining a good amount of Tele character.
Here’s a clean demo:

And here’s a dirty demo:

Both pickups come with four-conductor cable as standard, allowing you to create new switching options like coil splitting or parallel wiring. And no modification to pickguards or routing is required – they fit exactly into the same-sized holes as their single coil counterparts.

The Seymour Duncan Little 59, in either incarnation, is a great way to beef up your tone while keeping your instrument’s character (and physical form) intact. I’m certainly very happy with mine!