I've never modded a Tele, but I own two of them that fit into the range you're talking about...a MIM Nashville Tele with the Strat pickup between two Texas Specials, and a reissue Custom with the Fender "wide range" humbucker in the neck position. See below...
The Nashville has a 5-way switch, and positions 2 and 4 give me all of that Strat "quack" you're talking about. Position 4 (middle + bridge) almost perfectly replicates that Sultan of Swing tone. I replaced the original 5-way with a new switch that in position 1 gives me neck + bridge instead of the neck by itself -- I thought the Tele nick pickup just sounded a little dull on its own. With the bridge pickup it's much more usable. Of the 5 positions I use position 3 (Strat pickup on its own) the least.
My understanding is the Japan Custom reissues have humbuckers built with different magnets than the original 70's pickups. Whatever, I love the pickups in my Custom. That guitar can go from all-out Tele twang to a pretty good imitation of a Les Paul, and when you select both pickups the tone is amazing. Great clarity and string separation.
I think you'd love a 3-pickup Tele. As for replacing the P94, it might be interesting to see if you can find one of these Fender wide-range humbuckers. They're probably a good match for your bridge pickup and I think they crank out great humbucker tone that's just a little different than that classic Gibson sound.
Good luck! |