Blues Special Tele
Versatile & Thick Tele Tone
$120 – $240
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.
Quick Links
Jump to Sound Clips and more Info:
100% Tele, Just a Bit Meaner.
Want to learn more about our Blues Special Tele? Here's all the information you'll need:
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
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
Sound Samples for Blues Special Tele:
Compare Outputs
We have 2 outputs of our Blues Special Tele. Compare them below.
About these Sound Clips:
All sound samples are played from Neck Position First and Bridge Position Last.
Tonal Graph For Blues Special Tele:
The tonal graph below for our Blues Special Tele features Lows, Midrange, Highs, and general Output.
Attack: Dynamic & Full
Videos for Blues Special Tele:
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 |
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.
*The Neck reads higher due to the use of 43 Gauge Wire, outputs are compensated
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).
Blues Special Tele Dimensions:
All dimensions include a covered Neck pickup to account for the slight increased size from the cover.
Blues Special Tele FAQ's
General FAQs
Here are quick answers to common questions we get:
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What Ohm Readings does your Blues Special 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.
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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. 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 Blues Special 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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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.
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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.
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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.
Pickup Pairing
Our Blues Special Tele pairs well with the following models:
Big Single - Neck
Starting At: $ 175
Pair A Blues Special Bridge with a Big Single 42 in the Neck for a killer combination.
View Product
Blues Special Strat - Middle
Starting At: $ 105
Nashville Tele? Our Blues Special Reverse Middle is the perfect match
View ProductGet it prewired
Go the extra mile and combine our Blues Special Tele with a Telecaster Control Plate!:
Featured Reviews
Reviews We Worked Hard For, and Are Proud Of
Customer Reviews
360 Genuine Reviews for Blues Special Tele
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I had been wanting to build a Tele style guitar for a couple of years. It was the first guitar build for me and I wanted it to be more than just standard parts. I had purchased a player plus Telecaster for my grandson. It has the new noiseless pickups. They are noiseless but maybe a little too much so. My research took me to Fralin and I am very happy with the quality and performance. I have played these through a Fishman Loudbox Artist, a Fender Dual Professional (1949 Bonamassa reissue) and a Fender Twin (1957 custom reissue) – all with various pedals and they sound great and with no discernible feedback. I left the neck pickup uncovered and mounted it in a ring. All-in-all they look good and sound even better.
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Amazing sounding pickups ! My Tele build is singing ! Nothing like a handmade pickup built with loving care !
Thank You Lindy !
John B. -
i purchased a player 2 tele with the idea of tweeking it to make it into a blues guitar.after researching different pickup companies my luthier ,who actually hand makes his own pickups told me that fralin is the master at blues style pickups.he wasn’t lying ,my tele is now my go to guitar when playing lead or rhythm blues.it’s amazing the difference in the sound and the sustain.i’m now a believer and so are all my guitar playing friends.i will be ordering more pickups in the future for some of my other guitars.as far as service ,i was told 2-3 weeks and it was just under two weeks.thanks for the fast service and the quality in your product.
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Exactly what I was looking for my MIM Telecaster. These pickups sound so good!
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I just installed my third Blues Special into a Telecaster. It’s a great pickup. Retains the Tele tone, but has quite a bit more power.
I’ve recommended the same pickup to a couple of my friends to wake up their Telecasters, and they’ve been happy with them, too. -
AAA , I just got the Blues Special installed and have been playing for two hours. Great Tone. Awesome. I just happen to see a YouTube video of Gary Roberts – ” Fender Telecaster Ultra Luxe upgrade-Fralin Blues Specials, I was sold. I am Happy with my choice.
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Tele Blues Special . 5 star pickup, 5 Star service!!
Great sounding Tele pickups with the Tele tone but a bit more of it!!
Bought a Blues Special Tele bridge PU from someone online that was being sold as “unused”. Put it in my Tele but was out of phase with the neck pickup it had in there. So I figured I would get the matching neck pickup. Ordered it with a note that I was going to use it with the bridge Blues PU, and then the next day I get a call from Lindy himself to make sure he was sending me the correct polarity pickup. Told me how to check the one I had and get back to him. Called back the next day with my info and my pickup arrived about a week later. Put it in and I now have a kick ass sounding Tele!! -
Just finished my 1st partcaster with Fralin Blues Special Tele pickups. I was really shocked how great they sound. It is best sounded Tele I’ve ever played! I strongly recommend these pickups to everybody who is looking for classical Tele sound with touch of modern timber. Really great pickups! Thanks Lindy!
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I put the Blues Special Tele pickups in my Wilkinson Tele that I built from a Stewmac kit. I’m very happy with them. The Blues Specials sound great, with better touch/response feel than the stock pickups. With moderate gain, they can get very good dirty sounds, and they clean up well with the volume knob. Great for blues, country, or single coil classic rock sounds.
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Just put a blues special set in my tele and wanted to drop you a line just to say thanks for doing what you do. I didn’t realize how lifeless the stock pickups were. These are fantastic. Thank you.
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Exactly what I was hoping for. Installed an open cover version in the neck position of my Fender Ultra Tele (I did not enjoy the original noiseless pickups). Very good clarity – definitely a bit more strat-y than conventional Tele pickups. Paired with the steel pole 42 in the bridge, perfect combo.
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Beautiful round tele tone with that extra cluck! All three positions sound great and can be tweaked to your liking with simple height adjustments. I’m really happy with my purchase.
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Very happy, best tele ever. Put them in a elight thin line. Now it sounds like I hoped it would. Thanks
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The Blues Special Tele Pickups sound amazing, I highly recommend them, if you’re looking for less twang and more clarity, these deliver, I really love the Neck Pickup voicing and the Raw Nickel is beautiful.
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Bought a set of Blues Special p/ups for a partscaster tele, haven’t had a chance to properly set up the guitar yet but in it’s current state (random pickup heights) they sound phenomenal plugged into a princeton reissue. Perfect high end and super articulate, paired with a 0.047 cap you get a wide range of tones and the slight roll off tone is heavenly. Will definitely be retrofitting my other guitars with Fralin’s, there’s nothing better for the price.
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In every aspect of what I would craft in a set of tele pickups, these would be it. 11/10.
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I’ve ordered a few custom-made pickups from some other fantastic makers in the past, who make wonderful pick-ups. But the level of service, communication, courtesy, and speed of delivery from Fralin were exceptional. Also, this pickup just seems to be another whole level of brilliant and sounds fantastic. I am slightly blown away by the whole experience! Keep up the good work!
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my experience was real Kool with the fraylin crew I always wanted a set just because of the positive things I’ve read and I have maybe 6 teles with pickups from all different makers including Duncan/fender/lace and other high line pickup builders so I did have a baseline to go from. first off it was easy to order from the site also the turn around time was quicker than expected. after installing I was treated to some sweet tele tones that made me smile and mostly surprised by the bridge pickup… it actually sounded beautiful to me and didn’t punish my ears! I can tell you if yer thinking of a set don’t wait get you some fraylins today you won’t be disappointed and then yer part of a family of satisfied customers. my next build will be a strat thats been in a box for a few years and it deserves a set of I’m thinking set of strat vintage pickups thanx Braylon team yer the best! Joe g
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Fralin Co. people are some the best out there. Communicative and Professional.
The Tele Blues Special pickups are absolutely wonderful. Clear. Articulate. Clean.
I went with these because the output for both the bridge and neck are matched, or close enough.
So when I throw it into the neck position there is no loss in volume.
Seriously, Lindy’s pickups are magical.
I’d say the only problem I have is whether to install Fralins in all my guitars. -
hi fellas at Fralin. I received my Blues Specials last Thursday and installed them that nite everything went fine as planned. I have Seymour Duncans and Lace Sensors in my 12 Teles and Strats. So there is a good base line to judge from and not just blown smoke at ya. As expected, these pickups sound awesome in my latest build and I tried all different tones on my amp that made me smile like I sounded like somebody! so pleased I pulled the trigger on this set hell I can even use the bridge position with out hurting my ears makes me very happy. Thanks to all who do their job at Fralin from top to bottom and I mean that. Your operation is professional and efficient let alone the quality and you provide its much admired and appreciated. Thanks again!
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