My neck pickup is too muddy...suggestions?

It's an Adder Plus neck pup...and it just doesn't sound right.

Any help would be appreciated!

Thanks,
Jason

...Get a new one. :grin:

Do the Adder Plus' have the chrome cover? If so, try taking the cover off, but be very careful of breaking the coil. Taking the cover off will add brightness. Also try different height adjustments, and try different pots, capacitors, and maybe some custom wiring if nothing else works. A lot of people here on the TDPRI have there tele's wired so that the neck pickup bypasses the tone pot to make it brighter and less darker/muddy.

Hope I helped a little bit.......... and if everything else fails, do what I said first- Get a new one. :lol:

I have tried 5 diffeerent neck pickups some expensive some stock.

The one I liked best that wasnt dark was the stock neck pup for the 50's Classic the 60's Classic also uses the same pickup.

Careful application of soap and water, and stop jumping into puddles with your guitar:lol: :roll:

More to the point, you could get a tone pot that eliminates the tone circuit when it is in the brightest condition. Is the pickup muddy all the time, or onl when turned down? If the latter, it might be helped with the volume bypass cap mod. Putting it closer to the strings may create enough signal to clear up some of the mud. As noted above, if it has a cover, taking the cover off may help.

After that, I think you are looking for a new pickup.

I'm with you, I like a clean neck pickup. One of my favorites is the Dimarzio Twang King.

It's the lovechild of a Strat neck pickup and a mini-humbucker. And the price is right.

I've been pretty happy since I switched to strat neck pickups. Also love P-90's in the neck position - but have never been happy with standard tele neck pickups. I also like the middle or combined positions much better. Especially with a 4-way switch.

I'm with you, I like a clean neck pickup. One of my favorites is the Dimarzio Twang King.

It's the lovechild of a Strat neck pickup and a mini-humbucker. And the price is right.


1+ on the Twang King neck
To me it's strikes a perfect ballance clean and crisp but not too bright. It's full sounding, not thin, but not too fat either

The one I liked best that wasnt dark was the stock neck pup for the 50's Classic the 60's Classic also uses the same pickup.

+1 I love my Fender Classic Series (http://www.guitarpartsresource.com/pickups_teleclassic.htm) neck pickup.

Just to clarify, I'm not looking for a new pickup, I KNOW this one sounds good, I've heard it sound good in other guitars.

My question is more: should I raise/lower it? Should I change a pot/resistor?

Should I wire it differently?

Thanks!
Jason

Maybe it's your guitar.

Just to clarify, I'm not looking for a new pickup, I KNOW this one sounds good, I've heard it sound good in other guitars.

My question is more: should I raise/lower it? Should I change a pot/resistor?

Should I wire it differently?

Thanks!
Jason

You're thinking right to start with height adjustment before doing anything else. I've found that an afternoon tinkering with pickup height adjustment can make any pickup or set sound better. Lowering it may give you some clarity and range but will cut volume.

You could change your capacitor value but that may make your bridge pup too bright. One thing...I've noticed that on Teles with a Fender No-Load tone pot really opens up the neck pickup in the "no-load" setting. You could try that...cheap and easy as well.

Last would be a pickup change. The Fralin Blues Special neck pickup is awesome.

In case you need a new pu I would strongly recommend you have Jason Lollar wind you a neck pu. He wound one for me, without the cover (covers seriously cut highs) that sounds as good as any Strat pu I've ever heard. Very harmonically rich. :cool: :cool:

Tom

Just to clarify, I'm not looking for a new pickup, I KNOW this one sounds good, I've heard it sound good in other guitars.

My question is more: should I raise/lower it? Should I change a pot/resistor?

Should I wire it differently?

Thanks!
Jason

Was it this very same pickup in the other guitar, or another pickup of the same model?

How is this Tele wired now, with what spec pots, cap(s) etc?

And how was the Tele wired that it sounded good in, with what spec pots, cap(s) etc?

I find plain old standard US Fender neck pickups very good. But lately I've been using a Fender Vintage Noiseless neck pickup. Like the standard Fender pickup it's clear, balanced and 'woody' sounding...but also hum-free.

I'm with you, I like a clean neck pickup. One of my favorites is the Dimarzio Twang King.

It's the lovechild of a Strat neck pickup and a mini-humbucker. And the price is right.

Another +1 on the Twang King.. I just put one in last week and am loving it!

I just used a GFS Littl Puncher XL with S/P switching and I dig the hell out of it. Not a Barden by any means, but clear and defined. Dare I say "Bardenesque" , for forty bucks?

Maybe your Tele? has vintage wiring which is very bass sounding
on the 1st position.

You may check and if so convert to the modern type circuit wiring
which eliminates that plus adds neck + bridge in the middle switch
position.

http://www.tdpri.com/forum/just-pickups/71523-bright-lively-neck-pickup-any-suggestions.html?

hi jason, i had great luck with the modified wiring and a leosounds neck pickup

In my experience, raising the pickup closer to th strings makes it bassier and more muddy, lowering it makes it sweeter and brighter but reduces output, which is often a problem with teles.

After messing with pickup height, if it's still muddy, I'd try a no-load pot--one of those pots that's open at the "full on" position so that all the signal passes to the output jack. You can buy one or make one out of an existing pot. I used to have a tele with minibucker in the neck position and I used a no load pot to open it up. Worked very well, except then the bridge pickup was too bright. But I was in the habit of always rolling the treble back a bit anyway when I used the bridge pickup, so it wasn't a problem

I have owned a bunch of Teles that had too dark sounding neck pickuos. Most are way too dark.

Thats one reason I switched them all to Esquires problem solved!

Id start with lowering the pickup as low as possible then raise up the treble side about 2 turns.

Try a .022 or .033 uf cap first. Cost $2 for 3 or 4 of them and takes just a couple of minutes. If you like it you can wire your guitar so the bridge uses the standard .047 cap and the neck uses the smaller one.

Since you don't want to replace the pickup, I would suggest rewiring the switch to have the tone pot function on the bridge pickup only. I had the same problem with my homebrew tele. The neck pickup was a Seymour Duncan '54, and rewiring the switch didn't do much good. Swapping in a Fender Texas Tele neck pickup with the tone control on only the bridge pickup was a huge improvement. Altering the wiring won't cost you anything, either, assuming you can do the soldering yourself.

Try a .022 or .033 uf cap first. Cost $2 for 3 or 4 of them and takes just a couple of minutes. If you like it you can wire your guitar so the bridge uses the standard .047 cap and the neck uses the smaller one.

eryque: do you have a diagram of how this can be done? Thanks.

I have to go with the twang king. a great pup for very little outlay.

IMHO, the BEST sounding Telecaster neck pickup is the "Telly Rhythm" from Rockinger:

ROCKINGER (http://rockinger.com/index.php?cat=WG091&lang=ENG&product=07069)

This is the one with the most clearest sound that I know and for the price, it's a bargain.

Some other neck pickups that I've tried: Fralin stock, Fender '62 RI, Fender Muddy Waters, Fender 60's classic, Leosounds 60's Standard, some GFS (can't remember the model) and some others...

By far the best sounding pickup of all the above was/is the Rockinger, followed by the Fender Muddy Waters, Leosounds and the Fender '62 RI.

It has a German-Silver cover which helps to retain more highs with great definition and string balance.

I have to go with the twang king. a great pup for very little outlay.

+1

+++ on raising the treble side, lowering the bass side. And it doesn't cost much.

My all time favourite is my Hamel but a close second is the MIM Classic.

I would like to add something more useful here, but I think that by following up on some of the suggestions here (ranging from cheapest to more expensive) you should have your guitar performing more to your liking.

Oh, yeah. Another big thumbs up for the Dimarzio Twang King. I have one and love the most of all my Tele pups. Although, that Strat neck pup sounds pretty awesome!

Good luck mate!

Bob

I've got the Antiquity in the neck of my Tele. It rings true and sweet!

Try a .022 or .033 uf cap first. Cost $2 for 3 or 4 of them and takes just a couple of minutes. If you like it you can wire your guitar so the bridge uses the standard .047 cap and the neck uses the smaller one.

+1 on the .022 cap. Adds a bit of brightness to the tone and cheap.

IMHO, the BEST sounding Telecaster neck pickup is the "Telly Rhythm" from Rockinger:

ROCKINGER (http://rockinger.com/index.php?cat=WG091&lang=ENG&product=07069)

This is the one with the most clearest sound that I know and for the price, it's a bargain.

Some other neck pickups that I've tried: Fralin stock, Fender '62 RI, Fender Muddy Waters, Fender 60's classic, Leosounds 60's Standard, some GFS (can't remember the model) and some others...

By far the best sounding pickup of all the above was/is the Rockinger, followed by the Fender Muddy Waters, Leosounds and the Fender '62 RI.

It has a German-Silver cover which helps to retain more highs with great definition and string balance.

I just ordered one... I have been quite unhappy with the Van Zandt neck. It's just too muddy even with the cover off. I can make it sound okay, but then the amp setting will be way too bright for the bridge pickup. Hopefully this one will work better for my use.

try changing the capacitor before changing the pickup. a $0.20 change may sound better than a $100 will.

Just a thought, but have you checked the actual value of your tone and volume pots? I presume they're the regular 250K pots but production variations mean that some that are stamped 250K will actually test out at way under - 180K or even less in some cases. This will darken your sound considerably. If this is the case, simply replace the offending item(s) with new, testing the replacements to make sure they are up to spec, between 250 and 280K ohms.

I also vote for the DiMarzio Twang King! (although you said you're not looking for another pickup)

I have had one for maybe two or three years and don't think I ever have to search for another neck pup for my Teles. It replaced the Duncan Alnico 2 Pro in my Lite Ash and the difference is night and day. Really. Alnico 2 Pro is on the mellow side, though. It's very easy to get the TK in balance with different bridge pickups.

It is cheap for such a great pup.

Since you don't want to replace the pickup, I would suggest rewiring the switch to have the tone pot function on the bridge pickup only. I had the same problem with my homebrew tele. The neck pickup was a Seymour Duncan '54, and rewiring the switch didn't do much good. Swapping in a Fender Texas Tele neck pickup with the tone control on only the bridge pickup was a huge improvement. Altering the wiring won't cost you anything, either, assuming you can do the soldering yourself.

I did this too ... works great.

Also ... pot values need to be at least 250k ... check them first ... you can try 500k ... they will be brighter.

I've used (.015uf, .022uf, .033uf, .047uf) in fact I change them while I'm playing the guitar with a couple off alligator clip wires (from Radio Shack) I do this with a lot of guitars ... cheap fix and makes a difference ... worth trying.

Combining all three ... or a combination of the three ... will make a huge difference and will cost very little ... except your time.

One thing ... it would help to know if you have the problem when your using the tone controls or if it's a problem with tones & volumes wide open. The caps won't help you if wide open is too muddy until the pots are right.

:grin:

Fender CS Nocaster neck pickup. Clear & Chimey!

everyone seems to tell you to buy a new p/u, just take the cover off the pickup, and be careful with the leads, then wax the coil, or tape it. it'll be glassy, kinda like a lace sensor

everyone seems to tell you to buy a new p/u

Not everyone ...

I'd still try the pots & caps first before I'd actually take the cover off. The pots, caps can make a huge difference ... very little $ ... easily changed. I also like the looks of the Tele neck ... but just one man's opinion.

I use lace sensor as they gives me crystal clear tones. Hmmm, maybe this post on my blog might interest you. http://guitareffectssecrets.andy-ng.com/27/guitars-volume-and-tone-knobs/

Change the bridge pickup............................................ ...
but seriously, if you have an ice pick sounding bridge pickup, you'll compensate at the amp and the neck pickup sound will suffer. Find a setting on the amp tht you like for the neck pickup FIRST. Then check the B+N setting, and finally the bridge alone. Then decide where to make a change. If you plug directly into a PA, you'll get an even better idea of where the balance is off.
Ken

I've received the Rockinger Telly Rhythm this morning, and just finished putting it in & tested for 30 minutes or so. So far, I think it sounds very good - clear, but meaty like how a Tele neck should sound. It's not that Van Zandt was bad sounding, but I realised that VZ neck had way too much output to have it closer to the strings when it was matched to the bridge pickup which I like. The Rockinger actually has almost the same sound characteristics of the VZ neck without the cover, but I can get the Rockinger closer to the strings to have more definition and clarity because of its lower output.

i'm gonna chime in loud and clear on taking off the chrome cover! it's literally the difference between night and day... more strat-like, gutty but chimey. i wouldn't recommend bypassing the tone pot -- you lose the ability to darken it up when you want that sound (jazz, swing etc.) you can get the same results, except better, by yanking that cover.

if you do a TDPRI search (in blue bar at top of page), you can find details on the operation from a couple of threads posted during the past year. if you're handy, you can do it yourself. if not ... well, i had my guitar tech do it for me, cost me 30 bucks. you would definitely want to have your coils wrapped with cloth tape once it's off ... if you bring the tape-wrap out the edge of the plates, you won't get the hung-up high E string. i've played dozens of gigs since i pulled mine off and it's never happened yet.

i'm so zealous on the topic that i dug up the threads for you!

http://www.tdpri.com/forum/just-pickups/69079-how-do-you-remove-teles-neck-pickup-cover.html?highlight=remove+neck+pickup+cover

http://www.tdpri.com/forum/telecaster-discussion-forum/67471-removing-neck-pickup-cover-works-me.html