Tele in Strat clothing


hobinlobo
Registered User
Joined: 07/19/16
Posts: 77
hobinlobo
Registered User
Joined: 07/19/16
Posts: 77
06/01/2023 12:32 pm

Hi,


Sorry if this ends up being a long question, but I am looking to give my strat a little bit of a tele flavour. (I understand it will not sound exactly like a tele.)


So, as I understand it, this will involve doing two key things.


1)     Getting a bridge pick up with a base plate (e.g. Seymour Duncan Twang Banger.)


2)     Wiring the guitar so that I can select bridge and neck pick up together.


However, I believe that there may be some complications. So I have some questions:


 


How are teles usually wired?


I should say I don’t have a full understanding of all the details, but I do know that two pick ups can be wired together in a range of different ways: RWRP, in/out of phase, series or parallel, etc. And, for example, I know the baja telecaster is wired differently - compared to a usual tele (and has a 4 way switch).


So what are the characteristics of a standard telecaster? (E.g. Think Steve Cropper?)


And, apart from wiring the bridge to play with the neck, how does the tele wiring differ from strat wiring? (Note: I am not going to wire it myself, so I just need to know enough to ensure I buy the right parts.)


 


A (possible) complication


So far I have 2 pick ups – neck and middle – but haven’t bought the bridge yet.


Both the neck and the middle are south polarity. This wasn’t intended, but is what I have ended up with.


I appreciate that this means neck + middle won’t be hum cancelling. But maybe that doesn’t matter if I am aiming for tele style. (Depending on how I set it up, this combination might not even be an option.)


So do I want a north bridge? (To cancel hum when combined with the neck, or the middle.) Or should I get south. (I think I read telecasters aren’t wired to be hum cancelling? Is that right?) (Again, if you want an example of what I have in mind, think Steve Cropper.)


(Coincidentally, I have just watched this video, and (at 1 hour 12 min) Mick Taylor talks about preferring strats without RWRP.)


 


Output


My middle and neck pick ups are around 6 to 6.5 kOhm. And there are two possible bridge pick ups I could choose. One is 6.7kOhm, and the other is 8.3 kOhm. So, just in terms of output, any thoughts about which would be the better choice.


 


Thanks


Rob


# 1
innocci
Registered User
Joined: 12/12/12
Posts: 117
innocci
Registered User
Joined: 12/12/12
Posts: 117
06/01/2023 5:47 pm
#1 Originally Posted by: hobinlobo

Hi,


Sorry if this ends up being a long question, but I am looking to give my strat a little bit of a tele flavour. (I understand it will not sound exactly like a tele.)


So, as I understand it, this will involve doing two key things.


1)     Getting a bridge pick up with a base plate (e.g. Seymour Duncan Twang Banger.)


2)     Wiring the guitar so that I can select bridge and neck pick up together.


However, I believe that there may be some complications. So I have some questions:


 


How are teles usually wired?


I should say I don’t have a full understanding of all the details, but I do know that two pick ups can be wired together in a range of different ways: RWRP, in/out of phase, series or parallel, etc. And, for example, I know the baja telecaster is wired differently - compared to a usual tele (and has a 4 way switch).


So what are the characteristics of a standard telecaster? (E.g. Think Steve Cropper?)


And, apart from wiring the bridge to play with the neck, how does the tele wiring differ from strat wiring? (Note: I am not going to wire it myself, so I just need to know enough to ensure I buy the right parts.)


 


A (possible) complication


So far I have 2 pick ups – neck and middle – but haven’t bought the bridge yet.


Both the neck and the middle are south polarity. This wasn’t intended, but is what I have ended up with.


I appreciate that this means neck + middle won’t be hum cancelling. But maybe that doesn’t matter if I am aiming for tele style. (Depending on how I set it up, this combination might not even be an option.)


So do I want a north bridge? (To cancel hum when combined with the neck, or the middle.) Or should I get south. (I think I read telecasters aren’t wired to be hum cancelling? Is that right?) (Again, if you want an example of what I have in mind, think Steve Cropper.)


(Coincidentally, I have just watched this video, and (at 1 hour 12 min) Mick Taylor talks about preferring strats without RWRP.)


 


Output


My middle and neck pick ups are around 6 to 6.5 kOhm. And there are two possible bridge pick ups I could choose. One is 6.7kOhm, and the other is 8.3 kOhm. So, just in terms of output, any thoughts about which would be the better choice.


 


Thanks


Rob

I'm getting a little lazier in my old age, so I would just buy a tele and add it to my arsenal, or sell the strat and get a tele.


# 2
hobinlobo
Registered User
Joined: 07/19/16
Posts: 77
hobinlobo
Registered User
Joined: 07/19/16
Posts: 77
06/01/2023 9:10 pm

I did assume someone would say, just buy a tele. There are multiple reasons I don't want to do that.


I don't want to have lots of guitars. I probably have more than enough already. 


I have tried multiple telecasters and haven't found one I like as much as either of my strats.


If I do what I plan to do, it will still be a strat, and be able to do all (or most) things a strat can do, just with a slightly different bridge sound (plus a new option of bridge and neck).


I like strats because I like how you can just take out one loaded pickguard and pop a different one in.


 


# 3
hobinlobo
Registered User
Joined: 07/19/16
Posts: 77
hobinlobo
Registered User
Joined: 07/19/16
Posts: 77
06/02/2023 12:11 am

Oops. Sorry. I realise I have posted this in the wrong place. I meant to post this in "ask a guitar tech". Sorry.


# 4
innocci
Registered User
Joined: 12/12/12
Posts: 117
innocci
Registered User
Joined: 12/12/12
Posts: 117
06/02/2023 5:19 pm
#3 Originally Posted by: hobinlobo

I did assume someone would say, just buy a tele. There are multiple reasons I don't want to do that.


I don't want to have lots of guitars. I probably have more than enough already. 


I have tried multiple telecasters and haven't found one I like as much as either of my strats.


If I do what I plan to do, it will still be a strat, and be able to do all (or most) things a strat can do, just with a slightly different bridge sound (plus a new option of bridge and neck).


I like strats because I like how you can just take out one loaded pickguard and pop a different one in.


 

I apologize, I was just being a smart aleck, I'm sure you'll get it the way you want it. Doing what you're 


desiring to do will definitely improve your tech knowledge, awesome endeavor. 


# 5

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