Installed some Don Mare's

Now I see what the fuss is about. These pickups are very nice. They are very much alive and quite hot (compared to my pitiful pickups in my MIK). They have a wonderful singing quality, even at low volume. They pick up a lot of activity taking place on the guitar, most noticeably on the fingerboard.

I talked to Don and told him what my set up was (blend pot and a little circuit of bleeder caps). He suggested these: S-telly neck 6.2k and a bridge 7.0k Alnico 5. They arrived in 36 days and appeared to be very solidly made and of high-quality material. The tinned pickup wires show the kind of consideration of detail that appears to underpin his work.

Playing these for the first time was like the first time I used a BBE Sonic Stomp: it both instances, it sounded like a wet blanket was removed from the front of the speaker.

It seems Don Mare knows his stuff. Haven't heard anyone not satisfied with his
pickups. How is the S-Telly pickup compared to your old neck pickup and what was it?

I'm not sure what the old pickup was. The guitar is an early 90s MIK tele that I bought on ebay. When I pulled is out, there was no name or indication, just a long serial number.

My goal was to get a neck pup that would blend well with the bridge pup. But it stands very well on its own, so I'll certainly use it that way. With it I get a good, full sound without mud.

Don has done a lot of research. For anyone interested in getting some pickups from him, I'd recommend talking to him. He was able to recommend pickup types based on set up and the sound that I was going for. There is a lot to be said for boutique craftsmen of this order.

I agree about Don. I just ordered a Zep-O-Tone Graf Airship One from him for an Esquire build I'm doing. I spent over 30 mins. on the phone with him going through all the pickups and the sound I was looking for (he played a bunch too).
The one I originally was ordering is completely not what I would have wanted.

Call him. He's good.

(so now I have a 52ri bridge PU, and EMG-RT PU + SPC, and A Don Mare to select from with this build :grin: )

Thank you for the info. Would love to try D. Mare in the future.

Now I see what the fuss is about. These pickups are very nice. They are very much alive and quite hot (compared to my pitiful pickups in my MIK). They have a wonderful singing quality, even at low volume. They pick up a lot of activity taking place on the guitar, most noticeably on the fingerboard.

I talked to Don and told him what my set up was (blend pot and a little circuit of bleeder caps). He suggested these: S-telly neck 6.2k and a bridge 7.0k Alnico 5. They arrived in 36 days and appeared to be very solidly made and of high-quality material. The tinned pickup wires show the kind of consideration of detail that appears to underpin his work.

Playing these for the first time was like the first time I used a BBE Sonic Stomp: it both instances, it sounded like a wet blanket was removed from the front of the speaker.+1