Vintage Hot Strat
Real 60's Vintage Strat Tone
Make your Stratocaster sound like a Strat should with Lindy Fralin’s Vintage Hots. As our best-selling Stratocaster set, Vintage Hots offer the purest vintage Strat tone. Vintage Hots have a warm, balanced midrange with lots of sparkle and clarity on the top, guaranteeing you’ll stand out in the mix. If you’re looking for the purest Stratocaster tone, look no further than these pickups right here!
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Jump to Sound Clips and more Info:
Fralin Vintage Hots: Real Vintage Strat Tone.
Want to learn more about our Vintage Hot Strat? Here's all the information you'll need:
Features
Vintage Hot Pickups: our best-selling single coil set. If you’re looking for a sparkling, bright, and open sound, you will love these pickups’ tone. Vintage Hots give you a balanced 50’s Tone: a smooth balance between bright and fat. They fit in the middle sonically of our Real 54’s and Blues Specials.
These pickups are era-authentic: wound with USA-made 42-gauge Formvar-enameled wire and built with USA-made AlNiCo V magnets. These pickups sound smooth, balanced, and beautiful.
Features:
- Modified Vintage Fender specifications, with clean Strat pickups with modern output
- Bright, clean tone with balance across lows and highs – real vintage-sounding Strat pickups
- USA-made Alnico 5 Magnets for optimal tonal balance and output
- RW/RP Middle for Hum-Cancelling in Positions 2 & 4
- Two magnet staggers available for different fingerboard radiuses
- Hand-wound with our “Sectioning” technique for unique, dynamic tone
- Hand-built fiberboard Bobbins for unrivaled quality control
- 10-Year Warranty on manufacturing defects
- 6K Neck & Middle, 6.6K Bridge
Sound & Video
Vintage Hots feature a vintage Strat pickup sound – they sparkle and sound very open and clear without sounding “tinny” or glassy. These pickups sound big and full, with an even balance of Bass, Middle, and Treble, clean or dirty. The tone cuts through with distortion – while remaining very dynamic and thick.
Expect a precise low-end and an acute attack. Single notes cut through with ease, while chords have an excellent string-to-string definition.
Our manufacturing process allows us to achieve unparalleled quality control. Our Vintage Hots consist of locally-stamped fiberboard and USA-Made Alnico 5 Magnets.
We wind each pickup by hand, one at a time. We wind each pickup using our proprietary “Sectioning” technique. Our Sectioning Technique gives the pickup a sweet, bright tone. Finally, we wax-pot the pickup to preserve the pickup and prevent microphonics.
Sound Samples for Vintage Hot Strat:
About this Sound Clip:
All sound samples are played from Neck Position First and Bridge Position Last.
Tonal Graph For Vintage Hot Strat:
The tonal graph below for our Vintage Hot Strat features Lows, Midrange, Highs, and general Output.
Attack: Bright & Sharp
Videos for Vintage Hot Strat:
Tech Specs:
See below for the estimated DCR and Polarity Information for our Vintage Hot Strat.
| SPECIFICATION | VALUE |
|---|---|
| Neck Ohm Reading: | 6K 1 |
| Middle Ohm Reading: | 6K 1 |
| Bridge Ohm Reading: | 6.6K 1 |
| Neck & Bridge Polarity: | Clockwise Coil Direction, South to Strings |
| Reverse Middle Polarity: | Counter-Clockwise Coil Direction, North to Strings |
| Recommended Pot Value: | 250K |
| Magnet: | USA-Made Alnico 5 |
| Recommended Cap Value: | 0.02mfd 2 |
Additional Technical Info:
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.
Polarity Information:
Here's how we wind and magnetize our pickups:
Note: We depict all our coil directions from Ground (Black Wire, or Start Wire) to Hot (White Wire, or Finish Wire).
Vintage Hot Strat Dimensions:
Vintage Hot Strat FAQ's
General FAQs
Here are quick answers to common questions we get:
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What Ohm Readings does your Vintage Hot Strat have?
Navigate to our Tech Specs Tab for complete Ohm Readings and more useful information.
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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.
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Is your Lead Time of 2 Weeks accurate?
It 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 beat our estimated Lead Times.
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What pickup height do you recommend setting your Vintage Hot Strats to?
Our recommended Pickup Height is 1/8" (3.175mm) on the Bass Side and 1/16"( 1.5875mm) on the Treble Side. To measure, hold the correct side down at its highest fret. Then, measure from the bottom of the string to the top of the pole piece.
Product FAQ's
People frequently ask these questions about our Vintage Hot Strat. If you have a question that you don't see listed here, click "Ask" in the Quick Links section above.
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What's the tonal difference between this pickup and the Real '54s?
The Real ’54s use Alnico 3 magnets. These magnets create a softer, spongier sound. They also add a bit more glassiness compared to the Vintage Hots. The Vintage Hots feature a more modern attack and a bit more bottom-end.
Featured Artists
These artists trust their tone to our Vintage Hot Strat
Solo Artist
"Lindy Fralin nailed everything I love about vintage Strat pickups a long time ago and that’s why I’ve kept them in some of my favorite guitars all these years. Truly inspirational in the studio, on the road and stirring up the neighbors at home."
Great Southern ReunionLee Roy ParnellSkydog
“The first time I ever tried Fralin pickups, it was as if somebody removed a heavy blanket from in front of my amp. I could hear all the detail and articulation that I had been missing before; like hearing my guitar in Hi-Def. Amazing. Fralin pickups have had a permanent place in my tone arsenal ever since. Thanks Lindy!"
Pickup Pairing
Our Vintage Hot Strat pairs well with the following models:
Vintage Hot Tele - Set
Pair a Middle with a Vintage Hot Tele Set for the ultimate in Nashville Tele Twang.
Get It Prewired
Get our Vintage Hot Strat prewired into a Prewired Pickguard!:
Featured Reviews
Reviews We Worked Hard For, and Are Proud Of
Customer Reviews
148 Genuine Reviews for Vintage Hot Strat
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The 5.5K Strat neck pu is exactly the tone I’ve been searching forever for !! It is really chimey/Stratty and stands evenly in volume with the other calibrated pu’s (5.8; 7K) This low wind is a big part of the ingredients that produce what I’ve always considered the most Iconic signature Strat tone- like no other guitar sounds ! Thank you kindly Lindy- you’re always the master of great tones !!
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I don’t think you can do better for era correct strat sound than this single coil. I don’t go to Fralin for every kind pickup, but I absolutely adore their strat pickups over countless brands I’ve tried – even Fender Custom Shop.
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These Vintage Hots have been my introduction to Fralin and I wasn’t prepared for how much I’d love them. I asked for a 2% overwind on the set plus added a baseplate to the bridge pickup, and every position is amazingly useful and musical. The customer service was also A+. I wasn’t 100% sure if I wanted the Vintage Hots, Blues Specials or Steel Poles, so I messaged for a recommendation, and after a couple emails I felt educated enough to order the Vintage Hots with a slight overwind. I really couldn’t be happier with my Fralin experience and just placed an order for a set of P90s.
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Two words: love them!!
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I bought these and a couple other ’boutique’ brands to compare for some upcoming builds and I was not disappointed! Sure, you can get a decent set of pups elsewhere but this is what a Strat is supposed to sound like. I also opted for the Blend Pot so I can dial in Tele sounds when I like, and I like.
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I’ve tried just about every pickup maker available, and Lindy never fails to deliver the sound and quality I want. The Vintage Hot Strat pickups are the perfect match for my custom build 12 string semi hollow. Add a Freeway switch and some Orange drops and the sound is just awesome. I can guarantee that I’ll be back to Lindy for my next build.
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In my opinion the hot Strat pickups are unmatched in quality. The tone is impeccable and Lindy and staff are the tops . Thank you
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I’ve picked up several Strats in stores since I got these pickups, and they all just pale in comparison. I’ll take these in my old Mexican Standard over the Fender 60s American Vintage. They are sweet and glassy when picked softer, but they are punchy when I pick harder. The bridge pickup with the baseplate has obviated the need for a Telecaster, and it is my 2nd favorite position. I also recommend the blender pot with these.
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