CLF-100 vs CS 69 Pickups?

[Tele174]

Hi everyone,

After many years as a Strat owner, I recently got a 2015 Legacy that I just can't put down. Now I have a good problem though... The guy I bought it from had changed out the stock CLF-100s to Fender CS 69s. He threw in the original stock G&L pickups with the guitar. So, now I have two pickup sets on hand (my original plan was to sell one of the sets to help defray some of the cost of the guitar). I like the way the CS 69s sound, but I also loved the way the CLF-100s sounded when I tested out some Tribute Legacies on the way to getting my US Legacy. Has anybody had experience with both pickup types, particularly in a Legacy? I am not very handy, and the thought of busting out a soldering iron on such a nice guitar to do a pickup swap makes me pretty nervous. And I've just dropped a good bit of money on some repairs to another instrument, so I don't want to have to pay to have the pickups swapped back to stock unless I have a reason to think I'd like them better. (Also, FWIW, the previous owner had it rewired to a more traditional Fender wiring scheme, so I don't have the PTB system in place right now. So that could obviously be a variable when comparing the pickups). Any thoughts on whether there is a significant difference between the CS 69s and CLF-100s?

[john o]

Hi Tele 174, i wouldn't tell you what to do, seems like it's a good kinda problem to have.
I've owned strats with MIM ceramic pups, vintage noiseless pups, and custom shop texas specials.
The last 2 of those 3 sets sounded fine.
I had a trib Legacy with CLF 100's and I think they were the best sounding of the 4 sets.
That's totally subjective, and there's more to how a guitar sounds than the pups. They were 4 different gtr's.
My gut says if you like the way the legacy sounds with current pups, stick with'em.
If you're dissatisfied in some way with their sound, or ambitious, swap in the CLF-100's. Worst that can happen is they'll sound worse, and by then you'll be better with a soldering iron!

[Craig]

Hi Tele 174, i wouldn't tell you what to do, seems like it's a good kinda problem to have.
I've owned strats with MIM ceramic pups, vintage noiseless pups, and custom shop texas specials.
The last 2 of those 3 sets sounded fine.
I had a trib Legacy with CLF 100's and I think they were the best sounding of the 4 sets.
That's totally subjective, and there's more to how a guitar sounds than the pups. They were 4 different gtr's.
My gut says if you like the way the legacy sounds with current pups, stick with'em.
If you're dissatisfied in some way with their sound, or ambitious, swap in the CLF-100's. Worst that can happen is they'll sound worse, and by then you'll be better with a soldering iron!

Plus 1.

I would also suggest you convert it back with the :PTB wiring. See in our Gallery:: Album: Legacy Diagrams.