Split Blade Tele
Pure Telecaster Tone, No Noise
$135 – $270
A Lindy Fralin original design! Split Blade Tele pickups are noiseless pickups for your Telecaster. They feature a noiseless operation, with all the clarity you expect from a single-coil pickup. Split Blades are available in 4 outputs to help you fine-tune your tone and find your sound.
Quick Links
Jump to Sound Clips and more Info:
All Tele, No Hum.
Want to learn more about our Split Blade Tele? Here's all the information you'll need:
Features
Split Blade Tele Pickups: revolutionary design, pure Telecaster tone, no hum. Unlike most pickups, we designed our Split Blades with a left-right coil design, giving you a truer and more balanced single-coil tone. These pickups will drop right into your Telecaster, with no modifications necessary. You’ll get all the single-coil traditional tone, with no hum at all.
Our manufacturing process allows us to achieve unparalleled quality control. Split Blades consist of a precision injection mold and USA-Made Steel Blades. We use aggressive USA-Made magnets to make this model scream. Each bobbin is carefully inspected and cleaned before winding. We wind each pickup by hand, one at a time. Each pickup is wound using our proprietary “Sectioning” technique. This gives the pickup a sweet, clear tone. Finally, we wax-pot the pickup to preserve the pickup and prevent microphonics.
Features:
- Lindy Fralin Original Design
- Unique 4-Split Blade design for Humbucker and SSS tones
- An interesting and unique look
- Clean and clear, lots of Fender sparkle and twang
- USA-made Magnets for optimal tonal balance and output
- Compensated Bridge for even volume across all pickups
- Three Blade heights available for different fingerboard radiuses
- Hand-wound with our “Sectioning” technique for unique, dynamic tone
- Hand-built for unrivaled quality control
- 10-Year Warranty on manufacturing defects
Sound
SPLIT BLADE TELE SOUND:
Unhappy with Hum-Cancelling Fender Pickups, Lindy designed the Split Blade. It’s a hum-canceling pickup with traditional Fender-type sparkle. They’re unique: they offer a single-coil sound, no hum, and dashingly good looks. Expect fantastic a warm, full-bodied tone with incredible string articulation and enhanced detail. Wound strings sound clear and articulate due to a narrow magnetic field. Plain strings sound thicker than a single-coil with more of a sonic footprint. Chords will sound smooth and buttery, and single notes will sound large and full. Split Blades will not pull the strings out of tune – even if they get close to the strings. Also, adjusting the pickup’s height allows you to fine-tune your tone to your needs. Expect thick, warm, and dynamic tone with distortion.
Sound Samples for Split Blade Tele:
Compare Outputs
We have 2 outputs of our Split Blade Tele. Compare them below.
About these Sound Clips:
All sound samples are played from Neck Position First and Bridge Position Last.
Our Split Blade Tele pickups feature a traditional Telecaster tone with no hum. These sound clips were recorded through a Mexican-made Fender Telecaster with a Lindy Fralin Telecaster Neck. Sound Clips are recorded by Phil Heesen III
Tonal Graph For Split Blade Tele:
The tonal graph below for our Split Blade Tele features Lows, Midrange, Highs, and general Output.
Vintage Output (250K / 300K Pots:
Attack: Dynamic & Full
High Output (250K / 300K Pots):
Attack: Dynamic & Full
Blues Output (500K Pots):
Attack: Dynamic & Full
Super High Output (500K pots):
Attack: Dynamic & Full
Videos for Split Blade Tele:
Tech Specs:
See below for the estimated DCR and Polarity Information for our Split Blade Tele.
Since we have a few different outputs for Split Blade, we've grouped them by their recommended Pot Value:
| SPECIFICATION | VALUE |
|---|---|
| Vintage Output Ohm Readings: | 4.7K Neck / 5K Bridge* 1 |
| Vintage Output Recommended Pot Value: | 250K or 300K |
| High Output Ohm Readings: | 6.8K Neck / 8.4K Bridge* 1 |
| High Output Recommended Pot Value: | 250K or 300K |
| Blues Output Ohm Readings: | 5K Neck / 5.8K Bridge* 1 |
| Blues Output Recommended Pot Value: | 500K |
| Super High Output Ohm Readings: | 7.2 Neck / 9.5K Bridge* 1 |
| Super High Output Recommended Pot Value: | 500K |
| Wire: | USA-Made 42 / 43 Gauge Single Poly Nylon, Depending On Model |
| Magnet: | Ceramic |
| Polarity: | Hum Cancelling, Request 3 Wire If Buying Single |
| Pole Piece Material: | Steel |
| 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.
* Due to the unique design of this pickup, ohm readings aren't very helpful. Our Vintage Output is close to the a Vintage Strat Pickup output.
Polarity Information:
Here's how we wind and magnetize our pickups:
If you're buying a set from us, all pickups will work together seamlessly. If you're buying a single pickup, all you need to worry about is Coil Direction.
To ensure your pickup will work, make sure you select multiple leads (2-Conductor, 3-Conductor, or 4-Conductor if available), or the 3-Wire modification so you can reverse the coil direction, if need be.
Split Blade Tele Dimensions:
Split Blade Tele FAQ's
General FAQs
Here are quick answers to common questions we get:
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What Ohm Readings does your Split Blade Tele 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 1 Week 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.
Product FAQ's
People frequently ask these questions about our Split Blade Tele. 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 pickup height do you recommend setting your Split Blades to?
Split Blades sound best a little closer to the strings than a standard Strat or Telecaster pickup. Split Blades don’t pull your strings out of tune like a regular pickup, either. Feel free to get our Split Blades close to the strings – you’ll love their tone when you do! Check out this video of Lindy setting the Split Blade Height.
Get it prewired
Go the extra mile and combine our Split Blade Tele with a Telecaster Control Plate!:
Customer Reviews
138 Genuine Reviews for Split Blade Tele
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Having owned a set of Vintage Hot single coils in the past, I had no doubt these would be excellent pickups. And Lindy and crew did not disappoint. With the Vintage Output, you get all the characteristics we love about Telecasters with single coils, without the hum.
I highly recommend Fralin pickups to anyone looking to upgrade their guitar. -
Tele tone without the buzz! these have become a favorite go to for my tele builds.
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I originally bought a single split blade with the additional 4th wire in the neck position. I loved it so much I ended up buying another split blade for the neck position. Now it’s double the pleasure double the fun!!! Thanks Linday and all my pals at Fralin pickups for a great experience all the way around!!! Love my Fralin Pickups!!!
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I received my shipment of Tele Split Blades yesterday and installed them last evening. After my experiences with stacked designs from other well known pickup builders I can honestly say your split blades have ended my search for noiseless Tele pickups. They are beautiful in nuanced tone, response and appearance. Thank you!
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I ordered a set of Vintage Outputs, wired for a 4-way for my Tele (chambered ash body, maple top) to replace a set of Seymour Duncan’s that just didnt pair well with the guitar. They arrived within a couple of weeks, and my luthier installed them without issue. I could not be happier with the results. Articulate, responsive to changes in attack and volume/tone adjustments – just layers of beautiful tones. Setting the amp at edge of break-up these pickups sing with just a hint of Tele twang. Roll the volume off a touch and there’s a nice balanced clean, I can even dial in a decent Jazz tone with the neck pickup. Give them the beans and they’ll cover the hard and heavy stuff without getting loose or flabby. All this and they are dead quiet. These are well designed, well made, pickups that deliver great sound. I’m beyond satisfied.
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Great tone, clear and clean without giving up any twang. Wonderful pickups.
My only complaint would be that the sleeves on the wires are thicker than on most pickups, it was a very tight fit running the wires through the body of my tele. Very high quality sleeves, just thicker than most industry standard. -
I just finished installing a Split Blade (Blues Output) in the neck, and a Steel Poled Tele (P90) in the bridge of my 2014 American Deluxe Tele. I also did the 4-way switch mod and these two pickups are absolutely killer together. All four positions sound incredible! I used 250k pots, a 0.022uf orange drop capacitor, and a 680pF/150k parallel treble bleed. I couldn’t be happier with the outcome. Thanks Lindy and team for making these fantastic pickups!!
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I purchased the Split Blade Tele blues set. The demos that you see on YT are ok. They exceeded my expectations live. They are hot but with some tone and volume control are tameable. Still fine tuning the pickup height but pretty much have them dialed in. Definitely would recommend them if that’s the route you are looking for with a telecaster.
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I recently purchased a set of High Output Lindy Fralin Split Blade pickups that I installed in my 59 reissue Fender Telecaster, and what difference! I noticed immediately the clarity, chime and tone of each individual string. The neck pickup brings out more of the tone that resonates along the length of the neck as does the bridge pickup. These pickup bring out all the tonal qualities of my guitar in a much better way compared to single coil pickup. I also am impressed with how quiet the pickups are at idle, and the pickup don’t have the magnetic pull on the strings as many other humbuckers do. Over all I think these are fantastic pickups, and the quality is second to none! I highly recommend these pickup for Fender and all other guitars. Thank you Lindy!
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Best tele pickups in my fleet of five teles.
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Best silent tele pickup EVER!
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5 Star…. How about 6 star! Hum free but know’s it’s a Tele Pickup. Nice work all at Lindy Fralin!
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Can’t say enough about Fralin Pickups, I took a chance in installing the Noiseless P90’s on my Gold top reissue and haven’t looked back, replaced the single P90 on LP jr and it simply smokes and no hum! No brainer on my scratch built Tele and I went with the Split blade Tele set wire for 4 way switching and the clarity is amazing and once again noiseless. I highly recommend Fralin to anyone who builds or wants to replace their existing pickups, truly hard to beat and I will be using them in future builds. Great tone, clarity and no noise. Go for it, highly doubt you’ll be disappointed.
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I am amazed at the difference. I am a hobbyist player and only picked up the guitar in my late forties so most of my equipment is budget. I replaced the Tesla pickups in my Harley Benton Thinline Tele with Fralin noiseless split blade vintage wound. I can’t believe my novice ears. Installation was not nearly as difficult as I thought it would be given I replaced a bride stacked humbucker in conjunction with a push/pull splitting tone pot with standard tone pot. The .02 cap that Fralins staff recommended gives me the exact range of tonal dimension I’m looking for. Incredible when clean and awesome in the fuzzy dirt! Well worth the price!
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I bought the black split blade, vintage output, medium radius to replace the stock neck pickup in my MIM tele. I didn’t have a problem with the stock Fender pickup tone wise, but I play thru a 5 watt tube amp and like to use various amounts of dirt sometimes and the fender pickup is just noisy even before I get to 12o’clock on the amp volume with no dirt. The vintage output Fralin pickup sounds, to my ears, just like the fender pickup. Warm and beautiful with the right amount of bite. To my imagination it seems a little bit louder than the Fender pickup. In medium and high gain situations it is dead silent when you aren’t playing so it lives up to its claim of noiseless for me. It pairs literally perfectly with my bridge pickup which is a Duncan vintage lead stack noiseless(which is nice and twangy without the ice pick highs). With this combo my tele sounds like it’s supposed to but is noiseless in all positions. When I’m in the middle position and getting both pickups, IT SOUNDS SO NICE TO ME. So to recap, if you like the tone of your stock fender neck pickup but want a little more output and want it to be noiseless, the split blade is an amazing choice imo. A tad pricey compared to whats out there in the world, but well worth the price and long shipping wait imo.
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Split blade Tele bridge is more *dynamic*, better balanced across all frequencies, and dead-quiet as far as any 60 Hz hum or RFI. There is something about playing out of a silent background that adds a special quality to the sound. It has made a “pretty good” instrument into something first-rate, and I enjoy playing this guitar now whenever I can.
I spent too much time overanalyzing my pickup choices, when I could have been playing the superior instrument that I now have. If you are on the fence, don’t hesitate – you will be VERY glad you made the move. No worries, Lindy stands behind everything he sells – if for any reason you aren’t totally satisfied, he will make it right. One of the single best investments I’ve made in bettering my tone.
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My favorite noisless singles ever made. Nothing comes close.
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Pickups sounded great. My customer is very happy.
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