57/62s or fralin vintage hots

[dankomal]

hi,
just putting a partscaster together with a maple neck,
I already have a set of 57/62s in a 57 body I am parting out on ebay which are really good pickups but was gassing for lindy fralin vintage hots for my new build.
I play a kind of bluesy country rock style into a deluxe reverb.
Should I give the fenders a go or the fralins?
I think sometimes i'm just a sucker for boutique stuff,
words like scatterwound and handwound just make me feel like the extra dough is worth it, and I always get the impression that rightly or wrongly, fender is all about the mighty dollar, and cutting corners!
I want pickups that are vintage sounding and probably already have the right ones in th 57/62s,
but then again???
I should really be playing instead of typing...
and I don't really have the money to go chasing an ultimate tone dream!
cheers,
mal

 

[WMHOLP]

I have a set of Fralin Vintage Hots in a swamp ash / maple Strat.  I do like them a lot; but I lean towards no overwinds on everything now.  In hindsight, I would have preferred a more vintage wind with slightly less output.  I'd try your original set first, and save some dough.  The Fralin set is pricey, and I haven't quite found "my sound" with them.  I've played that axe through my old Marshall 50 watt Plexi, and my current GDS 18 watter.  It sound good, but I yearn for a little more tone / chime, and less output.  The slight overwind tends to push the mids a little more, or take away some chime, depending on how you look at it.  Particularly with your Deluxe, I'd try the Fenders first.

 

[dankomal]

thanks,
I think I will.

 

[-CB-]

The Fender "fat 50's" is a decent set.  Similar to the Tejas Especiales in winding, but with a less powerful magnet, for a bit less bite and kick. 

 

[lp1958]

I've never tried the 57/62s so I can not comment on them.

But I love Fralin pickups.

I have both Vintages Hots and Blues Specials in two separate strats.
The Vintage hots bring a warmth to my maple necked strat which I have not been able to achieve with any Fender pickup.  But they still retain the strat tone without the ice-pick in the ear.

I have seen very few people call Fralins single coil pickups.  I really like his humbuckers but from reading other peoples comments I think that they are more of an aquired taste.

If you are not into the overwound pickups I would give the Vintage hots a try.  To me they have a real bell like quality which is not lost as with other slightly overwound pickups.

Just one further comment and again only my opinion, if you are into the inbetween sounds (bridge+milddle or neck+middle) I would give the Fralins some serious consideration.  My experience is that the Fralins really excel in this area.

Of course if you already have other pickups lying around give them a try before you start splashing out on new pickups.

Good luck with your choice.
Dave

 

[lp1958]

Also if I was you I would give Lindy a call.  Tell him what you want and have a chat about the whole overwound/underwound thing.  He loves to talk pickups and is very knowledgable and is really good to talk to.

He called me back at his cost (USA to UK) and spoke to me for half an hour about possible options.  All without obligation.  At the end of the conversation when I wanted to order some he advised me to call one of the shops that sell his pickups if and when i decided on what i wanted.