Seymour Duncan Cool Rails

Passive single coil sized humbucker. Specs can be found on Seymour Duncan website or on other reviews here.

I installed this in the neck position of my old squier bullet. I replace the stock pickup. At the moment i have a SD hot rails in the bridge position and the stock middle pickup. I dont know any artists who use this pickup although there probably is. I changed the stock neck because it slept with my girlfiend. . . . and was weak and sounded like crap (guitar was bought for like, 100 pounds, about 8 years ago. Has a suprisingly good neck and general feel but as expected crap hardware and pups).

Output is medium,not hot, but a more output than stock. It has a very good bass and low mid response which luckily was what i was looking for. I wanted this for clean playing in a few different styles. I have only tried the neck calibrated vesion so i cant really give an opinion for the other positions. Right, i want to mention that i recently changed the volume pot to a 500k pot as the hot rails sounded really muddy with 250k pots so while my hot rails sounds better with the new 500k pots the cool rails actually sounds worse, its muddier so i will have to go back to the drawing bored to get back the nice single coily tone it had with the 250k pot. So im going to give it an 8 because i really like it with the old pots but with 500ks i will say 5 as its lost all definition and sounds like a crap neck humbucker.

I personly would buy it again if it broke or w/e as single coil hum brings my piss to a boil. However only if it was with 250k pots. Been playing for 6 years or so.

This review is for the Seymour Duncan Cool Rails, Strat style, humbucking pickup.

I've had this in two different guitars, an old Ibanez with a s/s/h pickup configuration and a Hamer (27 fret model with a slant neck pickup slot). Like many who will read this, I'm the type of guy who likes to take cheap pawn shop guitars and modify them in an attempt make them sound like expensive custom built instruments. I've had this pickup in both of the aforementioned guitars in the neck or mid positions. Since the pickup cost near to what each ax did, it dosn't make a lot of sense, but really many of these refugee guitars from the eighties are very well crafted, and you can get 'em cheap!

This pickup has a lot of output, it's hot enough to use as a Bridge pickup. It sounds great at low volumes, actually really great. It's creamy and vintage sounding but with plenty of definition across the spectrum, it picks up highs much better than some other pickups I've used with the same output, but that's where the love affair ends for me, because this pickup has a terrible problem with feedback at higher volumes. For any type of music played with volume this pickup, as far as I'm concerned is unusable. You can't make music if your amp is sqawking out earsplitting, high pitched feedback. I play avante garde jazz, mostly through a SOVTEK mig 60 tube amp, using preamp only for distortion, and don't get me wrong I like a little feedback sometimes, but not like this. Loaded into my Ibanez in the mid postion with a Dimarzio Chopper in the neck and a Breed in the bridge, the difference is unbelievable. The Dimarzios do feedback a bit, but it's usable, Jimi Hendrixable feedback. Flip on the Duncan Cool Rails and...SSSCCREECHH!!! There go your eardrums...and half the dogs on the block are barking up a storm! I'm a gear junkie so pulled this pup apart to see what the difference was. From what I could tell this pickup is potted in epoxy, and I think that's the problem. Epoxy sets up hard where as wax stays soft, and blocks feedback better. Sometimes you have to try out new technology when doing something like tyring to cram a humbucjer into a strat slot, but the people at Seymour Duncan should have tested it better.

If this thing didn't cost over $70.00 I would'nt care if it was lost or stolen. If you're looking for a decent blade pickup my advice would be to try a Dimarzio Chopper. I've been palying guitar for 4 years, its my third instrument really, starting with sax, and then moving to turntables. I'm a complete gear junkie, I've taken a soldering gun to almost every piece of gear I own, of the pickups I've tried (Dimarzio Breeds, SDS and the Chopper, a Shadow 669, the Duncan Invader)as well as stock MIJ and MIK pups, this ones the worst, the feedback is just unbelievable. Unless you have job recording elevator music I'd really steer clear of this pickup, its sounds fine, but you cannot play loud with it. For the price they charge for it, I really expected something more road tested.

Neck/Mid position humbucker, side-by-side coils, fits into a single coil slot. Check the Seymour Duncan website for details.

Installed in a Jackson US Select Soloist SL-1, which is a S-S-H configured axe. Put it in the mid position. Replaced a Seymour Duncan Classic Stack humbucker. The final setup in my SL-1 is all Seymour Duncan; a JB TB-4 trembucker in the bridge position, the cool rails SCR1n in ths mid, and a Classic Stack STK-1 in the neck. Was looking for a pickup that compliments the JB with a richer humbucking sound, that has its own unique voice, and that blends well with th STK-1.

First off, a bit about my preferences. I'm still learning how to play, and have been for a couple of decades. Probably will keep learning forever, and maybe will even be able to play this thing well one of these days! A long time ago I decided that only the very best gear that I can afford will do for me, no need for limiting myself with sub-standard equipment. So, for now I've settled upon my US-Select Jackson -- an absolutely awesome instrument -- and a Mesa Roadster amp -- without a doubt the best amp available today -- and all analog pedals. The analog-digital discussion is an involved one, and I've come down on the analog side, realizing that digital offers a whole different universe of sounds that are equally as fascinating as analog -- but I like the analog sounds best. Nuf said. So, that's where I'm coming from. On to the pickups...

The Cool Rails is not a 'cool' pickup -- it is quite hot actually as far as having a high output signal. It is not quite as loud as the bridge JB, but is louder than the neck Classic Stack. Very nicely matched to the others as far as output volume goes. What is 'cool' about this pickup is its tone. Mid and low tones are strong, without losing the highs too much, but I would not describe this pickup as having a 'bright' tone that emphasizes the highs. It is not at all a single-coil tone. It has a very fat sound (as opposed to the twangy, bright, quacky tone of a single coil) but lacks the sharp, edgy bite of a full sized humbucker. It has a 'fuzzy' kind of smooth, sultry purring tone when played distorted. It really sounds nice doing classic rock lead work, and some very interesting overtones happen when using a little bit of delay and doing fast economy-picking lead runs. It also blends well with the JB when distorted, adding smoothness without overpowering the edge and harmonics of the bridge PU. The Cool Rails does not, however sound all that good by itself playing distorted power chords. This is the weak point of the pickup, in my opinion, sounding a bit on the muddy side when played this way. The really interesting stuff happens when the pickup is played cleanly. It has its own unique voicing that's similar to the Classic Stack without the twang. It is PERFECT for playing jazz stuff, again drawing upon its smooth, sultry tone. The most interesting thing about this pickup to me is that my Jackson now has five truly different clean voices. When switching from the bridge-only switch position, and moving progressively through the 5 positions up to the neck-only, the tone transitions from the fat tone of the JB, through the subdued, warm tone of the Cool Rails, to the brighter single-coilish tone of the Classic Stack. Each position is notably different than the others, adding a lot of versatility, both distorted and clean. The only disappointment that I have is that it didn't give me quite the effect that I had hoped playing distorted -- like I said, power chording with it is a bit muddy. But the other tones that it provides more than make up for that, and when playing distorted, the JB is nothing short of demonic all by itself!

If this PU were destroyed or stolen, I'd be very disappointed, and would most likely replace it.

Twin Blade Humbucker drop in replacement for strat pup.

Neck position on a couple of partsocasters. SD Alnico IIs in the middle/neck. I had to write a review of this pup after reading the many misleading (and some good) reviews here. To me, this sounds like the paf-style pup you've always wanted in the neck position of your tele or strat(if you've always wanted that!) Think Keith Richards and his teles.

Works really, really well on bright sounding instruments (mine are swamp ash). Articulate, but phat! Great for soloing, of course, due to the rails you don't lose string bends soling on the neck. I would say 75% PAF tone with 25% single coil sound thrown in. I think it would be great in the bridge too, if you want that sound there.

Being playing 20 years and have alot of beautiful guitars and amps. Sound killer through my '68 Fender Princton Reverb, My Dr. Z, and my Fargen.

Humbucking
ask seymour about the rest

'98 amer std strat
neck
vintage rails in mid
lb jr in bridge

i wanted more versatility while maintaining an overall strat sound. i got just that! i think it sounds great, of course i had to make some adjustments to my hot rod deville 410, but now it sounds great clean or crunchy. really nice warm rich tone that can muddy when you want it to give an edgy tone, but if you change your technique it can be perfectly smooth and composed. this pickup can sound like crap if you play like crap, it really boils down to form and technique. it's less of a forgiving pu than the stock, but the advantage is, you can get it to sound like whatever you want with some tweaks here and there, great tone when paired with the vintage rails.

nice bassy tone that you can use to drive your tube amp, or clean up and give nice jazzy tone. it works for anything from jazz, blues, to rock. folks looking for a smoother crunch should stay away from it b/c it's always edgy when used in heavy distortion but i like that. i wouldn't put it anywhere other than the neck, seems like it'd get too muddy anywhere else. i'm very pleased with this pickup, the negative reviews sound like the user didn't take the time to adjust the pickup height and their amp's eq. also llike i said, if you have bad picking technique, this thing's gonna sound terrible.

i've been playing for 8 years, i've had this strat since new in 98, just got around to changing the pickups for less hum and more tone. i like this pu because it won't take the strat sound away but it allows a lot more versatility. but to each his own, sounds like this isn't the pickup for a few folks, i love it though!

humbucking? passive

Installed in the neck position of an Ibanez SA260 to replace stock pickup to go along with a little '59 in the middle, and a JB in the Bridge positions. I don't know of any other artists using this pickup.

Pretty high output for what it is advertised as being a strat-y replacement pickup. I am using it with a Line 6 AxSys 2/12 as well as a 1967 Fender Princeton reverb amp.
I was slightly disappointed upon my first impression. The tone was very muddy. Not a good match for me. It is not a dynamic pickup at all, it sounds dead. I had to tweak my EQ with the treble all the way up and the bass down to get an acceptable tone. I can't even use it with my old Fender amp because the pickup is unacceptably muddy.
I can't think of any position this pickup would sound good in.

I am definitely replacing this pickup. I should not have to compromise so much to make this pickup sound right.

A passive mini hambucker apparently conceived for strat purposes

Impedance I didn't measure but asking my ears they said more a humbucker than a single coil

American Heavy Metal Strat circa 91

Neck

stock

Middle Seymour-Duncan vintage rails Bridge Suhr humbucker

Me

I wanted a dark phat bottomed bass sound

Level is more than enough. Nearly as loud as the bridge humbucker.

DR tite fit JH 10 > Schaller bow wow yoy yoy > Foxrox zim > Guyatone md3 > Fender twin reverb.

The tone feels neutral and well balanced. I got my dark phat bass sound quite easily though. Mids are not domineering and trebles are not lush. Modern ethics. When full on maybe a little bit muddy, yes.

I play music that may be of all genres often in the same composition. I think my guitar is finally capable of implying more than I could have given so far. A gratifying experience #o)

Seems ideal for the neck. Anybody with a wider perspective?

I would buy it again asap.

I am an electric guitar player for 20+ years. I also play my 80s Squire japan stratocaster which is fine as is for what it is and a Gretch 1959 Tennessean on which I don't dare think of changing anything.

This PU is very close to what I had in mind when I ordered it. A neutral very serious tone with a bass presence, that could do other things than twang or roar or chunka. Of course I would wish it would ALSO twang or roar or chunka at the same time but I think I've got the vintage rails for twang and the humbucker for the rest. Wise guy the one who came with the three PU idea on a strat. Especially the one with the S S H is a genious in my book.

Compared to the stock PU it changed everything for the better. Compared to the vintage rails it isn't as rich in the treble section and its bass is fuller. Compared to Suhr humbucker
it shows that it's not a real humbucker but soundwise is quite close, a bit bassier actually.

I wish it had even more bass presence, definitely richer trebles and it was 100% mudfree with frenzy strumming. THAT would be a stellar 10 for me.

Described before. Humbuckers in Single coil size.

Put it in the neck position of my Suhr Strat. I looked for a quiter pu with a little more output.
Do not do that !!

If you want a good single coil sound, beware of the cool rail.
If you want a nich humbucker sound, look elsewhere.
To me the sound is dull and lifeless. Big mistake. I will put the original pu's back in
and i will live with the hum.

Complete disappointment. Dull clean sounds and harsh overdrive tones.
Go for a real single coil or humbucker.

Passive single-coil sized humbucker.

This pup is in the middle position of my hot-rod strat, a 2001 Standard. I am replacing the not-so-good stock pup. Other pups are a Seymour Duncan SSL-5L in the bridge and a DiMarzio HS-3 at the neck. I really don't know what artist uses this pup, maybe just me? =) The reason I changed the stock pickup was because the stock pickups on my strat just straight-out sucked butt.

The output level is just perfect! Not too hot or too low, just right! I have to admit that this is my favorite Seymour Duncan single-coil sized humbucker; I like it much better than my Hot-Rails on my Kramer! That pup is also in the middle. As of 05 December 2006 I run my guitar straight into a Boss ME-8 and into a Behringer Eurorack MX 602A; I get all the sonics I need from this simple rig! No amp, just earphones. As far as tone goes, well, to be honest this pup is hard to beat! It has the ideal blend of highs, mids, and lows; it's just so smooth yet strong and well defined. I have only tried it in the middle position; usually the middle position pups are my workhorses. Cool-Rails handles this duty with flying colors; my most used pup on my hot-rod strat!

I've been playing on and off for about five years now. I own six guitars but my strat will always hold a special place in my heart since it was my first guitar ever. It is also my most heavily modified axe. I love everything in this pup; I can't think of anything bad to report. This pup has my sound; with a little experimentation I believe it can bring out yours as well. A real pleasure to play; Seymour Duncan at its best!

Humbucking single coil size. Passive. Slightly hotter than regular single coils.

This pick-up was installed in the neck position of a standard Fender Strat, replacing the stock pick-up as part of a mod to upgrade my experimental guitar in search of new sound options. A Seymour Duncan Vintage Rails in the middle position and a Hot Rails in the bridge position anlong with a custom pickguard complete the mod package.

The sound is a cross between single coil Strat and PAF humbucker, which is what I was looking for with this pick-up giving me a nice warm with sparkly edge for rhythm and mellow leads. Good tonal balance and note definition. I play thru a Vox AC30cc2 with Boss CS-3 compressor, Boss BD-2 Blues Driver (overdrive), Boss CH-1 Chorus, Ibenez DE-7 Echo/Delay for predominently classic rock, blues-rock and progressive rock styles of music. With this pick-up in the neck position and the previously mentioned Vintage and Hot rails in the other 2 positons I have an exceptional range of note defining tones at the flick of a selector switch. One more point about this pick-up, it is just hot enough to play loud clean tones then turn up the volume or stomp the BD-2 to get a very nice warm tube distortion. Beautiful sound.

A very good versitile pick-up for many kinds of musical varieties and besides it looks really "cool" with the 2 pole magnet bars for a unique and distinct look. I'm very happy with this pck-up and with the set-up for my "Hotrodded Strat".