Seymour Duncan
Seymour Duncan Vintage ‘54 Lead STL-1 for Tele
From the manufacturer:
application
Vintage-correct reproduction of 1954 Tele® lead pickup. Perfect for traditional country, country pop, chicken pickin', rockabilly, blues, and blues-rock.
description
Like the 1954 originals, this pickup features standard .187" diameter Alnico 5 pole pieces, raised for the "D" and "G" strings. The result is a twangy, bright and biting sound. Compared the STL-1b, the Vintage '54 has slightly reduced output and a bright and biting high-end detail. Comes with waxed cloth hookup cable.
complete setup
Available in lead (bridge) position only. The STR-1 is the correct match in the rhythm (neck) position.
guitars
Gary Allan, Nick Hoffman / Kenny Chesney, Rick McRae / George Strait, Stephen Bruton / The Resentments, Jonny Wickersham / Social Distortion
Best videos/sound clips:
Here is an example of some of the classic overdriven Tele tones you can get with the Seymour Duncan Vintage '54 pickup. This pickup clearly excels in being a hot lead pickup with a really bright sound and a lot of bite. You can easily achieve classic British rock tones for tight rhythm playing or even screaming leads that cut through the mix with outstanding presence. For classic Tele rock tone you can't go wrong with the Vintage '54.
The guitarist is playing a Squier Telecaster Classic Vibe 50 through a Roland Microcube on the Brit Combo Setting.
This clip reviews the Vintage '54 pickup and its tonal strengths and variances. Skip to 1:19 to hear the pickup on a clean setting with a hint of reverb. From this demo, it sounds like the Vintage '54 has a nice low-end punch and a chimey high-end. At 1:40 you can hear its subtle twang, lending to that classic Tele tone. You can also get some pretty decent country/blues tones (3:35) and the Vintage '54 responds fairly well to pick attack and palm muting. Skip to 4:35 to hear how the pickup responds to a tube screamer sound; it has a pretty nice bite and makes for a great rockin' pickup.
The guitarist is playing a Custom Fender Highway One Telecaster through a Fender Mustang modeling a '65 Twin Reverb amp.