The Antiquity Tele Lead will give you that early-’50s Tele tone, but with the high end sweetened by the custom-calibrated, hand-ground Alnico 2 rod magnets.
What you get is the classic Tele twang and snap, but with a treble response that is bright but never piercing. The Antiquity Tele Rhythm is a faithful reproduction of an early-’50s Tele neck pickup. The bass response is full and round, and will add richness to your chords, while the specially calibrated hand-ground Alnico 5 rod magnets and custom coil winding give the top end a smoother, more musical attack. It’s great for big, bold rhythm playing, and percussive enough for classic country-style chicken pickin’, with a reverse wound/reverse polarity design for hum-canceling when used in combination with the Antiquity Tele Lead pickup. Like the originals, the ferrous bottom plates are not wax potted for that classic Telecaster tone that’s just on the verge of feedback. Each pickup is hand-fabricated and scatter-wound in our Custom Shop, and all parts are aged to give the look and sound of a pickup that has been played for decades. We use vintage-style push-back cloth wire, a custom-aged, deep-drawn cover for neck models, and all Antiquity Tele vintage Telecaster pickups are lacquered and potted in lamp black paraffin wax, just like they were in the ’50s.
Designed to deliver all the vibe and musicality of a vintage Telecaster pickup, Antiquity Tele pickups have that classic twangy ’50s Tele lead tone—custom aged for a smoother treble response—combined with a ’50s Tele rhythm pickup’s well-rounded low end and nice sweet treble response.
