How to get a better sound from you guitar

[rish1906]

hi im looking for a better sound from my strat..sometimes it sounds like its not loud enough and ... i know everyone has diffrent pick up positions im trying to see where everyone has theres set so i can play with the positions and see what they sound like thanks.. oh i have a 93 MIM fender strat 3 pick ups.....thanks

[JayP5150]

www.mrgearhead.com has all the setup specs for practically every Fender ever made.

It's an excellent reference site.

Personally, I set mine as high as I can without the regular pressure of my picking hand causing the string to hit the poles (cause that makes a very audible "think" lol). Then, I set my neck one a bit lower since it's usually used for rhythm and/or blues 

Of course, some of my guitars just have the pu's screwed right to the body, so I've never touched them.

Give that site a spin, there's enough info there to make your head explode.

Hope that helps.

Oh, you could also look into a booster. There's a couple on the market (EH LPB1, Seymour Duncan Pickup Booster, etc.), or shoot me an email, and I can throw something together for you.

[JayP5150]

For the lazy folks (no implications lol), here's the specifics given for Strats.

PICKUPS

Set too high, pickups can cause myriad inexplicable phenomena. Depress all the strings at the last fret. Using a 6" (150 mm) ruler, measure the distance from the bottom of the first and sixth strings to the top of the pole piece. A good rule of thumb is that the distance should be greatest at the sixth-string neck pickup position, and closest at the first-string bridge pickup position. Follow the measurement guidelines in the chart below as starting points. The distance will vary according to the amount of magnetic pull from the pickup.

                                 Bass Side            Treble Side
Texas Specials                  8/64" (3.6 mm)     6/64" (2.4 mm)
Vintage style                   6/64" (2.4 mm)      5/64" (2 mm)
Noiseless™ Series         8/64" (3.6 mm)    6/64" (2.4 mm)
Standard Single-Coil         5/64" (2 mm)     4/64" (1.6 mm)
Humbuckers                  4/64" (1.6 mm)     4/64" (1.6 mm)
Lace Sensors           As close as desired (allowing for string vibration)

There you go. 

[Sonar]

And also be aware that many to most MIM Strats have MIM standard single coils with slug metal pole-pieces and ceramic magnet on bottom of coil. (This general observance doesn't include several nicer MIM models like the Powerhouse Strat & the Jimmy Vaughan Strat among others).

This means the typical six round magnet pole pieces you see aren't magnets at all....they're a slug 'o steel with a ceramic magnet bar below to deliver magnetic properties. I don't believe any American-made Fender Strat has ever used pickups of this low build and sound quality.

I'm trying to think of a nice way to describe these pickups...but I'm at a loss. I REALLY wouldn't use them for much of anything I can think of except to see if an amplifier is working in the shop. They're alright pickups for real beginners, but they're import Squire quality (except the older MIJ Squires which are of better quality).

These ceramic pickups just don't have the noteable difference between the pickup locations selected that typical Strat pickups display. They sound sorta bland and lacking color/articulation in any location AND from string to string...which makes them sound rather the same with slight tonal difference between positions.

Your MIM Strat MIGHT be of early enough manufacture that Fender was using something nicer...but I'd suggest you pull off the pickguard and check next time you change strings.

If this is the case and you do have those typical ceramic MIM pickups, I'd be hunting around for a decent used set of almost any other Strat-style pickups.

I don't mean to dog your guitar, but this can make a serious difference toward solving the tone/sound problems you describe. I use two Squire Strats myself...but I'll admit one is MIJ and the other is actually made in the USA (1989/90)...and they have both been worked to the hilt by a professional luthier.

[funkStrat_97]

hi im looking for a better sound from my strat..sometimes it sounds like its not loud enough and ... i know everyone has diffrent pick up positions im trying to see where everyone has theres set so i can play with the positions and see what they sound like thanks.. oh i have a 93 MIM fender strat 3 pick ups.....thanks

So you don't like the tone or the voume from your Strat?  You, my friend, may need to look for some new pickups.  What kind of sound are you tring to get, and what sort of amp and effects (if any) are you usning?  The funny thing is that most pople have said that the ceramic pickups used the MIM's are actually hotter than the Alnico's used in MIA Strats (isn't it sort of ironic that the Squier Standard Strat uses Alnico magnet pickups?).

[JayP5150]

This proves how "off" I've been the past weeks... I didn't even think about a pickup swap--of all people lol.

Let us know what you go with.

[melrhyne]

What kind of amp are you using? Exactly what style are you playing? There are many things you can do/check, to better your sound. Strings: Maybe try using a slightly heavier gauge. They tend to hold tuning better, and some say produce a more consistent tone. Picks: Same for picks; try a thicker one. Pickups. Now, there is a school of players, that turndown the guitar's volume for clean sounds, and up for more distortion. If your using a single channel amp, and you really love the amps distortion, then you kinda have no choice. However, if you can  live without the amps distortion, then KEEP YOUR PICKUPS ON TEN, use a distortion and a volume pedal,and use the amp for clean sounds. With dual channel amps, use one channel for clean, and one dirty. KEEPING YOUR PICKUPS ON TEN, will assure that the pickup is working to it's fullest sound potential. I was TAUGHT this, after 15 years of playing, and haven't looked back since. Also, amp choices, and speaker choices are huge. Solid state amps are supposed to give a more consistent, overall sound, whereas tube amps are a bit more tempermental, but ususally have a bit more tone.

[melrhyne]

Forgive spelling error of "usually".

[jlynnb1]

What kind of amp are you using? Exactly what style are you playing? There are many things you can do/check, to better your sound. Strings: Maybe try using a slightly heavier gauge. They tend to hold tuning better, and some say produce a more consistent tone. Picks: Same for picks; try a thicker one. Pickups. Now, there is a school of players, that turndown the guitar's volume for clean sounds, and up for more distortion. If your using a single channel amp, and you really love the amps distortion, then you kinda have no choice. However, if you can  live without the amps distortion, then KEEP YOUR PICKUPS ON TEN, use a distortion and a volume pedal,and use the amp for clean sounds. With dual channel amps, use one channel for clean, and one dirty. KEEPING YOUR PICKUPS ON TEN, will assure that the pickup is working to it's fullest sound potential. I was TAUGHT this, after 15 years of playing, and haven't looked back since. Also, amp choices, and speaker choices are huge. Solid state amps are supposed to give a more consistent, overall sound, whereas tube amps are a bit more tempermental, but ususally have a bit more tone.

im glad that works well for you, but that is definitely not the rule or anything. if you watch any pro player for very long, they work the volum knob for nuance while they play. Just goes to show that there are so many things about playing the guitar that aren't hard and fast "rules", that it's usually best to do what works well for you.

[melrhyne]

Well said, that's why I mentioned BOTH schools of thought. I never said its THE rule, just another, equally as good way.

[jlynnb1]

Well said, that's why I mentioned BOTH schools of thought. I never said its THE rule, just another, equally as good way.

 i was trying to agree with both of you at the same time, lol....

[melrhyne]

 Cool, ma bruh!