Fender Custom Shop '69

Passive Singlecoil Pickup's with Moderat Output.
High Treble, Low Bass and Moderat Mid's.

Originally from a Fender Classic Player 60's Strat, then installed in a G&L Tribute S-500(japan)with Alder body, and Maple fingerboard & neck. Replacing G&L MFD(magnetic field design) Pickup's.

Moderat Output pickup's with a classic HENDRIX tone, very good for all distortion sounds(high, moderat & low). Normally affiliated with a ROSEWOOD neck, but in this case, it sound's fantastic in a guitar with MAPLE neck.

Not the type of pickup's for eksessiv Tremolo use, but very good for Blues, rock & Hard rock(best for solo's).

I play a lot of Gospel music, but this guitar I mainly use for Blues.

These pickup's are not the best one's to use for soft music but they are fantastic for Old Rock & Blues sound's like Eric Clapton, Jimmy Hendrix & Rory Gallagher.

if they were stolen, then the guitar would be stolen as well, so I would
have to get a new Maple neck Strat, and i think i'd get these pickup's again, the Blues sound is Sooooo.... sweet.

Single coil

This is a classic pick up..height staggered Alnico 5's and a special grey bobbin.The pickups are dated, and initialed by Abigail Ybarra.It is quite likely that Abigail sits at a table and signs these things as they come off the line...but she's been doing it for a long time and the quality of the pickups with her initials is well known.This is not your average stock pickup. Pure 100% Fender.

What model guitar or bass did you install this in?

I bought a used, but very beautiful 1993 blue burst Strat Plus last year. It was 100% stock,with rosewood neck and with silver, red, blue lace sensors. I loved certain things about the lace sensors, but after gigging with the guitar..decided they just didn't sound enough like a classic strat for my style.(although I put the very same strat plus set bought on ebay in an 89 MIJ strat and it sounds great!)

So I chose to make a change. I ordered a loaded pickguard with the custom 69's bought from Metal Shop Music in Florida. I'd hoped to buy a loaded used pickguard with Fralin blue's from Chris' Guitars in New York but I can't get that place to answer emails. So after shopping around I went with the 69s..knowing that they were going to be alot noisier than I'm used to...but that they would be far more traditional.

Reason for changing the pickup?

The Lace senors are a good pickup...I especially like the silver..and the quiet of them...but they just don't growl enough for my tastes.It's hard to put my finger on why...but heard it playing live when I switched guitars. Just not hearing THAT sound.

What's the output level like?

It's medium low..in the 5.7 range. Certainly less than the lace sensors. But really, that's what you want if you want a classic strat vibe.

What amps and effects are you using it with?

I have two amps..a 1972 fender Princeton that I really love.It's a great amp for small rooms.Although beat up and abused by a former owner,it's a tone machine. It has been upgraded with a green 12 inch Celestion. So sweet.

My other amp is a 1983 Rivera era Fender Concert.100% stock except for new tubes.My main gigging amp for many years, with the great brown sound and power for larger rooms.

As for effects,I use a Digi Tech Bad Monkey,Boss DS-1,Leila boutique Soft Delay,Dunlop Cry Baby Wha,Boss CS-2,BBE Boost Grande. And some other random pedals... but I also just plug straight in as well.


Tone - Bassy, middy, muddy, trebly, balanced?

The custom 69s sound beautiful.It's a cliche on Harmony Central, but as soon as I plugged in the guitar with the 69s in it I could hear a huge difference.The guitar did, indeed, come alive. The sound was sparkly and full.Throaty and quacky.Ballsy.Yes, that annoying 60 cycle hum was there (despite shielding etc.) but move away from the computer screen and it's quite fine. As a comparison,I actually plugged in my old main axe, a 1983 Strat,and it was no more or less noisy than the strat with the 69s. Just classic single coil sounds.

I guess using lace sensors, including a franken/strat plus with Lace Holy Grails has spoiled me.But there is no doubt there is something magical about the traditional sound of a single coil.

I've done several rehearsals and one gig with the new pickups,and I'm quite pleased. I could see hum problems in a bar full of TV's and lights however.

What style of music do you play? Is this a good match?

Classic rock, blues, R and B, alt. country. Stones, Dylan,White Stripes,Clapton,Fleetwood Mac etc. You know the drill. I've never owned a humbucker!A perfect fit for the 69s I think.

I should mention that the loaded pickguard assembly includes a pull pot that adds various mixed pickup sounds.I prefer the traditional sounds, but if you pull the pot and play the bridge pick up position, the sound is very good..not as shrill as it is normally.It adds some fatness.

My favourite position with the custom 69s is neck or neck /middle, but it quacks like a duck between the bridge and middle.Very Claptonesue circa Just One Night.But I use the neck position the most for that fat classic strat sound.It's there in spades.

If it was destroyed or stolen, would you buy it again or get something else?

I'd probably buy them again.

How long have you been playing? What other gear do you own?

I've been playing for 30+ years...and have started gigging again after a nearly 20 year lay off (raising kids etc.).

I own a bunch of Fender guitars including a 1968 Telecaster.That is one sweet sounding axe.

What do you love about it?

The sound.The 69s have the sound.

What do you hate?

I don't hate the noise, but I may try star grounding to see if the hum can be reduced. The cost of doing business.

Did you compare it to other products? Which ones? Why did you choose this one?

I did a lot of listening to sound files.I was torn between the Fralin Woodstocks, the Fralin blues and the Custom 69s. I was very close to buying the Fralins. Cost was a factor. Perhaps down the line.I have a few project guitars lying around. The loaded pickguard was about $220..which is not bad considering the quality.

Are you satisfied with this pickup or still searching for <b>that</b> sound?

The sound of the Strat Plus with these new pickups is amazing. From a good guitar to a great one. These pickups really bark when put through effects. Much better than the lace sensors did.Very sensitive to dynamics and great for harmonics of all type.They rock.

Anything else you'd like to share?

I wonder how many pickups Abigail has signed in the past 50 years?

Fender Custom Shop '69 set, like all the others here..
Initialled by the lovely Abigail Ybarra on 12-3-07.

I had these installed in an E series MIJ 60's reissue Stratocaster. The stock pickups just weren't happening. I don't get why the Japanese couldn't make a better pickup, but maybe they just wanted to give us something to do (that was nice of them)

These pickups are not as hot as all the "specials," which is what I wanted. They are also not RWRP, (almost the only ones anymore) which is also what I wanted.
What they are is exactly what I DID want, vintage sounding, quacking strat pickups.
Some of these reviews get to sounding like wine tastings. Quite possibly, Fralins or Lollars or whatever have more "harmonic complexity," sound more "woody" blah blah whatever whatever. They also cost a lot more dollars. I do have a set of Fralin Blues Specials in my Tele, and I like them a lot. But these are really good Stratocaster pickups.

I would buy these again in a heartbeat. I really wanted something that was NOT RWRP. And at $50 bucks a pop ($150 for the set) they're very reasonably priced.
I now have an Ibanez Roadstar that I payed $175 for that sounds as good as this. But Japanese Strat+ Custom Shop '69s= good strat sound. And they're initialled by Abigail (is this love, that I'm feeling...)
Also, I am a left handed player, so they went in upside down. "And the wind cries... bad guitar player."
They're the best deal around period.

Custom '69 Strat pickups. whole set--neck, middle, bridge. Yes, there's a little noise. It's a Strat. Get over it.

Fender American-made alder Strat body with USA Custom Guitars custom-made select maple neck with pau ferro fretboard and Jumbo (Dunlop) 6150 frets. (They make BEAUTIFUL necks--at least as good as the ones you get from the Fender Custom Shop.) I also put in FerraGlide String Saver bridge saddles. If you haven't tried these yet, you owe it to yourself to do so. They're miles better than the standard Fender saddles, and you virtually never break a string.

Wanted that vintage sound, and got it!

I have an identical Strat with Texas Specials, and they're fine, too. The output level on the '69's is a bit lower, but lends itself to more textures and subtlety--especially since I had my luthier hook up the second tone control to both the middle and bridge pickups. Now that tinny, shrill bridge pickup sound (that I never used) is a goner, replaced by all sorts of sweet tonal variations in all 5 positions. Hendrix, Gilmour round tones at lower volume, but lots of great overdriven tones in every position. I play a small Peavey amp, with just a TS-9 pedal and a Crybaby Wah live. I also use an original Pod (Line 6) to record with, which gives all kinds of amp and cabinet simulations. I play all sorts of stuff, from Clapton, Hendrix, and Beck licks to subtler John Mayer and Mark Knopfler type stuff, and these pickups are creamy and "round" in tone, but also fat and full with plenty of subtle bite when played at "blast" levels.

I'd definitely buy these again if this guitar was lost or stolen. I've been playing over 40 years, and have owned dozens of guitars, from Strats to Les Pauls, Gibson 335, PRS McCarty, Gibson SG. Each has its merits, but when it all comes down to it, I'm a Strat man.

There's nothing I don't like about these pickups. Definitely recommend you do the tone control wiring, so the bridge pickup gets more sounds. Fender should do this at the factory, really, but it's an inexpensive upgrade. I like the Texas Specials, and had a set of 54's, but like the 69's better than those. Between these two Strats, I get every sound I've ever liked. You can have the SCN Noiseless pickups. They're missing something.

Fender single coils. these pickups are wound to 1969 specifications. Output seems to be fairly standard for Fender single coils. I measured the impedance when I installed them in my guitar but I forgot what they are! Mid 7's I think. Getting old sucks. I was rocking back and forth between the custom shop 69's and the custom shop 54's but decided on the 69's because of some of the good reviews on this site. It was a good decision although I'm sure the 54's are just great too. I figured that even with all the boutique custom pickups out there, they are all trying to mimic the original Fender pickups so why not try some Fender pickups? they are a hell of a lot cheaper to!

I put these pickups in my 1975 Stratocaster. it's a solid ash body with about 200 coats of polyurethane on it!! The pickups that were in there were just not gettin' it. I put the custom shop pickups in all three positions. They are not WAX potted or reverse wound so I made sure I shielded the guitar before installing the pickups. They seem to be fairly quiet compared to my P90 pickups I have been other guitars. The original level pole piece pickups in this guitar were replaced with stagerred pole piece pups back in '76 but back then I didn't know what I was doing so I don't know where they came from! The old music shop in Cleveland had them laying around the repair shop. I did not like them anymore than the ones I replaced. I don't know, it just never had that sound I was looking for. It's way better now.

the output level is great. It is low enough to where I can crank my amplifier to get a real nice distortion sound but high enough I can drive the front end. I play through a Dr.Z Maz JR, a '75 Super Reverb, a'76 Princeton Reverb, a'78 Marshall 50W Combo and a Metro Marshall 100W. I use a TS 808 and/or an Fulldrive OCD pedal. Depends on the room and my mood! Most of the time just straight thru the amp.
these pickups sound really good in my guitar. Before I put these pickups in, I would pick up the guitar and play it for a while and then put it back down and pick up my other strat. Now, I pick it up just keep playing! I guess that's a good indication that I liked these pickups. I play all kinds of music from blues classic rock to country and a strat, of course, can handle it all. the pickups have that clear powerful Fender sound and surprisingly smooth top end. I can actually use the bridge pickup where as before I couldn't. The in between sounds are real good too. I am a big fan of position number two.

if they were lost or stolen I would probably get another set. As a matter of fact, I am getting ready to order another set for one of my other Stratocaster's. I have a set of Dimarzio area 61 and 58 in a Carvin Strat I made and refinished and they sound pretty good to but they don't have quite the openness and earthy sound that the Fenders have. I actually had a set of Stewart McDonald pickups in my relic strat and they sound pretty darn good believe it or not! I will put the custom shop 69 in that guitar just for comparison purposes because that's what I like to do HAHA. If they sound better than the McDonald's I will put a set in. Bottom line -- these pickups are very affordable and very acceptable. If you have a very good tube amplifier and want to get the most out of it, these pickups are just great. They allow you to crank your amp, and use your hands and fingers to get an awful lot of sound of your guitar... just like in the old days.

Passive single coil pickups, vintage output.

I put these in a Strat Deluxe with a 50's maple neck. The other pups were SCN's, which were ok, but kind of processed sounding. Also, the SCN's were VERY high output, too loud really.

I think its low to med output, my only effects are high quality boost units and a couple of Teese wahs. The tone is just like others describe, true strat really. Glassy highs, boomy bass, nice mids, the way a strat should be. I think they are a great pup for almost all styles except that crappy death metal junk that won't seem to go away. If you want that cool Trower, Hendrix, Gilmour etc tone, look no further. In fact, forget those 50's units. These are pure ear candy. Of course, the hum is the only issue, but some shielding and the usual moving around will minimize it. There's a product from Suhr that will practically eliminate the hum, its called a BPSCC? I think. Never tried it, but apparently it works wonders.

I'd buy them again if I had to, the only thing is the lady who winds them won't be around forever and she seems to be key in making these sound so good, so get em while u can.

Bought em used, and if you can get them for a lower price do it, because they are $$$$$$$$$$$$ The original price was $270!!! I got em used for $180.00. When I say used, I mean someone installed them, didn't like em, then brought em back.

passive singlecoils
medium output

Its the end of a long search...
I have put them in my 1999 Fender Standart Us Stratocaster with maple neck. I have buy the complet set for all positions.
I had many different pickguards changed on the Strat.:
A Jeff Beck jr. at the bridge, Dimarzio cruiser at the neck, two Seymore duncans Sh11 custom custom at the bridge and neck, two sh59 at bridge and neck...the best was one Sh11 at the bridge and the standart singlecoils at middle and neck...but I was not realy blown away from this, so I want come back to the real deal of a Strat.

The output is a little bit higher than the Standart ones had.
I use the guitar with a Maxon delay, Classic Wahwah and Korg tuner,
in a Engl screamer combo with a Marshall 2x12 - Heritage Speakers.
Or in a old LondonCity Top and a Parker 4x12 Stack ( sometimes with a Fulltone 69` and a Jekyll and Hyde II ). And Klotz Tm Stevens Cables in any connection.

I have only a volumen (250) control on my Strat to have the "puretone" of the guitar. Its a hot vintage sound, crispy and chunky, not overpowerd like the texas specials but also not that belly like as a 54 set. The bridge is clear and chunky the neck is more bassy and fatdark funky ;-)the middle is very strong for that position.
I love modern Roots Rock sounds like Black crowes, The Answer, Black Stone Cherry, Richie Kotzen, Joe Bonamassa...
for this reason its a perfect match for my guitar and my style of playing, its the end of a long search. ( Ok, it hums under some conditions, but thats only when you stop playing, so keep on rockin.)

Yes, thats my best singlecoil "wish to had sound", so i would buy it again...maybe with another Stratocaster from 1966, mh.
I play since the early 90`, I play studios, gigs, session etc, but Im not famous or earn much money with that. So Im down to earth.
I have also a Gibson Les Paul studio and a Esp Horizon Fr 2, stupid
Yamaha Rgx something, a old Kaman heavy axe and a crafter acustic with steel strings and a old Spanish acustic.
I love the direct conection to the tone and hate nothing.
I want a pure singlecol sound in my Strat and this is it !!
9 Points, because one for the unknown future of Pickup manufactures.

Single coil, no hum canceling in 2/4 position, but I don't like the "in between" tones anyway. Low output.

I installed these in a Japanese Olympic white lefty '68 model to get the Jimi vibe on a budget. I have a Hendrix tribute strat, so I thought I'd try these pickups to see if they sound like the Hendrix strat.

These are amazing. This nails the Hendrix/Gilmour tones that most of us dig. I favor low output pickups in a strat so you can crank your amp to get the grit. There are a lot of nice lows and highs. I have the stock neck/middle pickups in the Hendrix strat with a Fralin Woodstock in the bridge. I prefer the '69s over the Hendrix model pickups. These kick so much ass, but sound very responsive and gentle, when needed. Probably my favorite set of Fender pickups. I can't stand Texas Specials and Fralins are just too much money.

I will probably buy another set for my next strat project. These are great for the money. I have some friends, who never gig, and they insist on having Fralins or Lollars. I'd love to have those pickups, but the pickups cost half of what I'm willing to pay for a guitar. Buy a cheap guitar and put some Fender custom shop pickups in it. You don't have to spend a lot of good money to get good tone. Buy a nice amp--that's where your money should be spent first.

My opinion is that if you're a real gigging musician, you never know what kind of room you're going to be playing in or what kind of conditions you'll meet (beer flying around or dudes trying to steal your shit), so I don't see the need for Fralins. If you're a session guy, you've probably got companies giving you guitars or you can afford the expensive stuff.

Buy what you can afford, shut up, and play. I'm a tone dork, but I'm realizing that I need to spend more time playing than reading HC. I hope my review helps someone make a decision on these pickups. I've played them through Fender bassmans, Marshall 50 watt plexis, and nice pedals, such as Fulltone, Keeley, and Zvex. These sounded great! Don't pay more than $150 for a set.

Single Coil....Slightly( no more than expected!!) buzzy and noisy but you pray in the right position....WATCH OUT> Serious tone and bite.

Installed into Warmoth (Great) Strat body, Olympic White, Lefty body and All Parts Neck ( 70's Style) . Calaham bridge and Jimi is really laughing because this IS the tone I wanted. I do not think you can put good pickups in a sub par guitar and expect great tone. ALL the elements are needed to produce this. I have experimented and have finally found a GREAT combination. See...it only took 20 years!!!!

The sound is for real Strat. Really clear and focused. Not into heavy metal moore like Walter Becker and Mark Knophlr ( sp ). This has a solid tone and will ring your bell!!!

Abagail Yabarra is a real treasure in this industry and should be recognized as such. There is a great amount of care taken to make these and they really sound special. You will love them!!

Single coil, passive, vintage style low output level
for specifications see Fender site

Fender American Stratocaster 1980
I use them in all possitions
I changed the originals with Texas Specials and than with '69 in order to improve the tone in direction vintage Strat

Output level lower than Texas Specials and similar to originals.
I play them directly into the Marshall DSL 401 with 2 output tubes removed in order to reduce power from 40W to 20W and boutique made Deluxe Reverb.
These pickups have balanced, classic Strat sound.
I play blues and classic rock, pickups suite my style.

If they were stolen, I'd buy them again.
I've been playing for 25 years. I also own Telecaster Custom '74.
I love these pickups for their tone, which has it's price. Pickups produce hum whenewer you come close to electrical devices, and don't have hum cancellation property in positions 2 and 4 as Texas Specials. On the other side, they have realy beautifull and warm tone, rich frequency response and are very dynamic and touch sensitive - joy for vintage sound lovers like myself. However, for working musician who has to set up in different venues with a lot of hum sources, some noiseless pickups are much easier to handle.