Seymour Duncan Hot Rails models question

firepaulmusic · December 2020

Does anyone know anything about the various models of Seymour Duncan Hot Rails pockups?

Stratavarious · December 2020

I have a hot and cool rails combo in my number one. Strat style.

I know there is strat and tele version and a ‘cool’ and ‘vintage’ version of the dual rail design.

What are you hoping to learn?

Funkfingers · December 2020

The SHR-1 model comes in two strengths, calibrated for bridge and neck/middle positions, respectively. Over the years, it has been offered in two physical formats - the modern fully enclosed and the original top plate and wrap tape.

All of the other visually similar models are not strictly Hot Rails.

The Cool Rails are, as you might imagine, lower output and less mid boosted versions of the same basic idea.

Vintage Rails are an attempt to extract a Stratocaster-like tone in hum-cancelling form.

Duckbuckers are the same idea but with adjustable polepiece screws.

The JB Junior is a high output li'l humbucker. The Little '59 attempts to sound like a vintage PAF humbucker.

The Custom Shop Pearly Gates for Stratocaster does a far better job. The Red Devil model is a production version of the CSPG4S. These benefit from using alnico bar magnets.

The SLSD-1 Li'l Screamin' Demon is probably the best of the ceramic magnet bunch.

firepaulmusic · December 2020

Funkfingers said:

The SHR-1 model comes in two strengths, calibrated for bridge and neck/middle positions, respectively. Over the years, it has been offered in two physical formats - the modern fully enclosed and the original top plate and wrap tape.

All of the other visually similar models are not strictly Hot Rails.

The Cool Rails are, as you might imagine, lower output and less mid boosted versions of the same basic idea.

Vintage Rails are an attempt to extract a Stratocaster-like tone in hum-cancelling form.

Duckbuckers are the same idea but with adjustable polepiece screws.

The JB Junior is a high output li'l humbucker. The Little '59 attempts to sound like a vintage PAF humbucker.

The Custom Shop Pearly Gates for Stratocaster does a far better job. The Red Devil model is a production version of the CSPG4S. These benefit from using alnico bar magnets.

The SLSD-1 Li'l Screamin' Demon is probably the best of the ceramic magnet bunch.

It was the top plate and wrap tape V the fully enclosed I couldn't work out. This is for mounting into a non-scratch plate Strat style, which one would be the right one?

Stratavarious · December 2020

I swapped the taped type for enclosed on mine... a scratchplate free Patrick Eggle, I think the new SD models are enclosed.

Kent Armstrong do a tape version.

Funkfingers · December 2020

The fully enclosed examples have threaded brass inserts in the baseplate for the height adjustment screws. For direct mounting, the threads will need removing.

The earlier Rails have a conventional baseplate. It is far easier to enlarge the holes for the height adjustment screws. The downside is that tape wrap does little to protect the copper coils of the pickup from impact damage.

Stratavarious · December 2020

I lost the small wires on two of my three taped pickups... def. a weakness.

firepaulmusic · December 2020

Thanks fellas, ordered, next day delivery. Base plate model...

ICBM · December 2020

Funkfingers said:

Vintage Rails are an attempt to extract a Stratocaster-like tone in hum-cancelling form.

One thing I do know is that the Vintage Rails is the worst-sounding guitar pickup ever made by man!

Although, it is actually very good as the middle pickup in a HSH guitar where the middle by itself isn't ever an option... when combined with the other pickups it sucks out the mids of the humbuckers so effectively that you get a really good (if not quite perfectly accurate, if you're a Strat purist) 'quacky' Strat in-between sound. PRS used it in the older version of the Swamp Ash Special exactly for that reason. Remarkably, it's actually better with the *un*split bridge pickup than the split neck one, which is what the stock switching does.

Funkfingers said:

The Little '59 attempts to sound like a vintage PAF humbucker.

Another 'attempt' which would have been better not made...

The Tele bridge one isn't too bad, but the Strat ones are awful - and not even remotely like a full-size '59.

Funkfingers said:

The fully enclosed examples have threaded brass inserts in the baseplate for the height adjustment screws. For direct mounting, the threads will need removing.

Or use smaller screws - the small black ones usually used for humbucker surrounds will fit.

Funkfingers · December 2020

ICBM said:!
… 'attempt' which would have been better not made ...

I was attempting to be diplomatic.

Rich210 · December 2020

I really like the cool rails in my g&l legacy. They were made by gotah to a GL spec I understand. Can't comment on hot rails though but I can get straty single coil quack and thicker hb tones from them with some nob tweaking. A while ago I thought about swapping them out for some alnico singles but I wouldn't anymore. Great pickups if you can find them

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Seymour Duncan Hot Rails models question

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