Vintage Vibe Blade Pickups?

[jzucker]

Tell me about these. Tom Painter (who makes archtop guitars) was telling me that these pickups get a cross between a charlie christian and p90 pickup sound with no noise. When I visited the vintage vibe site, it appears they are single coil though he says the bobins are shielded. Anyone have these installed and are they quiet? I'm considering putting one in the neck of my tele or even my HR Fusion...

 

[beNsteR]

as far as i know, they are true single coils, not a hum-cancelling design. however, mine is much quieter than a Fralin P90 i have in another guitar of mine.

it sounds fantastic by the way.. fat, articulate and clear at the same time

mine's humbucker-sized. Pete can make them in P90 size, CC size, any size you want

 

[mongrel]

I have installed the Vintage Vibe HCC's in an Epi Joe Pass--neck and bridge, and in a Peavy Reactor AX, an ash-bodied Tele clone in the neck position. I made the Peavy a one-pickup guitar having hogged out the neck cavity with a Dremel. I ordered these pickups with fewer winds than described on the website--the necks at around 7,500 winds measuring around 5.5 k ohms and the bridge on the JP at 6 k ohms. These pickups are not quiet by themselves. On the Peavy, I installed new good quality volume and tone pots. On the JP, I just snipped the junky stock buckers off and spliced/soldered/taped the HCC's in using the existing crap pots. These are real interesting pickups with almost pianistic clarity with real character when pushing a low watt tube amp and crystal clear through a colorless transister amp.

 

[mongrel]

(Continued from previous post--interrupted by knock on the door)

I put these on my archtop trying to get that "Charlie Christian tone". I didn't get it but that's not the pickups' fault. I had a Duncan vintage P-90 in the Peavy before I put the HCC in. The Duncan was sterile and blah while the HCC is very lively and not P-90-sh at all--almost like a cross between a low output PAF and one of those old DeArmond guitar mike floaters.

Pete's HCC's are wound with 42 gauge wire and the original and modern duplicate copies are wound with 38 gauge wire. Lollar's Tele neck CC's are wound with 38 gauge and are probably the closest to the originals. The Vintage Vibe pickups are designed for easy magnet swaps and each comes with your choice of A2, 3, 5 and ceramic 8 magnet sets. I got the A2's installed on the three I have with extra sets of A5's. I ended up putting the A5's in the Peavy and the JP and the difference is quite noticeable with the A5's brighter and a little more gainy. By the way, before I die I want an HR Fusion III and have been thinking what the VV HCC's would sound like. Love that "fingers" tailpiece.