Pickups

[montreal]

Ive looked at the Alembic JZ BT Activator Pickups and the Alembic AXY BT Activator Pickups but their a little out of my price range...im looking for one humbucker to put into my Strat. And possibly two single coils. Are their any cheaper Alembic pickups or maybe another company that is moderatley priced but sound great. I have checked out Fralin pickups, are they any good?

[smichaels]

The reasons one would consider Alembic pickups or Fralin pickups would depend on what you're looking for. Fralins are great and so are Alembic...but the two don't have anything in common - soundwise or otherwise. They serve completely different purposes.
 
So...what are you looking to get out of new pickups?

[kmh364]

Exactly!  
 
For vintage tone, it's hard to beat Fralin. They're hand-made, and custom-wound to your specs...Lindy will rewind them FOC until you're happy with the sound. Their PAF-style humbuckers nail that classic LP sound, while their SC's give you that holy grail Fender sound. Very pricey, but what boutique stuff isn't?
 
If you want 80's metal, then Duncan, DiMarzio, et al, have something for you.
 
If you want versatility, active stuff like EMG or Alembic (better still) can give it to you.
 
Speed, er, um, sound/versatility is just a question of money, how fast do you wanna go? LOL!