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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Great pickup!
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Enjoying how smooth yet full the tone is, they are sweetly full in the Mids, the highs chime and don’t bark the bass is tight. Great work team fralin!
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2001 American series “Texas special” Strat
I bonded with everything about the guitar except the pickups. The original pickups sounded weak and I tried lowering and raising them but could not get much of a blues sound out of them. The LF blues specials really nailed the sound I was looking for. The pickups produce is very complex blending in terms of audible frequencies. It’s hard to describe without hearing them but I can better hear the core note and associated overtones and nodes. I am thrilled to have my guitar sounding this good!
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Wow just wow
Both sets went into semi hollow strats and I couldn’t be happier! I ordered every part specifically because I wanted the guitars to be totally custom and sound the best…and I wouldn’t put any other pickups in them Fralin won me over!
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HSS Strat Blues Specials
This is my second set of Fralin pickups. This time I supplemented a humbucker (from another manufacturer) with a set of Blues Specials (neck/middle) for my HSS Strat build. What can I say? I love the chime and clarity the single coils have and they balance so well with the humbucker. Can’t wait for my next build because I know I will be using Fralin pickups!
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Awesome tone
What a great-sounding pickup. Infinitely more useful tones than a standard Stratocaster’s dull Middle pickup, sounds closer to the traditional Neck position tonally with a warm, percussive voice. Absolutely brilliant sounding pickup with the unparalleled build quality. Used it in my Nashville Telecaster build and could not be happier about the versatility of and the tonal options provided by this well-balanced set of pickups.
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Not satisfied with my strat sound l researched online and settled on a fralin blues special loaded pickguard once installed l finally had the sound in my head l had been searching for realized at long last l am a totally satisfied customer.Thank you Fralin pickups
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After searching far and wide for a great pairing for the Blues Special Telecaster bridge pickup I thought I’d try one of these. Previously I’d tried the Big Single Mini, the Minihumbucker, a PAF humbucker, a Goldfoil, a P90 and a filtertron all in neck position looking for something that blended well and complimented well the Blues Special in the bridge (obviously LOVE this pickup). I finally, after all the experimentation, realized that what I actually wanted was two single coils to play well and not a standard tele neck pickup. In my mind and to my ears this combo has become my ‘super’ Fender. Best of the tele (bridge), best of the Strat (neck) sounds, middle position SO freaking cool and glassy. Jon at Fralin suggested this one in particular to pair well with the bridge pickup I had and boy was he RIGHT! I am just loving this combo and LOVING this neck pickup on my guitar. Would absolutely recommend this pickup to anyone looking and especially those looking for a match for a Blues Special telecaster bridge pickup. What a treat to my ears!!
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Leo would be proud….maybe a little jealous!
I’ve had a wonderful set of Vintage Hots since the 90s. They’ve always been the yardstick I use to measure other pickups. The Blues Specials might just be the new yardstick. The baseplate on the bridge pickup makes it sound almost like a fat Tele. These are what Strat pickups should sound like. It’s as if Lindy took old Fender pickups and sprinkled some sort of magic dust on them. As.much as I love the Vintage Hots, the Blues Specials might just be the most beautiful sounding pickups on the planet. Amazing, outstanding, incredible…well done Lindy!
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The Real Deal…Lindy knows about vintage pickups like nobody I’ve had make me a pickup. The proof is in the tone just try one that’s what I did and then I bought 3 more for my Tele Strat
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Fender Strat custom shop 55 Relic model
Very responsive to pick attack and drives my amps in a musical way. Easy to get pinch harmonics and the deep throaty neck position sound I like. Great pickups!
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Strat Blues Specials
after only one live gig and a couple of sessions (due to the pandemic), I may never leave the neck pickup! but if I do all other positions sounded great. thanks, Paul for helping me choose the right set, and to Jeff Rice at Intown Guitar Repair in Atlanta for the recommendation. -
RWRP for Nashville Tele. Works great with the Blues Special Tele set.
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I’ve been playing these in my #1 for 24+ years and they still sound as awesome as the day I got them! just beautifully matched to the Strat feel and sound! I’ve played all kinds of Fender Pups through the years, but I always turn back to these masterpieces
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This pick up is just ridiculous ..the tone is incredible ..soon as I can afford to get another one I will. compliments to the chef for cooking this pup up.
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Really nice pickups and like how they sound. Like how they are made in Richmond, VA USA.
They were wired in a Fender Strat with a bridge push push 250k pot. Thank you, to Fralin Pickups.
These kind of pickups could be used by the pros. -
Installed on my Fender Player Strat (MIM). Love Them!
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Thank you! Awesome blues special pickups!
I wanted to replace the bridge pickup in my strat with a Fralin. I ordered online but I did not realize my magnets were opposite polarity (use the helpful tips on the Fralin web page to save yourself from the same mistake). The team at. Fralin was on point and helped me correct the problem. Great pickups and great customer service! Very much appreciated! Love the tone!
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Outstanding! Great sound!
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The best! I installed them in a custom guitar I made, perfect tone, and super quiet and quality I expected A+++!
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