FenderOriginal '57/'62 Strat Pickups

Excelente, calidad, sonido.

A few years so I bought a Fender Starcaster used and got into the blues. This was the Costco and Walmart line of fenders- seriously entry level. Anyway after wanting to upgrade but not wanting to spend $2000 in the Fender Eric Clapton “Blackie” Stratocaster, I started looking at good bang for the Buck mods I could make to an honestly very good workable guitar chassis.I settled on 3: new strings, new Fender bridge, and upgrading my pickups. Turns out the same pickups in Claptons blackie can be bought for about $200, and I got even more of a discount because i bought a set from the Amazon warehouse.So for $170 I had my gear!Installing was fun too but here is what I wanted to say:The 2 pickups came with white and black wires; these are the neck and middle. Doesn’t matter which. The black and yellow is the bridge.The box included a very helpful graphic showing how to to the install, and that made it clear too.I got 3 potentiometers with the kit, and I didn’t pay close attention when installing them, nor did the graphic say which to put where, so I just went ahead and installed them. Then when i figured where they should have gone and why, so had to go back later and switch them up.Here’s the deal: I received 2 CTS 1 meg split shaft potentiometer, and 1 CTS 500k potentiometer.I discovered that due to the bright sound coming off the bridge, usually that gets a less powerful pot so it doesn’t overpower the other pickups, so I should have put the 500k pot there. Turns out it doesn’t matter which 1meg pot you use for volume or neck tone.The other big mistake I made was, once it was all soldered and I put the pickguard back on, I pushed the knobs down too hard and separated the potentiometers inside. I had to go back later and, while changing them, retighten them so the contacts were all flush again.Anyhow that’s it. The sound is incredible and I’m very happy with these purchases!

Like the 80s song, “The Search is Over”, I now realize that love is, indeed, right before my eyes…or should I say ears! I owned a Made in Japan ‘57 Strat Reissue (maybe from 1984 or so) that I foolishly sold years ago. Then, I spent years under the misguided assumption that hotter pickups are somehow better. Still, I’ve always missed the way my ’57 sounded. What defines the strat sound to me is the pure bell-like tones, bright clarity, and its ability to rock or get funky if needed. I also love the satisfying quack in the 2nd & 4th positions.The Texas Specials I’ve used in my guitars for years are nice pickups, but they don’t quite deliver on the qualities listed above. With these '57/'62 pickups, it feels like a sonic blanket has been lifted and I’m really hearing the guitar again. It’s grin-inducing!Three things to note:1. The marketing here, and on the box I received, state that these pickups rate 5 out of 5 on the output(hotness) scale. My ears tell me this isn’t so. These sound like pure, warm vintage pickups. Oddly, I’ve seen other fender literature that states they are 1 out of 5.2. The pickup specs list a resistance for each pickup of 5.6 ohms. I tested mine with a multimeter before installation and each pickup tested 5.7 ohms. This is surprisingly consistent and close to what is advertised.3. As other reviewers have noted, the screws can be tricky when installing pickups to the pick guard. It took some finessing to get them to go in. I’ve never encountered that when changing pickups and it did take some time and patience.The only downside is that they are pricey and now I want to put these in my other strats. I strongly recommend these pickups with the caveat that sound is so subjective. Still, if you enjoy the warmth and clarity of vintage pickups, you will most likely love these. Happy playing!

Installed all the pickups and the neck just buzzes and doesn't work. Made sure it wasn't pickup selector or wiring problem by switching pickup positions and double checking everything. Very disappointing to come so close only to put an old pickup back in the neck. I'm pass the point of taking them out to return the pickups...bummed

I bought these to replace the stock pickups in my Levinson Blade guitar (a Strat copy with higher quality). The original pickups had extremely bad 60 cycle hum. It was so bad that I couldn't even use the high gain on my Mesa/Boogie Mark IV amp. I was skeptical of the Hot Noiseless (Jeff Beck) pickups, but gave them a shot after reading the reviews. They exceeded my expectations. Not only is the noise gone (95% of it), but the tone is very authentic. I cannot imagine anyone being disappointed with these if you are genuinely seeking the Strat tone. The bridge pickup actually gets pretty heavy and stays tight, making it good for hard rock. No, these are not the best choice for metal, but that's not what these were designed for. There are some Strat purists out there that complain that noiseless pickups don't give as authentic of a tone as the original Strat pickups. While they are right, you're still going to get 95% of the real Strat tone with these pickups, and you'll be able to use them with any amount of gain. You can't really use the originals in high gain situations because of the 60 cycle noise. The bottom line is, these sound fantastic and are a huge upgrade from the stock Levinson pickups I had. I was even able to keep the same pickup covers on these to keep the original look of my guitar. Just be aware -- the pickup ribbon wires are very delicate, so do NOT take off the tape that they include with them. You have to be very careful with how you handle the pickups.