Blues Special Tele

  • Single Coil
  • Thick & Versatile
  • Traditional Appearance
  • Modern Output
(326 genuine reviews)

$110$220

Love playing your Telecaster again and know it finally has the voice it was always meant to with our Blues Specials. Wound with a 5% overwind from our Stock Teles, Blues Specials feature a punchy, warm tone that tames the harsh top-end from most Telecasters and helps you hear every nuance in your playing. Lastly, customize your appearance with our neck options and make your Telecaster a real eye-catcher with a look that suits you.

 

PRODUCT OPTIONS:

Lead Time

A Lead Time of 1 Week is just an estimate. Lead Times are subject to change depending on the current shop capacity and size of the order. We will always try to complete your order quicker than the stated lead time.

Select Options Above To Display Add-Ons

Neck Cover *

Choose how you want your Neck pickup to look in your guitar. If no option is chosen, you will receive an Uncovered neck, which is standard.

Neck Options

If performing a 4-Way Switching Mod, please select this box below:

Bridge Options *

Specify if you want White Cloth String or Black Cloth String on your bridge. If no option is chosen, you will receive White String.

Nashville Tele Info:

Are you buying pickups for a Nashville Telecaster Setup? Make sure you check this box to let us know. Make sure you add a middle pickup as well. Our Nashville Polarity will cancel hum in positions 2 & 4, like a Strat.

SPEED UP YOUR ORDER

Since you're buying a single pickup, we might need more information from you. To avoid unnecessary delays in your order, please choose one of the options below:



Be sure to read our article on Pickup Polarity here.

Notice

Due to the nature of Raw Nickel, Raw Nickel may contain slight cosemetic defects or abrasions.

Recommendation

We recommend using 2-Conductor With Shield Lead when purchasing a single pickup. 2-Conductor lead allows you to reverse the phase should you have phase issues. Learn About Lead Choice


100% Tele, Just a Bit Meaner.

Want to learn more about our Blues Special Tele? Here's all the information you'll need:

Blues Special Tele FEATURES:

Discover what you’ve been missing with our best-selling Telecaster pickups. Blues Specials feature a 5% overwind that emphasizes the midrange while taming the high-end for a warmer, thicker Telecaster tone that still sounds like a Tele. Built with all USA-Made parts, you can take pride knowing Lindy designed his Blues Specials with the highest quality materials available.

It starts here: Our manufacturing process allows us to achieve unparalleled quality control. Blues Specials consist of local fiberboard and USA-Made Alnico 5 Magnets. We wind each pickup by hand, one at a time, using our proprietary “Sectioning” technique for a sweet, unique tone. You can feel great knowing that we wound your pickups specifically for you. Finally, we wax-pot the pickup to prevent microphonics and preserve the pickup for years to come.

Features:

  • 5% more coil than our Stock Tele set for a warmer, thicker tone
  • Modified Fender specifications, optimized for output
  • High output, but still has Fender sparkle
  • Compensated Bridge for even volume across all pickups
  • USA-made Alnico 5 Magnets for optimal tonal balance and output
  • Two different magnet staggers for optimizing pickups for your instrument
  • Hand-wound with our “Sectioning” technique for unique, dynamic tone
  • Hand-built fiberboard Bobbins for unrivaled quality control
  • Backed by our 10-Year Warranty on manufacturing defects

 

Sound

Tonal Graph for Blues Special Tele:

The tone graph below for our Blues Special Tele features Lows, Midrange, Highs, and general Output.

HIGHS
MIDS
LOWS
OUTPUT

Attack: Dynamic & Full


If you’re looking for balance – not too bright, not too dark, this set is for you. While playing clean, Blues Specials sound thick and creamy with open and clear highs and a thicker midrange. The overwound coil tames your highs and bumps your midrange – more than the Stock Tele Pickups, while you can expect more of a traditional Tele Tone than our Steel Pole 42s.

With distortion, you can expect a light compression, low-end growl, and a medium attack. Single notes sound thick and round, while chords have a full tone with an early breakup. Finally, Blues Special Pickups are for you if you’re looking for more output from your current pickups, but still want to keep that traditional Tele tone.

You’ll wonder why you didn’t make the switch earlier.

Are you looking for a Hum Cancelling Tele pickup that actually sounds like a Tele? Check out the Blues Output of our Split Blade Tele Pickups

 

 

 

 

 

Sizing

Telecaster Bridge Mounting Hole Dimensions

 

Tech Specs

See below for the estimated DCR and Polarity Information for our Blues Special Tele.

SPECIFICATION VALUE
Neck Ohm Reading:7.8K* 1
Bridge Ohm Reading:7.3K 1
Neck Polarity:Counter Clockwise Coil Direction, North To Strings
Bridge Polarity:Clockwise Coil Direction, South To Strings
Wire:USA-Made 42 / 43-Gauge Single Poly Nylon
Magnet:USA-Made Alnico 5
Recommended Pot Value:250K
Recommended Cap Value:0.02mfd 2

More Information:

1 Ohm Readings can vary due to a multitude of factors, including ambient temperature, multimeter calibration, different wire batches, and other factors. Due to this, ohm readings are approximate. Learn more about Ohm Readings here.


2 We recommend a 0.02mfd Cap Value on most guitar and bass pickups. The exception is a Magic Cap, which Lindy prefers on the Bridge Pickup of Fender® guitars only. Learn More about Caps Here.


*The Neck reads higher due to the use of 43 Gauge Wire, outputs are compensated

Blues Special Tele FAQ's

General FAQs

Here are quick answers to common questions we get:

  • What Ohm Readings does your Blues Special Tele have?

    Navigate to our Tech Specs tab for complete Ohm Readings and more useful information.

  • Will this pickup fit my instrument?

    Check our "Sizing" tab for the size of the pickup. No Sizing tab? Check under the product image gallery for dimensions.

  • Is your Lead Time of 1 Week accurate?

    It really depends on the shop capacity at the moment, and the size of your order. Feel free to give us a call for an accurate lead time. We always try to underpromise and overdeliver.

  • What pickup height do you recommend setting your Blues Special Teles to?

    Our recommended Pickup Height is 1/8" (3.175mm) on the Bass Side and 1/16"( 1.5875mm) on the Treble Side. Measure by holding the corresponding side down at its highest fret and measure from the bottom of the string to the top of the pole piece.

Product FAQ's

These are frequently asked questions about our Blues Special Tele. If you have a question that you don't see listed here, click "Ask A Question" in the Quick Links section above.

  • How does the cover affect the tone of the Neck pickup?

    It doesn’t – we use USA-made nickel Silver, the most sonically-transparent metal for covers. We also compensate the winding technique to make sure the Neck pickup sounds like we want it to.

  • What is 4-Way Switching?

    4-Way Switching adds a fourth position to your Telecaster’s switch to put both pickups in Series and Parallel. The 4th Position sounds like a big humbucker as a result. Read more on the topic here.

  • What is required for my pickups to work with 4-Way Switching?

    We apply tape to the magnets before winding to isolate the coil wire and the magnets. If you select a cover, we add a separate ground wire to permanently ground the cover instead of grounding the cover through the coil.

Pairing

Our Blues Special Tele pairs well with the following models:

Raw Nickel Cover

Big Single® - Neck

(39)

Starting At: $165

Pair A Blues Special Bridge with a Big Single 42 in the Neck for a killer combination.

View Product
Lindy Fralin Blues Special Strat

Blues Special Strat - Middle

(107)

Starting At: $99

Nashville Tele? Our Blues Special Reverse Middle is the perfect match

View Product

GET IT PREWIRED

Go the extra mile and combine our Blues Special Tele with a Telecaster Control Plate!:

Get It Prewired - Lindy Fralin Pickups

CUSTOMER REVIEWS

326 Genuine Reviews for Blues Special Tele

  1. George Gregory
    Verified Buyer

    Well, I believed that I could build a better tele than Fender could sell me outa the box, and I was right! Your Blues Specials and some brass saddles took a $250 Squire Standard and transformed it into a beautiful sounding instrument.
    Clear, clean and balanced across both pickups with deep rich lows and nicely balanced highs that don’t scream at you!
    I’m impressed. Thanks Lindy!

  2. Jonny
    Verified Buyer

    Fixed up an 89 American Standard Tele that had been sitting in case for 15 years and wanted to upgrade from stock. These were recommended by my guitar tech and I couldn’t be happier. They both sing in clean and with a bit of overdrive the bridge reminds me of that late 60’s early 70s James Burton rumble tone. They are fantastic with all my pedals especially my fuzzface. Feels like I bought a new guitar with enough money left over to actually add one. Hard to imagine anyone being upset with this purchase.

  3. Russ
    Verified Buyer

    Love the telecaster pickups. Was just the upgrade that it needed.

  4. Jerry Profitt
    Verified Buyer

    These new pickups sound fantastic! The clarity is unbelievable and no hum on my fender telecaster player anymore.

  5. Jerry Weavers
    Verified Buyer

    I’m very happy with the pickups and the customer service. The clarity and tone are fantastic as well as the slight breakup when I hit it hard. My set of High Output Teles are on the way. Thanks Lindy, I’ll recommend your pickups to anybody who will listen!

  6. John
    Verified Buyer

    This is a great sounding neck pickup for my Tele. Superior in every way to the stock pickup and well balanced with the bridge pickup. I find myself using my neck pickup more now because of the rich, full tone. Just a perfect addition. I highly recommend this pickup. They shipped it fast too – just 3 days after I ordered it.

  7. aj
    Verified Buyer

    Hey Lindy,
    My new blues tele special pickups sound excellent… I like the sound of the neck pickup with a cover, and hate pickguards, i can see the copper wire on my neck pickup, any recommendations?
    AJ

  8. Scott
    Verified Buyer

    Great sounding pickups. Really brought my Tele alive!

  9. paige
    Verified Buyer

    I have been collecting parts for a custom Tele and I decided to get the Blues Special with the 4 way switch. When the guitar was finished I plugged it in to a small fender style tweed with a bit of overdrive and tremolo…and Wow! This Tele is filled with rich and complex nuances, particularly when the pickups are in series. Clear and enhanced midrange cuts through with a Wampler Pantheon overdrive. I could not be happier. Thank you!

  10. Rolf
    Verified Buyer

    I got my Blues Specials a couple of weeks ago after having tried various PUs in my MJT Tele-style project (very traditional early 50s style thing). Until recently, I had been very happy with how the guitar looks and feels, just the sound … especially the sound of the bridge PU was sharp enough to cut your ears off. Now with the Fralin Blues Specials, I am perfectly happy also with the sound. To my surprise, the sound gained a lot of quality not only with tube amps at higher volume levels, but notably also at bedroom levels with small solid state practice amps, which is obviously very useful.

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