How to Set Telecaster Pickup Height - by Radioshop Pickups

[@tomrudd1118]

I drank beer and did what you suggested. Next morning was still happy. Thanx

[@michaelworse6034]

Lol❤

[@b.j.taylor9576]

Very good! So simple, down to earth, practical, without wasteful joking and jesting, and especially no expletives! I set my strat, tele, and les paul to your videos accordingly and they sound great! Thank you and keep these coming!

[@istvandejesus]

Used this Set-Up on my 2016 Squier Classic Vibe Telecaster and I have to say it works beautifully. It finally gave me the balance in volume that I was looking for. The bridge has a subtle increase in volume but when changing from one position to the other you don’t need to play around with the volume knob. God bless!!! Thanks for the tip.

[@guliaew]

Thank you so much for this video!! My tele is completely balanced now and the three positions of both pickups are sounding better than ever, with great tone and very responsive!

[@jehovahuponyou]

THESE RADIOSHACK VIDEOS ARE TOP TIP!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[@SurfBandFan]

Thanks for your advice, so helpful!

[@Abutado]

I was able to set my neck pickup height perfectly by ear. I checked after adjusting to ear and it was exactly what you set yours at. Trust your ears. Do what sounds good to you.

[@viana8524]

I've done this setup... Changed my tele! Tku, EXCELENTE result.

[@andrewpearson1903]

These are great specs for my Pure Vintage 52s, which are not-quite-reproductions of vintage Tele pickups. Might need to raise the bridge pickup for balance (never thought I'd say that), but the neck sound now has the amplitude and presence I was looking for all along. Thank you very much.

[@caynyqvist1133]

Thank you so much for this video. Very good! So simple, down to earth👍

[@Officialshayne]

It’s like I have a whole new tele😎🤘🏽 thanks!

[@dogfacedboy6947]

What you say about the balance in the middle position is greatly helped by using a four-way switch, allowing you series and parallel combinations.

[@martynedwards6492]

Just finished building a tele-parts-caster. Needed some help on the pickup height and this you tube video was perfect. Thanks so much for this - the sounds are band on!

[@RadioshopPickups]

No worries at all Martyn! Thanks for the feedback :)

[@StevenChisham]

I adjusted by feel and by eye. then I watched this video. I was almost exactly on this spec.

[@joe19912]

Yeah, it's good to know factory specs, then similar to a engine, tweak it to your preferences of loudness and tone.

[@justinsears6309]

Just excellent! I learnt so much. Thank you....

[@eevysolo2286]

Noice!! My tw55 sounded so uneven i couldn’t bare playing it (too bassy).. and it’s actually my first time to set up my pickups so i was kinda scared to fck it up more haha. now, it sounds awesome after!! Thanks to your easy to follow instructions. Kudos!

[@khristianswandychandra]

Fender suggest 2.0mm on bass side and 1.6mm on treble side for telecaster vintage singlecoil

[@halelloha]

After comparing this setup with my previous one. I prefer higher pickups, lesser noise, you get almost the noiseless pickups. I set the neck pickup to the hight of the fretboard surface.

[@blueshorecreative3146]

thanks doood. You put so much info into this clip. I bought a Vintage brand V62 Tele, and the bridge pickup is so trebly. I thought I'd have to live with it, but Vintage don't tell you you can adjust the pickups! The V62 has the same basic setup - 2 screws for the neck (which is warm and Fender beautiful, and 3 for the bridge, which rocks.) Good guitar. Just didn't know how to set it up.

[@freddymclain]

I've learned to set the bass ends of the pickup LOWER- that's where the heaviest signals occur.

[@GS-uy4xo]

Thank you for taking the time to share your knowledge - well explained definitely worth exploring.🖖🏼

[@michaelworse6034]

Baja 2008 , will give this a try .

[@bwz1979]

FYI these measurements are not for all pickups. Texas Specials are way too hot to be put this close but these measurements are good for vintage pickups

[@antonioalbares]

I’ve been a strat guy my whole life and just got my first tele and this comment is spot on! I’ve been playing around with height, I have low output vintage pickups and it freaks me out how close they are to the string yet they sound AMAZINg

[@cpamiseso]

I agree, I've been using hot ceramic (G&L's MFD) on the ASAT and 3 to 4mm for neck and 2.5 to 3 mm for bridge is the starting distance

[@kevinsullivan4744]

What do you suggest for the Texas PUPs

[@cpamiseso]

@@kevinsullivan4744 2.5mm at 6th string side and 2mm at 1st string side

[@nathandudar5822]

Texas specials play fine at this height. Pfft.

[@jasonstowemcilroy8641]

Thank you!! This just what I needed!!

[@mitcharney1]

Fender's suggested Telecaster pickup height is 4/32 treble and 5/32 bass for both pickups.

[@Dlee966]

Man good video. I play all different styles of music so I don’t always want that classic tele pop. Hoping this smooths it out some

[@BladeDoomer86]

Great video, very informative. I like that you used mm, and it works perfectly for my Squier Affinity Tele. Thx again

[@RadioshopPickups]

Thank you Kev!

[@kevenoates]

Such a huge help, thanks so much for sharing!

[@VoodooDewey69]

Thanks for sharing your expertise !

[@JasminBellavance_Music]

Thanks...great info!

[@hermar3656]

I dont play country so I like my tone knob between 0 and 3 on my tele since they are overly bright by design ....then I bring my treble side of the pick up way up to get and even amount of tone on all strings. It provides a much better distortion sound for rock .

[@AkseSir]

Works great for my thinline tele. Thank you!

[@P4tRiCK.StOlze]

Exactly what i was looking for 🤟 thx

[@rosslangridge6390]

Thank you for this. Extremely useful

[@ouchthathurts6350]

Problem for me is my Tele has a humbucker at the neck. The bridge pup tended to dominate the parallel switch position so I tried the following: adjusted the HB pole pieces to match the fretboard radius then raised the pup height. Lowered the bridge pup until everything balanced out. It took a while, but it's as good as it's likely to be.

[@ROAMZ101]

Thank you, that was very helpful!

[@philmakesnoise]

Love your take on setting and forgetting it. We can all get bogged down in the many choices and options when it comes to tone, to the point it detracts from our playing. And like you said, unless you have the experience to know exactly what you want, it can end up being a distracting tangent.

[@Loading17]

Adjustments should be done by ear... closer pickup = more gain, lower = less gain. Depending on your playing style, your strumming/picking hand’s strength... you have to adjust the pickups according to what you want the guitar to deliver as sound... the gain output of the pickup will give your ears the answer... measurements means nothing in pickups height adjustments... people may consider taking your advice so seriously that they won’t explore and find what THEY want from the guitar; they can even end up saying that their guitar sounds bad.. And pickups aren’t the same... the best result is acquired by ears.. get a screw; and open your ears...

[@reneebear3641]

why do you… keep writing… with ellipses…

[@buddybeetle]

Excellent. Many thanks.

[@MajorRoadAhead]

Only 353 views for the Tele, and 1.3k for the Strat, bit strange that. Maybe lots more Strats out there, but the Tele is cool as well.

[@RadioshopPickups]

Robin Seward Hi Robin, yes I think the Strat is definitely the most owned design but if you're like us, you just have to have both! :) Paul

[@RadioshopPickups]

8chk9 Think you're right bud - I think in some ways the Tele is more of a purist's guitar really. They both do different jobs though in my mind and the tones you can coax out of a Tele are unreal. More players should own both imo!

[@BobZed]

The Tele is probably an under-appreciated guitar.

[@Tone-Oz]

great sharing, thanks mate

[@cflowers69]

I always lay the pick (jazz III) on top of the pickup and raise it up til the strings are holding the pick. Then I lower the pickup til the pick falls out, and finish it with two complete turns of the screwdriver. Perfect.

[@sugarlife485]

wtf

[@samrotschild]

You wouldn’t believe it but i did it by ear and had the same measurment on the neck pickup. Bridge i have 2,5 on bass side and 2 on treble side. I was looking for a video with right setup. Thanks

[@lostinpa-dadenduro7555]

What is this millimeter thing you keep saying? 😂🇺🇸👍 Thank you this was very helpful. First time Tele owner here.

[@MAX96MENDES]

Thank you !

[@toddwilliamson8557]

The best way to set pickup height is to turn on a dirtbox and play barre chords around the 12th fret, if it warbles the pickup is too close to the strings. There are no universal measurement numbers, different pickups have different strength magnets even pickups of the same make and type. This is the only way to set pickup height for all pickup types correctly.

[@telecasterbear]

Right. Warble is the way to tell.

[@BobZed]

If you don't have a gauge or measuring device use a nickel. You want to be just a skosh more than a nickel on the base side and a skosh less than a nickel on the treble side. Probably don't want to go more than two dimes.

[@WJSmaryz]

Nice thanks!

[@benink5690]

Idk why but my neck pickup spund abetted lower & bridge sound sbette higher. Now they are far from a balanced volume here. But the tone is WAY better this way in All-Three-Positions

[@magnusbjorklid6998]

Thank you 👍🙌

[@josefinigo7100]

Great , man!!!

[@hammill444]

You said turn clockwise to lower the pickup----- but it seems you did the opposite in the closeup demonstration. Confusing

[@Vince1974]

Nice video. But my question is : You hold on at the last fret but maybe my strings or lower than yours… I agree that it is a start point for the neck pickup bass’s side concerning the magnet issue.

[@soofitnsexy]

its just a guide

[@jefflazare924]

I find I need to set the bass side lower than this to get a balanced sound.

[@sempercompellis]

i get it if you are new to the guitar and you don't know if setting it this way or that will somehow detract for what you could be getting, but anyone who has been playing for a few years- there is no voodoo here; set the damn things where you like them- closer to the strings= louder and compressed// farther from the strings= clearer and more dynamic tone.

[@orbarak3]

It works !

[@realdaneben6512]

I'm not sure about which pickups you use, mine needs at least 2.5mm at the bridges high E, otherwise stratitis as a result. Pickups: Fullerton Lead, Earl Slick. Greetings from Germany.

[@henrod27]

These are greater measurements for alnico 3 tele pickups set

[@brothermine2292]

Can the adjustment screws shift over time due to vibration, so that they occasionally need to be readjusted?

[@MelodyCarroll-rx8tk]

The neck pickup on my tele sounds like I've got some reverb going but I don't. It's impossible to get a clean sound. It doesn't sound terrible but it does sound off somehow. Are my pickups too close or too far from the strings? I think it's set at about 3mm bass and 2.5mm treble side.

[@HektorBandimar]

Interesting video thanks, how do I set up the Tele pick ups for that country Telecaster twang sound?

[@GordMcknob]

Is it like driving a car ,,, where the steering wheel is on the right side in the UK ? Are your screws threaded backwards ? Its clockwise to raise the pickups, and anticlockwise to lower the pickups in North America 😆

[@RadioshopPickups]

That's definitely true of the bridge John but the opposite for the neck as it's screwed into the body 👍 Paul

[@GordMcknob]

Ah yes ok ,, so you are talking about the neck pickups which screwed right into the body wood,,, my models of Telecasters bridge pickups are adjustable from the outside of the face plate.. so its clockwise to raise it ,, 😉

[@hxdnp]

appreciate it

[@maumex]

I have the 1 in 10 Telecaster from 2011 that has the neck pickup screwed to the pickup guard. Any video on how to adjust that? It doesn't give me much room to move before the screws going off...

[@terrybryant3814]

Hi, does anyone know the ideal pickup settings for a fender player tele HH, or does the ‘HH’ make no difference? Great video by the way, clear, informative and good visuals.

[@rkillian7233]

Hi Paul, I,m over here in Ireland, Kildare. Good video and thanks a lot. You made it sound quite easy. Well, I built a tele for my son and I have a type of bridge saddle that can control each string. Guess its a bit like a squire. Anyway, I did all the adjusting etc and the guitar seems fine. I notice that with my bridge pickup, all the steal poles in the pickup are the same height. I notice in videos that most have the center 2 raised about 2 mm. Does this matter? Also, I notice that there is not much of a variation between the 3 switch positions on the guitar. Wiring is the standard for a Tele. Any ideas on these couple of things? Many thanks Paul.

[@RadioshopPickups]

Hi R! Greetings from Wales! I wouldn't worry about the inner two polepieces. We offer a set like that and it's certainly extremely common to have a flat stagger across the whole pickup. It can lead to a slight scooped mid response in the D and G because they're lower but players have been making use of that sound for decades and just getting used to it really. In terms of the lack of difference, that doesn't sound quite right really. I'd get your height right and see if that's the issue, beyond that a local guitar tech should be able to check that out for you to see if you have a wiring issue anywhere. Especially on a Tele as the control plate can be inspected in about 5 mins. Hope that helps. Cheers, Paul

[@volkersessler8976]

on the neck pickup the screws come loose when i turn them anticlockwise. What can i do about that ? they supposed to raise the pickup but this is not the case. How can i raise my pickups without loosening my screws??

[@ruriyansah8230]

Whats size string your guitars this ajustd this video ?

[@JohnAmbeliotis]

Okay

[@cflowers69]

Video reminds me of Game of Thrones for some reason.

[@cflowers69]

Glad you picked up on that brother. Just teasing a bit ; ) That's what you do: you mess with telecasters and you know things....

[@oak_owl]

🙏

[@seamanjive]

Yeah, good explanation that. Use yer ears !

[@mailvilla]

10/26/2018, from Orlando Florida USA: Thank You for your very informative and helpful video. I have a new 2018 Fender Players series Telecaster (MIM). By any chance do you teach how to stop string rattling? No, not fret buzzing, just a rattling noise. I increased the neck relief, and set my strings height at 4/64" at 15th fret .... but, I still get the rattle. OK, I do have a heavy hand holding down strings and picking hard. So, is string rattling on a Telecaster normal or can it be adjusted out?

[@RadioshopPickups]

Thank you for the compliment mailvilla! Ooh sounds like a tricky one, it's almost impossible to diagnose a rattle really as there could be a number of sources, from perhaps even a loose tuner screw potentially to any number of issues - probably all easily sorted - my instinct would be for you to book in to see your local guitar tech on this occasion, sorry I can't advise further but you need someone on the ground to advise further with this one I think - Paul

[@michaelh.60]

@mailvilla My Player Series is the same and it drives me crazy. Did you figure it out?

[@mailvilla]

Michael Hair: Not entirely solved the problem, but close enough. Since I bought my Telecaster brand new October 2018, the nut and neck frets are all great, so no issues there. I set my string height about 3/32" to 4/32" at 12 fret, and made sure neck relief was as high as a business card. Also since there is an arch in the fretboard, make sure your D-G strings are slightly higher. I also removed 9-42 factory strings and put on DiAddario ECG23 Chromes 10-48 flat wound strings (not a bright sound, warmer or duller sounding). I like these flat wound strings, per there is no finger squeaking on strings when sliding hand to change chords (another annoying sound I had to remove). I am also working on a much lighter pick attack, which has really helped a lot. With all that put together, it is much better sounding with rare rattle/buzzing sound. The heavier strings take some getting comfortable to them, per heavier strings are not as easy to hold down, and not as easy to bend the strings. For me, that is a good tradeoff for very little rattle/buzzing. However, I think string rattle is the nature of a Telecaster, per I hear many great Telecaster players here on KZbin, and many of them have some rattle too. So, I will live with what I have.

[@jimoverly5386]

All of this setup, seems overwhelming. Never heard of any of this, when i started lessons, in the 50s. Just practice, practice. Of course, i'm pretty much deaf, now, thanks to military ( too much yelling )

[@greham]

The decimals of millimeters are complete BS sadly. It's not possible to be that precise, and I doubt that most people might be able to get the tone difference after an 1/8th of a turn of screwdriver. Do it by hear, don't measure. When you like it, and it does not detune the string, you're fine.

[@quantametric]

By ear is the only way to really do it. I never bother with measurements anymore.

[@deadmanprodinc]

Do your own video instead of bashing someone else who has taken the time to help others.

[@betodearmas111]

@@quantametric when you say by ear, what exactly do you mean? what am I looking for to have a "well-set-up" pickup?

[@chuckbaby10]

can you tell me how to adjust the floating pickup on a 2015 gibson les paul supreme?

[@smokepeddler]

There is no standard. Set the height to where it sounds good to you.

[@damianstrochnetter9735]

Ok, ok, ok, ok, ok…..

[@BITESIZEJONES]

Why do people make this so complicated? Should take no more than 5 min using your ears. Find the right balance.

[@NINEWALKING]

To be honest I can't watch this to the end. It hurts my brain. Sure if you find perfect pickup hight for one guitar and one set of pickups do measure it and take notes. You will be needing it sooner or later. I can understand as well that you can also say something like: for this specific pickup set use approximately this pickup hight. But one size does not fit all, definitely. You are suppose to be pickup builders. You know that even classic Tele pickups come with at least 3 types of magnetic pole rods. Alnico II, III and V being used most often. Plus there are all of those crap ceramic magnets. Each type has different strength and different but strong magnetic pull. Actually magnetic string pull of the vintage single coil pickups is stronger than vintage humbuckers string pull. Plus each type of voice coil and way it was wound and thickness of the wire used and type of the isolation used results in different coil inductivity. They all sound different and sound better at certain hight depending on the magnet used as well. 42AWG or 43AWG and formvar and enamel wire make different coils. Scatter wound or tight and orderly wound coil makes big difference as well. From the start I have to say that 2.3mm and 2 mm hight will introduced unneeded string pull and make the strings feel one size thicker. It will decrease sustain as well. It will compress the sound as well. It will change the response. This magnetic pull will be worse with the stronger magnets especially. This compression effect will be stronger with higher inductivity coils. To high pickups ruin the sound. Single coils are more sensitive to this than the humbuckers. Neck pickup is again more sensitive than bridge pickup is. So bridge pickups and humbuckers can go bit higher because they are not pulling the strings that strong as the single coils and as the neck position. So one hight even much lower one is not good for every tele and every pickup set. To low will make the signal so low that you will be amplifying sound of the cosmos and not the sound of the strings. Guitar is going to sound anemic. So, yeah, sure, adjusting by ear is "hard" and non constant for some people. But some people have enough experience to start from the known good values as soon as they see current pickup hight. They do it good and they do it every time good as well. I would say on the Tele start with the pickups at least 1mm lower than this. And do not fall in the trap that higher sounds louder and keep it on raising your pickups until you ruin your sound. If you can't do it bring it to someone who can. It is not the shame. Also tone you like is your personal thing. You want guitar to sound compressed as possible and reduce sustain do to high pickups and lowest action possible. Strings will have no room to vibrate freely and that is going to reduce the dynamic range plus to high single coil pickups will choke the life out those strings. If you like that no worries more power to you my friend. My way is not the law. I am just explaining what is doing what when you set up your pickups hight. Do not believe me? Try it out. You will find the truth very quickly. Just go extreme settings and you will confirm what I have said.

[@davidcristerna2285]

I’m here because I didn’t learn shit from Seymour Duncan

[@kevinkimeng]

Too much talking . Would help to see more visually.

[@jameschapman9796]

you talk to much. just get to it.

[@robertholyroller6413]

Thanks for the tip for my ch HolyRollerGuitar

[@DougHinVA]

repeatedly using 'OK?' is a waste of time and annoying and does nothing but spend time as he stammers

[@RadioshopPickups]

Cheers babes

[@jackcrook4435]

Your comment describes itself perfectly.

[@tedbundy8082]

Luckily the player telecaster I have has the screws over the pick guard so I got to skip step one 🎉