What Is So Special About The Fender Wide Range Humbucker?

Thanks! This was very helpful! Subscribed;)

I have the reissue pickup. My solution - and I love how it sounds: I ordered Alnico 5 magnet rods from ToneKraft: .187" x .531"... I took the pickup cover off and slid the bar magnet out of the bottom... I replaced that with a piece of acrylic that I cut to the same size as the bar magnet (just to keep all the spacing the same.) Then I removed all the screws and pressed my purchased magnet rods into their place. They're just the right size to friction fit with a little effort, although I may have messed up the threading in the bobbin slightly. I wasn't worried about that, since, like he says in the video... it's a less than impressive pickup otherwise. So I had nothing to lose. Pay attention to the polarity of your magnets and make sure you're orienting them the right way. (I believe I put the neck side magnets North side up and the Bridge side south up.) Then I put the cover back on and reinstalled the pickup. Suddenly it had a lot more body and clarity. It was a huge difference. It only cost me the price of the magnets.

Don’t japan do a reissue using the cufine magnets, where as the Mexican made pickup uses the Alnico version that fender US get the stick from. I’m confused

Uh oh so do those new vintera teles have these frankenstein humbuckers or actual wide range repros?

I have the MIM reissue and I always thought it just didn't have any fenderyness. Guess that's why. Plus the bridge pup always sounded thin to me. Any reason why you think.? Playing it through a silver face bassman 50

This video just answered a bunch of my questions as I've just gotten curious about wide range humbuckers.

Too add a little to the reason why Fender commissioned Seth Lover to design a humbucker for them; in the '50s and early '60s Fender was the go-to choice for electric guitars and basses in popular music, but by the mid '60s, as music got louder and heavier, more players started seeking out the thicker tone of humbucker equipped Gibsons, which didn't buzz like single-coils at higher volumes. Used Gibsons were dirt cheap at the time, so strapped musicians snatched them up. Particularly British guitarists who were unable to acquire American guitars of any kind until 1959 or '60.


Fender saw the humbucker stealing a piece of their market share, and Gibson's patent was about to expire (or had expired, I'm not 100% sure on that), and they figured who better to design a humbucker for them than the guy who designed the first one? I'm sure they thought they were rubbing it in Gibson's face too.


In regards to WRHB replicas; I have a Brandonwound in a Squier '72 Tele Custom that sounds REALLY good. I've never played an original WRHB with CuNiFe magnets so I can't say I know exactly what they sound like, but the Brandonwound ain't no PAF-style HB in a big cover. It sounds very "Fendery". Very articulate, with great note separation, and a BIG voice. They also cost considerably less than the Creamery or other "boutique" makers. I highly recommend them!

You're missing one important part, and perhaps one of the more important ones. Yes, the use of CuNiFe polepieces will change the tone. But another very important part is that, where a normal humbucker magnetically couples the slugs and screws with a bar magnet underneath, the CuNiFe polepieces in a WRHB are NOT magnetically coupled between coils. Or should I say they are only minimally magnetically coupled, operating for the most part like a pair of RWRP Strat pickups placed beside each other. There is NO bar linking them, and the holes on the bottom of the baseplate are not threaded. The polepieces pass through a hole in the baseplate, that is slightly larger in diameter, such that they do not contact it. This will allow for some magnetic coupling, but the two coils are not in any sort of full direct contact with each other or a common element.

A conventional HB, that couples the two coils behaves like a stacked humbucker whose slugs have been "bent" in a U-shape. The top of one coil is "north", descends, goes across, and has the "south" end sticking up in the other coil. A Strat, Jaguar, and Jazzmaster pickup has one pole on the top, and the other below. "Gold foil" pickups, and Epiphone New Yorkers (which are a sort of high-end variant of the gold foil) present a mixture of the two (HB and SC). They are single-coil pickups, but the baseplate is coupled to the bottom of the coil, and brings the pole of the magnet from the bottom of the pickup up around the side. They can*look* like they are humbucker at first glance. But then you realize there isn't nearly enough room for a coil under those screws. That's because the screws simply fit into the upward bent side of the soft iron baseplate.

The arrangement of the 3-up/3-down polepieces in each row of the WRHB allowed for their height to be set so as to mimic, to some extent, an angled humbucker, if you adjust the hidden polepieces downward, and raised the visible ones a bit. That would get you a slightly beefier sound, without hum, and behave like a cousin of the angled bridge pickup on the Telecaster and Stratocaster. I have a distant vague recollection that some players at the time would remove the 3 downward-facing polepieces in each coil to more fully realize an angled pickup tone. I won't claim that is true. It is, after all a memory for well over 40 years ago. But it makes some sense.

I thought the Humbucker was invented by Jonathan Lee Humbuck.

I was under the impression Seth Lover’s Humbucker was “Patent Applied For” because Gretsch best then to the market with their “Humbucker” design we know as the filtertron. Gibson was denied the patent because Lover’s Bucker was too closely related to the Tron.

Lover DID design for Fender because Gibson had a change of CEO and didn’t want his more innovative designs. Including the Wide-Range among others.

I'd love to try a wide ranger. I wish Fender would just reissue then properly (as close to original as they can get)

Hi from the UK, please correct me if I'm wrong but couldn't you just use alnico slugs in both bobbins and do away with the screws, as you said in a previous video there kinda pointless anyway. I may be being a bit simplistic as I have never built a pickup. Thanks great channel.

You'd think if anyone could produce these magnets that Fender could afford to pay for these custom magnets. Nothing is impossible and they'd probably make a killing on it.

another awesome, informative video.

Can you make a video on how to make pickups?

I paid just $280 for my 1973 Tele Custom... but that was in 1981. And yes, the 'real' Fender Wide Range Humbucker from the 70s has a tone like no other. Awesome video, thank you.

Best wide range explanation in the business!!! Wow!!!

How are the Mojo Tone wide range humbuckers?

@dylantalkstone hey! Nice videos! Are WRH splittable? Were interested on both upgrading and splittin a mexican Fender Telecaster Deluxe WRH-WRH! What are your thoughts? Is it possible? So worth the effort? Thx from Barcelona bro!

Mojotone also makes an excellent WRHB.

The humbuckers in my '75 Tele Deluxe sound pretty special.

Thanks for the explanation.

Hi Dylan, great video!! i have one question for you..
The new Wide Range from Fender, they are the same pick ups in Squiers, Mexicans, or AVRI custom telecasters? they have different versions? The neck pick up is the same than the bridge one? thanks, and cheers from Argentina.

This is very helpful. But it leaves me with a question. If you can’t machine AlNiCo magnets to make them threaded screws, but you can machine them enough to make them pole pieces in single coils, why not for repros just take two single coil pickups, do the reverse wind reverse polarity thing like you often do so I’m in between start or tele positions so they’re hum cancelling, but then put them next to each other as one Humbucker? Yes you couldn’t have adjustable pole pieces, but would that potentially be a more affordable way of more accurately reproducing the original WRH sound?

I own a 78 custom , many people who play fender,love playing it ,lotta balls in the neck pick up,
Very thin bridge , but Gibson Hb people say it's a vain attempt, though not completely stock, electronics are stock...gee what's it worth today ?

I love my 74 tele deluxe mostly because of the wide range pickups it has. Definitely my favorite pickups hands down.

We're the "lawsuit era" Matsumoku knockoffs the same. My telecaster thinline knockoff by Matsumoku was not only played better than any fender I've played, it sounded killer for both Gibson and Fender tones. If they are different, I want the different for a build.

all talk no test sound... boring

I have one and yes, I do believe they are different, but it will be great if there are tone comparisons, here or on the website.
Actually these pickups are not bad at all, so it will be difficult to consider upgrading without understanding the expectable outcome.

So what makes the CuNiFe machine able as opposed to the AlNiCo? I'd hazard a guess that the CuNiFe is harder but that's delving deep into the depths of guesswork.

So I see that the outside dimensions of pickup (cover) are apparently longer and wider than a standard humbucker. Why is this?
Are bobbins spaced farther apart?
Are bobbins longer?
If bobbins are longer, why are they longer?
Is it because coils are wound flatter like a p90 is?
Are they simply longer for no practical reason?

Fender has just reissued the Wide-Range humbucker with original specs. I just ordered them, excited to see how they hold up compared to some of the boutique ones, like Lollars or Curtis Novaks.

I don’t mind the RI pickups — when all the knobs are on 10. They are certainly darker, and as you roll down either tone knob, this increases, and dramatically so at 6 or below (5 — 0, basically mud). Which really limits the range of pleasing sounds. I would like to have a bit more “bite” overall. I’m wondering how much difference changing the pots would make. Not even sure what’s in mine — a 2010 MIM. Might try that before I start thinking about buying new pickups. Any helpful suggestions would be much appreciated.

For anyone watching this more recently, fender made a cunife reissue pickup for 200usd

What about the wide range humbuckers in the Fender Select models? They sound very clear compared to my Gibson's. Are different than the muddy ones you are mentioning? I think they sound great on my Select Jazzmaster.

I’m pretty sure I have an original one but it’s for bass. Would it work on my reissue?

I have a 1963 SG Custom, all three pickups are PAFs. I'm quite proud of that.

DYLAN >> Looking to upgrade the PuPs on my Player Telecaster HH, and looking for a great Jazz tone. QUESTION >> would your wide range PuPs fill the bill, or do you have another recommendation? Also interested in better quality tone / volume pots and selector switch that are solderless.

Wow dude i almost bought the reissue ones before watching this 10/10 video

Don't underestimate the Creamery repro of the Wide Range though! I have one in a Stratocaster and it's a superb pickup in its own right. Maybe not an exact copy of the original but it has superb clarity and string separation when you wind up the grit.

What do you think about of model fender pawn shop 51 with the humbucker enforcer

How close is a WR Humbucker in tone to a T Top, bearing in mind T Tops were closer to that " Tele on Steroids" sound than PAFs were?

Very well done! Comprehensive and informative 👍

So...why no sound demo ?

Dylan, as this was 4 years ago I'm sure you aware Fendercis now offering these again at $219 with potential discounting. Font work for Fender but looking for after your vid explaining pickup types. Thought these might make a great replacement for bridge on a newer Tele Modern with 3 way. I would sure like to hear the G&L Z coil up against these? Arent they basically the same thing with a different "presentation'?

Fantastic video thank you for the information. You definitely found the worst way of pronouncing CuNiFe to date and I love it.

Let me fix that beginning for you.

Most of those original Seth Lover humbuckers are very hard to get but if you're interested, you can email Joe Bonamasssa as he owns most of them in existence.

How to wire a wide range with a push-pull?

The Lollar versions still use Alnico 5 for the slugs. The original Fender Wide Range humbuckers from the 70's used CuNiFe in all positions. Seth Lover actually designed the Wide Range Humbucker as well. Seth left Gibson in 1967 and worked for Fender from 1967-1975. He then retired and was associated with Seymour Duncan, although Seth never worked under Seymour directly I believe. So Seth designed the PAF as well as both the WRH.

500 bucks for a magnet and a bunch of scews? I wouldn't spend that on a car! 😮 😂

What about the bass wide range humbucker on fender basses?