Telecaster was first introduced in 1951, by the Leo Fender. It received a good response as it was introduced and has been a legendary instrument ever since. It is simple yet so versatile that no other guitar can match its capabilities. Telecaster has a basic design, simple yet unique and versatile enough to play some amazing chords.
Like every other instrument a telecaster needs a pickup too. In modern music when everything is being infused with each other to create new tones, the telecaster needs to have a pickup to be well heard. Which brings us to the question of how do you choose the best pickup for your telecaster? Well, let’s see.
What are the Best Telecaster Pickups to Buy?
2) Fender Vintage Noiseless Tele Pickups
- Enamel-coated magnet wire
- Warm vintage tone
- Flush-mount pole pieces for even string response
- Loud and clear sound
- High Quality
1) Fender Custom Shop Texas Special Telecaster Pickups
- Produce increased output, presence & midrange
- Clear warm tone
- Uses alnico 5 magnets
- Copper plated steel bottom plate
3) Fender Pure Vintage Reissue Telecaster Pickups
- Alnico 3 magnets and enamel-coated magnet wire
- Flush-mount pole pieces for string response
- Tin-plated copper base plate
- Installation hardware
How to choose the best pickup for your telecaster?
There are two things that you need to take care of, quality and money. Both go hand in hand. You do not want to buy a pickup that goes out of your budget and is just too much money for its quality. You will have to be a little smarter with price handling.
The other thing, of course, is the quality. While taking care of money don’t buy yourself a low quality, cheaper pickup because surely you will be making a visit again to the shop in about a week. Buy one good pickup, remaining in your budget once and it would remain with you for some good time.
But do you know which pickup is the best in the market? There are so many there, and all of them say that they are the best. Well, that’s where your intelligence will come, and to help you with that we have made a list of the best pickups for telecasters that are there in the market. If you follow this list, you will find the best pickup for your telecaster in fair money.
So, keep reading to find out the best pickup for you.
15 Best Telecaster Pickup Reviews and the Best Telecaster Pickup Brands
1) Fender Custom Shop Texas Special Telecaster Pickups
Texas has its own way of making pickups and this custom shop pickup is another one of its unique creations. This pickup has been specifically designed to produce increased output so that if you are playing your telecaster in a crowd, the music also remains well heard. Only this pickup produces a different and warm sound, which gives the music a soft and soothing touch.
The Texas special pickup uses alnico 5 magnets and a magnet wore that keeps the sound the clear eliminating all the noise from the music. So, if you are using this pickup you should be expecting a loud and clear sound.
The fender pickup is available on a fair price, it delivers quality and remains within your budget. You will get all the required mounting wires with the pickup, you can quickly install it on your Telecaster and get the music going.
2) Fender Vintage Noiseless Tele Pickups
The Fender Vintage Tele pickup remains to be the most in-demand pickup and has been used by many musicians. With the vintage noiseless tele pickup, you will get a warm and soft sound.
The Vintage pickup is also a highly responsive pickup which means that it immediately signals without any delays and produces a loud and clear sound as soon as the chord is touched. Having a responsive pickup is really important when you are performing in a crowd, you cannot afford to have distorted music playing.
The Alnico 2 magnets and the vinyl coated output wire allows the pickup to eliminate all the noise and hum that might be there in the music. Noise causes the distortion of sound which ruins the total music effect, so you need a pickup that can eliminate this noise so that you can hear pure music.
This is an extremely high-quality pickup which comes at a good price, it remains in your budget and lets you produce good and better music, music that is close to your heart and soul.
3) Fender Pure Vintage Reissue Telecaster Pickups
This is for the people who love the 50’s music. With the pure vintage Tele pickup, you can recreate those music tones, that taste and that essence into your modern music. This pickup has the most classic warm sound and has that edge in it that has been the basis of music for decades. Flush mount pieces have been used to ensure that the strings are responding to each accurately and quickly. Delay in string response is never acceptable.
The pickup has a tin-plated copper base that gives it the warmth and a soft bottom end. It is fairly easy to install, all the required hardware is available with the pickup, you just need to install it on your telecaster. If you are not sure how to install it, we recommend that you take help from a professional. If not installed properly the pickup might not work to its best.
This is a must-have a pickup if you want to have warmth in your music while keeping it modern, sharp and pure.
4) Seymour Duncan ST591 Little 59 Lead Telecaster Pickup
The Little 59 tele pickup lets you play a variety of music styles, it is a very versatile pickup. You can play jazz, country music, blues, classic rock, funk, and heavy rock. There is a lot you can do with this pickup. With this pick up your music remains limitless and you play new and unique sounds every day.
The Little 59 pickup works great with both maple and rosewood fingerboards, you can play whatever you want, and the pickup would do all its work with the same level of quality and efficiency. This one is a highly reliable and efficient pickup that produces a pure and rich sound for a Telecaster.
With this pickup you can play a variety of genres which means that you can experiment more and the more you experiment in music the more you learn about tones and sounds. So, this pickup will keep you learning while producing some amazing tones.
5) DiMarzio DP172C Pick-up
The DiMarzio pickup has been designed to produce tele tones. This pickup is extremely efficient and can quickly pick up and respond to your pick. You will get a soft and smooth sound from your Telecaster. As on the one hand, it can be soft and smooth, on the other hand, it can also be much louder and more dynamic with the sounds.
You need this pickup to use your guitar to its best, it can bring out the tones and music from your Telecaster that you didn’t even know you could play on it. As it is an extremely responsive pickup, so you won’t be facing any delays with your tones.
The pickup plays as you want to, if you want a gentler sound, that’s what it does, and when you hit the strings of your telecaster hard, it plays much louder and sharper, just like you want it to be. You need this pickup to use your telecaster like a pro.
6) DiMarzio Vintage Twang King Pre-Wired Pickup Set for Tele
DiMarzio is famous for its best pickups. This pickup yet another masterpiece of DiMarzio which lets you play a variety of tones. No matter what you play the pickup will be doing its work, providing you with a loud and clear voice.
Since the twang king pickups are not that responsive to the music being played on the chords, it has been made with a combination of controlled tension coil winding, hand calibrated magnets and special wires that reduce the effect of noise and interference in the music. The pickup is highly responsive, and you will see no delay in its work.
The pre-wired pickup is easy to install on the guitar, it doesn’t require any soldering. Just plug it in and it’s ready for use. This pickup was made as a result of DiMarzio’s quest to make something new and unique for a Telecaster. The twang king pickup was made to produce an increased output giving out a loud and proper sound.
7) DiMarzio Twang King Neck/Bridge Pickup Set for Fender Telecaster Tele
The twang king tele pickup has been made for a more well balanced and sound. Since the twang king pickups are not well responsive and there remains a delay in their performance, this pickup was made to eliminate this problem and hence a special wire with hand calibrated magnets and limited tension coil winding was used to increase the response of pickup and hence have better music experience.
The Twang King pickup eliminates the effects microphonic squeals in music that can easily ruin the whole tone and hence must be dealt with. The twang king pickup provides you with a clear, pure and rich sound every time you play the chords of your Telecaster.
It is an extremely high-quality pickup that will give an edge and a new definition to your guitar. This pickup is a must-have if you want to use your guitar to its maximum capabilities and produce only the best music.
8) Twister – Vintage Tele Pickups – Nickel
The vintage tele pickup gets its name from the sound that it produces, that is the classic 60s sounds. The vintage pickup has a very sharp yet clear sound. With this twister pickup you can give out a much powerful sound that will add to the general energy of the music.
The pickup has been made with Alnico 5 magnets that give it the edge it has, the classic accent and a clear bottom end. The midranges that this pickup produce can be used for all types of music, each range is clear and free of any noise.
The top end produces a clear and glassy sound, giving the music a bit of sharpness. The twister vintage pickup has a correct upper base together with RWRP that removes the humming and noise in the music. You will receive it as a complete set. This pickup will give your music its personality by adding to its sharpness yet keeping it clear and soft.
9) Seymour Duncan STL-1 Vintage ’54 Telecaster Bridge Pickup
The STL-1 vintage pickup has the most iconic sound on a Telecaster. It has been specifically made for a Telecaster. The vintage pickup has the capability to minimize hum, noise, the microphonic noise, and all the other issues that arise with vintage pickups. This pickup will give your guitar a very powerful and clear sound, minimizing any noise coming into the sound of the guitar.
The wax potting in the pickup is responsible for eliminating the microphonic noise which usually just destroys all the sound with just one squeak. You really don’t want that to happen when you are performing in front of someone, no matter how big or small the audience is, your guitar needs to remain perfect and always in good shape. And this pickup can do that for you.
If you want to have a clear and high-quality sound for your Telecaster, the STL-1 vintage pickup would be the perfect option for you. You can find it at a fairly decent price, a price that will suit your pocket as well as buy you a high-quality pickup.
10) Fishman Fluence Signature Series Greg Koch Gristle-Tone Pickup Set for Telecaster Guitars
Fishman, a tapped solo artist, has created this pickup specifically for the Telecaster guitar. This very unique pickup has dual voices. You can switch between either of these voices. These are the two iconic tele style tones. The first tone will remind you of the White Guard Tele style guitars, the famous guitars from the ’60s.
It has a clear sound that is best used in country music. On the other hand, the second voice will remind you of the 50s Black Guard guitar, it has more power and gives out more edgy music. You can easily switch between both these sounds.
Greg Koch has made sure that the pickup that he has designed provides a very clear sound removing all the noise. With this pickup, there is no signal loss in the cables, there will be no interference in the signal and all you will hear is the clear sound of your music playing on the guitar.
11) Lindy Fralin Blues Special Tele PICKUP SET 2% Overwound Neck w/ Cover Telecaster
Music is all about experimenting and mixing different sounds and this pickup lets you do that quite easily. Sometimes you want something warm yet sharp, with the blues special pickup you can produce this sound. The Lindy Fralin Tele pickup has a very sound yet a bright sound. So, your music will be soft, yet it will have an edge of sharpness in it.
The sound of the blues pickup is rich and open, it does not sound compressed. When there is distortion the sound of the pickup is slightly compressed and the tone on the chord’s cuts through the pickup. If you want to play your telecaster to its best you should use this pickup, this tele pickup will bring out the maximum capability of your telecaster producing a sharp yet clear, warm yet a bright sound.
The Blues Special pickup gives the guitar power and boldness. It’s easy on the pocket, not too expensive and comes in high quality so you will not be needing a new pickup after like a week. This friend of yours will stay with you for a long time.
12) Seymour Duncan APTL-3JD Jerry Donahue Model Tele Bridge Pickup
The Seymour Duncan pickup has been specifically made to have a boosted output and a more loud and clear sound. The Duncan pickup can be used to work with different genres of music including the country, blues, country pop, and classic rock. Many well-known musicians have been using this pickup in their music. This pickup has been made with a special wind and Alnico 2 magnets which increase the sustainability of the pickup and increases the output power.
The poles have been symmetrically staggered which means that the sound will be well balanced because of the very detailed and quick response of strings with each other. You will get a precise, warm and rich sound.
It works extremely well with maple fingerboards so if you are looking for a versatile pickup that lets you wander in multiple genres of music, this pickup would be the perfect option for you.
13) EMG T SYSTEM Prewired Telecaster Guitar Pickup Set Plus Control Plate System
This is the new EMG T-system pickup which is all ready to mount on your guitar. It can easily replace your existing pickup, it is solderless which means that you can easily and quickly install it on your Telecaster. The EMG T prewired tele pickup is an extremely responsive pickup which means that it will instantly catch the signals as soon as you press on any chord of the Telecaster.
With the EMG T-system pickup, you will get a pure, rich sound with absolutely no noise. The alnico magnets used in the pickup give it the edge and sharpness in its music. All the controls have been mounted on a single control plate include the volume, switch and the tone pots. Putting all the controls in one place makes controlling the settings a lot easier.
All you need to do is to plug in the pickup and it’s all ready for use, there is no need to solder it on the guitar. So, if you are looking for some sharp and very clear sound, you should go for the EMG T-system pickup, it would be the best option for you.
14) HeroNeo Artec Hot Rail Single Coil Humbucker Pickup for Telecaster
The hot rail pickup gives your telecaster more edge and more strength. This pickup has been designed to add to the power of telecaster and increase the output of the tone being played on the guitar. It has more sustainability than the other pickups.
This pickup has dual blade alcino magnet pickups which give it the strength that it has. The single coil pick up gives out a very clear and loud sound by removing all the noise and all the interference from the chords. All you hear is a proper, loud and clear sound from your Telecaster.
The pickup is also quite easy to install on your telecaster, it comes with all the screws and strings that you need to mount it on your guitar. The installation is easier and quicker. The Hot rail pickup has been made with a sleek and modern design that just adds to the beauty of your Telecaster. You need this pickup to make your guitar powerful.
15) Electric Guitar Pickup Bridge & Neck Pickup for Tele Style
One of the best pickups for telecaster is this bridge pickup that will give your telecaster a unique definition and a very different style. This pickup gives the Telecaster a clear and free of noise sound. Any noise being produced in the strings of the chords is removed by this pickup and all you hear is pure music gently playing on the chords.
The pickup is easy to install on the guitar. The electric guitar pickup comes with three mounting holes, so you can easily fit it on the guitar. The pickup also comes completely assembled, you just need to install it on the guitar and its ready to do some work.
This one is a high-quality pickup which comes with a pretty fair price tag. You can easily buy one without getting out of the budget and since it is of high quality it will also stay with you for a long time.
Choosing the Best Telecaster Pickups
2) Fender Vintage Noiseless Tele Pickups
- Enamel-coated magnet wire
- Warm vintage tone
- Flush-mount pole pieces for even string response
- Loud and clear sound
- High Quality
1) Fender Custom Shop Texas Special Telecaster Pickups
- Produce increased output, presence & midrange
- Clear warm tone
- Uses alnico 5 magnets
- Copper plated steel bottom plate
3) Fender Pure Vintage Reissue Telecaster Pickups
- Alnico 3 magnets and enamel-coated magnet wire
- Flush-mount pole pieces for string response
- Tin-plated copper base plate
- Installation hardware