Chandler Super 60 Strat

Pickup features: passive single coil
Impedence or other specs: uhh

Model of guitar or bass: Othon Classic
Position: all positions
Pickup being replaced: Dimarzio custom wounds made for the Othon
Other pickups on guitar: none
Artists using this pickup: ?
You musical style(s): bluesy classic rock and all kinds of stuff
Reason for pickup change: The Dimarzios had a kind of rough edgey sound which was cool but other than that they sounded dead in this guitar.

Perceived output level: These pickups sound just a little more alive than vintage to me, but they have all that sweetness too!
Tone: The chandlers sound beautiful, very balanced and the perfect choice for what I craved.
Sonic evaluation: I play the Othon Classic w/ Chandlers through a Kendrick Gusher 4x10 combo. These are the finest tones I have ever discovered. The Othon is strat-esque w/ a paper thin top of real stone and is a hardtail w/ an ash body and tilted headstock which gives the axe a really great popping and bitey sustaining tone, and has all sweetness that is strat as well. The Chandlers took a great guitar and made it alive!!! Comparing the Chandlers and Dimarzios was like comparing two completely different guitars. The Dimarzios had some cool attributes w/ mant tradeoffs, but the Chandlers had every feeling I had ever hoped to find.

For which styles and positions is this pickup (un)suitable: Bluesy classic rock and anything else that grabs me are my bag, and I have yet to have interest in a style or tone that the Chandlers won't absolutely nail. Probably not good for metal, but I never tried to use em that way.

Comments: If these pickups were not with me for any reason I would certainly order another set. The Othon and the Kendrick are my only gear, no pedals either. These are the best single coils I have ever played and can't nit-pick one thing to bitch about. I am as happy now w/ the tone as the first time I played them and it's been a year since the change! I found THAT sound, and I have big respect for Chandler!
Way to go!

Pickup features: Single coil, passive
Impedence or other specs: 5.8k Neck & Middle, 5.9k Bridge

Model of guitar or bass: Fender Stratocaster
Position: all positions
Pickup being replaced: Stock
Other pickups on guitar: None
Artists using this pickup: Don't know
You musical style(s): Blues, Classic rock, Country
Reason for pickup change: I was looking, for 30 years, for a single coil Strat pickup that had good tonal balance & nice dynamics. With everything I tried there seemed to be a trade off. Low output pickups had no tone, high output pickups sounded muddy, & medium output pickups sounded midrangy.

Perceived output level: Slightly hotter than a Fender late 50's early 60's Strat pickup.
Tone: These pickups sound very balanced to me. This lets me use my amps tone controls for the coloration I need in a particular song.
Sonic evaluation: My Foto Flame Strat was made in Japan. Other than the stock pickups sounding a little dark, this was one of the best sounding Strats I have ever owned. My amp is a Fender Vibro King with 212 extension cabinet and I also use an Ibanez TS9 that I modified to TS808 specs.

For which styles and positions is this pickup (un)suitable: I love blues and play in a trio that plays a blend of classic rock, modern country, and blues. The Chandler pickups, with the tonal balance they have, work very well for the variety of music I play. Probably wouldn't be suitable for metal or hard rock music. I believe Chandler was looking for tone rather than output with these pickups.

Comments: I have been playing guitar, semi-professionally as a hobby, for about 30 years and I have never heard a pickup like the Chandler Super 60 handwounds. I was always looking for a pickup with good tonal balance & dynamics and these are the best I have heard to date. I have tried most of the other "blues range" pickups out there and there always seemed to be a trade off, as I mentioned earlier, until now. These pickups , literally, took my breath away in the first few minutes after I installed them. No other pickup I have tried ever did that. My guitar almost seemed to "play itself" as I didn't have to "fight the tone" if that makes any sense. All pickup selections are very useable, clear & sweet at the same time. I am very surprised that, other than the one other submission here, that I have never heard of anyone using or commenting on these pickups. I wonder if some players regard these pickups as a "trade secret" or something....... they sound THAT GOOD. Thanks for the tip, Barney Roach !!

Pickup features: Single coil - passive
Impedence or other specs: didn't measure them.

Model of guitar or bass: Fender Japan '62 RI
Position: all positions
Pickup being replaced: 4 other sets- see review
Other pickups on guitar: see review
Artists using this pickup: N/A
You musical style(s): Blues
Reason for pickup change: I was looking for a sound that was as good as my 1959
stock Stratocaster. This is the 5th set of pick-ups that I
have put into this guitar. The stock set from Japan were my
least favorite. Then I put in Van Zants- they made three
different sets for Strats- and I bought one of each, and tried
them in different positions. Much better than stock- but a
little dark sounding, not the dynamic bite I was looking for.
Then I put in an early set of LINDY FRALINS. These were
OK (but not for the price) but were slightly weaker sounding, with a mid-range tone to them. Then I put in a
real set of 1954 Strat pick-ups that I bought directly from
Seymour Duncan (out of the guitar player of Jack Mack &
the Heart Attack's guitar- a friend of Seymour's) They were
OK- put it still did not sound as good as the 1959 Strat.
These were the best up until that point- then I put in the
set of Chandler Super 60 Handwounds. These just kick-ass in this guitar! Every blues player that tries this guitar loves the tone!! I genuinely prefer it to he real 1959 now!

Perceived output level: Just a slight bit more output than a real 1959 Strat. They are not designed to be 'hot'.
Tone: Very well balanced output- with a lot of dynamics to the touch & tone.
Sonic evaluation: The guitar is the same one referenced above- usually through a
1964 Fender Vibroverb or Fender Prosonic combo or Wizard
combo (My favorite) or Marshall 6101LE 30th Ann. combo or
Boogie Mark II C+ 60/100 combo.

For which styles and positions is this pickup (un)suitable: Just blues- straight into the AMP cranked-up.

Comments: I have been wanting to get a couple of extra sets of these, just in
case Chandler stops distributing them. I have about 40 guitars in
my selection, and this is the best sounding of the Strats! I have never
seen a review of them, and bought them on a whim at the NAMM
show because they were having a show special of $99! I don't know
what they normally run- but pay it! These P/Us even smoked the
original set of 1954 Fender pick-ups in this guitar! By the way- I
displayed this guitar at the Santa Monica 4 Amigos Show a year back
and was offered $3,000 for this guitar!! A Fender Japan 1993 '62 RI
that has been refinished in Gibson Iverness Green . Amazing tone!