The Virtual Vintage^® '54 (DP405) is the pickup for the experienced player who wants the darker, sweet sound of the oldest Strats. Where the Virtual Vintage^® (DP401) is glassy,the '54 sounds more bell-like, and fattens up with a hard pick attack. We particularly recommend it for maple-neck guitars. A DP405 in the neck position, DP406 in the middle and a DP402 bridge make for a fine, modern blues sound.

Recommended For:

All positions. Particularly recommended for neck and middle positions in maple neck and/or swamp ash bodies.

Tech Talk:

The Virtual Vintage^® '54 is based on early 50s Strat pickups that had a unique, flutey tone (the ones we heard were from '54, but they crop up in other years too). They were almost as bright as the more usual variety, but with more tonal depth. They also give with a hard pick attack. These are good choices to emphasize the subtleties of the Strat, rather than the more jangly aspect. The compression that occurs with a hard pick attack is particularly effective with good tube amps and overdrive pedals. We recommend using 500K controls for extended frequency response, although there's no problem using 250K controls if you like the warmer tone they provide.

Specifications:

Wiring Standard four conductor
Magnet Alnico 5
Output 130mV
DC Resistance 7.64K
Year of introduction 1998
Patent # 4,442,749, 5,811,710, & 5,908,998