u/blackstonewine

I'm trying to mod my Firefly FFTL telecaster guitar with Fender Pure Vintage '51 pickups. The same ones used in Fender American Vintage II 51 Telecaster. I played the AVII and it sounds great and want to see if I can get my cheapo firefly to sound like that.

I am going with the Fender 250k Vintage pots, which come with 0.022uf capacitors. But I keep seeing that vintage guitars used 0.047uf capacitors back in the day and those sound better.

What's been your experience like? If I am trying to recreate the sound I heard on the AVII 51, should I just stick to the 0.022uf capacitor? I think that that's what Fender uses in those guitars.

I have been watching some videos of Fender American Vintage II 1951 Telecaster and these pickups on that guitar sound really good. Is the pickup alone able to recreate these sounds on a cheaper, let's say, Squier Tele?

Also, wondering how these are compared to Lollar Special T + Vintage combo?

Got the red FFTL from the recent drop. I am impressed by the build and red sparkle color. The pickguard has some scratches, not a big deal.

But the pickups are not that good. And the strings are too tight. Not sure why. The frets look decently polished but playing this guitar is NOT really fun.

I wonder if these cheap strings are too stretched too tight that you can't really bend them easily or if there's something wrong with the guitar itself?

I might try changing the strings but don't want to void the return warranty.

Anyway, is this guitar worth upgrading? Thinking of putting on Tonerider classics and getting a full setup. Will probably cost me around $250+ but wonder if its worth the investment and time

Anyone in similar situation? Were the strings too tight to play in the beginning but got much better after setup/upgrades?

I love the neck profile (shape, thickness, radius) on the DK24s MIM.

Seeing that Pro Mod Plus necks might be different because they are made in Indonesia?

Looking to see if we can find more data points on this now that the Plus versions have been out for a while. Can you share your experience if you have played both?

I'm considering buying a DK24 Plus (have an offer for $1100), but I only want to get it if its the same neck profile as the reguar DK24s.