Looking for advice on HSS Strat pickup choices

[samgoody]

Hi there,

I'm new to the forum, and I'm looking to start my first Warmoth build.  I've been pining for a rear-route Strat with a humbucker bridge pickup and two single coils in the middle and neck.  I'm not yet sure what body wood I'd like to use, but I think my first choice would be alder (I'm quite familiar with it), or I might experiment with swamp ash or mahogany (never tried them before).  I'm also thinking the neck will be maple with a pau ferro fretboard.  Just to give you an idea of the kind of tone I'm after, I really love the tones of players like Eric Johnson, Carlos Santana, and Stevie Ray Vaughan.  If it can handle an 80's shred type of gain, I would be happy as well, but mainly I'm after warmer overdriven tones, and nice cleans.

With that in mind, I'm looking at the following pickup combinations, and would like your opinions on them:
* Seymour Duncan: Screamin' Demon bridge / Classic Stack Plus middle and neck
* Suhr: SSH+ bridge / ML middle and neck
* Tom Anderson: H2+ bridge / SA2 or SF2 middle and neck

A couple of things I'd like to note, and some questions I'd like to ask:
1. The single coils I'm looking for are the hum canceling kind, which is why I'm looking at the SD's and Andersons.  I'd happily go with the Suhr pickup combination above (I have these plus the SSV neck humbucker in an alder bodied guitar and they're awesome), but the ML pickups aren't hum canceling, so I'm keeping these as my last option.  Do the hum canceling singles sound significantly different than non-hum canceling single coils, or is the difference barely noticeable?
2. As far as the single coils, I like to be able to get the glassy cleans of Eric Johnson, but I'd also like to be able to get the beefier sound of SRV.  Can this be accomplished, or are these two contradictory goals?
3. I generally would like all the pickups on the guitar to be of the same brand, but might consider mixing and matching if it accomplishes the goals I want.
4. Would the SD Classic Stack Plus be a good match with the Screamin' Demon, or will there be a significant volume difference?  If they're not a good match, what singles would you recommend to match with the Screamin' Demon? (the Screamin' Demon is my top SD choice based partially on the sound clips on their website, which sounded the best out of all their humbuckers to my ears).

Please excuse the long post and multiple questions, but I'm a newbie at this and would appreciate the comments and recommendations from the expert builders here.

 

[drewfx]

Welcome to the forum.

I should warn you that all PU threads are pretty much the same, and people will just recommend whatever they personally like.

Personally, for noiseless Strat PU's that sound like single coils, I like DiMarzio Area series singles.  :icon_biggrin:

3. Why are you worried about mixing brands?

4. If you want Strat PU's that sound like single coils, they aren't going to match the output of a big HB, so you have to choose where you want to compromise. Personally, I worry about getting the sounds I want from each PU (or possibly PU combination), not how well they balance volume-wise.

 

[Strat Avenger]

Those are all good pickups, but personally, I would suggest what I am running right now in my H-S-S Strat, which is the Screamin Demon at the bridge, and Dimarzio Area-67s at the middle and neck. It's the best of all worlds, and hum-cancelling.
The Area-67s will produce that Eric Johnson glassy tone, which is one reason I like them.

 

[Death by Uberschall]

EMG Steve Lukather set.  :icon_thumright:

 

[Strat Avenger]

EMG Steve Lukather set.  :icon_thumright:

Batteries are for flashlights...

 

[Death by Uberschall]

EMG Steve Lukather set.  :icon_thumright:

Batteries are for flashlights...

Yep, and there were times where guitars didn't get plugged in, or had tremolos, or were solid body, or,................................................  :doh:

 

[samgoody]

Thanks for the input guys, I really appreciate it.

@Street Avenger, I initially wanted the DiMarzio Area pickups (my choice was 67 for the neck and 58 for the middle), but it seems that DiMarzio forbids retailers from shipping them outside the US  .  Seems the Areas have a good reputation, and most people tend to gravitate towards them rather than SD stacks.  That leaves me wondering if the SDs stack up (no pun intended) to the Areas, especially that I can't find any sound samples for the STK-S4 pickup on SD's website.  I would appreciate it if anyone has any first-hand experience with both who could tell me about it.

@DBU, I'll admit I don't know much about active pickups, and I haven't tried them before, so I haven't considered EMGs.  All I know is that they seem to polarize guitarists - either they love them, or they hate them!  Like DiMarzio, EMG doesn't allow their pickups to be shipped outside the US, although retailers seem to be free to internationally ship loaded pickguards    :icon_scratch:.  I could possibly take the pickups out of the pickguard and install them in a rear-route body, but I'm planning on buying something from the Showcase (trying to stick to a budget), in which case I won't have the requisite battery compartment route.  I'm also just not fond of the idea of having to put a battery in the guitar just to play, especially that I'm not a professional musician.

@drewfx, I was hoping I would be able to have pickup outputs that were close enough to each other and still get the sounds that I want, but I think your advice is sage, and that's exactly what I intend to do with my (eventual) pickup selection.

 

[jackthehack]

"I really love the tones of players like Eric Johnson, Carlos Santana, and Stevie Ray Vaughan."

Neck/Middle PUs - Fender Custom Shop SRVs or Fat Fifties OR Rio Grande Vintage Tallboy neck/Halfbreed middle

Bridge Humbucker - PRS bridge pickup or Rio Grande Texas or BBQ HB

Note: While PRS will not ship pickups outside the US, you can usually find them on eBay

 

[samgoody]

"I really love the tones of players like Eric Johnson, Carlos Santana, and Stevie Ray Vaughan."

Neck/Middle PUs - Fender Custom Shop SRVs or Fat Fifties OR Rio Grande Vintage Tallboy neck/Halfbreed middle

Bridge Humbucker - PRS bridge pickup or Rio Grande Texas or BBQ HB

Note: While PRS will not ship pickups outside the US, you can usually find them on eBay

Thanks for the recommendations Jack, and I think they're very interesting.  I think you've possibly taken the most direct approach to getting tones similar to the players I listed - i.e. get the same pickups as in their signature model guitars.  I've also read very good things about the Rio Grande pickups, so I'll probably put them on my list of potential purchases.  The only concern for me is that the single coils mentioned here are not hum canceling.  However, your recommendation of the Fender singles has given me the idea of looking into their Noiseless series of pickups.  Thanks!

 

[Kostas]

Personally I'd stay away from the Duncan & Anderson stacks if you want the classic strat sound. However both companies have true single coils.

My favorites are the Suhr V60LP, I have heard them in a modified Fender SVR strat with different Warmoth maple necks (either maple or rosewood fretboard). They nail the SRV/Hendrix sound and they have enough output for overdriven leads. The noise has a lot to do with the ground in every place you play. My luthier who has assembled all my guitars applys conductive paint everywhere and the result is great in my home but in his shop not so good. I have Kinmans in my strat and Lollars in my tele. The telecaster has just a little noise, nothing you can't handle or you can hear while you play.

I'm a big fan of conductive paint. My luthier applys many layers of paint until he reaches in the result he wants. I don't know exactly how he's doing it but in the end he makes the guitar almost silent if the ground in your place works as it should be. I put paint everywhere, in the pickup routing, in the control routing and in the output jack routing. Some people say conductive paint mutes the highs and the natural tone but I like my guitars as they are.

If you want to buy DiMarzios from USA email Bruce http://www.aampselectricguitarstore.com/dimarzio/index_sgl.html He's a good guy, I have ordered from him twice and he ships with USPS.

 

[reluctant-builder]

EMG Steve Lukather set.  :icon_thumright:

Batteries are for flashlights...

Ah. Lovely. Best comment I've ever seen about active electronics. Passive all the way.  :icon_thumright:

 

[samgoody]

@Kostas, thanks for the link to where I can purchase the DiMarzios, I'll check it out.  Hmm, I'll have to do my homework regarding the conductive paint, but I'm guessing that would be the same as lining the control cavity with copper shielding, wouldn't it?  I'm still not sure that shielding the cavities will eliminate the hum like a circuit designed to do just that, but I'll have to look into this a bit more.

 

[Cagey]

Unless the appearance of black or copper-lined pickup/control cavities appeals or is important to you, don't waste your time/money. It has no effect. Never has, never will. 99.999% of the evidence that it makes a difference is specious at best. It just seems like a good idea on the surface. Kinda like avoiding a nuclear blast by hiding under your desk.

Those gamma rays and million degree temperatures will never find us here!​

 

[Strat Avenger]

DUCK 'N' COVER!  YEAH!!!...  :laughing7:

 

[Cagey]

They still had us doing that in the '60s.

 

[Kostas]

@Kostas, thanks for the link to where I can purchase the DiMarzios, I'll check it out.  Hmm, I'll have to do my homework regarding the conductive paint, but I'm guessing that would be the same as lining the control cavity with copper shielding, wouldn't it?  I'm still not sure that shielding the cavities will eliminate the hum like a circuit designed to do just that, but I'll have to look into this a bit more.

It's not the same like copper shielding and it won't eliminate the hum 100%. I don't know details or how he does it exactly. All I know he puts a layer/day and he is testing it until he is satisfied with the result. My guitars are noiseless and that's what matters to me but like I said if the place you are playing does not have a good ground forget it. My apartment is fairly new and everything works great. I have a Furman confirming it daily, I'm always close to 230V and the ground works.

 

[reluctant-builder]

They still had us doing that in the '60s.

Hey, nothing stops nuclear radiation like some plywood and rusty, primer-coated low-grade metal. Though maybe it was only rusty for us in the 80s because we were still using your desks ...

 

[samgoody]

Thanks for all the input guys, it's much appreciated.  I've almost narrowed my choice of bridge pickup to the Suhr SSH+ and the SD Screamin' Demon.  The neck and middle pups are another matter altogether, as I'm still undecided.  The more I look into this pickups thing, the more questions I have:

1. I've looked at the SD Screamin' Demon, and there are two versions - one is the SH-12, and the other is the TB-12.  What's the difference between the two, and does it matter which one I should get?
2. Whichever bridge pup I get it should be F-spaced, right?
3. With hum canceling stacks like the DiMarzio Area pickups, would I still get that classic Strat "quack" in the 2 and 4 positions?  I think I read on another thread (http://www.unofficialwarmoth.com/index.php?topic=17516.0) that I won't get that with stacks, and that the quack results from a single coil middle pickup which is reverse wound, reverse polarity.  In that case, would a reverse wound, reverse polarity middle stack achieve the same/similar effect?  (As a side note, Tom Anderson does make reverse wound, reverse polarity hum canceling stack pups; they're the only ones I've seen so far).
4. Also on the topic of the stack/single coil pickups, the fretboard of the neck I just purchased has a compound radius (10" to 16").  Would having staggered pole pieces have a noticeable effect?  Would it be a negative effect?  Or should I not worry about this at all?

 

[AutoBat]

1. I've looked at the SD Screamin' Demon, and there are two versions - one is the SH-12, and the other is the TB-12.  What's the difference between the two, and does it matter which one I should get?
2. Whichever bridge pup I get it should be F-spaced, right?
3. With hum canceling stacks like the DiMarzio Area pickups, would I still get that classic Strat "quack" in the 2 and 4 positions?  I think I read on another thread (http://www.unofficialwarmoth.com/index.php?topic=17516.0) that I won't get that with stacks, and that the quack results from a single coil middle pickup which is reverse wound, reverse polarity.  In that case, would a reverse wound, reverse polarity middle stack achieve the same/similar effect?  (As a side note, Tom Anderson does make reverse wound, reverse polarity hum canceling stack pups; they're the only ones I've seen so far).
4. Also on the topic of the stack/single coil pickups, the fretboard of the neck I just purchased has a compound radius (10" to 16").  Would having staggered pole pieces have a noticeable effect?  Would it be a negative effect?  Or should I not worry about this at all?

1 -  SH is the narrow, TB is the Trembucker, or F-spaced wider pup
2 -  yep
3 -  i have no experience on this one
4 -  unless your name is Eric Johnson, no

 

[drewfx]

3. A Strat's in between sound has nothing to do with a reverse wound/polarity middle PU. A reverse wound/polarity middle PU just puts the hum out of phase so it cancels with the hum from the other PU in positions 2 & 4, nothing more.

If you put 2 PU's that sound like Strat PU's in a Strat, and they aren't ridiculously different from one another, you will get the classic in between sound when you combine them.