Noiseless Strat Pickups

[PFDarkside]

Appreciate you man! Honestly I do like the sound of these as well, gonna be a tough decision! I do prefer 500k even with regular single coils lol! So would it be best 67 neck 58 middle 61 bridge? Also using a blender pot so gotta see how well they sound together. Thank you for these vids!

Typically 61 bridge, 67 middle, 58 neck. You can do two 67s for a little brighter sound or two 58s for a little smokier sound. If you get all three I’d do both ways around in the neck/middle to see what you like. Also, if you need more power in the bridge than the 61, the Injector Neck and Injector Bridge are the same tech/style, each a bit hotter and darker than the 67/58/61.

 

[Waraxe]

Appreciate you man! Honestly I do like the sound of these as well, gonna be a tough decision! I do prefer 500k even with regular single coils lol! So would it be best 67 neck 58 middle 61 bridge? Also using a blender pot so gotta see how well they sound together. Thank you for these vids!

I prefer 500k with my beefier singles.

Harmonic design vintage plus (steel poles) sound almost muted with 250k. 500k/.022 cap made them perfect.

I love the tbx tone in my Clapton circuit. I bump that to 6/7 which is like 350 to 400k. THAT is perfect.


These days, the noiseless choices that sound good are thru the roof.

 

[Strat Avenger]

Appreciate you man! Honestly I do like the sound of these as well, gonna be a tough decision! I do prefer 500k even with regular single coils lol! So would it be best 67 neck 58 middle 61 bridge? Also using a blender pot so gotta see how well they sound together. Thank you for these vids!

I wouldn't get the 58. I'd do 61 middle, 67 neck, and 61 or whatever you like at the bridge. I run a humbucker at the bridge.
Don't put the 67 in the middle like most people do. That is done so you can get some "quack" in the 2 & 4 positions while running hot pickups (or humbuckers) in the neck and bridge positions. Put your hottest pickup at the bridge, and weakest at the neck.

 

[Spud]

I wouldn't get the 58. I'd do 61 middle, 67 neck, and 61 or whatever you like at the bridge. I run a humbucker at the bridge.
Don't put the 67 in the middle like most people do. That is done so you can get some "quack" in the 2 & 4 positions while running hot pickups (or humbuckers) in the neck and bridge positions. Put your hottest pickup at the bridge, and weakest at the neck.

This is the BEST set up "BAR NONE"!!

 

[Strat Avenger]

This is the BEST set up "BAR NONE"!!

Yep, for the time being.

 

[Dickie Blues]

I wouldn't get the 58. I'd do 61 middle, 67 neck, and 61 or whatever you like at the bridge. I run a humbucker at the bridge.
Don't put the 67 in the middle like most people do. That is done so you can get some "quack" in the 2 & 4 positions while running hot pickups (or humbuckers) in the neck and bridge positions. Put your hottest pickup at the bridge, and weakest at the neck.

Awesome! I grew up with hss and love that configuration! I am moving to sss and hh from now on though, simplifying my set up by only having one of each now. Builing a strat and possibly a meadowhowk to replace my lp jr humbucker.

 

[Strat Avenger]

Awesome! I grew up with hss and love that configuration! I am moving to sss and hh from now on though, simplifying my set up by only having one of each now. Builing a strat and possibly a meadowhowk to replace my lp jr humbucker.

Well, for SSS, I suggest 61B, 61M, and 67N. I have a Strat with a 67 in the middle and it's a little bit thin sounding in that position for my taste. I absolutely love it in the neck position. My yellow Warmoth Strat has the 61 in neck and middle.
My gold Warmoth Strat has the Injector at the neck, no middle pickup, and a 'bucker at the bridge.
My still not finished Warmoth Soloist will have a 61 in the middle, Injector at the neck, & 'bucker at bridge.
I've done all the experimenting with these pickups so you don't have to.

 

[Floyd_Argus]

Sharing my thoughts based on my experience with the Dimarzio Area as well as Dimarzio Dual Rail series of pickups in my Strat guitar.

Note that I am using 500k value pots, where a 0.022uf value cap is being used by both tone controls. The upper tone control is active in the circuit for pickup selector switch Positions 2-5, and the lower tone control is only active in Position 1 (bridge pickup only). The guitar body wood is poplar, not the more typical alder or ash, so the different tone that poplar has vs ash, alder, etc could be driving some of the differences i hear with these pickups compared to other people's experiences with these pickups. Neck and fretboard are typical maple shaftwood with rosewood fretboard.

I currently have and like 58s in the neck and middle positions. I've tried the 67 in both the neck and middle positions but feel the 67 is just a tad too bright in the middle, and in the neck position, I didn't perceive a difference in how it sounded there compared to the 58 there for Position 5 (neck only). However, for Postion 4 (neck / middle) the Area 67 in the neck combined with the middle 58, lost some of quack characterstic that i like in my Position 4 tone compared to the 58 being in both positions, so that is why I returned the 2nd 58 to the neck position. The one small reservation I have about the 58 in the neck position, is that the Neck only tone (Position 5) is a little darker than I'd like, but I am going to try a mod where a capacitor is added in series to the neck pickup lead wire, which reduces some of the bass frequencies from the pickup's tone. That kind of mod is called Artie's De-Mud Mod, by the way. You can find more info about it online by searching by that name.

I love the Area 58 in the middle position. I really like how it sounds for middle pickup only tone (Position 3) but also how it seems to add the most quack to the Position 4 and Position 2 tones (middle/bridge)

I tried the 61 in the neck and middle but it was too thick and dark for my tastes.

I tried a LOT of pickups in the bridge position besides the 61 that is currently installed there, including Dimarzio Dual Rail designs like the Super Distortion S and the Pro Track. The reason I tried to find a replacement for the 61 in the bridge is that while I really like how the 61 creates quack in Position 2, its a little too thin and shrill when it is used on its own (Position 1) when i am playing w gain/drive. Before someone asks, yes I tried turning down the tone control for the bridge pickup, and that did help w the shrillness, but that didn't help with the thin tone problem. While both the Pro Track and Super Distortion S solved the thin/shrill tone complaint, i felt the tone of the Super Distortion S was too "grainy" (hard to explain, but I think certain mid frequencies are too boosted in that pickup) and the Pro Track sounded great with gain BUT i lost too much Position 2 quack tone when played clean. I did experiment w parallel and split coil wiring on both pickups to see if one of those 2 methods would resolve that problem, but it didn't. So the 61 went back into the bridge.

A couple days ago I ordered a Dimarzio Virtual Solo stacked singlecoil that is supposed to sound thicker than the 61 without the shrillness and still retain the quack tone in Position 2. So I am going to try replacing the area 61 in the bridge position one more time soon and see if find joy. I can post an update in a few days after I give that a try.

By the way, using these Posilock Products brand wireless connectors make pickup swaps much quicker and cleaner than resoldering every time. Besides using them to connect each pickup to the 5 way switch, I also installed two on the hot and ground wires coming into the cavity from the output jack, so its also easy and quick to get the pickguard detached from the guitar once strings are loosened and the pickguard slid out of position and flipped over.

Once I settle on which pickup I am going to keep in the bridge position, I will then replace all the wireless connectors in this guitar with properly soldered connections, and then reuse these wireless connectors on other guitars i own that I want to try different pickups in.

 

[Strat Avenger]

I use Posilock connectors for automotive electrical wiring. Never used them for guitars.
Yeah, I found the Area 67 a bit too thin in the middle position, but love it in the neck position.
Experimenting with height adjustment can also make a difference.
I have the Super Distortion-S in the bridge position of my Fender Strat and I am quite pleased with it. I never tried the Area 61 in the bridge position, because I generally don't care for a single coil sound at the bridge. I did try the "Injector" bridge model and thought it sounded like dog crap (if dog crap has a sound), so I quickly sold it.

 

[TonyFlyingSquirrel]

I’m gonna grind up against corksniffery and tradition and throw EMG Actives into the mix.
I love the SAV singles for Strats and their associated variations, and their standard “T” set for is associated variations. Over the past year or so, I have really come to enjoy the “58” in is slight P90 voicing and it has replaced all other Humbucker size options for “S” or “T” styled guitars, especially in an HSS configuration. It’s less aggressive as a bridge position appointed Single Coil, its output is more in balance with the SAV’s whether in an HSS or HS configuration, and I have also used it as a dual 58 configuration in an HH appointed guitar.

I’ve used them for low/medium gain applications on the church worship team, and I’ve used them in high gain applications for recording. They can sound big and huge with the low end at the sweet threshold between loose/tight, and the top end isn’t “shrill” in the bridge position like many standard single coils can be. When split in the 2nd or 4th gear positions on a five way, it complements its partnered single coils very sweetly.

 

[jhamnett]

I’m gonna grind up against corksniffery and tradition and throw EMG Actives into the mix.
I love the SAV singles for Strats and their associated variations, and their standard “T” set for is associated variations. Over the past year or so, I have really come to enjoy the “58” in is slight P90 voicing and it has replaced all other Humbucker size options for “S” or “T” styled guitars, especially in an HSS configuration. It’s less aggressive as a bridge position appointed Single Coil, its output is more in balance with the SAV’s whether in an HSS or HS configuration, and I have also used it as a dual 58 configuration in an HH appointed guitar.

I’ve used them for low/medium gain applications on the church worship team, and I’ve used them in high gain applications for recording. They can sound big and huge with the low end at the sweet threshold between loose/tight, and the top end isn’t “shrill” in the bridge position like many standard single coils can be. When split in the 2nd or 4th gear positions on a five way, it complements its partnered single coils very sweetly.

My SLVs on my Warmoth build can get somewhat Stratty @ 18V, mostly because I didn't set them up super close to the strings. But they're hotter/fatter than my Strat normally (and intentionally so). I'd imagine the SAVs get you there.

This video from InTheBlues on YT really made me rethink EMGs - and sound way Strattier than my Warmoth.

 

[Floyd_Argus]

I’m gonna grind up against corksniffery and tradition and throw EMG Actives into the mix.
I love the SAV singles for Strats and their associated variations, and their standard “T” set for is associated variations. Over the past year or so, I have really come to enjoy the “58” in is slight P90 voicing and it has replaced all other Humbucker size options for “S” or “T” styled guitars, especially in an HSS configuration. It’s less aggressive as a bridge position appointed Single Coil, its output is more in balance with the SAV’s whether in an HSS or HS configuration, and I have also used it as a dual 58 configuration in an HH appointed guitar.

I’ve used them for low/medium gain applications on the church worship team, and I’ve used them in high gain applications for recording. They can sound big and huge with the low end at the sweet threshold between loose/tight, and the top end isn’t “shrill” in the bridge position like many standard single coils can be. When split in the 2nd or 4th gear positions on a five way, it complements its partnered single coils very sweetly.

No corksniffing gripes from me, BUT anyone considering placing active pickups into a guitar like a Strat that doesn't have a battery box already installed, should realize that means having to loosen all the strings and remove the pickguard each time the battery needs replacing. That is a hassle snd time-consuming, and even not possible in a on-the-fly gigging situation. So either install a battery box on the backside of the guitar... or invest in an external solution like the EMG 918 pedal that contains the battery and resides on your pedalboard so no special effort is needed at time of needing to replace the battery.

ES-918

The ES-918 is an external 18 Volt power supply for EMG Pickups. If you have an instrument that doesn’t fit a battery or you don’t want to install a battery in your guitar, the ES-918 is perfect for you. You can easily power your EMG pickups with 9 or 18 volts using a stereo cable. In addition...

www.emgpickups.com

The only change in your setup required, is that the ES-918 unit would become the first pedal in your signal chain, and you would connect your guitar to it using a stereo/TRS cable. The other nice benefit you get from it, is that it can become a single source of 9 volt battery power for ALL your guitars that use active pickups. No more needing to maintain separate 9 volt batteries in multiple guitars. You would just need to buy shorting clips to install into the battery compartment of each guitar, which are very inexpensive.

The second benefit/feature of it is that if you install a second 9 volt battery into the unit, you have the option to power the pickups at 18 volts for additional headroom.

So, something to consider.

I own one of these ES-918 units and it works as advertised.

Oh, everyone asks about the option on this unit to plug in a 9 volt power adaptor instead of using a 9 volt battery. Even the Owners Manual recommends against it, because using AC Power adds noise to your guitar signal. I tried it and confirmed that the added noise wasn't worth the small convenience.

 

[Spud]

I’m gonna grind up against corksniffery and tradition and throw EMG Actives into the mix.
I love the SAV singles for Strats and their associated variations, and their standard “T” set for is associated variations. Over the past year or so, I have really come to enjoy the “58” in is slight P90 voicing and it has replaced all other Humbucker size options for “S” or “T” styled guitars, especially in an HSS configuration. It’s less aggressive as a bridge position appointed Single Coil, its output is more in balance with the SAV’s whether in an HSS or HS configuration, and I have also used it as a dual 58 configuration in an HH appointed guitar.

I’ve used them for low/medium gain applications on the church worship team, and I’ve used them in high gain applications for recording. They can sound big and huge with the low end at the sweet threshold between loose/tight, and the top end isn’t “shrill” in the bridge position like many standard single coils can be. When split in the 2nd or 4th gear positions on a five way, it complements its partnered single coils very sweetly.

I haven’t really had the opportunity to smell them before, are they manufactured with a different sort of plastic or something? Come to think of it, I haven’t actually sniffed any pickups yet. (supposed to be humorous)

 

[Dickie Blues]

Not a fan of EMG pups personally.

 

[rockandroller]

I have EMG actives in a strat (SLV set) and the battery fits perfectly under the trem cover, right next to the springs. No extra routing!
It only gets changed once a year, so no hardship taking the trem cover off

 

[Floyd_Argus]

I have EMG actives in a strat (SLV set) and the battery fits perfectly under the trem cover, right next to the springs. No extra routing!
It only gets changed once a year, so no hardship taking the trem cover off

Smart thinking!

 

[stratamania]

No corksniffing gripes from me, BUT anyone considering placing active pickups into a guitar like a Strat that doesn't have a battery box already installed, should realize that means having to loosen all the strings and remove the pickguard each time the battery needs replacing. That is a hassle snd time-consuming, and even not possible in a on-the-fly gigging situation. So either install a battery box on the backside of the guitar... or invest in an external solution like the EMG 918 pedal that contains the battery and resides on your pedalboard so no special effort is needed at time of needing to replace the battery.

ES-918

The ES-918 is an external 18 Volt power supply for EMG Pickups. If you have an instrument that doesn’t fit a battery or you don’t want to install a battery in your guitar, the ES-918 is perfect for you. You can easily power your EMG pickups with 9 or 18 volts using a stereo cable. In addition...

www.emgpickups.com

The only change in your setup required, is that the ES-918 unit would become the first pedal in your signal chain, and you would connect your guitar to it using a stereo/TRS cable. The other nice benefit you get from it, is that it can become a single source of 9 volt battery power for ALL your guitars that use active pickups. No more needing to maintain separate 9 volt batteries in multiple guitars. You would just need to buy shorting clips to install into the battery compartment of each guitar, which are very inexpensive.

The second benefit/feature of it is that if you install a second 9 volt battery into the unit, you have the option to power the pickups at 18 volts for additional headroom.

So, something to consider.

I own one of these ES-918 units and it works as advertised.

Oh, everyone asks about the option on this unit to plug in a 9 volt power adaptor instead of using a 9 volt battery. Even the Owners Manual recommends against it, because using AC Power adds noise to your guitar signal. I tried it and confirmed that the added noise wasn't worth the small convenience.

Or you can also use a FIshman rechargeable battery trem backplate.

 

[Strat Avenger]

That's fine if it's what you like.
I don't like batteries in guitars. I don't even like them in pedals. I always use a power supply.

 

[Rick]

I have two gits that use batteries in pre-amps, probably change them once a year if that. I can't say I like them, or hate them. they do a job make the pups sound crystal clear. Not really an issue.

 

[Dickie Blues]

I think I have decided on dimarzio injectors and the area 67 in the middle position! Te 67 is amazing and was going back and forth between that, injector neck, and Bill Wilde LS280, I really like the injector. The bridge was between Wilde LS290 and the injector, also slightly preferred the injector. Y'all are such a big help! God bless all y'all!