advice on bardens

[gitarjoe]

I have been thinking of upgrading my tele to joe bardens. i have heard alot of good reviews about them. but i like a clean, twangy sound from my teles. i don't want something thats too hot. any opinions on what i should do?

[Madmaestro]

i like a clean, twangy sound from my teles.

That's just how I would describe then. I've been using them for awhile (since 1995) and I'm glad I bought them. The real plus to these pickups is the bridge is a nice usable sound for jazz when you need it.

[Kurt]

These pups are designed to preserve Tele tone while eliminating hum. Based on posts I've read - some people love them and some people don't - I happen to be one of those that swears by them. They are very hifi and very powerful - I did a fair amount of adjusting pup height and the tone control on my guitar to get the sound I want. The cleaner you play, the better they will sound. Bridge pup can be a bit trebly (ice pick) but rolling back the tone control takes care of it. Agree with previous post that neck pup has added some versatility to the tele. YMMV - it would be great if you can try a guitar that has them first.

[The Snowman]

luckilly, I got a set and put them in my beloved Bucky...the guitar came alive...(it's alive...it's alive)....and actually my playing has improved ....atleast I think it has...the tone is amazing and a great thing for me is that the way when you do bends and double stop bends. the strings just sustain and don't loose tone/volume...

I don't really know about hifi...don't understand that principal but they do add a dimension to the tone/sound that no other pickup has done for me yet...

and another great thing is that when you roll off the tone pot, you still have a usable tone to play with....even all the way off and the tone has a certain life to it...volume and tone swells respond like no other pickup too..very even roll off...not due to the pots either....it's in the design of the pickup itself....

but...and that is a very big but...good luck finding and actually getting them...at this point, I would suggest that you pay anything to get them if you can find them...they will appreciate in value over time...if ya don't like them...I'll buy them off you...and would like the right of first refusal....don

[Twangmeister]

and they bring out the unique tonal characteristics of each. I agree with all the previous posters, but they are a BIG change from the standard Fender single coils, and I would play a guitar that has them first if possible. If not, I'm sure you can sell them fairly quickly. Roll off the volume a bit and do your clean, Tele thing, then dime it, dig in, and get a nice preamp overdrive. Work great for me, YMMV.

[aln413]

i checked out a danny gatton tele that had them over the weekend through a mesa boogie and they sounded great!!with the overdrive they really kicked(which was great for me since im a rocker)!!!!i dig the way they look!!!