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Do you have original pickups ? suggest you put neck pu back in and check if chime improves - a single coil sized humbucker imho will not have sc chime - whilst the stock pu's are cheap ceramics - they may shed some light on your challenge ..
I would also suggest a wiring check as theres a lot of wires in a 3 pu - 4 core setup and with the smaller pots typically in the far east scratchplates - you may have some earthing , series / parallel or out of phase issues . check pot values too as they could vary significantly from an optimal 250K ? Do the tone controls have a reasonable taper - perhaps cap values need checking too?
What does it sound like acoustically - does it compare with other strat styles you have or have tried ?
I haven’t actually checked the cap values so that may be the next thing to try. It’s all pretty much stock apart from the 3 pickups and selector switch blade.
It sounds alright acoustically, albeit dark and lacks sustain. I’ve not really played other strats apart from mine as I’ve never owned a “proper” strat lol.
1.Wilkinson vintage trem with a decent full-fat steel block.
2. Pots: CTS 9% vintage taper.
3. Switch: CRL five way
4. Output jack socket: Switchcraft
Then ... and only when I've upgraded everything else ... I look at the pickups. Don't fix what ain't broken with those ... if after the other upgrades you you still don't like the pickup tone ... then go for it, but sometimes sorting the other stuff is all you need.
Formerly TheGuitarWeasel ... Oil City Pickups ... Oil City Blog 7 String.org profile and message
Formerly TheGuitarWeasel ... Oil City Pickups ... Oil City Blog 7 String.org profile and message
Dark and lacks sustain - see how others compare as above .. also try some other squiers locally dont just try top of range fenders
But my
comments really are +1 for the wilkinson trem and good pots.
my biggest thing is those pickups are probably fine and do what they do but they are not really a classic Strat sound so if you want classic Clapton or Gilmour Hendrix etc you really need proper single coils rather than humbucker in single coil body.
As for types lot of budget guys like Iron gear bu I would stump the extra for a set from Oil City good choice and Ash can guide you to the right set for what you want tonally.
if you like a guitar and it has sentimental value and plays right then it’s worth upgrading it till there is nothing left in my mind.
I’m prepared to splash out a bit on new pickups if required but as suggested will look at upgrading hardware and electronics first.
One of my regular Strats is a 'Squier Vintage Modified 70s' one ... that had Duncan designed alnico 5 pickups in as standard. The neck and middle pickups were ok ... but the bridge pickup was not wonderful. Because the guitar has a lovely neck, easily as nice feeling as a Mexican Strat, I decided to go the full works and upgrade everything. Now of course as a pickup maker I didn't just upgrade the offending bridge pickup ... I did the lot ... but I needn't have gone so far if cost had been an issue.
Cheaper Squires tend to be fitted with fairly nasty ceramic pickups which have a very scratchy top end ... the Duncan Designed ones are okay of a little bland for my taste ... not heard that Tone Rider pickups had been fitted to Squires ... but then with my job I don't get out much :-)
The best (next to a pro setup) mod is still a Wilkinson bridge ... it really puts more spank and attack into your tone because the block is not some sort of skinny 'compressed cheese' effort that robs tone and sustain.
Formerly TheGuitarWeasel ... Oil City Pickups ... Oil City Blog 7 String.org profile and message
Bear in mind that post is by a pickup maker! .
"Take these three items, some WD-40, a vise grip, and a roll of duct tape. Any man worth his salt can fix almost any problem with this stuff alone." - Walt Kowalski
"Only two things are infinite - the universe, and human stupidity. And I'm not sure about the universe." - Albert Einstein
Formerly TheGuitarWeasel ... Oil City Pickups ... Oil City Blog 7 String.org profile and message
As many others have said, the best upgrade will be to replace the bridge with something that has a decent steel block.
The subtleties of the tone is heard in detail when playing with headphones at home, when it's at loud volumes through a generic backline amp which is micced through a PA and, as you say, masked by other loud instruments and audience noise.
I think rock is the opposite of classical in that respect - recordings of classical is trying to get as close to the ideal sound quality if being in the concert hall hearing the instruments acoustically where as with rock the live version is just an approximation of the record but with the sound quality nowhere near as close.