Lipstick tube pickups

[baseballnolie34]

I'm not much of a single coil guy but I've got a set of Seymour Duncan SLS lipstick pups in a strat that I really like. They seem a bit smoother and warmer than traditional strat-style pups, and definitely don't get ice-picky in the bridge which I like.

Who uses lipstick pups and how do they compare to traditional single coils?

[dunara]

I have a set of GFS lipsticks in a strat. I like them a lot - the bridge pickup is the closest thing I've heard to a good tele bridge pickup in a strat. Warmth combined with a tingly top end - no harshness.:AOK

[baseballnolie34]

Yeah, I don't get that these pups are warm and bright at the same time but never get harsh. I don't know how to describe it, but it's really noticeable if you combine playing with a pick and fingers. You get tons of pop and definition but it never gets harsh, which was my complaint with the noiseless pups I used before. I love em!

Someone want to explain to me what it is I'm hearing? lol

[jimmyj]

I put a Duncan Lipstick tube in the neck position of a tele a few years ago. I think it's a great neck pickup. Crisp and bright but still has that round tone. It's like a brighter version of the traditional tele neck pickup tone, IMO. Must be that metal cover.

[franksguitar]

That's why Dano's are cool.

[Don P.]

I put SD Lipsick Tubes, along with a 3 position switch, in my MIM 50's Strat because I didn't want that traditional Strat sound. I bought the guitar in 2003 and put the SD's in it immediately. To me it sounds like the middle ground between a Strat and a Tele. I find it to be a versatile guitar, lots of great tones to be found even with the 3 position switch. I have had this guitar far longer than any other and I have threatened to trade it in many times but I have never been able to pull the trigger.

[fullerplast]

I've yet to hear a repro lipstick PU that matches the tone and output of the 50's Dano pickups, but haven't heard the Duncans. Has anybody compared them directly to the original Dano/Silvertone's?

[James]

The lipstick tube pick-ups in my mid-90s Jerry Jones Shorthorn guitar sound fantastic. Does anyone know if Jerry Jones makes their own pick-ups or does he source them from some other manufacturer?

[mad dog]

+1 on those Jerry Jones lipsticks. I've owned newer Danos, played old ones too. The JJ p/us are way ahead. Mine are in a baritone. You play this thing once, you have to own it. Warm and smooth yes, also great depth in the sound.

[iowa]

I have a GFS 6k lipstick in the neck of a 60's Fender MusicMaster. It is a great sounding pup that seems to straddle the line between strat and tele pup's. For short $$$ it is a really nice option.

[trils0n]

I've yet to hear a repro lipstick PU that matches the tone and output of the 50's Dano pickups, but haven't heard the Duncans. Has anybody compared them directly to the original Dano/Silvertone's?


I'd like to hear how the seymour duncans stack up the originals as well, I really liked the real ones I heard, but only had a couple minutes to check them out.

[lamenlovinit]

I have a 2 chandlers from '92 that both sport lipsticks. It's probably the low output that gives them their charm. Try running a treble boost (rangemaster style) with them and see what you get...:dude

[walterw]

the duncan lipsticks in my jerry jones 2-pickup single-cut are fan-freaking-tastic! they smoked the (quite good) originals, as well as both the regular and hotter kent armstrongs.

they have this sort of "diffuse" quality to them, so even though they're really bright and sparkly, they don't have the initial attack of a fender single coil. it makes for a very cool jangly roots-rock sound.

[K-Line]

Built a guitar many years ago with some vintage Dano bass pickups. Wow is all I can say! Had to do some major routing to get them to fit but well worth it. Almost told the guy that it was stolen it was so good. Those pups are hard to find, he had an old Dano bass with a broken neck.

[baseballnolie34]

So what makes the lipstick pups sound so good? Is it the metal cover or is there some way to get this same tone in a traditional-looking strat pickup?

[padols]

I have an old Silvertone single pick up from the late 50s early 60s and the out put of the pick up is like 3.6 ohms. Sounds great I also have a strat with Chandlers and they sound great too.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v314/padols/DSCF2728.jpg

Good stuff!

[fullerplast]

I'd like to hear how the seymour duncans stack up the originals as well, I really liked the real ones I heard, but only had a couple minutes to check them out.

From what I've been able to gather, the strat version of the Duncans use an Alnico V bar magnet, and the Duncan Dano version uses the vintage correct Alnico VI bar magnet. Both have been reported to be a bit brighter than vintage Dano's, with the strat version brighter than the Dano.

Jerry Jones does his own and are supposed to be as close to vintage Dano's as you can get in a new pickup....but he does not sell them separately.

The real deal vintage pickups are just an Alnico VI bar magnet wrapped with 42 ga. wire to about 4.5K, then wrapped in tape and stuffed in the tube. The best example of a non-Dano application using the vintage pickups is probably Kimock's white strat (which I think is his best sounding guitar, personally:cool:)....but keep in mind that Kimock also uses pretty heavy strings to get that tone as well.

[Ricky_Rockhardo]

SRV played a Strat with them from time to time, and it killed, in my opinion (on live clips I've seen for "Couldn't Stand the Weather"). I had owned a collectable Reverend that was loaded with 3 of them that really was cool. Nice change up for a Strat for sure. David Hildago with Los Lobos has been seen with them, too.

[mprvise]

Both have been reported to be a bit brighter than vintage Dano's, with the strat version brighter than the Dano.


I've played all three and agree with that. I've currently got a set of the Duncan strat sized versions in one of my guitars. Though they are a bit brighter than the other two mentioned, they still have that characteristic "roundness" to the sound. With a blend control and parallel/series switching there are some really unique tones to be had in my lipstick strat - love it.

[jordanL]

I often play one of the Reverend spys with Kent Armstong lipsticks - love the tone. When plugging into an SS amp IT sound best if fitrst plugged into a buffer pedal like a Pink booster.

[johneeeveee]

Jerry Jones does his own and are supposed to be as close to vintage Dano's as you can get in a new pickup....but he does not sell them separately.



As some of you know, I'm a bit of a lipstick pup nut (Dano, Silvertone, Jerry Jones).
I've tried the Duncans, Armstrong, RI Danos, and Jerry Jones pups, and while all of them sound good to my ear, there is nothing quite like the sound of 50's era vintage lipsticks. It may have something to do with the age, but they just have that big round clear piunch and uber twang that nothing else does.
Jerry Jones does wind his own pups, and actually owns Nat Daniels (Danelectro) original pup winder. Next to vintage, I'd say JJ's pups are the best, and have a bit more output. They may mellow with age and be exactly like the originals. I have a JJ from '91 and it sounds pretty darn fantastic. The JJ's are built a bit heavier than original Dano's, so that may affect the tone a bit as well.
Jerry has sold a few sets of his pups separately through a store in MA called Nitro Tone, who also sold on eBay. I emailed with Jerry to verify that they were his pups. I have one separate set with rw/rp neck pup that I got a couple years back from them. They apparently are no longer in business, and I've never seen his pups available anywhere else (except of course in a JJ guitar).

Love this stuff - jv

[decay-o-caster]

This is a Chapin Stratahoula with Duncan lipsticks -

http://photo.articulateimages.com/PublicGearPics/LipstickPF0002small.jpg

The common perception of lipsticks is that they are lower output than strat pups, but in fact, they do have some balls to them and have higher output. The sort of clear but grainy tone they have is my fave sound you can get out of a strat, I think. And there's real magic in a pair in series, not parallel.

[big mike]

That guitar sounds badass too BTW.

[decay-o-caster]

That guitar sounds badass too BTW.

Thanks Mike! Used for the lead in this song I just posted (http://soundclick.com/share?songid=7577096), btw...