Introducing the Red ’79 & the Alt ’88

Creamery Custom Red '79 Telecaster Bridge Pickup

The Red ’79 Telecaster Bridge Pickup

Magnets: Alnico 5
Poles: Staggered or Flat
Polarity: South Up
Coil Wire: 42AWG Plain Enamel
Lead Wire: Vintage Cloth Pushback
Output: 5.9k
Baseplate: Copper Plated Steel

Inspired by the New Wave/Post Punk era of the late ’70s & early ’80s, the Red ’79 Telecaster Bridge Pickup has that brittle, bright attack associated with much of the music of that era. The lower in output, 42AWG coil wrapped around Custom Alnico 5 magnets gives you that cutting tone great with effects (a little phase, a little chorus ;-). I settled on the final design (after many versions) to create a pickup that has that bright, brittle tone without the ice-pick shrillness of lower wound pickups. To achieve this the coil is wound slightly shorter with a looser scatterwound pattern to achieve the balance I was looking for.

With the staggered magnet the tone is concentrated more around the D & G strings for a spikier attack whereas with the flat pole version the tone is rounded a little more as the tone is spread evenly through all strings. There’s also the option to have the pickup without the Telecaster baseplate for more of a cutting stratocaster bridge tone.

If you’re looking for a set, the Red ’79 can be matched up with my Classic Telecaster Neck and I can custom wind them to create a great calibrated set. Just get in touch.

NOTE: If Red really isn’t your thing you can always order it in White or Black vintage String as well ;-) It does look good on a black guitar though.

A single Red ’79 Bridge Pickup can be purchased here.

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Creamery Alt '88 Custom Telecaster Pickup Set

The Alt ’88 Overwound Telecaster Bridge Pickup Set

Magnets: Alnico 2 or 5
Poles: Flat
Polarity: South Up (North Up if RW/RP)
Coil Wire: 43AWG Plain Enamel
Lead Wire: Vintage Cloth Pushback
Output: 8.1k
Baseplate: Copper Plated Steel

Inspired by the alternative music scene of the mid-to-late ’80s this is my overwound take on the vintage Telecaster bridge pickup. The flat Alnico 2 polepieces are slightly warmer sounding than Alnico 5 but with the taller, stronger magnets, I’ve managed to keep the traditional tele twang and mix this with an aggressive, biting output, great for really driving an amp or running effects.

They’ve been a real labour of love these pickups and have gone through numerous changes to get them rght. A great Tele rhythm or lead pickup if you want more bite and a modern aggressive attack.

The Alt ’88 Telecaster Neck comes without cover to let more of the attack come through. It can also be RW/RP if required.

A single Alt ’88 Telecaster Bridge or Neck pickup can be purchased here, or if you’re after a set, follow the link here

You can find more details of my custom Telecaster Pickups on the main site here