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N3 noiseless or custom '69 pickups?


mh0520

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I'm redoing my '99 fender MIM strat and looking to get it back to a classic strat tone. It's had some humbuckers in it for a while but now that I have a couple of good guitars with humbuckers in them I'd like to get a good single coil guitar.

I like what I've heard of the custom '69s but they're hard to find installed in a store so that I can try them out myself; there doesn't seem to be a lot of stock models with them.

With the N3s, I've read a few reviews and played a couple of american strats that sounded pretty good but I was curious if anyone had any comments on their experiences with them and also if anyone has tried out both of these sets.

I'm thinking of getting trying out some more N3s and getting the '69s and asking if there's any chance of returning them for the N3s, if I end up not liking them. I'm not sure how much stores like getting back pickups that have been installed or if that's even an option.

My concerns for each set are the potential for noise with the '69s and potentially lower signal levels, which might not be a problem and for the N3s having the wiring used to clean up the noise detract from the overall quality of the tone.

Anyways any comments on this would be really appreciated. Sorry for rambling.

Thanks,
Mike

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Quote Originally Posted by billybilly View Post
Some will argue but I believe you are always compromising on tone when you go noiseless so I vote against the N3's. Check this site out, very good examples.

http://www.acmeguitarworks.com/Picku...Clips-W60.aspx

Thanks. I've seen that sight before; it's how I have settled on the '69s. I was curious about the Fralins but I didn't hear a noticeable enough difference to make it worth the money right now. I'm probably leaning more towards the '69s but I didn't know if maybe people here had a strong opinion one way or the other on the N3s.

Thanks for the response!
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Quote Originally Posted by billybilly View Post
Some will argue but I believe you are always compromising on tone when you go noiseless so I vote against the N3's. Check this site out, very good examples.

http://www.acmeguitarworks.com/Picku...Clips-W60.aspx

Thanks. I've seen that sight before; it's how I have settled on the '69s. I was curious about the Fralins but I didn't hear a noticeable enough difference to make it worth the money right now. I'm probably leaning more towards the '69s but I didn't know if maybe people here had a strong opinion one way or the other on the N3s.

Thanks for the response!
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Quote Originally Posted by mh0520 View Post
I've never heard of either of those companies until now. I'm fairly naive in terms of pickups; I've pretty much only heard the big names and a few of the boutique names. Does anyone else have any comments on either of these other companies? The price tag is definitely appealing. smile.gif

Thanks for sharing.
In all honesty, they are probably better than most fenders and are boutique without the price tag. Both the winders frequent these forums, check out their websites for clips.

http://www.bg-pups.com/
http://www.rosepickups.com/
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Quote Originally Posted by mh0520 View Post
I've never heard of either of those companies until now. I'm fairly naive in terms of pickups; I've pretty much only heard the big names and a few of the boutique names. Does anyone else have any comments on either of these other companies? The price tag is definitely appealing. smile.gif

Thanks for sharing.
In all honesty, they are probably better than most fenders and are boutique without the price tag. Both the winders frequent these forums, check out their websites for clips.

http://www.bg-pups.com/
http://www.rosepickups.com/
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The N3s seem to be hated around here, but I find them great! I own 2 Fender Deluxe Strats, one with SCN's and one with N3s, to be honest, I would never replace them. But then again, I have an Ultra with Lace sensors and I love them too, which is again just the opposite of what I've read about them from people on this board. Lifeless, quiet, bland, generic are some of the adjectives used to describe them around here, but I would never use any of those words to describe the sound of my Ultra Strat...Choice of pickups is very subjective and what works for you might not work for others...

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The N3s seem to be hated around here, but I find them great! I own 2 Fender Deluxe Strats, one with SCN's and one with N3s, to be honest, I would never replace them. But then again, I have an Ultra with Lace sensors and I love them too, which is again just the opposite of what I've read about them from people on this board. Lifeless, quiet, bland, generic are some of the adjectives used to describe them around here, but I would never use any of those words to describe the sound of my Ultra Strat...Choice of pickups is very subjective and what works for you might not work for others...

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Quote Originally Posted by budalash View Post
The N3s seem to be hated around here, but I find them great! I own 2 Fender Deluxe Strats, one with SCN's and one with N3s, to be honest, I would never replace them. But then again, I have an Ultra with Lace sensors and I love them too, which is again just the opposite of what I've read about them from people on this board. Lifeless, quiet, bland, generic are some of the adjectives used to describe them around here, but I would never use any of those words to describe the sound of my Ultra Strat...Choice of pickups is very subjective and what works for you might not work for others...
I agree that tone is subjective and what people like is what they like, however, it is interesting that fender keep trying to invent a better noiseless while their classics don't need to be changed (IE: fat 50's, 54's, 69's etc...). Personally, IMO, if you want good noiseless for a fender price, get Dimarzio's and if you want the best and can break the bank, get Kinmans. Fender is behind in the noiseless stakes, IMO.

PS I've owned all the pickups you mentioned, not that I'm right, just have a difference of opinion and am not speaking through my ass.
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Quote Originally Posted by billybilly View Post
I agree that tone is subjective and what people like is what they like, however, it is interesting that fender keep trying to invent a better noiseless while their classics don't need to be changed (IE: fat 50's, 54's, 69's etc...). Personally, IMO, if you want good noiseless for a fender price, get Dimarzio's and if you want the best and can break the bank, get Kinmans. Fender is behind in the noiseless stakes, IMO.
I strongly endorse the Di Marzio Virtual Vintage 54 silent pick ups:

http://www.dimarzio.com/pickups/stra...vintage-54-pro

I got a set of those in my Vigier Expert Retro 54, they are GREAT!!! If you've ever happened to listen to Dire Straits live album Alchemy, i get the same great woody/crystally strat tones as Mark Knopfler (a shame it didn't do the same for my guitar skills.....cry.gif). FWIW, my strat (or vigier to be exact) is fully maple neck & alder body too.
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Quote Originally Posted by mh0520 View Post
I've never heard of either of those companies until now. I'm fairly naive in terms of pickups; I've pretty much only heard the big names and a few of the boutique names. Does anyone else have any comments on either of these other companies? The price tag is definitely appealing. smile.gif

Thanks for sharing.
I have personally only have experience with 1 set from of each BG and Rose. i have a Strat equipped with BG Strat 90s and a my wife's Luna Sol which I recently outfitted with Rose Mozarts. I also have a set of Roze Korona's but I still need something to put them in so I haven't actually played them yet.

In the case of the Strat-90s and the Rose Mozsarts they are both great pickups and I would (and most likely will) definitely use more of their pickups.

The Strat 90s actually sound quite similar in voicing to the CP69s but with a lot more punch. Here's a little comparison I did awhile back between my CS69 loaded strat and my Strat90 loaded Benford S-Type. It doesn't really do justice to either guitar but it gives you an idea.


The Luna Sol with the Rose Mozarts is like a whole different guitar now. Of course going from a humbucker to a single coil one would expect a pretty noticable difference but the Mozarts really breather new life into the guitar.


Also the Rose Belle's sound fantastic based off the clips I've heard and are easily worth the $90 price.
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As a basement-dwelling corksniffer, I'd go for the 69s, but I have noticed that guys who actually play music for a living are more appreciative of noiseless. My strat has Fat 50s and FWIW the noise does not bother me, but that's in a residential environment and at moderate volume levels.

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Quote Originally Posted by billybilly View Post
I agree that tone is subjective and what people like is what they like, however, it is interesting that fender keep trying to invent a better noiseless while their classics don't need to be changed (IE: fat 50's, 54's, 69's etc...). Personally, IMO, if you want good noiseless for a fender price, get Dimarzio's and if you want the best and can break the bank, get Kinmans. Fender is behind in the noiseless stakes, IMO.

PS I've owned all the pickups you mentioned, not that I'm right, just have a difference of opinion and am not speaking through my ass.
I never implied that you were speaking through your ass smile.gif
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Any other comments on the Rose Mariposas? I'm definitely intrigued by the price tag and all the videos I'm seeing sound pretty good. What's the non-sale price? Are they available in hand wound as well as pattern wound? I'm only seeing PW on their site.

Definitely glad I asked on here. Thanks!

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Quote Originally Posted by mh0520 View Post
Any other comments on the Rose Mariposas? I'm definitely intrigued by the price tag and all the videos I'm seeing sound pretty good. What's the non-sale price? Are they available in hand wound as well as pattern wound? I'm only seeing PW on their site.

Definitely glad I asked on here. Thanks!
No, Mariposas are Pattern Wound but don't let that deter you as pattern wound is not in any way inferior to hand wound, just different. I don't remember if the Hermosa's are Hand wound or pattern wound but either way they are great pickups. The Bells are definitely hand wound as are the Robustas.
I don't remember the non-sale price. Sale price or full price, they are a great deal either way and dollar for dollar you would be hard pressed to do better.
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Quote Originally Posted by kit_strong View Post
No, Mariposas are Pattern Wound but don't let that deter you as pattern wound is not in any way inferior to hand wound, just different. I don't remember if the Hermosa's are Hand wound or pattern wound but either way they are great pickups. The Bells are definitely hand wound as are the Robustas.
I don't remember the non-sale price. Sale price or full price, they are a great deal either way and dollar for dollar you would be hard pressed to do better.

Thanks. I figured as much on all counts. I'm very seriously considering it. If they're still on sale next week then I'm most likely thinking I'll pick up a set and check them out.

Thanks for pointing them out to me. How do the Bells and Robustas compare to the Mariposas? Just curious but I'm guessing the Mariposas are their "strat sound" pickups.
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At the end of the day they are all going to make your strat sound like a strat. There really is no 1 "strat sound" CS69s are very much a strat sound but so are Texas Specials. Just depends on exactly which Strat sound you want.
The Robustas are going are more in line with a 50s style strat pickup. NOt really sure what decades the Hermosa and Mariposas are going for. The Bells sound absolutely brilliant to my ears based on the few clips I've heard. I don't think you can go wrong with any of them. The Rose Mariposa is pretty much their trademark pickup so I would think it's a very safe choice that you'd be very happy with.

-Kit

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