Tele Replacement P/U's

[Ken Fox]

I have done 1996 Telecaster Deluxe Plus and new Telecaster with Bigsby (Japanese, 60's Tele Custom) with Bill Lawrence. About a year ago they were all the rave on the Fender Forum. No regrets here, they sound great and no hum! I did both guitar with a Lawrence Strat middle. I had the Japanese model routed for the middle pickup, fret dress and a graphite nut. I used the L-280TL on it and the L-290TL on the Deluxe. Both guitars got the L-280N pickup. I am very pleased with both.

[Joe Stewart]

I play a 2001 American Standard Deluxe Tele that came equipped with Fender's (OEM) "noiseless" pick-ups, but the guitar sorely lacked that vintage "twangy" (Buck Owens/Bakersfield) sound that I keenly sought. So, I researched and installed a set of Seymour Duncan 'Vintage for Tele' "Rhythm" (neck) and "Broadcaster" (bridge) pick-ups without any other changes. The modification certainly improved the overall tone and punch of the guitar, but I now have plenty of 60-cycle hum that wasn't there with the OEM PUs, and it still lacks that good "twangy" sound that I'm after. Hence, the search continues, but I think I'm going to seriously look at some of the PUs made for Tele by Chris Kinman and Lindy Fralin. Both are getting "rave" reviews in various Tele circles.