Blues Special Strat
Versatile, Thick Tone for Strat®
$105 – $315
Are you seeking a thicker Strat sound, that still sounds like a Strat? Look no further than our Blues Specials. One of our best-selling Stratocaster sets, Blues Specials provides more output and a thicker sound while retaining that Stratocaster tone we all know and love.
Manufactured by hand in Richmond, VA with 100% USA-Made materials, instantly transform your Strat into a versatile powerhouse and discover what you’ve been missing with our Blues Specials.
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All Strat Tone, Only Thicker.
Want to learn more about our Blues Special Strat? Here's all the information you'll need:
Features
Blues Specials are our second best-selling Stratocaster single coil set, and for a good reason: with a thicker, warmer tone, they are perfect for balancing out a bright guitar and pushing your amp hard, all while retaining “the” Strat tone!
If you are looking for a thick, warm sound out of your Strat, you will love the sound of these pickups. With more turns per coil than our Vintage Hots, these slightly overwound pickups sound a bit thicker and hotter than vintage-voiced models.
Plugging in, you’ll immediately get inspired by the powerful, slightly compressed, and creamy Strat tone coming out of these pickups. You’ll notice the tight and warm midrange coupled with crystal-clear lows and round highs.
Features:
- 5% more coil than our Vintage Hots: 5% more output and mids, 5% less highs
- Modified Fender specifications, with more output and thicker tone
- High output, but still has Fender sparkle
- Compensated Bridge for even volume across all pickups
- RW / RP Middle pickup for Hum Cancelling in positions 2 & 4
- USA-made Alnico 5 Magnets and wire for optimal tonal balance and output
- Two magnet staggers available for different fingerboard radiuses
- Hand-wound with our “Sectioning” technique for unique, dynamic tone
- Hand-built, locally-sourced fiberboard Bobbins for unrivaled quality control
- Backed by our 10-Year Warranty on manufacturing defects
- Risk-free 30-day exchange policy
It starts here: Our manufacturing process allows us to achieve unparalleled quality control and tonal bliss. Blues Specials consist of locally-sourced fiberboard, USA-Made Alnico 5 Magnets, and USA-Made 42-Gauge Single Poly Nylon Wire.
We wind each pickup by hand using our proprietary “Sectioning” technique, one at a time in Richmond, VA. Winding this way is more labor-intensive, but it gives the pickup a sweet, clear tone. Finally, we wax-pot the pickup in a neutral wax to prevent microphonics and preserve the pickup for years to come.
Sound
Whether playing clean or dirty, Blues Specials feature a thicker midrange and rounder highs than vintage-voiced Strat models like our Real 54’s or Vintage Hots. Although they are an overwound Strat pickup, they are not too aggressive and feature a very open and dynamic tone. Blues Specials sound more like a traditional Strat pickup, unlike our Steel Pole 42’s, which lean closer to the sound of a P90.
Expect a thicker high-end and low-end growl, which will push your amp or pedals hard and provide a versatile and creamy breakup that is ideal for many music styles.
Lastly, cut through in the mix when soloing with a thicker, rounder single note and a powerful attack. Chords sound warm with a great string-to-string definition. Blues Specials sound powerful and bold – a great way to take your guitar’s tone to the next level. You’ll wonder why you didn’t make the switch earlier.
Sound Samples for Blues Special Strat:
About this Sound Clip:
All sound samples are played from Neck Position First and Bridge Position Last.
Tonal Graph For Blues Special Strat:
The tonal graph below for our Blues Special Strat features Lows, Midrange, Highs, and general Output.
Videos for Blues Special Strat:
Tech Specs:
See below for the estimated DCR and Polarity Information for our Blues Special Strat.
Blues Specials are made with 100% USA-Made parts.
| SPECIFICATION | VALUE |
|---|---|
| Neck Ohm Reading: | 6.3K 1 |
| Middle Ohm Reading: | 6.3K 1 |
| Bridge Ohm Reading: | 7.1K 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 |
| Wire: | USA-Made 42-Gauge Single Poly Nylon |
| 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).
Blues Special Strat Dimensions:
Our Strat® replacements are standard Stratocaster sizing and spacing. All string spacings are 52mm.
Pickup Pairing
Our Blues Special Strat pairs well with the following models:
Blues Special Tele - Set
Starting At: $ 120
Pair a middle with a Blues Special Tele Set for a versatile and punchy Telecaster Tone
Get It Prewired
Get our Blues Special Strat prewired into a Prewired Pickguard!:
Featured Reviews
Reviews We Worked Hard For, and Are Proud Of
Customer Reviews
117 Genuine Reviews for Blues Special Strat
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My guitar LOVES these pickups!!! I have an ’84 Fernandes and it has come to life with this set. The Blues Specials have a full and sweet tone. No effects needed here. Thank you!
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Blues special for strat
great pickups. nice and clean with a ton of output. Thanks, Lindy!
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A customer is very happy with his new pickups!
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Fantastic!
I wrote an extensive review but the website would not accept it. To sum it up, your Blues Special picks have made my latest build the best sounding Strat I have ever heard. I have used the Gibson ’50s style wiring with a .052uf Black Beauty cap. Trem is Gotoh510 with machined steel trem block. These pickups are phenomenal. I play through only tweed circuit amps; a ’57 Deluxe from Fender and a ’58 Champ made by me and a twin speaker ’59 Vibrolux also made by me. I can’t put this guitar down!
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It would be redundant to say these pickups are high-quality and great sounding – which they are. The part that helped most was all the info on the site. Let’s face it , its a guess for any given guitar, pickup, playing style combo until the pickup is installed and played but Lindy’s site helped me make a best guess and I think it’s pretty close to what I wanted. Plus a call from Lindy to ensure pickup polarity / wiring , etc. would be a drop-in for my single pickup order was great service. I had a particular problem with a new neck and it’s compound radius fretboard which was a poor match for the previous vintage stagger pickups (vol drop on B and E strings) and going with the recommended hybrid stagger definitely solved that problem. Plus I was able to dial-in a darker / less bright tone for the neck PU with the blues special. I am on to ordering a 2nd pickup for this guitar now… thanks Fralin pickups !!!
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Hi Lindy, I installed my blues specials in my 65 relic strat, they are fantastic, lots of body and character, and the bridge pickup is great, not offensive like a lot of bridge pickups.
Thank you.
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Love these pickups, they are very pick-sensitive giving you great control over your tone.
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I ordered a pre-wired Strat pickguard with Blues Specials. Service and assistance was great (thanks Jon, great job and great tips), assembly very meticulous and the actual sound was a real discovery. The pickups are all very clear but work well with saturation and / or pedals, the sound is distinctive and articulate, the Baseplate and Blender Pot upgrades maintained the promises. Great experience, warmly recommended.
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Creamy sweet mids with clear chime highs. Fantastic clean channel, but the overdrive from my PRS Sonzera 50 is everything I hope for from a tube amp. Nice and thick overdrive tone but not harsh at all. It drives two 12″ Celestion G12M 65 Creambacks. Being able to get them for Lefty’s and they drop straight in is a huge bonus that only lefty’s understand. Thank you Lindy and crew, I’ve been searching for this sound for a few years. The blender pot works great as well. It gives you a very interesting tone control that sounds very different than the stock bleed capacitor.
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I had the new pickup installed by a local tech. Overall, the guitar sounds great but needs some minor tweaking. I had the tech wire it per the Fralin standard strat diagram (bottom tone on the bridge). I did have the tech install the .0015 cap in the bridge pickup tone pot but I don’t like it. I will need to go with something a bit bigger as the magic cap does not remove enough of the high shrill tones for my taste. I need a cap the removed a little more off the top. Perhaps you could make a recommendation?
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Hey Michael,
The Magic Cap is incredibly low capacitance – meaning, it will barely affect the tone of your guitar. It more or less brings out the midrange, instead of rolling off the high frequencies. I would suggest using a 0.02mfd Cap. They are a little more standard and act more like a normal Tone Cap.
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Fralin Blues Special
I replaced custom shop 50’s pickups with the Blues Specials. When playing clean, Blues Specials sound thick and rich, especially in the lows and mids. Additionally, Blues Specials sound very open and clear without sounding too compressed. With distortion, the tone cuts through and while being slightly compressed and thick with a low-end growl and a medium attack. Single notes sound thick and round, while chords have a full tone with an early breakup. Perfect pickups for Blues or vintage Rock tone. Love the bridge pick up. -
Electric Fire. Man, I love this thing. Finally got the power to tackle some of the songs I’ve always dreamed of learning like Lonnie’s Wham!
I couldn’t be happier. Thanks, Lindy! -
Have one of these with a baseplate in the bridge of my 2018 MIM players strat, in my custom fralin pickgaurd, and its a beast to say the least. Does a crazy hot rodded tele sound with the tone rolled back a touch, and on full blast it’s like no other strat I’ve played, crunchy and smooth, fat and glassy, pure rock and roll.
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Amazing Tone!
We ordered in a set for a customer of ours, got them installed and were blown away by the quality of the tone, punchy and juicy. Our favourite brand of aftermarket pickups, thanks, Lindy! -
Best sound I’ve ever had.
It’s been a couple rough weeks… but at my lowest I called Fralin HQ to talk about the sound I wanted. Lindy himself picked up the phone!! After consulting with Lindy, I ordered a blues special strat bridge pickup with a custom +2 wind on it. A couple days later it arrived and I just put it into my Eric Johnson strat and this thing absolutely RIPS. It’s fire in your hands – a hotrod of a Stratocaster. (If you’ve got an EJ strat, get the hybrid stagger).
No pedals or fx, I just plugged into a NOS blues junior amp and cranked. Man oh man, now I’ve got lightening in a jar. The baseplate gives me an extra punch, kinda like having a solo pedal hot wired to always on. If you’re on the fence about buying a Fralin pick up, just do it already.
This pick up restored something in me. Might have saved my life. Thanks Lindy.
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I replaced the fender lace pickups on my 91 strat with the Lindy Fralin blues specials. I finally feel like I’m playing a more vintage strat with much richer fatter tones, less tinny, more output that is more of fit for expressive blues tones and more bite for rock & roll, r&b, funk, and soul. These beautifully made pickups are worth every penny !!! Wish I had done this sooner !! -
Best One: I wanted this sound & response. I appreciate it, thank you 🙂
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It don’t mean a thing if it ain’t got that swing…
You’re walking down Beale Street… ya hear an amazing sound flooding out of an open door…. sticking your head in, you see, he’s sitting there with just a Fender Deluxe and a worn-out Strat…. You’re wondering how in heck can he get such sound from such a minimalist rig….That’s the sound that strikes me every time I use the Blues Specials… and I’ve used a lot.
Ron Kirn – Ron Kirn Guitars
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The way a Strat should sound!
I put a Blues Special neck and a Blues Special bridge with the metal baseplate in my Mexican Roadhouse Special strat. The neck pickup has all the dynamics and warmth I love with plenty of spank when you hit it. The bridge pickup really amazed me. I finally have a strat with a bridge single coil that I can actually use. All the spikey harsh highs are tamed. It’s big and articulate. Both pickups clean up incredibly well with a little roll off of the volume knob. Now I just need to order one for the middle position! -
HSS Tele
I outfitted a Telecaster with a full set of Fralin pickups and it just turned out amazing. With two single coils and a humbucker, this guitar has a complete range of sounds. Thanks to Lindy for helping me out.
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