Tele bridge feedback on Express

[Richie]

There are alot of helpfull videos on you tube about tele pickups.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mdhwIJqY9E8

One thing that is important for causing those type problems are.
Usually the lower line of guitars may use springs for adjustment heigth between the pickup and plate.
These can cause alot of the vibration microphonic noises in the pickups.
And the hotter the pickup, the worse its going to be.
So, be sure to use the old style surgical tubing. Thats what most call it.

If you don't have any, you can pick up things similar at most drug stores.
Small catheders, they come in different thickness like 20 or 22 etc.
Inexpensive,and you can cut your own. The old type was a cream color.
Which stew mac or other sell.

http://www.stewmac.com/shop/Electronics ... ubing.html

also check the heigth of the strings compared to the pickup, and type strings you use may also have an effect steel,nickle etc..

[jeff12]

You could mount the pickup to the body. That seemed to be the key to the ge smith mod. Leave the plate full size and just enlarge holes to adjust height.

[rooster]

Cliff, you haven't fixed this yet?

Anyway, Richie suggests the surgical type tubing vs. the springs and I think this is probably a good idea in your case. This said, Lollar is very big about using the springs in the Tele bridge pickup. This kind of surprised me to learn this so I tried it and think I like it better. I guess the thinking is that the springs don't dull the plate as much, and in my case this is something I like in my Tele.

I also suggest stainless steel bridge mounting screws if you are not using them already? Some bridges use those wood type screws that have a clean shank at the top of the thread, the stainless steel #6 machine screw is threaded all the way. This will make a difference, IMO.

That GE Smith idea is always an interesting thing to ponder. If you were using the tubing and then switched to the body mounted pickup - there would have to be an audible change I think, and the bridge would just get more lively. With the springs, v.s body mount I imagine things would not be so dramatic. But I guess this depends on the height of the pickup and how compressed those springs were.

.................So try Richie's idea if you haven't already, that's what I say.

[Cliff Schecht]

I quit chasing this demon when I stopped gigging with my Express.

From what I've read that big bridgeplate is part of the Tele's twang and removing/modifying how the pickup interfaces to the guitar will change this. I use this guitar with my new setup without any issues and I'm not sure it's worth hacking on anymore to make it usable with an Express. I have other guitars that work fine with that amp and I like this guitar as is so it's really no loss anymore.

FWIW it didn't squeal with a single coil in the bridge position but the hum makes it pretty unbearable.

[rooster]

I hear you on that hum issue. One trick to beat this is to reverse the connections on the pickup. In the case of the Tele bridge, you will have to remove the ground wire on the plate bottom and attach it to the 'hot' side, and then switch the hot and ground wires on the switch and pot. Know what I mean? This way, the hot wire is going against the mags, and exiting on the outside of the bobbin.

Funny thing, Fender did this in the mid 60s (with no reverse wound pickup in the middle position), but typically today we revert back to the earlier versions. Today, in the case of the American Standard, with nylon bobbins, all three Strat pickups are wound in the same direction, but the middle pickup is connected backwards and it's mags are reversed, too. If you isolate this pickup through an amp, you will hear how it is slightly quieter than the neck or bridge. Particularily as you turn the guitar up and touch each pickup without grounding the strings. Well, I'm sure you get what I'm talking about.

Funny thing too, electrically and sonically (frequency-wise and Q-wise) the pickups are the same no matter which wire you connect to hot, but many people will swear that the noisier way has more sparkle.

Anyway, just a followup. You've moved on, I get it.