Brad Paisley's La Brea T-style Single Coil 2-piece Pickup Set - Chrome Review

Great Pickups, Great Value

Hard to find a set of tele pickups that are bright without being harsh, balanced and sound just as good clean or with some grit. The bridge pup is nice. One of the best Ive tried. Very articulate and sit nicely in the mix. Twangs for days Neck pickup can be a bit bassy (I play 11-50 so....just need a lil more extreme treble tilt than some) but super smooth and retains nice… read more pleasing highs. Some of the best sustain in a neck pickup I have ever played. Both pickups together make a nice sorta scoopy vintage tone perfect for some nice r&B stabs. Installed a 4 Way switch at the same time.....very nice in series as well. You could spend a lot more on pickups not nearly as sweet. You will not be disappointed. Thanks Sweetwater.

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Killer-Diller!

So I wanted to build my Dreamcaster Tele with a somewhat traditional flavor,but with a few modern additions like the truss rod adjust in the headstock and a 6 saddle bridge.But for the pick-ups I wanted it to be all Tele,so I asked my sales engineer,Jake Trethaway,for a little guidance because he's a Tele guy and knows what to do...he recommended the Duncan/Paisleys and I am completely… read more happy with the sound I'm getting.Great bite and spank on the bridge,like a Tele should sound,and the neck is creamy yet articulate,doesn't mush out on the bass strings,gives that blues sound I like and was looking for.These are awesome pick-ups and them being Duncans just makes it better because I'm a long time fan of their pick-ups.Big Thanks to Jake for steering me in the right direction!So my build ended up using a 2021 Fender Player series body,Fender neck,pick-guard,neck plate and tuners.For the electronic circuit I went with a pre-wired control plate from 920D,works really well with the Paisley La Brea pick-up set,and with the vintage style cloth wiring used in the plate and on the pick-ups,it gives this guitar a nice vintage feel.Topped it off with a bone nut and a Gotoh brass bridge and saddles...pretty happy!

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Very versatile!

I built a T-type guitar, and was looking for a versatile set of pickups that could great clear clean tones but also still get to the signature telecaster twang and grit when required. I watched about a billion YouTube videos but was still on the fence between a couple choices. Talked to my Sweetwater rep, Josh, who recommended the La Brea set for what I was looking for. I finished… read more the build and plugged in, and absolutely love the pickups. Roll back the tone knob and play lightly, and you can get a magnificent jazz tone on the neck. Dial up the tone and gain, and get fantastic blues sounds. The bridge pickup is pure telecaster, great twang. Both pickups have fantastic clarity and are incredibly responsive to how you play with your fingers or how hard you pick the strings. They also have a nice wax coating around the pickups which was a pleasant surprise. I only own one t-style guitar, so other than Youtube videos I don't have a lot to compare these to in person, but I was very impressed with the clarity and responsiveness of these pickups, along with their clarity. Build quality looks top notch.

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Excellent Sounding Pickups

I replaced the stock 2012 American Standard Telecaster....they were the twisted tele and broadcaster pickups .. I am very happy with the SD La Brea replacements.. they are bright and airy and to me sounds like a tele should sound... if you feel you need some new pickups in a Telecaster I don't think you will be disappointed with the La Brea set

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Articulate pickups that showcase the picking dynamics of the guitarist

Guitar being modded: Nashville Tele with stock vintage noiseless pickups + the vintage noiseless strat middle. The modern bridge has been swapped out with a 3 saddle vintage style. Also has an added switch so that the bridge and neck can be played together. Why I wanted something different from the stock pickups: the vintage noiseless pickups have a pronounced bass which had a… read more tendency to make my tele sound more loud than articulate (especially with the bridge). Also, I wasn't wild about the tele middle position sound. Check the EQ picture with the red background to better visualize this. What I was hoping for and got with the La Brea's: I read from other reviews that the bridge is more articulate and shines a light more on the guitarist than the instrument itself. This was in fact the case due to the added mids and treble emphasis. Check the EQ picture with white background to better visualize this. What's the same, what is different?: Overall the big thing that I really enjoy about these new La Brea pickups is the bridge/neck middle position. These two pickups and their respective EQ/output really come together nicely for a balanced sound that allows from the low E to the high e strings to have equal impact on tone. Noticeably on the bridge, I seem to have traded out some of the twang from the vintage noiseless, but in return have gotten the desired articulation. Output wise, the bridge is still 100% roaring tele. The neck pickup has taken a bit of the darkness away and added more treble compared to the vintage noiseless, and to my ear this makes it sound a good bit more lively. A nice change in tone for me personally. Final thoughts: The La Brea's and the Vintage noiseless are both really nice sets of pickups. This was 100% a personal taste modification as compared to one that people might call an "upgrade". Overall I am very happy with these new La Brea's because they are going to make this guitar more versatile for playing different styles for me. Why the half star deduction?: The screws that came with the set did not have threads quite wide enough to seat the neck pickup. thankfully the screws I had from the vintage noiseless set fit just fine. Still would have been a heckuva bummer to be be stopped dead in my tracks with the guitar cracked open just because of 20¢ worth screws!

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