I had a long time deciding which custom pickups I am going to put in my 2016 USA G&L ASAT Classic Deluxe to replace a bit to edgy and modern sounding MFD pups. I went through Fenders CS 51 Nocasters, Dimarzio Twang Kings and also custom aftermarket options such as Lollars and Lindy Frailin's. It took me around four months to finally find exactly what I was looking for.
I wanted a classic 50's telecaster sound with just a smidge of more bite and the Blackguard Flat'50s are exactly what i was looking for. Pickup are indeed vintage sounding and react a lot for height adjustment. You can make them work for just any context you could possibly imagine a telecaster in - blues, rock, jazz, rockabilly, you name it. They are also surprisingly absolutely rocking in high gain realm.
These pickups are highly musical. They respond very well to pick attack and playing dynamics. They also posses a great balance across the whole spectrum.
The bridge pickups is just a go to possition of joy, I could live with just the one pup only while using the volume and tone pots.
But whats even more satisfying is the neck pickup. Usually you get the dull and poor sound out of a tele neck and you end up using the bridge only, since the neck wont cut through. But not with Bare Knuckles, mates! The neck pickup is strong and absolutelly lovely sounding. It could sound a bit as a stratocaster neck, which means it has a lot of clarity, definition as well as bottom end and great roundness, while retainign the unmistakable tele character.
The middle possition is very usable blend of both neck and bridge. Couldnt be happier for funk rhytms.
I installed these with a 4-way switch from Fender, to make use of both pickups in series as a humbucker and after a day of soldering, since I'm not very experienced with an iron, I was astonished to first hear these. The 4th possition added a whole new sound making my tele into a jazz machine and switchable for mellow lead tones.
I didnt want to rush the review, but after 3 weeks of using them on several rehersals, 2 gigs with a rock'n'roll band and two jams, I have to say I would buy them again and I would recomend them to every telecaster owner, who want's just a bit more out of his tele.
I had no problems with them whatsoever and I see no cons. It came in a nice paper box also with screews, rubber bands, soldering manual, life-time waranty, but also with a new set of strings, a pick and beer mat making me feel the care, which comes with buying a hand wound UK pickups!
Wonderfull sounding pickups!
