Pickup Change??

[pneil]

Hey all,

I've got an older Anderson classic strat that I love (my first Anderson!) but lately I've been thinking about changing pickups. I broke out an older Strat I have (mostly retired) and the single coils have a meatier more soulful sound. Not as dark as Texas specials but not thin by any means.

The Anderson currently has SA2 SA1R SA1. Any suggestions?

Thanks,

Pneil

[pipedwho]

Do you like the tone of the SAs in split mode (the louder mode)?

I can understand that the hum-cancelling mode can sound a little anaemic on stacked single coils, but the split mode on those coils is quite powerful and modern sounding.

If that's not to your liking and you'd prefer a more vintage character, then the traditional VA7 will bring the magic (along with the noise in positions 1,3 and 5).

[Pietro]

The VA7's are simply amazing. But, for me, stacked single coils work well, too. I am getting ready to install them (I think) on my T and make it a "nashville tele".

[pneil]

I think I generally run them in HB mode since I tend to use some higher gain settings. They seem to lack something. Weird to say that about an axe I've played for 10 yrs, but things change. I'll go home and fool with them in single coil mode tonight.

I'm thinking at the very least, I should bump the SA2 to an SA3 just to get a little more output.

How about the SF's? How do they compare to the SA's sonically? I'm thinking I need something warmer (whatever that means, more low mids I guess?) with a bit more output.

[brokenvail]

SF2's are awesome. If you require the hum canceling

[BFC]

I really like the SC line. I think they're basically the SF but with traditional single coil style covers. I never got along with the SA in hum canceling mode. I liked them split but if I was going to live with the single coil noise, I'd just go with the VA line myself. So for me... SC/SF for low noise. Or VA for awesome sounding traditional style.

[pipedwho]

The SFs have a much more pleasing hum-cancelling tone than the SAs. Less high end loss, and a nice upper mid character that the SAs don't have. They sound more 'vintage' than the modern sounding SAs.

The SF's split sound is powerful and can overdrive the amp easily, it is brighter, and harsher than the hum-cancelling tone, but can still be useful.

I really like the split sound of the SAs. But, as BFC said above, if you are going to run primarily split, you may as well go for the full magic with a set of VA7/VA7/VA7+.

Once you've played around a bit more with the split/series options, you'll be in a better position to describe what you're after.

[pipedwho]

I'm thinking at the very least, I should bump the SA2 to an SA3 just to get a little more output.
Are you sure you're not just really wanting a full size humbucker in the bridge? If that's the case, you can always order a new pick guard and an H2+ or something.

[pneil]

Nah,

I've got a hollow drop top with the H2+ in the bridge. It;s been my main guitar for years. I absolutely love that sound, but I'm definitely looking for "stratty" with this one :-). Looks like the SF's may be the answer.

[pipedwho]

Nah,

I've got a hollow drop top with the H2+ in the bridge. It;s been my main guitar for years. I absolutely love that sound, but I'm definitely looking for "stratty" with this one :-). Looks like the SF's may be the answer.
For pure vintage strattiness, the VA7s are where it's at. But the SFs are great if you need noiseless. And combined with the passive booster module, you can step up the output and mids of either of these sets for when you want more 'push'.

Also, the SAs/SFs don't magnetically pull on the strings like the VAs, so you can raise any of the pickups closer to the strings without causing problems (this is especially useful if you want more output from the bridge). You can try this with your existing setup to see how close you need to go with the SA2 (do this test in hum-cancelling mode). That'll help you decide if you really need an SF3 or if an SF2 will will suffice.

With everything dialled in (and a booster module), you probably won't ever need the split option. If that's the case, you should also consider the SCs (which are basically non-splittable SFs with a nice strat style plastic cover for that more traditional look).