Fender Custom Shop '54 Pickups Review
Good old Fender pickups in a new package
The Fender Custom Shop '54 pickups have that vintage tone that Strats from way back also had. Fender are nowadays making pickups that faithfully reproduces the sounds from a long gone era.
I had my CS '54 pickups in my Squier Strat for a long time, and when I bought my SX SST 62 Strat, I decided they needed a new home. The sounds they now create in the SX is even better than in the Strat, since the SX has a much better body.
Sound
The neck and middle pickup are very nice. They have low output, and create a vintage, glassy tone that is remarkably good. With a good, clean amp, these pickups sound fantastic and will you make you never want to put your guitar down again.
The bridge pickup is hotter, and I am not as impressed by it. The tone has a sharp edge to it, and I prefer rolling off the volume knob a bit if I'm using this pickup, or else that ice pick hard tone will bug me. It is usable, but I do think there are better bridge pickups out there.
To get an idea of what these pickups sound like, check out a Squier with CS 54s video clip.
You can buy these sweet pickups from Musician's Friend
I have another CS '54 clip with my SX Strat, in which the Fender Custom Shop '54 pickups now reside. I thought I'd make better use of these pickups in the SX strat, since it's way better than my Squier. I was right, this guitar make better justice to the pickups.
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