I have a MIM Strat that I bought in the mid 90's. The pickups must be hot and the pots are crap and the bridge is crap. I'm thinking of sinking some light $ into rebuilding it into what a Strat "should" be. The pickups will most likely be the most important factor and I've received a lot of suggestions. Rio Grande seems to be the most common. But from what I've ready they're pretty hot. Is that the case? They're also pretty pricey, which is why I haven't pulled the trigger. I'm afraid of making the wrong choice on a 'set' of p/u's.
Is the consensus that you need/want low output p/u's or am I biased that way because the current p/u's are hot don't sound 'stratty'? I want my SRV...my Nile Rogers... I want the STRAT out of my strat!
I'm thinking of a Wilkerson trem for the bridge replacement but I'm not 100% on that. I've got several Floyd equipped guitars and whammy is not essential. Plus I think I'd need new tuners to get the best out of the Wilkerson.
Should I take the quick route and buy a neck p/u first? That's the tone I'm chasing anyway. And if I do that, should I replace all the pots so I get the best out of that neck p/u?
This will my first DIY, aside from pickup swaps 20 years ago. I don't like the small frets either....lol. Man, I'm a hot mess just talking about this POS guitar...lol. I should prolly edit this post and simply say, 'Any ideas on upgrading my old MIM Strat'? But I want my pain to come through. The thing hangs on my wall collecting dust. I'm jealous every time I read yall's posts about how beautiful your strats sound thru a Marshall preset or better yet, a Fender preset. Mine sounds muddy on the neck and more like a humbucker with the bridge.
Is the consensus that you need/want low output p/u's or am I biased that way because the current p/u's are hot don't sound 'stratty'? I want my SRV...my Nile Rogers... I want the STRAT out of my strat!
I'm thinking of a Wilkerson trem for the bridge replacement but I'm not 100% on that. I've got several Floyd equipped guitars and whammy is not essential. Plus I think I'd need new tuners to get the best out of the Wilkerson.
Should I take the quick route and buy a neck p/u first? That's the tone I'm chasing anyway. And if I do that, should I replace all the pots so I get the best out of that neck p/u?
This will my first DIY, aside from pickup swaps 20 years ago. I don't like the small frets either....lol. Man, I'm a hot mess just talking about this POS guitar...lol. I should prolly edit this post and simply say, 'Any ideas on upgrading my old MIM Strat'? But I want my pain to come through. The thing hangs on my wall collecting dust. I'm jealous every time I read yall's posts about how beautiful your strats sound thru a Marshall preset or better yet, a Fender preset. Mine sounds muddy on the neck and more like a humbucker with the bridge.