Thanks so much for following me on my tone journey! Minute markers in the description! Please bare in mind the tone comparisons Josefinas clip is on a different amp. Not ideal I know! But I knew I wanted to change them so I’m less bothered there! Thanks to Mick, Tim at Bare Kncukle, and Radioshop pickups! Hope you enjoy this episode. Will it be the last?!
Maybe worth rerecording the Josefinas using the same amp setup as the others? I really like the sound of them, but that could also be that I prefer the amp. Kind of hard to separate the two.
You going to try mixing and matching the different pickups? Like, having a mother's milk in the neck, a josefina in the middle and a 63 veneer in the bridge? Might find the magic combination?
@@RabeaMassaad and after that you must remove the floyd, fill in the hole, retouche the body and install original tremolo and josefinas back :) As one guitarist did... :)
I'm thinking your Josefinas sound most like the tone I have in my head when I ponder reasons to buy a Strat. It's a very sweet tone to which you can always add some hair if you need it.
Agreed. They have that buttery strat sound. I like the 2 bare nuckles second, but found them both pretty similar. The radioshop just sounded like something was missing and the grey bottoms had too much
To me it's not their 'warmth', per se, it's just their overall tonal balance. For me, they're the most musical. They have a beautiful sound, clean; I don't think I'd ever crank the gain or stomp on an o.d. or dist.!
The 63 Veneer boards sound the best, however I believe the aluminum pickguard has something to do with the overall sound ! It tends to tame the highs !
This series helped me with my strat pu journey. I've tried multiple Fender CS, Monty's, Kloppmann, Duncans. What helped me in particular is what you said about the wire. I prefer enamel wire with low output. When you played the mother's milk for the first time, I had the exact same smile you had. I love how punchy and mid scooped they are. I'm gonna go and purchase a set right now. Thanks Rabea!
I really like the Ron Ellis pickup's. The high end is there but without that piercing ice pick quality to it but it keeps alot of that bottom end we love. Try 1 pickup frome each set and see how that goes! Beautiful playing Bea!
I just picked up an Eric Johnson Thinline Strat. Wanted one since they first came out. It's so perfect the way it is, and the pickups are so good, I don't have to do a thing to it other than play. Keep up the good work. You'll find what fits what you want.
It's the Josefina's for me ... " back to ground zero. They sound beyond perfect to my ears. All the sets are great, as always it's the tone that's in "your" head. Also, do any of the sets feel different? Is it harder to get the notes and articulations from some of them? I don't mind sacrificing a bit of tone if a set plays easier, you'll more than make up for it in the articulation you'll put forth in your playing.
I love watching you play your touch is so soft at times... yet you play hard as well , shows that you need to vary your technique and playing for the moment and music
I’ve done what your doing with every set of custom shop pickups made. It’s something you have to do but after having done it , the original fenders that come in the guitars are usually the best. They really know what they’re doing at fender, and got it right the first time and are still getting it right today! One secret that prs figured out when researching vintage strat pickups, was that the bridge usually had the weakest output of the three, although they were all 3 pretty close. Most people try the opposite with hotter bridge outputs, so they never get it right! Having said all this, there are two other makers I tried that rival the fenders and those are lindy fralin , and Jason lollar!
Josefinas! More balanced. They are less "in front" of the tone than the others. They let the expressivity of the player come through better than the other sets of pups. The other sets lead the tone. I dunno if it's a good or a bad thing... but from what I hear I prefer Josefinas by far.
I have to concur with most of the comments here regarding the Josefinas. They are the only set that delivers that classic early 50s Strat sound. They sound just like the guitar looks and that’s perfect for me. Since I’m a cheap bastard I have the Tonerider Surfaris in my 50s Strat which come surprisingly close to the Josefinas. Just a little bit less clarity I guess. The others are way to hot to my ears, even the 57s. They all have so much more gain, when clean jangly twang is the sound that this guitar should deliver. Of course the other pickups sound amazing, but they are just not suited for the 50s Strat sound. In a mid to late 60s they would indeed be perfect!
I have Lollar's Dirty Blonde's in mine, and I could not be happier. To be honest: They all sound "Very Stratty" and you couldn't go wrong with any choice. Only way to tell: Play through a looper and Demo each pickup (with the exact same phrase) played & edited to be Listened-to: back-to-back-to-back = lot's of work. Easter to Differentiate. Those Josefina's sounded like vintage strat - to me.
First of all, high compliments on the exceptional playing style. To my ear, the original Josefina's still reign supreme over all the options demoed in this video. There is just this unspoken "thing" about the tones these generate, partly in the single note bite early on but particularly the lower end chording that is clear and bell like. Wonderful demonstration.
Bea, the Ron Ellis have the "thing" that I identify with the best of vintage guitars. Hard to describe but it's a bit of compression combined with articulation that gets me every time...
Ron Ellis stand out as having the most character making the others seem flat and standard.... after having jumped around the video hearing them back to back. At first I thought they broke up too much but then figured that is awesomeness lol..... I have a 2006 Eric Johnson strat I think is plain sounding and those Ellis one's would give it some balls!
I 've put the BK Veneer Board 63's set in my heavily modded MIM strat. I have had these pup's for almost 5 years - I got them a bit by chance, a shop owner talked me into getting them for the Mark Knopfler sound that I have forever been after. I am a bit torn sometimes though - I keep having a love-hate relationship with this set - largely depending on the kind of amp and setting I am using my guitar with. What I can say for sure though - the BK 63' is a low output, spanky, honky and nasal sounding set with a rather shrill and ice picky bridge pickup if you're using it wrong i.e. with bright amps and speakers. However, after watching this shootout again I am fairly convinced that they did sound the best to my ears - but I am always listening for some beautiful cleans in a strat esp. in position 2 - to get that Sultans of swing tone. Having said that I am a bit itching to swap them over for a set of Texas specials just to see. Yet, Rabea you did a fantastic job comparing them all and the cleans you got from the BK 63's have made me believe that I'd made the right choice - again! thanks Rabea, pleasure to watch and listen, as always.
Hearing the Josefinas melted my heart - hard to explain, crisp but mellow, clear but warm, and also the string definition is the most even. But the Ron Ellis seem to be close and strong enough to cut through the mix.
I've owned a lot of Strats and moded them all to some degree including pickups. A few years back I traded for a Fender Kenny Wayne Shepherd model. I've changed the tuners (Hipshot staggered locking) and the bridge (Calaham vintage narrow), but have never even considered opening the control cavity. For whatever reason the stock "Fender KWS Custom Voiced" pickups just sound amazing. Apparently Kenny spent a year working with Fender to find the correct "voice" for the pickups he wanted, and they nailed it! They have the warmth, articulation and vintage tone I think many of us seek, but struggle to find. This guitar is MIM, but it plays and sounds like a Custom Shop instrument...
Great! Very enjoyable and relaxing. They all sound good to me, but I'll admit to really liking the Ron Ellis and Custom Shop pickups for different reasons. But mainly they both sound really natural and the tones are balanced among settings. Some of the others have a "WHOA! NEW POSITION" sound to them. Maybe it's just me. Also I laughed out loud to the Mick popup and honk. I needed that after all the crazy shit that's been going down here in the US today. I"m ready for the next one and consistently dig your playing and vids.
Im doing this exact type of thing at the moment.... The favourite so far are the Lollar Dirty Blond set... The Josephina's and the Bare Knuckle sounded good but the Ron Ellis ones were magnificent!... For the best part of £800 tho!... I couldnt justify that!... Id love to see what you thought of the Lollar Dirty Blonde set!?!?!?!?! ...
All the pickups sounded good in their own way. I've watched enough of your videos to notice that you do have a liking for a clean, expansive, ethereal sounds. That is something the Josefina's can deliver, but the other's can't. It's easy to add breakup, overdrive, dirt, etc. to your tone with a pedal. You can't make a dirty pickup sound clean unless you turn the pots way down, but then you give up on the rich tones you get by having the pots wide open. If you want those beautiful clean tones, then of the pickups you've tested, I think the Josefina's would be the best choice. Thanks for sharing your tone journey, which many of us have made numerous times.
The Ron Ellis set of pickups sound about 1000% better to my ears! Warm, sweet, articulate, dynamic AND aggressive at the same time. One of the best Strat pickups I’ve heard so far!
I've spent entirely too much money over the last few weeks on tone journey gear and I fully blame you, Mick, and Dan lmao. Bought my first p90 guitar ('19 gibson les paul special tribute dc in blue), ordered a set of silos for my prestige s5470q, set of montys pafs for my epiphone LP traditional pro, emerson 50s wiring kit for the epi, locking tuners for both the gibson and epi and a Ryra Klone. I can't wait for the pickups to get here.
Hey, Bea. I'm torn between the 63 Veneers and the Ellis set from Micks Strat. The neck pickup on the 63's sounded monstrous, and the bridge was fat and not "too" Strat-y. However, Mick's cleaned up so nicely. The note chime and string seperation in that 4th position was a thing of audible beauty. Cheers!
man this is tough, overall i like the ron ellis bridge pickup the most, for the neck it's almost impossible to pick a winner, because when you dig in the mothers milk are awesome, but when you play softly the ron ellis are awesome, i'm so confused
Man I found you on a Leo video and have been watching your videos and subscribed. First I had a band at the beginning of the 80's. Me on guitar and my cousin on drums, my brother singing and a friend Mike White who's father was Harold White, some country music star, but we wrote our own music and played bars and parties. The DT's. Well I have not played in 27 years and you make me want to play again. I am going to try. I still have my stick and amp.
For me the Josefinas sound the best but now that I know you are playing them through a different amp it makes me question that....but they sound SO good!!
Throughout the whole journey I preferred the original set. Now it’s the Ron Ellis! The volume knob is your friend if they’re too much. Sterling work as always!
4 роки тому+3
Awesome! I’m a sucker for the anodized gold pickguard, and it sounds AMAZING with the 63 veneer board!! 🤘🏻🤘🏻
Maple board strats can sometimes sound a little to bright/brittle/compressed with some sets. Rosewood neck could also be more of your preference due the rounder sound. I highly recommend the voodoo pickups
I can only reiterate what I've said before... they all sound amazing in your hands Bea! :-) Sometimes it takes a bit of a journey to find out that you like home just the way it is.
It's Mick's Ron Ellis set for me, and the why? From my perspective was pick attack especially neck. Very responsive to my ear at least which adds to the percussive nature of the strat when needed. Plenty of glass & clarity when sitting back too.
This is a brawl between titans , Rabea, thanks for giving us the chance of listening top-notch tones. Anyway Josephina's warmest , probably the ones singing more with your touch are Mother's Milk . Veneer probably more all-rounded , Ron Ellis … bare with me mate , I can see Mick's eminent point , but prolly they fit better his touch/playstyle. They just didn't "click" with you I thought.
The Radio Shops are still doing it for me, just a more interesting sound. The Bareknuckles are a little too much for a strat for me. They would be good if you were in a Rage Against the Machine cover band or something like that, but when you turn down the gain they lack everything the Radio Shops seem to have.
Still loving the Mother's Milk set, but to my ear, that's what a blues strat should sound like. Every set sounds great and has it's own character. The Ron Ellis set definitely has an old school late 60s/early 70s rock and roll sound on the crunch.
The josephinas were recorded differently, panned in the middle, whereas all the others panned right, which leads me to believe the set-up is different too. I’d need the josephinas recorded the same way to make proper judgement, but in this video they just sound the best. Thanks for this, loved it.
For me the bareknuckle mothers milk just scream. after hearing them I'm really considering a set. Great video, thanks for taking us on the journey with you!
Josephinas for me, thanks for sharing. On my custom Strat I currently use Rene Martinez Texas set with Emerson blender controls. Very happy with this set up, a keeper .
hey you could try a regular set of pure vintage fenders.... i have the 59' set and it is really dinamic.... just vintage output but with enough power and nice smooth top end .... Oh yeah... and the in between positions are so cool... clear and spanky...
Man I wouldn’t switch out those josefinas for nothing she’s been twisting up pickups for over 30 years and learned the craft by shadowing Abigail yavaro who spun Leo fenders originals… true OG
Remember, the aluminum pickguard will take a bit of the top end off the Ellis. Mick deliberately left the aluminum shield plate that is on real '64s off of Blue but mentioned that he will probably try it on his black "transit van" guitar when he gets the other Ellis pickups. I had a local winder make me a set of vintage style pickups that were halfway between true early '60s and the Suhr Landau's I had in another guitar. They were still very bright, similar to the Ellis pickups. Putting the aluminum shield plate in tamed them just enough.
I'm going to guess that the veneer boards are going to work so well in a mix.. in a band context everything is going to change so much. One of my favourite strats is actually wired up so I can get the bridge and neck together, and that works really well in a band context opposite another strat or Gibsonish tone because I can switch out to a tele(ish) sound! I'll say it till I'm blue in the face, guitar in isolation is one of my favourite sounds BUT 99% of the time as working musicians our guitars are part of a greater whole and THAT is the ultimate tonal test. Rabea, man, I have to say I've REALLY enjoyed this series, after 30 plus years of playing all I can say is that just when you think you're finished with one rabbit hole, another opens, but that's all part of the joy and the journey!
My two pennies worth... I was thinking the same regarding the tone of a ‘57 reissue strat I own, compared to a ‘64 reissue strat I own. Then I was trying different amps and started playing a Tone King Sky King. Keep in mind I had already been playing their Imperial mkII for a while. When I tried the ‘57 through the Sky King... I thought wow, a different beast. It unlocked the tone and took the feel of the instrument to another level somehow to me personally at any rate. It got me thinking perhaps the Fender CS 50’s reissue PuP’s really need HiFi, but rich HiFi clean amps to deliver their best. Normally I prefer the more mid range natural push from the 60’s style PuP’s, but I now think given the right clean amp that you can dig, the personal gratification of the Fender 50’s PuP’s is rather special. I think the 60’s style PuP’s fit with a multitude of amps better.
Fender custom shop has really figured out the way to remove the harsh top end and still ring like a bell type tone. I have been trying out the hand wound ones and really never anything sounded so balanced across all strings, really i am over searching for new sets. Enjoyed watching your journey Bea.
You´ve got a very nice strat and you had a very complex work with this video. I think it took a long time to get it done. Since I´m an old SRV fan I would have liked to hear this great PUs and your great strat with old Fender Amps like an old Deluxe Reverb or a Pro Reverb for example. I love this Fender/Fender combination.
Loved both Radioshop and Mike's pups. I found the BareKnuckle a bit darker for my taste. Now because of you, i need to order a Radioshop set of pickups :(
Aaah, the pickup swapping rabbit hole. Gone down that road way to many times only to learn: it's best to find a guitar that sounds and plays great from the start. More time better spent on playing. You can finetune all day long, it is fun; it can get frustrating after a while. Good series!
Loved this video, I too am on a strat journey. For me it's just become to much with all the different set of pickups, to much backwards and forwards. SO, I've decided to sell some gear and save up and buy the real deal providing that I can find a good one for the right price. I fancy a 59/60 .
My main guitars are all SSS partscasters. Thankfully, they all sound distinctly different from one another. I'd happy grab any two or three of these sets and stick them in new instruments, swapping between them at a whim. I'm all for the one-guitar perfect-tone journey and some mightn't have the means to build/own four or five SSS guitars, just saying that's what I'd do. Because all of these pick-up sound really nice to my ears and why stick with just one.
This is an amazing series, most of the time the comparisons are so close to not bother but these all sound amazing in their own way! I like the veneer board ones I think :) The Josephinas were on a different amp so it's hard to tell, they sound more compressed in that clip and I love more open clearer sounds, the closer to David Gilmour the better imo haha! I hope you put out a final video and let us know why you chose them! :)
💣💣Oh hell yeah the Josephine’s for sure. You can always warm/heat up the signal but it’s very hard to get back to that round clear strat tone if you go too far past 1960 😂 great vid series long live the bunny holes
I'm really glad you did this video. I have BKP Mothers Milk pickups in my Strat and had been gassing for a set of those Ron Ellis after hearing Mick's vlog. Now having heard them in comparison to the MM though I actually prefer the BKP tone. It's interesting that you were struggling to hear much difference between the MM and 63 Veneer sets. When I asked BKP about the 2 the response I got was that the difference in tone is negligible as they're basically aiming at the same tone and the difference is that the 63s are more vintage accurate in their construction. I think the only thing I'm going to change on my Strat is to fit a baseplate to the bridge pup to get just a little bit more grrrr from it 😂
Rabea I have an idea. Grab your favorite amp and a couple of pedals. Mix and match the various pickups. Neck of one with a bridge of the other middle of the other. Put in a quick connect on your output jack to save some soldering time. I've made this trip once or twice before and ended right where I started for some reason. Now I have three different loaded pick guards. Plus the original.
Agree with your assessments, so far. I would say the Ron Ellis set were the ones I liked the least. But I think it also has a lot to do not only with individual tastes, playing style, and equipment setup... but also if a set can work with a particular guitar. Some PUPs can sound great in one guitar and then won't seem to work as well in a different one.
Rabea, you are the man! Love your videos! Your playing is just fantastic! Just food for thought, with respect to vintage pickups and it is ALL PERSONAL PREFERENCE, obviously. Easy winner, after much research, a boatload of cash for nothing searching for vintage. Vintage, or old and outdated. The best ones I ever had were the Beck Artist and Clapton Artist Strats and I still have the Clapton and have a great guitar to get the Beck back. Their techs: They chose noiseless, because 60 cycle hum sucks, that was not available at the time, so it was a 2 second decision for both. Clapton: I will take a non-relic, Strat, with vintage noiseless to have 5 position with no 60 cycle hum, make a TBX, add a 25DB (built in tube screamer) and that is good! Want the 2 point trem? Thought about it, but I don't use the damn thing! Beck: I will take a hotter noiseless (ceramic magnet needed), 5 positions with no crap 60 cycle hum, LSR nut and give me that modern 2 point, so my Strat stays in tune...I love that and add locking machine heads to that for tuning stability! 22 frets for both thank you! WTF was my big search all about? I did do that and then the Clapton/Beck Artist were freaking fantastic! The Ultra Noiseless are great, but not interested in the Ultra Strat, ONLY, due to nickel frets? Fender? What is that about? You put great stainless steel frets on everything! It is not enough to break the bank, but a new, replacement neck is cheaper, than a fret job? Really? Why, in the world, did I just not go with vintage, hot, or ultra noiseless in the first place? If it was a no-brainer for these 2 legends, what am I looking for? They could have had any pickups they wanted! * I do love these dare and compare Strat pickup searches and they are well done, like this one. After all my effort, a lot of cash...why didn't I just go Beck/Clapton Artist in the first place! They would have used these modern noiseless pickups, if they were available back in the day! Beck: why would I want relic? I want a nice guitar? That is wear and tear, from humidity, temperature changes, travel, tons of hours playing, bumps and bruises? That was no to look cool! That happened, but I want a mint one! People pay extra for the Custom Shop to toss the body around for a while and use old worn necks, with new frets? Why not just buy a mint one? * That was really good food for thought for me! What you like is the best tone, pickups, whatever you like! This is NOT encouragement, but just, my experience and I, for me, should have just bought the Beck and Clapton Artists to start with and would have saved myself a ton of cash. *** Food for thought! Everyone wants to hunt for trolls that aren't! Just food for thought, based on my, personal mistakes and my personal wish, loving those 2 Strats now! I loved the video, Rabea Rocks, the video Rocks, the persons that post rule and this video took a lot of work and is great! I don't care what you pick, but I wished somebody would have just asked me: If you love these 2 icons, just buy their Artist Strats! They picked out the parts they wanted! Rabea! Awesome job, as usual and it confirmed to me, that my Clapton Artist is going nowhere and I will get a Beck back, that I wish I still had. All the best to everyone! What you like is the best! Be Safe! Huge fan of Rabea! Please don't mix up the message, as some sort of hating or trolling...NO...just food for thought and this video did help me, for my preference! Happy playing! Rock on! :)
I would leave the Josefina's in that guitar. It has the right sound for that strat. Get another strat with a rosewood board and some 60's pickups already in it.
Bare Knuckle 63's all day everyday ! Sound and feel amazing, with the little top end rolled off and the mid's just speak to me. Not to mention the high bottom end.
WOW! At first I had 2 conclusions; I didn't like the Mothers Milk pickups, and that I prefered the Radio Shop pickups overall. That was until you plugged those Ron Ellis in though. MAN! That sound! Now we know how Mick is so good! His tone is all in his guitar! :P I need to get me some of those!
![Strats, Pickups & Rabbit Holes - Blue Is Finally There! Maybe. [Mick's Strat Vlog] That Pedal Show](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/JSFjihiy2VE/mqdefault.jpg)
Thanks so much for following me on my tone journey! Minute markers in the description!
Please bare in mind the tone comparisons Josefinas clip is on a different amp. Not ideal I know! But I knew I wanted to change them so I’m less bothered there!
Thanks to Mick, Tim at Bare Kncukle, and Radioshop pickups!
Hope you enjoy this episode. Will it be the last?!
OMG thanks for the Heart! ❤️Im from Philippines ❤️❤️
Maybe worth rerecording the Josefinas using the same amp setup as the others? I really like the sound of them, but that could also be that I prefer the amp. Kind of hard to separate the two.
please stop using the LUT from the last few videos.. you look like you lived in the desert for the last 10 years :)
It may be the amp, but I can only hear what I can hear. And what I hear is these Josefina's sounding way better to my ears than all of the other sets.
You going to try mixing and matching the different pickups? Like, having a mother's milk in the neck, a josefina in the middle and a 63 veneer in the bridge? Might find the magic combination?
Just put emgs and a floyd in it
Hahaha don’t tempt me
Van Halen stripes?
@@RabeaMassaad and after that you must remove the floyd, fill in the hole, retouche the body and install original tremolo and josefinas back :) As one guitarist did... :)
I love EMG SA sound in David Gilmour red Strat
HAHAHAHHA 😂😂
I'm thinking your Josefinas sound most like the tone I have in my head when I ponder reasons to buy a Strat. It's a very sweet tone to which you can always add some hair if you need it.
Agreed. They have that buttery strat sound. I like the 2 bare nuckles second, but found them both pretty similar. The radioshop just sounded like something was missing and the grey bottoms had too much
Bea already has a substantial amount of hair
The Josefinas still sound the warmest to me.
Completely agree, the others are just missing that something
To me it's not their 'warmth', per se, it's just their overall tonal balance. For me, they're the most musical. They have a beautiful sound, clean; I don't think I'd ever crank the gain or stomp on an o.d. or dist.!
This video convinced me to go buy some! 🤦🏻♂️& I just wanted to hear the difference. lol
The CS Josefina for me, hands down. EXCELLENT series, Rabea. Thanks for doing this.
It is amazing how tone heaven is so close to tone hell.
Same with real hell
YES! Just wanted to let you know I just received a Bare Knuckle Silo to put in my new guitar! Can't wait to try it out! 🔥
The 63 Veneer boards sound the best, however I believe the aluminum pickguard has something to do with the overall sound ! It tends to tame the highs !
This series helped me with my strat pu journey. I've tried multiple Fender CS, Monty's, Kloppmann, Duncans. What helped me in particular is what you said about the wire. I prefer enamel wire with low output. When you played the mother's milk for the first time, I had the exact same smile you had. I love how punchy and mid scooped they are. I'm gonna go and purchase a set right now. Thanks Rabea!
I really like the Ron Ellis pickup's. The high end is there but without that piercing ice pick quality to it but it keeps alot of that bottom end we love.
Try 1 pickup frome each set and see how that goes!
Beautiful playing Bea!
I just picked up an Eric Johnson Thinline Strat. Wanted one since they first came out. It's so perfect the way it is, and the pickups are so good, I don't have to do a thing to it other than play. Keep up the good work. You'll find what fits what you want.
It's the Josefina's for me ... " back to ground zero. They sound beyond perfect to my ears. All the sets are great, as always it's the tone that's in "your" head. Also, do any of the sets feel different? Is it harder to get the notes and articulations from some of them? I don't mind sacrificing a bit of tone if a set plays easier, you'll more than make up for it in the articulation you'll put forth in your playing.
I now have two Fender Custom Shop Strats. A 59 and 57, I’m leaving the stock hand wound pickups in both. They are perfect for the guitars.
Dude you're looking great. Congrats on shedding a few lbs my dude.
Love this tone video!!!
I love watching you play your touch is so soft at times... yet you play hard as well , shows that you need to vary your technique and playing for the moment and music
The '63 Veneer Board is currently winning imo. Really nice sounding 👌
I’ve done what your doing with every set of custom shop pickups made. It’s something you have to do but after having done it , the original fenders that come in the guitars are usually the best. They really know what they’re doing at fender, and got it right the first time and are still getting it right today! One secret that prs figured out when researching vintage strat pickups, was that the bridge usually had the weakest output of the three, although they were all 3 pretty close. Most people try the opposite with hotter bridge outputs, so they never get it right! Having said all this, there are two other makers I tried that rival the fenders and those are lindy fralin , and Jason lollar!
Josefinas! More balanced. They are less "in front" of the tone than the others. They let the expressivity of the player come through better than the other sets of pups. The other sets lead the tone. I dunno if it's a good or a bad thing... but from what I hear I prefer Josefinas by far.
I have to concur with most of the comments here regarding the Josefinas.
They are the only set that delivers that classic early 50s Strat sound.
They sound just like the guitar looks and that’s perfect for me.
Since I’m a cheap bastard I have the Tonerider Surfaris in my 50s Strat which come surprisingly close to the Josefinas. Just a little bit less clarity I guess.
The others are way to hot to my ears, even the 57s.
They all have so much more gain, when clean jangly twang is the sound that this guitar should deliver.
Of course the other pickups sound amazing, but they are just not suited for the 50s Strat sound. In a mid to late 60s they would indeed be perfect!
BK 63 Veneer Board PUPs sound the best to my ears...always fantastic Bea keep rocking brother!
Those Ron Ellis totally kill! Great strat tones! A winner for me! The bk 63 comes pretty close to but those Ron Ellis just did a special thing
Higher output, that's all I think.
I have Lollar's Dirty Blonde's in mine, and I could not be happier. To be honest: They all sound "Very Stratty" and you couldn't go wrong with any choice. Only way to tell: Play through a looper and Demo each pickup (with the exact same phrase) played & edited to be Listened-to: back-to-back-to-back = lot's of work. Easter to Differentiate. Those Josefina's sounded like vintage strat - to me.
First of all, high compliments on the exceptional playing style. To my ear, the original Josefina's still reign supreme over all the options demoed in this video. There is just this unspoken "thing" about the tones these generate, partly in the single note bite early on but particularly the lower end chording that is clear and bell like. Wonderful demonstration.
Bea, the Ron Ellis have the "thing" that I identify with the best of vintage guitars. Hard to describe but it's a bit of compression combined with articulation that gets me every time...
Ron Ellis stand out as having the most character making the others seem flat and standard.... after having jumped around the video hearing them back to back. At first I thought they broke up too much but then figured that is awesomeness lol..... I have a 2006 Eric Johnson strat I think is plain sounding and those Ellis one's would give it some balls!
20:47 man those Radioshop pups sound sweet as hell
Those Gray bottom pickups sounded very percussive and funky with long sustain i really like the way they sounded.
Adonized gold pickguard looks soooo sick with the sunburst! Love your vids!
I 've put the BK Veneer Board 63's set in my heavily modded MIM strat. I have had these pup's for almost 5 years - I got them a bit by chance, a shop owner talked me into getting them for the Mark Knopfler sound that I have forever been after. I am a bit torn sometimes though - I keep having a love-hate relationship with this set - largely depending on the kind of amp and setting I am using my guitar with. What I can say for sure though - the BK 63' is a low output, spanky, honky and nasal sounding set with a rather shrill and ice picky bridge pickup if you're using it wrong i.e. with bright amps and speakers. However, after watching this shootout again I am fairly convinced that they did sound the best to my ears - but I am always listening for some beautiful cleans in a strat esp. in position 2 - to get that Sultans of swing tone. Having said that I am a bit itching to swap them over for a set of Texas specials just to see. Yet, Rabea you did a fantastic job comparing them all and the cleans you got from the BK 63's have made me believe that I'd made the right choice - again! thanks Rabea, pleasure to watch and listen, as always.
I like seeing you testing stuff instead of just demoing it at the end. I would love to see more videos like these. Keep up the great content! :D
Hearing the Josefinas melted my heart - hard to explain, crisp but mellow, clear but warm, and also the string definition is the most even. But the Ron Ellis seem to be close and strong enough to cut through the mix.
Hi Rabea, def with my headphones on I liked the warm tones of the josefinas ! Thanks for the time with this vid.
I've owned a lot of Strats and moded them all to some degree including pickups. A few years back I traded for a Fender Kenny Wayne Shepherd model. I've changed the tuners (Hipshot staggered locking) and the bridge (Calaham vintage narrow), but have never even considered opening the control cavity. For whatever reason the stock "Fender KWS Custom Voiced" pickups just sound amazing. Apparently Kenny spent a year working with Fender to find the correct "voice" for the pickups he wanted, and they nailed it! They have the warmth, articulation and vintage tone I think many of us seek, but struggle to find. This guitar is MIM, but it plays and sounds like a Custom Shop instrument...
Great! Very enjoyable and relaxing. They all sound good to me, but I'll admit to really liking the Ron Ellis and Custom Shop pickups for different reasons. But mainly they both sound really natural and the tones are balanced among settings. Some of the others have a "WHOA! NEW POSITION" sound to them. Maybe it's just me.
Also I laughed out loud to the Mick popup and honk. I needed that after all the crazy shit that's been going down here in the US today.
I"m ready for the next one and consistently dig your playing and vids.
Im doing this exact type of thing at the moment.... The favourite so far are the Lollar Dirty Blond set... The Josephina's and the Bare Knuckle sounded good but the Ron Ellis ones were magnificent!... For the best part of £800 tho!... I couldnt justify that!...
Id love to see what you thought of the Lollar Dirty Blonde set!?!?!?!?! ...
All the pickups sounded good in their own way. I've watched enough of your videos to notice that you do have a liking for a clean, expansive, ethereal sounds. That is something the Josefina's can deliver, but the other's can't. It's easy to add breakup, overdrive, dirt, etc. to your tone with a pedal. You can't make a dirty pickup sound clean unless you turn the pots way down, but then you give up on the rich tones you get by having the pots wide open. If you want those beautiful clean tones, then of the pickups you've tested, I think the Josefina's would be the best choice. Thanks for sharing your tone journey, which many of us have made numerous times.
They all sound awesome, dude!
I think the '63 Veneer suit your playing the most, but every set you've tried (including the originals) sound great 👌
Next try the bare knuckles in the bridge for aggression and josefina in the neck for smooth , and add a gilmour switch to mix ?
Gilmour Switch?
OtherTheDave David Gilmour had a mini-toggle switch to activate the neck pup in any position so it was sort of a 7-way switch mod
@@Kqhoa What happens when you're on the neck position and you toggle that switch? Do you get a neck humbucker?
Miss Campos gets the nod for me.Josefina is a legend and after listening,I know why. Great vid Bea! Thanks!
The Ron Ellis set of pickups sound about 1000% better to my ears! Warm, sweet, articulate, dynamic AND aggressive at the same time. One of the best Strat pickups I’ve heard so far!
They should be 10000% better for the price.
I've spent entirely too much money over the last few weeks on tone journey gear and I fully blame you, Mick, and Dan lmao. Bought my first p90 guitar ('19 gibson les paul special tribute dc in blue), ordered a set of silos for my prestige s5470q, set of montys pafs for my epiphone LP traditional pro, emerson 50s wiring kit for the epi, locking tuners for both the gibson and epi and a Ryra Klone. I can't wait for the pickups to get here.
Hey, Bea.
I'm torn between the 63 Veneers and the Ellis set from Micks Strat. The neck pickup on the 63's sounded monstrous, and the bridge was fat and not "too" Strat-y. However, Mick's cleaned up so nicely. The note chime and string seperation in that 4th position was a thing of audible beauty. Cheers!
man this is tough, overall i like the ron ellis bridge pickup the most, for the neck it's almost impossible to pick a winner, because when you dig in the mothers milk are awesome, but when you play softly the ron ellis are awesome, i'm so confused
Right? So the thing to do is choose one pup for each position from each set... ??!! I think ?
please start mixing the pups take the best from individual pups see if you can get a better blend!
the ron ellis neck pu sounds so defined and articulate,but still remains quite gritty,I love it
Man I found you on a Leo video and have been watching your videos and subscribed. First I had a band at the beginning of the 80's. Me on guitar and my cousin on drums, my brother singing and a friend Mike White who's father was Harold White, some country music star, but we wrote our own music and played bars and parties. The DT's. Well I have not played in 27 years and you make me want to play again. I am going to try. I still have my stick and amp.
I like the sound of the Josefina's best. They sound fuller with a sweeter top end.
The way Fender made it originally sounds great to me. This was fun, at least I know I really can’t go wrong with any of those choices. Thanks
For me the Josefinas sound the best but now that I know you are playing them through a different amp it makes me question that....but they sound SO good!!
I will applaud you for testing these out so I don't have to. I will just keep my noiseless pickups and work with the eq.
Throughout the whole journey I preferred the original set. Now it’s the Ron Ellis! The volume knob is your friend if they’re too much. Sterling work as always!
Awesome! I’m a sucker for the anodized gold pickguard, and it sounds AMAZING with the 63 veneer board!! 🤘🏻🤘🏻
Love the white aged 3ply pick guard. The original pickups are the best “Josefinas”.
Hey, thanks for bringing us along your journey.. enjoy making your choice!
Maple board strats can sometimes sound a little to bright/brittle/compressed with some sets. Rosewood neck could also be more of your preference due the rounder sound. I highly recommend the voodoo pickups
As someone who dabbles in banjo, I dig the old timey string band transition music.
I can only reiterate what I've said before... they all sound amazing in your hands Bea! :-)
Sometimes it takes a bit of a journey to find out that you like home just the way it is.
Josephina !!! Of course !! 👌
It's Mick's Ron Ellis set for me, and the why? From my perspective was pick attack especially neck. Very responsive to my ear at least which adds to the percussive nature of the strat when needed. Plenty of glass & clarity when sitting back too.
Till you see the price or even try get a set ;)
Clearly the Ron Ellis PUs...great definition, great bottom end and very open sounding.
Holy f**k! Haven't watched you in a while, you just keep shrinking! Looking great dude.
This is a brawl between titans , Rabea, thanks for giving us the chance of listening top-notch tones. Anyway Josephina's warmest , probably the ones singing more with your touch are Mother's Milk . Veneer probably more all-rounded , Ron Ellis … bare with me mate , I can see Mick's eminent point , but prolly they fit better his touch/playstyle. They just didn't "click" with you I thought.
The Radio Shops are still doing it for me, just a more interesting sound. The Bareknuckles are a little too much for a strat for me. They would be good if you were in a Rage Against the Machine cover band or something like that, but when you turn down the gain they lack everything the Radio Shops seem to have.
63 Veneer are awesome on your fingers man !
Still loving the Mother's Milk set, but to my ear, that's what a blues strat should sound like. Every set sounds great and has it's own character. The Ron Ellis set definitely has an old school late 60s/early 70s rock and roll sound on the crunch.
Guess it killed time...but I suspect this journey will be a circle.
The josephinas were recorded differently, panned in the middle, whereas all the others panned right, which leads me to believe the set-up is different too. I’d need the josephinas recorded the same way to make proper judgement, but in this video they just sound the best. Thanks for this, loved it.
For me the bareknuckle mothers milk just scream. after hearing them I'm really considering a set. Great video, thanks for taking us on the journey with you!
They really reminded me of Stevie Ray Vaughan’s tone. Punchy, chimey, and FULL
I thought the original pickups sounded beautiful... I think you are crazy for even considering the others. ;) ... fun video, thanks Rabea.
Josephinas for me, thanks for sharing. On my custom Strat I currently use Rene Martinez Texas set with Emerson blender controls. Very happy with this set up, a keeper .
hey you could try a regular set of pure vintage fenders.... i have the 59' set and it is really dinamic.... just vintage output but with enough power and nice smooth top end .... Oh yeah... and the in between positions are so cool... clear and spanky...
Man I wouldn’t switch out those josefinas for nothing she’s been twisting up pickups for over 30 years and learned the craft by shadowing Abigail yavaro who spun Leo fenders originals… true OG
Remember, the aluminum pickguard will take a bit of the top end off the Ellis. Mick deliberately left the aluminum shield plate that is on real '64s off of Blue but mentioned that he will probably try it on his black "transit van" guitar when he gets the other Ellis pickups. I had a local winder make me a set of vintage style pickups that were halfway between true early '60s and the Suhr Landau's I had in another guitar. They were still very bright, similar to the Ellis pickups. Putting the aluminum shield plate in tamed them just enough.
Josephine's sounded best! Loved the clarity and warmth!!
I'm going to guess that the veneer boards are going to work so well in a mix.. in a band context everything is going to change so much. One of my favourite strats is actually wired up so I can get the bridge and neck together, and that works really well in a band context opposite another strat or Gibsonish tone because I can switch out to a tele(ish) sound! I'll say it till I'm blue in the face, guitar in isolation is one of my favourite sounds BUT 99% of the time as working musicians our guitars are part of a greater whole and THAT is the ultimate tonal test. Rabea, man, I have to say I've REALLY enjoyed this series, after 30 plus years of playing all I can say is that just when you think you're finished with one rabbit hole, another opens, but that's all part of the joy and the journey!
My two pennies worth... I was thinking the same regarding the tone of a ‘57 reissue strat I own, compared to a ‘64 reissue strat I own. Then I was trying different amps and started playing a Tone King Sky King. Keep in mind I had already been playing their Imperial mkII for a while. When I tried the ‘57 through the Sky King... I thought wow, a different beast. It unlocked the tone and took the feel of the instrument to another level somehow to me personally at any rate. It got me thinking perhaps the Fender CS 50’s reissue PuP’s really need HiFi, but rich HiFi clean amps to deliver their best. Normally I prefer the more mid range natural push from the 60’s style PuP’s, but I now think given the right clean amp that you can dig, the personal gratification of the Fender 50’s PuP’s is rather special. I think the 60’s style PuP’s fit with a multitude of amps better.
Fender custom shop has really figured out the way to remove the harsh top end and still ring like a bell type tone. I have been trying out the hand wound ones and really never anything sounded so balanced across all strings, really i am over searching for new sets. Enjoyed watching your journey Bea.
All the sets exaggerate this marvelous Strat tone except the original one. Josefinas are the best! Oh, these mids warmed my heart immediately!!!
You´ve got a very nice strat and you had a very complex work with this video. I think it took a long time to get it done. Since I´m an old SRV fan I would have liked to hear this great PUs and your great strat with old Fender Amps like an old Deluxe Reverb or a Pro Reverb for example. I love this Fender/Fender combination.
Loved both Radioshop and Mike's pups. I found the BareKnuckle a bit darker for my taste.
Now because of you, i need to order a Radioshop set of pickups :(
Aaah, the pickup swapping rabbit hole. Gone down that road way to many times only to learn: it's best to find a guitar that sounds and plays great from the start. More time better spent on playing. You can finetune all day long, it is fun; it can get frustrating after a while. Good series!
I've been looking forward to this!
Loved this video, I too am on a strat journey. For me it's just become to much with all the different set of pickups, to much backwards and forwards. SO, I've decided to sell some gear and save up and buy the real deal providing that I can find a good one for the right price. I fancy a 59/60 .
My main guitars are all SSS partscasters. Thankfully, they all sound distinctly different from one another. I'd happy grab any two or three of these sets and stick them in new instruments, swapping between them at a whim. I'm all for the one-guitar perfect-tone journey and some mightn't have the means to build/own four or five SSS guitars, just saying that's what I'd do. Because all of these pick-up sound really nice to my ears and why stick with just one.
I liked the special 57's (second ones). Seemed like the most versatile.
Me too
I agree,proper start tone!
Been waiting for this one! Woo Hoo!
This is an amazing series, most of the time the comparisons are so close to not bother but these all sound amazing in their own way! I like the veneer board ones I think :)
The Josephinas were on a different amp so it's hard to tell, they sound more compressed in that clip and I love more open clearer sounds, the closer to David Gilmour the better imo haha! I hope you put out a final video and let us know why you chose them! :)
💣💣Oh hell yeah the Josephine’s for sure. You can always warm/heat up the signal but it’s very hard to get back to that round clear strat tone if you go too far past 1960 😂 great vid series long live the bunny holes
And that's why they call it the rabbit hole. For me the Josephinas are hard to beat, but those Ron Ellis pickups sound pretty good too.
My favourite pickups were the radio specials 57s and bare knuckle 63 venner board
Hey Rabea, just wanted to say I've really enjoyed this series of videos. Thanks for all the great work. My two cents - I think I prefer the Josefinas.
I'm really glad you did this video. I have BKP Mothers Milk pickups in my Strat and had been gassing for a set of those Ron Ellis after hearing Mick's vlog. Now having heard them in comparison to the MM though I actually prefer the BKP tone. It's interesting that you were struggling to hear much difference between the MM and 63 Veneer sets. When I asked BKP about the 2 the response I got was that the difference in tone is negligible as they're basically aiming at the same tone and the difference is that the 63s are more vintage accurate in their construction. I think the only thing I'm going to change on my Strat is to fit a baseplate to the bridge pup to get just a little bit more grrrr from it 😂
Rabea I have an idea. Grab your favorite amp and a couple of pedals. Mix and match the various pickups. Neck of one with a bridge of the other middle of the other. Put in a quick connect on your output jack to save some soldering time. I've made this trip once or twice before and ended right where I started for some reason. Now I have three different loaded pick guards. Plus the original.
Over the years Ive found that the more I look for the perfect tone the more confused I get, yet still I search.
hearing them back to back, OMG the ron ellis!
Agree with your assessments, so far. I would say the Ron Ellis set were the ones I liked the least. But I think it also has a lot to do not only with individual tastes, playing style, and equipment setup... but also if a set can work with a particular guitar. Some PUPs can sound great in one guitar and then won't seem to work as well in a different one.
Rabea, you are the man! Love your videos! Your playing is just fantastic! Just food for thought, with respect to vintage pickups and it is ALL PERSONAL PREFERENCE, obviously. Easy winner, after much research, a boatload of cash for nothing searching for vintage. Vintage, or old and outdated. The best ones I ever had were the Beck Artist and Clapton Artist Strats and I still have the Clapton and have a great guitar to get the Beck back. Their techs: They chose noiseless, because 60 cycle hum sucks, that was not available at the time, so it was a 2 second decision for both. Clapton: I will take a non-relic, Strat, with vintage noiseless to have 5 position with no 60 cycle hum, make a TBX, add a 25DB (built in tube screamer) and that is good! Want the 2 point trem? Thought about it, but I don't use the damn thing! Beck: I will take a hotter noiseless (ceramic magnet needed), 5 positions with no crap 60 cycle hum, LSR nut and give me that modern 2 point, so my Strat stays in tune...I love that and add locking machine heads to that for tuning stability! 22 frets for both thank you! WTF was my big search all about? I did do that and then the Clapton/Beck Artist were freaking fantastic! The Ultra Noiseless are great, but not interested in the Ultra Strat, ONLY, due to nickel frets? Fender? What is that about? You put great stainless steel frets on everything! It is not enough to break the bank, but a new, replacement neck is cheaper, than a fret job? Really? Why, in the world, did I just not go with vintage, hot, or ultra noiseless in the first place? If it was a no-brainer for these 2 legends, what am I looking for? They could have had any pickups they wanted! * I do love these dare and compare Strat pickup searches and they are well done, like this one. After all my effort, a lot of cash...why didn't I just go Beck/Clapton Artist in the first place! They would have used these modern noiseless pickups, if they were available back in the day! Beck: why would I want relic? I want a nice guitar? That is wear and tear, from humidity, temperature changes, travel, tons of hours playing, bumps and bruises? That was no to look cool! That happened, but I want a mint one! People pay extra for the Custom Shop to toss the body around for a while and use old worn necks, with new frets? Why not just buy a mint one? * That was really good food for thought for me! What you like is the best tone, pickups, whatever you like! This is NOT encouragement, but just, my experience and I, for me, should have just bought the Beck and Clapton Artists to start with and would have saved myself a ton of cash. *** Food for thought! Everyone wants to hunt for trolls that aren't! Just food for thought, based on my, personal mistakes and my personal wish, loving those 2 Strats now! I loved the video, Rabea Rocks, the video Rocks, the persons that post rule and this video took a lot of work and is great! I don't care what you pick, but I wished somebody would have just asked me: If you love these 2 icons, just buy their Artist Strats! They picked out the parts they wanted! Rabea! Awesome job, as usual and it confirmed to me, that my Clapton Artist is going nowhere and I will get a Beck back, that I wish I still had. All the best to everyone! What you like is the best! Be Safe! Huge fan of Rabea! Please don't mix up the message, as some sort of hating or trolling...NO...just food for thought and this video did help me, for my preference! Happy playing! Rock on! :)
I would leave the Josefina's in that guitar. It has the right sound for that strat. Get another strat with a rosewood board and some 60's pickups already in it.
Pretty happy you liked the '63 Veneer board set, I have that set - well voiced for maple boards. Looking forward to seeing what set you choose!
Bare Knuckle 63's all day everyday ! Sound and feel amazing, with the little top end rolled off and the mid's just speak to me. Not to mention the high bottom end.
WOW! At first I had 2 conclusions; I didn't like the Mothers Milk pickups, and that I prefered the Radio Shop pickups overall. That was until you plugged those Ron Ellis in though. MAN! That sound! Now we know how Mick is so good! His tone is all in his guitar! :P I need to get me some of those!
15:56 Holy mother of God! When you played that E chord my face melted.