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Bbenderman · February 19th, 2009, 08:17 AM

Jerry Donahue tele bridge pickup how good compare to Fralin blues special.
The Fralin darken up the tone a little.
I have Fralin blues special instald in all my Telecasters now.
I have read that some love Fralins and some hate them.
But i think they are some of the best boutique pickups for Telecaster.

castpolymer · February 19th, 2009, 08:42 AM

I have the JD in two Teles. Compared to the OV, it has a bit less twang, some more mids and more bottom end. IMHO, it is the perfect Tele bridge pickup to mate with a mini or full size neckbucker. I have no experience with Fralin's.

JonyB · February 19th, 2009, 01:18 PM

I agree with castpolymer on the JD....I will say that It still goes back to personal preferance and what you really want or think a Tele bridge pickup should sound like. I have a JD in a rosewood board Tele...I couldn't be happier with. On the other hand...I like Fralin pickups also. Consider this.....Robben Ford had Fralin rewind his 60 Tele bridge pickup......and of course we all know Robben's a tone king. At least that's what David ...His guitar tech has stated in the past. Both pickups are fine replacements for a Tele...it boils down to how much twang you prefer.

Webfoot · February 19th, 2009, 02:31 PM

How would the JD bridge go with a:

- harmonic design (mini tele size strat pickup) in the neck
- or a twang king/true velvet in the neck?

Too much tone or volume mismatch? Or mucho versatility?

tjalla · February 19th, 2009, 03:55 PM

Had a JD for a while - very musical pickup, with as mentioned, smoother highs and more mids. Bottom end can get a bit spongey, but that's consistent with the overall 'chewy' vibe of the PU - sorry for the abstract description.

I also use a Twang King, and while I haven't paired them, I think the TK would be too bright for the JD, unless you used a no-load tone pot perhaps.

I have heard the Fralin Blues Special a couple times - it has more attack ie less compression and the midrange emphasis is shifted to a more upper-mids compared to the JD.

JonyB · February 20th, 2009, 12:47 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Webfoot

How would the JD bridge go with a:

- harmonic design (mini tele size strat pickup) in the neck
- or a twang king/true velvet in the neck?

Too much tone or volume mismatch? Or mucho versatility?

Funny you should ask ! I couldn't be happier than with this combination. Harmonic Design mini Strat and Duncan JD. Swamp ash body, Warmoth boat neck contour with 10inch radius on a rosewood board. I LOVE this guitar !

Chrismo · February 20th, 2009, 01:09 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JonyB

Funny you should ask ! I couldn't be happier than with this combination. Harmonic Design mini Strat and Duncan JD. Swamp ash body, Warmoth boat neck contour with 10inch radius on a rosewood board. I LOVE this guitar !

Very similar to JD's set up, no?

Webfoot · February 20th, 2009, 02:08 AM

Somebody gave me a free tele 52 neck pickup. So I popped the cover off and put it in my tele neck position. I was very curious to see how straty it sounds. I was blown away. While not completely optimize and no tone or cap in the circuit (just hooked straight into the amp) it is an incredible sound. Like someone said... you automatically start reaching for the whammy bar. Incredible bell tones. This basically locked me into wanting to use a mini tele strat pickup for a while. Now I want to find a good tele bridge pickup that can handle classic rock.

Chrismo · February 20th, 2009, 11:33 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Webfoot

Somebody gave me a free tele 52 neck pickup. So I popped the cover off and put it in my tele neck position. I was very curious to see how straty it sounds. I was blown away. While not completely optimize and no tone or cap in the circuit (just hooked straight into the amp) it is an incredible sound. Like someone said... you automatically start reaching for the whammy bar. Incredible bell tones. This basically locked me into wanting to use a mini tele strat pickup for a while. Now I want to find a good tele bridge pickup that can handle classic rock.

This is what I've learned.

With the right amount of drive dialed in, damn near ANY tele bridge pickup can pull off the classic rock tone. Right now, I am diggin' the Alnico II Pro for Tele bridge. Great clarity and grind for classic rock.

Guns1rose · February 20th, 2009, 12:31 PM

"Anything sounds better with Fralins." - Scott Harris

February 19th, 2009, 08:17 AM	#1 (permalink)
Bbenderman TDPRI Member Join Date: Feb 2008 Location: Sweden Age: 36 Posts: 61	Jerry Donahue VS Fralin blues special Jerry Donahue tele bridge pickup how good compare to Fralin blues special. The Fralin darken up the tone a little. I have Fralin blues special instald in all my Telecasters now. I have read that some love Fralins and some hate them. But i think they are some of the best boutique pickups for Telecaster.

February 19th, 2009, 08:42 AM	#2 (permalink)
castpolymer Friend of Leo's Join Date: May 2008 Location: Oklahoma - Home of the Sooners Age: 38 Posts: 2,160	I have the JD in two Teles. Compared to the OV, it has a bit less twang, some more mids and more bottom end. IMHO, it is the perfect Tele bridge pickup to mate with a mini or full size neckbucker. I have no experience with Fralin's.

February 19th, 2009, 01:18 PM	#3 (permalink)
JonyB TDPRI Member Join Date: Jan 2009 Location: Dayton,Ohio Age: 56 Posts: 93	I agree with castpolymer on the JD....I will say that It still goes back to personal preferance and what you really want or think a Tele bridge pickup should sound like. I have a JD in a rosewood board Tele...I couldn't be happier with. On the other hand...I like Fralin pickups also. Consider this.....Robben Ford had Fralin rewind his 60 Tele bridge pickup......and of course we all know Robben's a tone king. At least that's what David ...His guitar tech has stated in the past. Both pickups are fine replacements for a Tele...it boils down to how much twang you prefer.

February 19th, 2009, 02:31 PM	#4 (permalink)
Webfoot Tele-Meister Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: Oregon Posts: 217	How would the JD bridge go with a: - harmonic design (mini tele size strat pickup) in the neck - or a twang king/true velvet in the neck? Too much tone or volume mismatch? Or mucho versatility?

February 19th, 2009, 03:55 PM	#5 (permalink)
tjalla Friend of Leo's Join Date: Mar 2003 Location: Perth, Western Australia Posts: 2,468 7 Photos	Had a JD for a while - very musical pickup, with as mentioned, smoother highs and more mids. Bottom end can get a bit spongey, but that's consistent with the overall 'chewy' vibe of the PU - sorry for the abstract description. I also use a Twang King, and while I haven't paired them, I think the TK would be too bright for the JD, unless you used a no-load tone pot perhaps. I have heard the Fralin Blues Special a couple times - it has more attack ie less compression and the midrange emphasis is shifted to a more upper-mids compared to the JD.

February 20th, 2009, 02:08 AM	#8 (permalink)
Webfoot Tele-Meister Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: Oregon Posts: 217	Somebody gave me a free tele 52 neck pickup. So I popped the cover off and put it in my tele neck position. I was very curious to see how straty it sounds. I was blown away. While not completely optimize and no tone or cap in the circuit (just hooked straight into the amp) it is an incredible sound. Like someone said... you automatically start reaching for the whammy bar. Incredible bell tones. This basically locked me into wanting to use a mini tele strat pickup for a while. Now I want to find a good tele bridge pickup that can handle classic rock.

February 20th, 2009, 12:31 PM	#10 (permalink)
Guns1rose Tele-Meister Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: Richmond, Va Age: 16 Posts: 268	"Anything sounds better with Fralins." - Scott Harris

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