How do you make a hard rockin tele?

[serge3000]

I am swapping my Highway one body for an ash body and refining a few of the parts to make it a real vintage sounding tele. With the left over H1 body, I wanna make a more rock/ overdrive style tele more suitable for heavier songs. What pick-ups would be suitable to get that heavier rock sound out of my second tele. I am thinking of humbucker style single coil pup, but i dont wanna put a HB in there. Also, would a new style bridge me better for that type of sound ?? putting a call out to all my tele buddies!

[simonc]

check out the SD 1/4 pound, I got one for exatly the same reasons you mentioned, & am VERY happy with the results.

[geddyleedog]

I also had a 1/4 pound and it was a good pickup for rock. Right now I have an SK T-90 pup in there and it's not going anywhere anytime soon. Steven makes a great pickup. I play straight forward rock n roll and it does a great job. My dad is building me a new Tele. I'm putting a Dimarzio Tone Zone T in that one based on some recommendations from guys on this site. I won't have it done for a few months so I can't comment on it yet.

[Andre']

muy grande

[Mike D.]

I installed a SD Quater Pounder with the tapped option in a partscaster. It hooks up to a standard 5-way switch and offers the full pickup which is close to a humbucker in output and fatness and also the tapped pickup which is a pretty good standard tele sound. I can go from twang to rawk in a flick of the switch.

[Marshall Thinline]

Originally Posted by simonc

check out the SD 1/4 pound, I got one for exatly the same reasons you mentioned, & am VERY happy with the results.

Seymour Duncan sound clips

You can hear them here!
Keep us posted on what you do.

Ray

[Marshall Thinline]

I have never heard any of the GFS pickups yet, but I have read many good things about them. I know that the price is right.
GFS Hot TC Alnico

[HullettAmps]

If you really wanted to turn it into a rocker you could always turn it into this





Clay Hullett

[Big Weapons]

I'd suggest any of the SD humbuckers. It just comes down to what you want.

I have a Little '59 in my bridge. Not as hot as the hot rails, but it retains some of the tele sound when it's clean. Nice crunchy lows and smooth highs when distorted :)

[aln413]

ive got an sd hotrails in my squire that sounds monstrous and in my amer stan ive got a fender red lace sensor thats extremely crunchy as well.both have the six saddle bridge.

[fungusyoung]

I'd recommend a Harmonic Design S-90 for the bridge pup, especially if you like a P90-type sound.

[Tom S]

Originally Posted by HullettAmps

If you really wanted to turn it into a rocker you could always turn it into this





Clay Hullett

Cool. Or this:


It rocked hard for many years...before I discovered Danny Gatton :)

[Wild Rice Chris]

Originally Posted by Tom S

Cool. Or this:


It rocked hard for many years...before I discovered Danny Gatton :)

Or, to continue, this:

'72 Gibson Super Humbucker and an '82 Gibson bucker

Or this:

Fralin Humbucker with a Lawrence Q-filter

Although my favorite rock/all around versatile tele is this:

Fender Nocaster bridge pickup with a Gibson mini-bucker.

[Tom S]

As long as we're talking 'buckercasters, you could go LP-ish style....



:)

[Marshall Thinline]

Originally Posted by serge3000

What pick-ups would be suitable to get that heavier rock sound out of my second tele.

What players come to mind. This way we can zero in on your tone better.

Originally Posted by serge3000

I am thinking of humbucker style single coil pup, but i dont wanna put a HB in there

You got a bunch of HB suggestions, even though that's not what you are looking for.

Where is Sarge when you need him? Maybe he will chime in on this one. He likes the heavier rock tones too.

[Kilt]

I have a SD Phat Cat P90 in my esquire part-0-caster. It not only rocks ... It peels paint!

She's my #1.

[playin loud]

I have always wanted to do a P-90 in the neck position like a 72 custom but a thinline. You could use your existing bodie and fit in a P-90ish pickup in the neck and a high output single coil in the bridge position to balance with the output of the P-90. There are many different tricks you could use for wiring as well. Keeping both pickups as single coils you can get out of phase for some fun distorted tones, not to mention parallel and, series in phase as well.
Let us know what you decide on.

[franchelB]

Rio Grande Muy Grandes!

[gtrman911]

How do you make a hard rockin tele?

uh......plug it in.....turn up the volume.....and play well






[see tagline]

[jonzer]

I crank the amp, crank my Boss SD1, put the tele volume at 5 and occasionally turn it up for a little feedback or for the stinger at the end of the song.
My American Series tele is all stock too. You don't need the humbucker to rock hard.

[swingin.little.guitarman]

If you want to beef-up your Tele without modifyiing the bridge or body, I would recommend going to a hotter P90 style pickup in the bridge and neck position. Some pickups I have had good experience with are the Fralin SP43 and Wolfetone Rabid Bich models. The Fralin SP43's are equivalent to a good P90 output. I use the SP43 as a bridge pickup in several of my Strats. The Wolfetone Rabid Bich will give you a very hot P90 sound. Either pickup would be a good choice for a more powerful Tele tone. It just depends how far you want to get from the original Tele sound. For heavier sounds the Rabid Bich does a good job at cutting heads.

[andrew]

Do what the daddy of tele rock did....




8)

[jwells393]

Practice ............. Practice ...............Practice.

[PhatBoy]

Originally Posted by HullettAmps

If you really wanted to turn it into a rocker you could always turn it into this


Clay Hullett

Clay,

What pups ARE those?

PB

[bagpipe]

Originally Posted by jwells393

Practice ............. Practice ...............Practice.

I thought that was how you got to Carnegie Hall ? ?