I just swapped the pickups in my SE Silver Sky...

[Lewguitar]

I installed Seymour Duncan Antiquity Surfers from the Duncan Custom Shop.

I'm not sure at all that it was an improvement!

Mostly it reassured me of just how great the original SE Silver Sky pickups are.

I have two SE Silver Skys so I am able to go back and forth between them and compare the new Antiquitys to the stock SE pickups.

The Antiquitys are based on early 60's Fender pickups. They're about 6.2K which is similar to what the pickups in the Core Silver Sky measured at one time.

I've read tho, that the Silver Sky pickups as of 2023 are now wound a little weaker: 6K or even less which would be more like 50's Strat pickups.

I noticed a few things working on my SE:

The polepiece spacing of the SE pickups is slightly wider, which places them more centered under the strings. I see that as being a good thing.

I also noticed more Strat-i-tis with the Antiquitys. That tendency for the magnetic polepieces to pull on the wound strings so they sound out of tune when playing up high. I can only guess that the magnetic field of the SE pickups is more dispersed or weaker - but again: in a good way.

I removed the cover of one of the SE pickups and there are small steel slugs between each of the magnet polepieces. You don't see this on vintage pickups and I'm wondering if those might disperse the magnetic field a little and reduce Strat-i-tis. That is a total guess and not based on any real knowledge.

The SE pickups are hotter and thicker sounding but without losing any of the bright Strat character. I prefer the sound of the SE bridge pickup to the sound of the Antiquity.

The Alpha volume and tone pots in the SE are full size and appear to be good quality.

The volume control does have a resistor running between the input of the pot and back of the pot (ground). I didn't measure it but I would guess that the resistor is to make a 500K pot into a 280K pot. I've read that this is also the case in the Core Silver Sky: that the volume pot is 280K rather than the usual 250K you see in Strats.

I'm going to leave the modified SE as is for the time being and play with the pickup height and get used to the sound.

It does sound great. Great as in: like a vintage Strat!

My initial feelings tho, are that the SE is an improved version of the Strat. Now, with vintage style pickups with vintage 6.2 - 6.4K DCR and staggered pole pieces, my SE Silver Sky sounds more like a conventional Strat and I have lost some of what I heard as an improvement..

Well, at least now I know. And it's nice having two slightly different sounding SE Silver Skys.

I was hoping to get more of the sound of a Core USA made Silver Sky, and I think I did.

When I've compared my SE's to Core Silver Skys, the Core Silver Skys sounded more like a vintage Strat to me than the SE.

But I'm not sure at all that is what I really want after all!

After a couple of weeks, I may replace the Antiquity pickups with a set of ChubTone '61 Strat pickups I have on hand. Mike winds these in Austin Texas and they're another set of great vintage style early 60's S-type pickups. Some think they have a little more of a textured sound than most boutique S-type replacement pickups.

The Duncan Antiquitys are now in the green SE and my white one will remain stock.

https://imgur.com/GUE2f22

 

[ScottR]

My SE SS is one of the few guitars I’ve never felt the need to modify one way or another. The stock SE SS pickups to my ears are about as good as a SSS can be. But that’s just me, make it your own man.

 

[Lewguitar]

My SE SS is one of the few guitars I’ve never felt the need to modify one way or another. The stock SE SS pickups to my ears are about as good as a SSS can be. But that’s just me, make it your own man.

I agree with you. The stock pickups are wonderful. But since I have two I wanted to hear a vintage Strat sound too. More like the pickups in the USA Silver Sky.

 

[Broseph]

I intended to keep my SS SE stock. But my bridge pickup stopped one day. I checked the wiring. Appeared properly soldered. So I took the opportunity to install some Fralin vintage hots I had used previously in a strat. It sounds great…better than the more expensive strats I had. I ended up selling almost all the strats.

 

[Deleted member 5962]

This is interesting. Those Antiquity Surfers are supposed to be pretty good sounding pickups. PRS claimed to have up’d their game on some of the new artist driven SE model pickups, like these, the Pauls, and the DGT. Sounds like they may have really delivered on that promise from what we’re hearing about those three models in particular.

 

[jxe]

chubtone like the guitars? what happened to them?

 

[aphantomvaper]

Moon White is the correct color

Interesting experiment Lew. It's always good to have variety for comparison.

Would you have a preference for one over the other now? Perhaps its a "I'm in a mood for..." thing.

 

[Lewguitar]

chubtone like the guitars? what happened to them?

Mike Gray stopped winding pickups full time and from what I understand went back to school. This is what a friend of mine told me. It may or may not be true. But he has Chubtones in several Strats and seems to know what he's talking about.

Mike still makes an occasional set which is how I was able to grab a set of his '61 Strat pickups.

 

[Lewguitar]

This is interesting. Those Antiquity Surfers are supposed to be pretty good sounding pickups. PRS claimed to have up’d their game on some of the new artist driven SE model pickups, like these, the Pauls, and the DGT. Sounds like they may have really delivered on that promise from what we’re hearing about those three models in particular.

Duncan Antiquity II Surfers are great sounding pickups, based on mid 60's pre CBS Strat pickups. They're very similar in tone and polepiece stagger to the Fralin Vintage Hots, which I also have in two guitars.

The Fralin Vintage Hots are not really hot...they're just hotter than 50's Strat pickups.

50's Strat pickups, like those in Eric Johnson's '54, are often wound well under 6K and use weaker Alnico 3 polepieces.

60's pickups tend to be wound in the 6K - 6.4K range and use stronger Alnico 5 polepieces. They have a stronger, throatier sound.

Interestingly, I have Antiquity Surfers in my Mark Jenny Strat and that guitar is slightly louder and fuller sounding than those same pickups in my SE Silver Sky.

Differences would be:

Lightweight ash body in the Mark Jenny vs. poplar body in the SE Silver Sky
6 screw vintage Fender tremolo in the Mark Jenny vs. 2 point tremolo in the Silver Sky
250K volume pot with Fralin volume kit R/C across volume pot to retain treble vs. 280K volume pot in SE Silver Sky

 

[Deleted member 5962]

60's pickups tend to be wound in the 6K - 6.4K range and use stronger Alnico 5 polepieces. They have a stronger, throatier sound.

Yes, when I was the US reseller of MIJ Tokai S style guitars, our 68 replica had alnico 5 and were right at 6.1K and were called "60s wind"

 

[bodia]

I installed Seymour Duncan Antiquity Surfers from the Duncan Custom Shop.

I'm not sure at all that it was an improvement!

Mostly it reassured me of just how great the original SE Silver Sky pickups are.

I have two SE Silver Skys so I am able to go back and forth between them and compare the new Antiquitys to the stock SE pickups.

The Antiquitys are based on early 60's Fender pickups. They're about 6.2K which is similar to what the pickups in the Core Silver Sky measured at one time.

I've read tho, that the Silver Sky pickups as of 2023 are now wound a little weaker: 6K or even less which would be more like 50's Strat pickups.

I noticed a few things working on my SE:

The polepiece spacing of the SE pickups is slightly wider, which places them more centered under the strings. I see that as being a good thing.

I also noticed more Strat-i-tis with the Antiquitys. That tendency for the magnetic polepieces to pull on the wound strings so they sound out of tune when playing up high. I can only guess that the magnetic field of the SE pickups is more dispersed or weaker - but again: in a good way.

I removed the cover of one of the SE pickups and there are small steel slugs between each of the magnet polepieces. You don't see this on vintage pickups and I'm wondering if those might disperse the magnetic field a little and reduce Strat-i-tis. That is a total guess and not based on any real knowledge.

The SE pickups are hotter and thicker sounding but without losing any of the bright Strat character. I prefer the sound of the SE bridge pickup to the sound of the Antiquity.

The Alpha volume and tone pots in the SE are full size and appear to be good quality.

The volume control does have a resistor running between the input of the pot and back of the pot (ground). I didn't measure it but I would guess that the resistor is to make a 500K pot into a 280K pot. I've read that this is also the case in the Core Silver Sky: that the volume pot is 280K rather than the usual 250K you see in Strats.

I'm going to leave the modified SE as is for the time being and play with the pickup height and get used to the sound.

It does sound great. Great as in: like a vintage Strat!

My initial feelings tho, are that the SE is an improved version of the Strat. Now, with vintage style pickups with vintage 6.2 - 6.4K DCR and staggered pole pieces, my SE Silver Sky sounds more like a conventional Strat and I have lost some of what I heard as an improvement..

Well, at least now I know. And it's nice having two slightly different sounding SE Silver Skys.

I was hoping to get more of the sound of a Core USA made Silver Sky, and I think I did.

When I've compared my SE's to Core Silver Skys, the Core Silver Skys sounded more like a vintage Strat to me than the SE.

But I'm not sure at all that is what I really want after all!

After a couple of weeks, I may replace the Antiquity pickups with a set of ChubTone '61 Strat pickups I have on hand. Mike winds these in Austin Texas and they're another set of great vintage style early 60's S-type pickups. Some think they have a little more of a textured sound than most boutique S-type replacement pickups.

The Duncan Antiquitys are now in the green SE and my white one will remain stock.

https://imgur.com/GUE2f22

Great write up! Interesting to hear what you found when you took off the covers on the SE pickups.