Vintage Hot Strat
Real 60's Vintage Strat Tone
$105 – $315
Make your Stratocaster sound like a Strat should with Lindy Fralin’s Vintage Hots. As our best-selling Stratocaster set, Vintage Hots offer the purest vintage Strat tone. Vintage Hots have a warm, balanced midrange with lots of sparkle and clarity on the top, guaranteeing you’ll stand out in the mix. If you’re looking for the purest Stratocaster tone, look no further than these pickups right here!
Quick Links
Jump to Sound Clips and more Info:
Fralin Vintage Hots: Real Vintage Strat Tone.
Want to learn more about our Vintage Hot Strat? Here's all the information you'll need:
Features
Vintage Hot Pickups: our best-selling single coil set. If you’re looking for a sparkling, bright, and open sound, you will love these pickups’ tone. Vintage Hots give you a balanced 50’s Tone: a smooth balance between bright and fat. They fit in the middle sonically of our Real 54’s and Blues Specials.
These pickups are era-authentic: wound with USA-made 42-gauge Formvar-enameled wire and built with USA-made AlNiCo V magnets. These pickups sound smooth, balanced, and beautiful.
Features:
- Modified Vintage Fender specifications, with clean Strat pickups with modern output
- Bright, clean tone with balance across lows and highs – real vintage-sounding Strat pickups
- USA-made Alnico 5 Magnets for optimal tonal balance and output
- RW/RP Middle for Hum-Cancelling in Positions 2 & 4
- Two magnet staggers available for different fingerboard radiuses
- Hand-wound with our “Sectioning” technique for unique, dynamic tone
- Hand-built fiberboard Bobbins for unrivaled quality control
- 10-Year Warranty on manufacturing defects
- 6K Neck & Middle, 6.6K Bridge
SOUND
Vintage Hots feature a vintage Strat pickup sound – they sparkle and sound very open and clear without sounding “tinny” or glassy. These pickups sound big and full, with an even balance of Bass, Middle, and Treble, clean or dirty. The tone cuts through with distortion – while remaining very dynamic and thick.
Expect a precise low-end and an acute attack. Single notes cut through with ease, while chords have an excellent string-to-string definition.
Our manufacturing process allows us to achieve unparalleled quality control. Our Vintage Hots consist of locally-stamped fiberboard and USA-Made Alnico 5 Magnets.
We wind each pickup by hand, one at a time. We wind each pickup using our proprietary “Sectioning” technique. Our Sectioning Technique gives the pickup a sweet, bright tone. Finally, we wax-pot the pickup to preserve the pickup and prevent microphonics.
Sound Samples for Vintage Hot Strat:
About this Sound Clip:
All sound samples are played from Neck Position First and Bridge Position Last.
Tonal Graph For Vintage Hot Strat:
The tonal graph below for our Vintage Hot Strat features Lows, Midrange, Highs, and general Output.
Attack: Bright & Sharp
Videos for Vintage Hot Strat:
Tech Specs:
See below for the estimated DCR and Polarity Information for our Vintage Hot Strat.
| SPECIFICATION | VALUE |
|---|---|
| Neck Ohm Reading: | 6K 1 |
| Middle Ohm Reading: | 6K 1 |
| Bridge Ohm Reading: | 6.6K 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 |
| 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).
Vintage Hot Strat Dimensions:
Our Strat® replacements are standard Stratocaster sizing and spacing. All string spacings are 52mm.
Vintage Hot Strat FAQ's
General FAQs
Here are quick answers to common questions we get:
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What Ohm Readings does your Vintage Hot Strat 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 Vintage Hot Strats 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 Vintage Hot Strat. 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's the tonal difference between this pickup and the Real '54s?
The Real ’54s use Alnico 3 magnets. These magnets create a softer, spongier sound. They also add a bit more glassiness compared to the Vintage Hots. The Vintage Hots feature a more modern attack and a bit more bottom-end.
Pickup Pairing
Our Vintage Hot Strat pairs well with the following models:
Vintage Hot Tele - Set
Starting At: $ 120
Pair a Middle with a Vintage Hot Tele Set for the ultimate in Nashville Tele Twang.
View ProductGet It Prewired
Get our Vintage Hot Strat prewired into a Prewired Pickguard!:
Featured Reviews
Reviews We Worked Hard For, and Are Proud Of
Customer Reviews
139 Genuine Reviews for Vintage Hot Strat
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Amazing vintage Strat sound.
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I was working on a friend’s record during the pandemic. Since he plays lead and does all of the guitar, I was laying down the keys (guitar is my 2nd instrument) from my studio virtually.
Anyway, I called him to inquire about what pups he had in that Strat?
He told me about these vintage hots and of course I had to get a set…
Well, same result: Qunitessential, muscular tone. Spanky but not thin / Bold but not too crunchy—- perfection.
Note- I did add the option of the metal plate on the bridge pup – alleviates the ice pick issue.
Lastly, when swapping pups, don’t neglect the rest of the electronics: pots, selector, wiring, tone cap, jack etc are in the signal path and absolutely make a difference.. (can buy a LF pre wired pickguard if all of that seems daunting to you..)
Cheers JMC -
I was amazed when I heard the sound of these pickups for the first time in person. I absolutely love them. The tones are very sparkly, and the volume is perfect. I’ve been chasing after this sound for a long time, and I finally found it.
I highly recommend these pickups.
All the Best,
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Made my Strat come alive. Best Strat pickups I have ever tried. Took my breath away.
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SRV tones all day baby! Great early 60’s sounding pickups!
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I have owned a MiM Strat since 2003 and love it. However recently I was A/B ing with a G&L Legacy with alnico pups and the difference was night and day. So I bought and just had installed your Vintage hot Strat pick ups and I couldn’t be happier. It is like I have a new guitar that I can’t put down. Thank you very very much!
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Really enjoyed figuring out exactly what I was looking for with the man himself. Unbeatable strat tone with my new custom wound vintage hots!
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Purchased the Vintage Hot single coils…best single coil pickup purchase I have ever made! I highly recommend them!
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Not qualified to give scientific based review but I know what sounds good Lindy Fralin Pickups sound best to me. Full stop.
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I’m a working professional, and as such my ability, and—my sound determines whether or not I get the gig. I don’t have a second to waste on substandard equipment, and I have lots of funny-colored pre-CBS Strats and 40”s through ’60s Gibsons as reference points.
I have used Fralin pickups since the mid-80’s. They are fantastic.
Are we done with this already?Greetings from (my Fralin’s) NYC, Chicago, LA.
Thank you so very much once again, Lindy. -
Fabulous pickups:
They sound intoxicating when clean but also drive a Ram’s Head Muff gloriously.
The treble is crisp without being harsh while the mids are wonderfully punchy … these pickups have excellent balance across frequencies and strings making them versatile. -
Hi Lindy,
I just got a set of Vintage Hot Strat pickups fitted to my Custom Shop ’63 Strat here in the UK. They were fitted by Charlie Chandler, who recommended them to me. I just wanted to say that these pickups are absolutely outstanding! I finally have the Strat tone I’ve always wanted – twang, growl and great string -to-string clarity. Simply amazing for anything for jangly cleans to full-on heavy crunch. Thanks so much for developing these great pickups. All the Best, Dave -
Fantastic pickups, I’m using them in a 2008 american strat with a s1 switch added to add either the bridge and neck or all three pickups as an option. The bridge and neck sounds great together and does a tele type of sound well. All three pickups together creates a warm but very muddy tone that I haven’t yet found an application for. Overall though fantastic pickups and would recommend.
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Added a Vintage Hot Single in the middle position of my HH strat. Sounds amazing paired with the Unbuckers in both humbucking and coil-split positions. Great help from Lindy and the team as well as far as helping with the wiring setup. 10/10 would recommend!
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Love the Vintage Hot neck pickup. I have the SP43 in the bridge position and this is a great combo. Lindy came to the phone and answered all my questions. Thanks
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I bought the Strat Vintage Hot set directly from the Fralin website here.
If you are wanting your Strat to do that glassy fender thing (like most good vintage pups will do) AND you also want to have some balls (Gilmour etc), this set is at the end of the rainbow. IMO it’s just the best thing you could ever do for your guitar. The one word that comes to mind is MUSCULAR. That’s not a word often associated with Strats.
– THE END. -
So, I purchased and installed a set of your Vintage Hot Strat pickups in my Strat. These replaced my Fender Noiseless Jeff Beck set, which had replaced the stock Fender set that came in my Fender Classic 57 re-issue. I am blown away by the tone! Not brittle, not too “bassy” and a wonderful amount of clarity and punch! I couldn’t be happier! I also own an original ’58 Strat, and know what original Strat pickups sound like, so trust me when I say that your pickups sound absolutely great!
Thanks for the installation tips as well! -
The Vintage Hot Strat pickups sound great. They provide the crisp sound and sustain I was hoping for. They arrived quickly and I much appreciate your help and especially the pickups!
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These pickups are terrific. A lot has been said, all true. Wonderful responsiveness, clarity without harshness. Put it in and gigged with it that night. Made the Hendrix tunes we do sound just like it should! I have three different sets of Fralin PU’s, all outstanding. And what’s better than being able to pick up the phone and talk directly to the man himself. Always a great experience.
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