Keystones vs GFS pickups

I have a CV tele with a dead bridge pu. Looking at Bill Lawrence Keystone set after reading all the great reviews. Also looking at GFS Repro 1950'S Telecaster Alnico Boutique Bridge Pickup. Any thoughts or experience with either?
In a related thought, I have a Jay Turser Vintage series that I am looking at converting to a Nashville tele with a neck humbucker. From a $ perspective the GFS Retrotron Hot Nashville Overwound Neck pu sounds like a deal. Anyone have this pu? Looking for a distinct tele sound on a budget guitar.
the GFS pu seems like such a great deal to be true.

I like GFS pickups. I put Nashville Retrotrons (not the Overwound) in a semi-hollow and they sounded amazingly good. Probably make a great neck pickup for that Jay Turser. I put a Fatbody tele bridge p'up in an Esquire build and loved it. I put a L'il Puncher bridge p'up in my Reverend Buckshot and it's great.

But...

My tele has Keystones. My favourite pickups ever, and at basically the same price as GFS you get pickups made by Bill freaking Lawrence.

Get the Keystones.

I have a CV tele with a dead bridge pu. Looking at Bill Lawrence Keystone set after reading all the great reviews. Also looking at GFS Repro 1950'S Telecaster Alnico Boutique Bridge Pickup. Any thoughts or experience with either?

You don't say whether you liked it and would like more of the same, or if you're looking for something different. I have a CVC which had the infamous dead bridge pickup. I really liked it prior to the failure. I've always read the CV series guitars essentially have Toneriders in them. I replaced mine with the Vintage Plus (http://www.tonerider.com/pickups/telepickups.html) bridge. It's a great Alnico V pickup, which is nearly indistinguishable (looks and tone) from the one that was in there. I'm certainly happy with it.

Okay,
I make pickups as you can see. In that price range I would buy the Keystones with out a doubt and would NOT buy the GFS.
I think the keystones are better made and sound better.

Keystones. They're a tad trebley for my taste, but just a stupidly great deal for such a quality pickup. You have to spend a lot more to start getting marginally better.

David Allen makes pretty good stuff, and I have a soft spot for the Bare Knuckle Flat 50's with their thick dripping tone.

I haven't played GFS pickups, but I am a very, very happy Keystone player. Quiet (not technically noise-free, but I'll be damned if I can hear any hum), touch-sensitive, very responsive to changes in cap values, excellent build quality ... just an all-around great single-coil pickup.

... and they're made by Bill freakin' Lawrence.

I like GFS pickups... .

But...

My tele has Keystones. My favourite pickups ever, and at basically the same price as GFS you get pickups made by Bill freaking Lawrence.

Get the Keystones.


Indeed. You won't regret it.

Keystones have such a broad range of great tones, plus they are really quiet, too, for true single coils. And they are made by Bill Lawrence. Get a 4 way switch, while you are installing them.

I have a set of Keystones in my sunburst parts-tele and i love them. Open sounding, chimey, bright but not ice picky! Very versatile and if you drive them, they really rock!

BUT

They do not deliver that classic vintage tele tone. They're just different!

I like GFS pickups. I put Nashville Retrotrons (not the Overwound) in a semi-hollow and they sounded amazingly good. Probably make a great neck pickup for that Jay Turser. I put a Fatbody tele bridge p'up in an Esquire build and loved it. I put a L'il Puncher bridge p'up in my Reverend Buckshot and it's great.

But...

My tele has Keystones. My favourite pickups ever, and at basically the same price as GFS you get pickups made by Bill freaking Lawrence.

Get the Keystones.

Nuff said.

I have two of the GFS 50s Vintage Alnico bridge pickups in my two Teles. I got one and really liked it, so I got another (the two have different neck pickups, but I wanted the same bridge sound out of them). I have no regrets, but I'm sure the Keystones are great, too.

Well I do appreciate the great (and prompt, as always!) advice from fellow members. Bill freakin' Lawrence pickups seem to be a great choice. I did love the stock pu btw but it sounds like the KEystones are a great deal and quality.
For those who have installed the Keystones, is there a difference between the Standard T set and the Deluxe T set?

Haven't tried the Keystones but I've had my share of GFS pickups and like the CV they are a good bang for the buck. I love my GFS LiL' Killer Tele neck and bridge pickups. They are pretty mean.

For those who have installed the Keystones, is there a difference between the Standard T set and the Deluxe T set?

Only aesthetic - the chromed cover doesn't affect the tone.

I can't speak for those GFS, but can for Keystones. An amp builder friend has bought GFS and liked them.

I find my Keystones to be versatile. I roll the neck tone back more than others but the extra neck treble can also make for nice tone that's rather acoustic sounding so they make the guitar quite versatile.

I have played a few GFS pickup'd guitars and they are decent.

I used to own a CVC Tele. I loved the pickups in it... surprisingly so! Very 60's sounding! Nice and twangy and tight. I loved the pickup actually.

I own a Tele with Keystones. It is different than the CVC pickup. The Keystones are more a classic 50's Tele sound whereas the CVC pickups were truly classic 60's Tele sounding to me. Now, the Keystoens aren't going anywhere. They are awesome for my style (I play Blues and Rockabilly stuff). I find the neck pickup is a bit smoother than the CVC a little more mid presence making it a tad creamier. The bridge pickup is dirtier sounding. There is a bit more in the lower mids which give it a nice grunty, twang sound. Not a bright twangy sound... Does that make any sense? LOL

I have several sets of Bill Lawrence pickups, another set of Keystones waiting to go in a build (for someone else) and a pair of Microcoils that I have in a Strat I built. They all sound great.

Bill Lawrence Wilde pickups are incredibly good quality... and cannot be beat for the money!

I like GFS pickups, I've bought quite a few. Their overwound alnico Tele bridge pickup is very good. The Dream90s are also great.

Keystones! My Keystones are in my MIM Standard Tele and my GFS tele pups are in a drawer.

I do have a set of GFS Overwound Alnico's in my Strat that I like. When I think about I seem to like the P90's and GFS Strat pickups and can take or leave their Tele pickups and humbuckers.

Taste in sound is purely subjective to each player and good luck in your search. However, I can vouch from my own experience of owning the GFS Pro Series Hot 63 bridge pup.

I own several different type of pups..some more expensive then the others I use, but the GFS Pro Series 63 is excellent for that 60s 70s Tele sound. They hold their own and are well constructed and perhaps better than some of the others I own including a Botique pup that I won't drop names on :wink:


63 Pro Series Bridge Pup
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I have not tried all the GFS pickups but where they lose their appeal to me is at higher volumes. Most pickups sound OK when you don't have it cranked up. The Keystones can take the additional power and still sound great.

I'd go with Keystones. They are a great set of pickups. The neck pickup has presence and when played in the middle position the Keystones have an awesome tone. I've used a few of the GFS Tele pickups and they are nice pickups, but nothing like the Keystones.

GFS: mass produced by Artec in China to GFS' specs.
Keystones: wound by the one & only Bill Lawrence in California.

Both are close in price. The Keystones are always my first choice. I find they are clear & articulate & pretty much noise free. To me, they have that 50's classic tele sound. I don't have any first hand experience with GFS pickups, but I'm sure they probably sound fine. If they were $40 a set, I'd try 'em. However, since they are so close in price to Keystones, the choice is simple. As long as Keystones are available, I have no need to try GFS pickups.

Bob

I did love the stock pu btw

Me too! I have one in my Esquire and it's great. You can get a CV 50's Alnico III bridge pup off evilbay for 25 bucks! Just say'in.

I've had the GFS Alnico 50s pickup you refer to in one guitar and it sounded absolutely fine. It's since been replaced with a Tonerider Hot Classic, which is essentially the same pickup as the stock one in the Vintage Blonde CV50s Squier. That sounds fine as well.

I can't comment on the Keystones from personal experience (though I've been tempted to try a pair but haven't got round to it yet), but a lot of guys swear by them, including our very own Big John, whose tone and technique are top-notch. Google "John Stannard" and check some of his videos.

As you're in London, if you're serious about that GFS pickup, send me a PM.

Well I just ordered a Bill Lawrence set for the CV tele. With all the positive feedback I figured I will put the Keystones in the CV tele and (in the near future) put a humbucker and bridge from GFS in my Turser tele. It should spark my practice time! Thanks for all your input...greatly appreciated!

Well I just ordered a Bill Lawrence set for the CV tele. With all the positive feedback I figured I will put the Keystones in the CV tele...

I'd be interested to know how long it takes for the Keystones to arrive from the USA. Also, of course, how they sound in the CV. If you feel like it, when the pickups have been installed perhaps you'd care to PM me with a view to comparing my stock CV50 with yours with the Keystones in it.

Tony, I really like my Keystones. In terms of shipping time to Europe - it took more time from the order to sending the shipment than for the shipment itself. I've ordered the pickups on 29 September, got message about the pickups being shipped around 20 October and received them 10 November.

i have had Keystones and loved them .i now have Bills Micro Coils and they are even better .Another great set of pickups are Tonerider Hot classics ,not the same as the pickups in the CV series which are only made in the same factory as Tonerider .they are still good pickups especially the CVC neck .All Bills pickups are dependent on their stock .I waited two months for my micro coils which I expected to do anyway .They are a small outfit .Well worth the wait .

Tony, I really like my Keystones. In terms of shipping time to Europe - it took more time from the order to sending the shipment than for the shipment itself. I've ordered the pickups on 29 September, got message about the pickups being shipped around 20 October and received them 10 November.

Dziekuje, Piotr! That means about six weeks from order to receipt. Still, if it's worth the wait...

Hey Tony, I am actually in London Ontario Canada. Hopefully the pups come in the next week or so. Let you know when i get them installed, looking forward to it! Woohoo!

Hey Tony, I am actually in London Ontario Canada...

Ah yes, that possibility had occurred to me... Still, could be worse - might have been London, Kentucky... :wink:

I've tried them all and so far I like the Fralin and Van Zandt bridges

I've got a set of Keystones going into my CVC and based on all of the comments I can wait to get my hands on it. Should be back to me in another day or two and I'll be able to offer better comments based on personal experience. Should be a nice contrast to the NoCasters I have in two others and the Alnico V's in my MIM.

Hey guys.....just received my Keystones this past week. Looking forward to installing this weekend! Woohooo!

I was going to recommend Keystones also. They are some of my favorite pickups. I don't think you will be disappointed.

Gfs are great quality in my experience. I have a Dream 180 in the bridge. Sounds great and splits extremely well! I got it wired to do series\single\parallel.