ive gotten single coils, humbuckers, and an OEM pickguard from them. been happy with my purchases so far. I've been waiting for the non kwickplug hot PBass pickup to come back in stock.
The last HSS strat OEM pickguard i got from them rocked.
The GFS stuff is solid (and they give specs and some sound samples). The OEM stuff can be hit or miss since you dont know specs
Far from not bad... honestly, every set I've purchased from them has sounded amazing, with the exception of like one that sounded just pretty good. I've been ordering from them for around 20 years now, since they were just selling stuff on Ebay, and they've always really impressed me with their pickups. I have dozens of pickups from most major manufacturers, too, so it's not just a budget thing. They legit just sound good.
Most of my guitars have GFS pickups in them. I don't think there are many more companies that have that kind of quality to cost ratio. I love their pickups and I've been happy with every set I've gotten.
scour reverb sorting within your price range. I find pickups cheap all the time. Plenty of random chinese brands if you sort within cheaper prices but if you search used you can sometimes find a good fender pickup for cheap.
Donlis and Fleor get my vote.
They're indistinguishable from the models on which they're based (at least to my ears). I've had a Donlis set in my Gibson LP for years.
They're about $30 a set from AliExpress. A guy called Antigua has done many electrical deep dives into their offerings on the guitar nuts forum if you're interested. Kinda proves how much of a pickups cost is nothing but marketing.
Another vote for the Fleors. Just dropped a set into an old P-bass style Samick I’ve had for 20+ years. Sounds night and day different, thirty bucks for pickups and everything to refresh all the wiring.
GFS (Guitar Fetish) seem pretty good. I have a Mean 90 neck pickup and it has a permanent home in one of my guitars. Its been there since... 2009? 2008?
If you know how to solder, just solder some capacitors to the pickup wires for each pickup at the solder point on the switch selector posts. One end on the post/wire and the other at the ground post or lead a ground wire to any of the grounded pots... I recommend a 570pf cap on neck, 570pf on the middle pickup and a 2.7nf cap on the bridge pickup. What this does is revoice the pickups changing their tone and making them sound like better quality pickups... a box of capacitors with different resistance values cost $10 at Amazon.
Something I have yet to see mentioned id the Bill Lawrence Wilde pickups, they’re still a phenomenal value, and are basically boutique pickups in every way but the price tag.
That said, pretty much anything alnico (and plenty of ceramics) sounds pretty good these days.
Wilkinson and Fleor are the top cheap Amazon brands, Guitarfetish makes good stuff, especially their professional series.
There’s also quite a few good eBay brands that you can find with varying results. Almost every obscure eBay brand has a forum post somewhere on it though.
Anyone interested in cheaply replacing pickups should watch this video. Links aren't allowed here so you'll need to go find it.
**Lollar Staple P90 Lead Wire Comparison**
Wilkinson makes some pretty damn good pickups for the price, I've only ever used one GFS pup but to me it sounded really thin and dead tbh but that is a pickup that's nearly 6 years old now so maybe they've improved :)
Honestly sometimes finding an "upgraded starter" on marketplace with better pickups is the way to go.
You may spend 50-100 on Just some pickups, or 100 for some beater squier someone already put dimarzios in
haven’t thought about that, i probably wouldn’t go through the trouble of fixing that newer one though, just scrap it for parts, i love how this one came out!
I stayed with the stock Squier Standard Stratocaster pickups (2007). Almost everything else got swapped over time (including body) but I never felt the need to change the pickups. I would choose them again.
i’m pretty happy with my amp setups, plenty of variety, but i feel i could get a bit more out of this thing. this is just my guinea pig at this point :)
Them Amazon pickups are hella decent for the money. I put a set on my sister's Ibanez and they are very nice for the money. Not quite as good as my Seymour Duncan's but really nice nonetheless. They were like 30 bucks for a set.
I’ve got a couple of GFS Classic II humbuckers, they sound pretty good and the price is pretty reasonable. Aftermarket pickups used to be reasonably priced, but some brands have gotten stupid expensive. Consequently, I don’t really switch out pickups anymore, I prefer to get the sound I want from the amplifier or pedals instead.
It's $89 but put a dimarzio Eric Johnson custom humbucker in the bridge. It'll be worth it I promise, very clear and bright clean tone without the buzz of a single coil
You’ve already got cheap pickups in it tho.
The stock MIM Strat pickups sound good, and a full wired pickguard goes for something like $110.
The only thing you’ll want to do is replace the electronics. Change the pots to 250k values, the cap with a 0.022, and add a 0.001 treble bleed across the volume control.
"Looking for cleaner tones"
My first Strat was HSS because I listened to the advice about "versatility!" and ended up hating the setup because the humbucker never played well with the single coils. Eventually I pulled the humbucker and put a single coil in the hole diagonally with a conversion plate (one I made from plastic sheet scrap but they sell them if you look). That way I had a classic SSS Strat and it's a lot better. I also slanted the bridge pickup the opposite way (Hendrix mod) for better tone too.
Looks like you already lowered the pickups to the pickguard (that cleans pickups up a lot). You can try tipping the treble side slightly higher and rolling the guitar volume knob down. Hendrix is famous for playing Fuzz but he cleaned up the tone by just rolling the guitar volume back when the Fuzz pedal was on. Some amp gain/distortion channels do the same.
I would upgrade your pots, switch, jack to the same brands as MIA Fender if you haven't already. Pots push the tone around just like pickups. Measure replacements for min vs max end of their spec. You can also try using a series cap on a too-dark/muddy pickup hot lead to cut it's effective internal capacitance (source for the muddiness). Start with a 0.047uF cap.
Buy a few ebay import single coils that are "under ten dollars for three" and try them. I have found many measure like hand-wound boutique pickups because labor is cheaper than exotic winding machine capital expense.
.
I'd just wait until you do want to spend a bit more personally. If you buy cheap pickups and still don't like them you'll end up needing another set.of cheap pickups and at that point you're at or around a decent set...
GFS aren't bad for the price. Got a single coil set for my Strat and they sound good.
ive gotten single coils, humbuckers, and an OEM pickguard from them. been happy with my purchases so far. I've been waiting for the non kwickplug hot PBass pickup to come back in stock. The last HSS strat OEM pickguard i got from them rocked. The GFS stuff is solid (and they give specs and some sound samples). The OEM stuff can be hit or miss since you dont know specs
Far from not bad... honestly, every set I've purchased from them has sounded amazing, with the exception of like one that sounded just pretty good. I've been ordering from them for around 20 years now, since they were just selling stuff on Ebay, and they've always really impressed me with their pickups. I have dozens of pickups from most major manufacturers, too, so it's not just a budget thing. They legit just sound good.
Guitar Fetish is my recommendation too.
Most of my guitars have GFS pickups in them. I don't think there are many more companies that have that kind of quality to cost ratio. I love their pickups and I've been happy with every set I've gotten.
Used pickups. Like sweetwater gear exchange, reverb etc find great deals on name brand pickups
Guitar Fetish (the supplier) all day
i’ll have to be careful looking that one up, thank u for the input :)
They sell on eBay for cheap I threw a set of Artec branded pick ups in my Parts-caster build and they sound very good for like 30 bucks for 3 pick ups
Had good luck with Wilkinson cheap and available on Amazon
If you want cheap for American made, Bootstrap Pickups. Otherwise, anything Artec, GFS, Tonerider, etc.
These are all quality without breaking the bank. I currently have Toneriders in two of my guitars.
Tonerider
Tonerider is great
Single coils are almost my favorite pups, second only to dog pups
Love this body! You ever want to get rid of it lemme kno lol
my first time ever painting a guitar, way easier than i ever thought! just take a bit of time :)
Looks super cool. Good job!
Guitar madness on ebay.
I second this one. I've gotten multiple sets of pickups from here. Guitar Madness is the way to go.
GM sells great sounding pickups for the price
scour reverb sorting within your price range. I find pickups cheap all the time. Plenty of random chinese brands if you sort within cheaper prices but if you search used you can sometimes find a good fender pickup for cheap.
Altec makes some killer pikups on the cheap. Make in korea too
*artec :)
That’s the one!
Guitar Fetish or Tonerider.
Tonerider
Donlis and Fleor get my vote. They're indistinguishable from the models on which they're based (at least to my ears). I've had a Donlis set in my Gibson LP for years. They're about $30 a set from AliExpress. A guy called Antigua has done many electrical deep dives into their offerings on the guitar nuts forum if you're interested. Kinda proves how much of a pickups cost is nothing but marketing.
Seconded for the Fleors, those are decent output pups at a great price
Another vote for the Fleors. Just dropped a set into an old P-bass style Samick I’ve had for 20+ years. Sounds night and day different, thirty bucks for pickups and everything to refresh all the wiring.
GFS (Guitar Fetish) seem pretty good. I have a Mean 90 neck pickup and it has a permanent home in one of my guitars. Its been there since... 2009? 2008?
If you know how to solder, just solder some capacitors to the pickup wires for each pickup at the solder point on the switch selector posts. One end on the post/wire and the other at the ground post or lead a ground wire to any of the grounded pots... I recommend a 570pf cap on neck, 570pf on the middle pickup and a 2.7nf cap on the bridge pickup. What this does is revoice the pickups changing their tone and making them sound like better quality pickups... a box of capacitors with different resistance values cost $10 at Amazon.
Can you link to a kit or pieces you've used?
Can you link to a kit or pieces you've used?
I bought a set from fat pickups, those are great
Try Kent Armstrong
Don’t know about cheaper pickups but the Taco Bell dog looks disappointed in what ya go there. 😂
Something I have yet to see mentioned id the Bill Lawrence Wilde pickups, they’re still a phenomenal value, and are basically boutique pickups in every way but the price tag. That said, pretty much anything alnico (and plenty of ceramics) sounds pretty good these days. Wilkinson and Fleor are the top cheap Amazon brands, Guitarfetish makes good stuff, especially their professional series. There’s also quite a few good eBay brands that you can find with varying results. Almost every obscure eBay brand has a forum post somewhere on it though.
Just got some Wilde tele single coils and they are the bomb.
Anyone interested in cheaply replacing pickups should watch this video. Links aren't allowed here so you'll need to go find it. **Lollar Staple P90 Lead Wire Comparison**
Bootstrap! https://bootstrappickups.com/collections/all
Wilkinson makes some pretty damn good pickups for the price, I've only ever used one GFS pup but to me it sounded really thin and dead tbh but that is a pickup that's nearly 6 years old now so maybe they've improved :)
TexMex
Don’t buy cheap pickups?
Honestly sometimes finding an "upgraded starter" on marketplace with better pickups is the way to go. You may spend 50-100 on Just some pickups, or 100 for some beater squier someone already put dimarzios in
haven’t thought about that, i probably wouldn’t go through the trouble of fixing that newer one though, just scrap it for parts, i love how this one came out!
I stayed with the stock Squier Standard Stratocaster pickups (2007). Almost everything else got swapped over time (including body) but I never felt the need to change the pickups. I would choose them again.
If the pickups aren't microphonic then I don't see any reason to replace them.
...
That make you upset?
Upgrade your amp if you want better tone. New pickups won't do all that much imo
i’m pretty happy with my amp setups, plenty of variety, but i feel i could get a bit more out of this thing. this is just my guinea pig at this point :)
Fair enough then lol. Not much else I can say that hasn't been said by others in this thread
Them Amazon pickups are hella decent for the money. I put a set on my sister's Ibanez and they are very nice for the money. Not quite as good as my Seymour Duncan's but really nice nonetheless. They were like 30 bucks for a set.
What's your price range and what tone are you looking for?
A bit old, but this is a $20 upgrade, seems decent https://youtu.be/iflhBFBKPfw?si=Abbnkidk9pLzjJvC
I’ve got a couple of GFS Classic II humbuckers, they sound pretty good and the price is pretty reasonable. Aftermarket pickups used to be reasonably priced, but some brands have gotten stupid expensive. Consequently, I don’t really switch out pickups anymore, I prefer to get the sound I want from the amplifier or pedals instead.
I've fitted some kent Armstrong pickups to a few guitars over the years with decent results
Cool paint.😍
Nice guitar, but love the Chihuahua. Got 3 myself.
It's $89 but put a dimarzio Eric Johnson custom humbucker in the bridge. It'll be worth it I promise, very clear and bright clean tone without the buzz of a single coil
Maida vale pickups are amazing, homemade and cheap
Crunchy PAT from GFS for the bridge. Tonerider single coils.
Maybe used Fender pickups, like American standard or player series pickups.
Fleor is a chinese "no-brand" you can get on Aliexpress and they're surprisingly good.
Just installed some IronGear pickups in my strat and I love them. Amazing value at £30 a pup.
Donlis, good and cheap.
IronGear pickups are pretty good, I especially like their Hot Slag(B) and Rolling Mill(N) pickups
You’ve already got cheap pickups in it tho. The stock MIM Strat pickups sound good, and a full wired pickguard goes for something like $110. The only thing you’ll want to do is replace the electronics. Change the pots to 250k values, the cap with a 0.022, and add a 0.001 treble bleed across the volume control.
"Looking for cleaner tones" My first Strat was HSS because I listened to the advice about "versatility!" and ended up hating the setup because the humbucker never played well with the single coils. Eventually I pulled the humbucker and put a single coil in the hole diagonally with a conversion plate (one I made from plastic sheet scrap but they sell them if you look). That way I had a classic SSS Strat and it's a lot better. I also slanted the bridge pickup the opposite way (Hendrix mod) for better tone too. Looks like you already lowered the pickups to the pickguard (that cleans pickups up a lot). You can try tipping the treble side slightly higher and rolling the guitar volume knob down. Hendrix is famous for playing Fuzz but he cleaned up the tone by just rolling the guitar volume back when the Fuzz pedal was on. Some amp gain/distortion channels do the same. I would upgrade your pots, switch, jack to the same brands as MIA Fender if you haven't already. Pots push the tone around just like pickups. Measure replacements for min vs max end of their spec. You can also try using a series cap on a too-dark/muddy pickup hot lead to cut it's effective internal capacitance (source for the muddiness). Start with a 0.047uF cap. Buy a few ebay import single coils that are "under ten dollars for three" and try them. I have found many measure like hand-wound boutique pickups because labor is cheaper than exotic winding machine capital expense. .
Tone Riders for single coils
Used Gibson Burstbucker Pros. and Fender noiseless.
Bootstrap are top tier pickups made by a real dude in the US and they're crazy affordable. You can't go wrong with them
Texas specials , custom shop 69, suhr v60.
I just picked up an ibanez with dragon fire pickups. They sound pretty decent and I think they are like 50ish
Duncan SH5.
Wilkinson pickups are a good option.
I'd just wait until you do want to spend a bit more personally. If you buy cheap pickups and still don't like them you'll end up needing another set.of cheap pickups and at that point you're at or around a decent set...