Fender SCN cobalt noiseless pickups

[blackba]

I have the SCN pickups in a MIA strat. I am just curious what everyone's experiences with them are.

I notice they sound thicker, meaner, and fuller than the stock Fender single coils on my other strat. They can sound a bit muddy at times though.

 

[blackba]

Any other opinions?

 

[Code001]

I really enjoyed them with the strat I had. They're very modern sounding, though.

 

[fek]

I have them in a MIM tele. The bridge pick up is microphonic though. I need to do one of the fixes I have read about on it. I like them though.

 

[blackba]

I have them in a MIM tele. The bridge pick up is microphonic though. I need to do one of the fixes I have read about on it. I like them though.

Any link to the 'fixes' on the bridge pickup? I do find it considerably brighter than the others, more so than I would expect for a bridge SC.....

 

[blackba]

I really enjoyed them with the strat I had. They're very modern sounding, though.

Did you sell the strat?

 

[AmpliFIRE]

I really enjoyed them with the strat I had. They're very modern sounding, though.

+1

Had them in my Clapton strat and they sounded great

 

[Code001]

I really enjoyed them with the strat I had. They're very modern sounding, though.

Did you sell the strat?

Yeah. I sold the strat to buy a gibson. I couldn't stand the gibson, so I sold it for car parts. I won't be getting any new gear until around mid 2009.

 

[badger71]

I bought a loaded pickguard that came off a '57 Hot Rod Strat. SCNs in the middle and neck with a Tone Zone S at the bridge. Put it into a Floyded Strat and those pickups sounded great and balanced with the bridge TZ. I don't know what a bridge SCN sounds like, though.

 

[LedZep77]

I have them in my Am Deluxe, and I think they sound pretty damn good. I love the 4th position with just a little bit of dirt.

The bridge pickup can sound a little shrill at times, but I use the muddiness of the S-1 switch to even it out

I honestly think the S-1 switch is garbage unless used in the 1st position. Anywhere else is too muddy to be usable, IMO.

 

[blackba]

I have them in my Am Deluxe, and I think they sound pretty damn good. I love the 4th position with just a little bit of dirt.

The bridge pickup can sound a little shrill at times, but I use the muddiness of the S-1 switch to even it out

I honestly think the S-1 switch is garbage unless used in the 1st position. Anywhere else is too muddy to be usable, IMO.

When did Fender put in the S1 switching system? I doubt my strat has it.....

 

[fek]

I have them in a MIM tele. The bridge pick up is microphonic though. I need to do one of the fixes I have read about on it. I like them though.

Any link to the 'fixes' on the bridge pickup? I do find it considerably brighter than the others, more so than I would expect for a bridge SC.....

The fixes were about the bridge pickup being microphonic on tele's. Not about how to tame brightness on strat bridge pickups. I guess I should have made that more clear.

The were two threads on the microphonic issue though. One at TGP and the other on HC. I will look for them if you would like. Might take a little while though. My work situation changed and it's a lot more difficult for me to be on the boards now.

 

[blackba]

I have them in a MIM tele. The bridge pick up is microphonic though. I need to do one of the fixes I have read about on it. I like them though.

Any link to the 'fixes' on the bridge pickup? I do find it considerably brighter than the others, more so than I would expect for a bridge SC.....

The fixes were about the bridge pickup being microphonic on tele's. Not about how to tame brightness on strat bridge pickups. I guess I should have made that more clear.

The were two threads on the microphonic issue though. One at TGP and the other on HC. I will look for them if you would like. Might take a little while though. My work situation changed and it's a lot more difficult for me to be on the boards now.

I will see if I can find them. Thanks for the info

 

[kannibul]

They are/were a vast improvement over the stock pups

I kinda miss that strat

 

[VH4_BigRig]

I really enjoyed them with the strat I had. They're very modern sounding, though.

+1

They are pretty modern sounding. They came stock with my HSS Deluxe Strat, and while I thought they were good sounding, they didn't really blow me away. They have a bit more fatness to them, and obviously less noise than some other stock PUs, but I find that they are missing some of the bell-like chime that I look for in a Fender. I just don't get that sense of "sparkle," for lack of a better word. I replaced the neck PU with a Dimarzio and left the middle alone, and it's been a pretty good combo.

As for the S1 switching system, I found it pretty useless as well, so you're not missing much. I don't use all 5 positions on a regular system as it is, let alone 10. I gutted the electronics and installed a 3 way tele switch (B, B/N, N) with an on/off switch for the middle pickup when I want to use it. Then I converted the two tone knobs to volumes for the bridge and neck. Works better for my tastes, and having volumes for both bridge and neck helps to balance out the signal difference between the HB and the SC.

Hope this helps, cheers!

 

[LedZep77]

I have them in my Am Deluxe, and I think they sound pretty damn good. I love the 4th position with just a little bit of dirt.

The bridge pickup can sound a little shrill at times, but I use the muddiness of the S-1 switch to even it out

I honestly think the S-1 switch is garbage unless used in the 1st position. Anywhere else is too muddy to be usable, IMO.

When did Fender put in the S1 switching system? I doubt my strat has it.....

I want to say it was this year or last year, but I'm not positive

 

[blackba]

I really enjoyed them with the strat I had. They're very modern sounding, though.

+1

They are pretty modern sounding. They came stock with my HSS Deluxe Strat, and while I thought they were good sounding, they didn't really blow me away. They have a bit more fatness to them, and obviously less noise than some other stock PUs, but I find that they are missing some of the bell-like chime that I look for in a Fender. I just don't get that sense of "sparkle," for lack of a better word. I replaced the neck PU with a Dimarzio and left the middle alone, and it's been a pretty good combo.

As for the S1 switching system, I found it pretty useless as well, so you're not missing much. I don't use all 5 positions on a regular system as it is, let alone 10. I gutted the electronics and installed a 3 way tele switch (B, B/N, N) with an on/off switch for the middle pickup when I want to use it. Then I converted the two tone knobs to volumes for the bridge and neck. Works better for my tastes, and having volumes for both bridge and neck helps to balance out the signal difference between the HB and the SC.

Hope this helps, cheers!

Great looking strat, I like how its unique with the gold pickguard.

Is the bass in the picture a Musicman Sterling or Stingray? I have MM sterling GAS....