I need a better bridge pickup for my Vintage '57 strat. I love the pickups on this guitar but I find the bridge pickup a little weak. Never really liked it actually. It should work for clean sound but also for distortion, or mainly for distortion. Any suggestions?

its probably the maple neck making it bright and shrill. those guitars are fussy and only perform on real tube amps that are healthy w/ tons of bottom end. plug it into a JMP50 or JCM800 fully cranked and see what happens then.

Either A Seymour Duncan Quarter Pounder, or a Rio Grande will give you a fat, almost P-90 type of tone.

A Hot Rail will give you a Humbucker in a Single Coil.

I bought a Lundgren Hot pickup. Haven´t installed it yet. I get back when I tried it.

About the Lundgren Hot: "A pickup designed primarily for the bridge position since many players find the standard sound is too thin and edgy. The Hot pickup has more punch in the middle registry and the lows with a slightly less top end. Used in bridge position is is a perfect combination with two '60s Vintage single coils. The Hot and the 60's model use the same magnet but Hot features more windings for circa 20% more powerful bridge position sound."

http://www.lundgren.se/index.aspfolid=19&micid=19

quote:

Originally posted by hellwood:
its probably the maple neck making it bright and shrill. those guitars are fussy and only perform on real tube amps that are healthy w/ tons of bottom end. plug it into a JMP50 or JCM800 fully cranked and see what happens then.

I use it with my Fender Super Reverb but it work better with my bedroom Peavey Bandit Amp. I bought a Lundgren pickup. Let´s see what happens.

if it's an original 57 don't change anything
but if you have to
sell it and just buy something you like more

quote:

Originally posted by GuitaristD:
if it's an original 57 don't change anything
but if you have to
sell it and just buy something you like more

Nah, it´s an Vintage '57 strat which means a replica.
If you guys need a better pickup for the bridge position
a Lundgren Hot is the one. It brings me more bass, middle
and cuts away that treble that I don´t like in the original
pickup. Works better for me now with clean, soft od or lots
of distortion.