Session ace Brent Mason's famous '67 Telecaster has three humbucker pickups and three controls. Fender just released a Brent Mason signature Telecaster, which is a replica of this guitar.
Fender just released a signature model for one of Nashville's most prolific session guitarists. Let's look inside his number one guitar.
Welcome back to Mod Garage. Let's take a closer look at what's usually referred to as the Brent Mason Telecaster wiring. It's also been called "Telecaster blend wiring" or "Nashville Telecaster wiring," and I think it's time to cover this one in detail for several reasons. First and foremost, I've received numerous requests from you, dear readers, to do this. Fender recently released a faithful replica of Brent Mason's Telecaster, and also, my PG colleague John Bohlinger did a great Rig Rundown video with Mason just weeks ago. Mason is an outstanding player and absolutely nice guy so it's only logical to cover the wiring of his famous '67 Telecaster. Unless you're living in a cave, you've heard about Mason and his playing, which he's laid down on more Nashville studio records than one can count.
Mason's famous "automobile primer gray" 1967 Telecaster has three humbucker pickups and three controls. It's basically a standard 3-way Tele pickup-switching circuit plus an additional volume control to blend in the middle pickup. These are the pickups Mason uses in his Telecaster, all from the Seymour Duncan company:
Rig Rundown: Brent Mason [2021]
- Neck position: Vintage Mini Humbucker (Mason tenderly calls it a "Baby Humbucker"), built-in 180 degrees flipped, so the open pole pieces are facing the bridge rather than the neck for some more high-end and clarity in the tone. The pickup is wired with both coils in series for full humbucking functionality and no control to split it.
- Middle position: Mason is using an older version of the Hot Stack Strat STK-S2 with the red pickup cover and engraved Seymour Duncan logo on top. The current model has a white cover that's partly open on top. Hopefully, the iconic early red pickup cover will be available again for that special look. The pickup is wired with both coils in series for full humbucking functionality and no control to split it.
- Bridge position: Vintage Stack Tele STK-T3b, which is wired with both coils in series for full humbucking functionality and no control to split it.
These are the pickups installed in Brent's original Tele and also the pickups Fender is using for the signature model. This is an HHH pickup combination, by all means. Why Fender labelled it an SSH combination on the webpage ... well, we don't know.
In general, you can use any given pickup combination for this wiring. If you want to be as close as possible, this is your shopping list. If you only want to get in the same ballpark, you should use a vintage-flavored Tele bridge pickup, a hotter (overwound) Stratocaster middle pickup, and a PAF-style humbucker or hot P-90 for the neck position. No matter if they're single-coils or humbuckers, it will work.
"This wiring worked well for Mason right from the start: A hum-free operation is absolutely essential for work in a studio."
Why did Mason choose such an unusual pickup combination, you might ask? According to Mason himself, he didn't have much money in his early career and could only afford one guitar. This had to cover everything he needed in the studio. Brent wanted a Telecaster bridge pickup to cover all the country playing that was popular in the early '90s. For this, he also installed a B-Bender (Joe Glaser system, Mk1 version). He also wanted a Stratocaster tone, especially the in-between tone from bridge and middle together in parallel, and a Les Paul-ish tone from the neck position. So, the pickup combination he chose made sense, and Nashville's Joe Glaser did the wiring for him, which is the reason why Mason named this wiring "Glaser wiring."
This worked well for Mason right from the start: A hum-free operation is absolutely essential for work in a studio. But the wiring underwent some evolution during the years regarding the push-pull pot, which is the master tone control. This was initially wired to split the Hot Stack middle pickup into a single-coil, and all the diagrams of this wiring that are online right now still display this version. Today, the push-pull pot is wired to switch the middle pickup on and off. This is also the way Fender's Mason signature Tele is wired and what I'll be showing you. If you want the older wiring, you can find several examples online. They are also correct, but simply not up to date with Mason's current wiring.
I asked Mason directly about this, and I'm more than happy to share his reply:
"Basically, it's a standard 3-way switch with an extra volume knob that controls the middle pickup. Three knobs, left to right: volume (for neck and bridge), volume (middle), tone (for all 3) with an extra feature to pull on the tone knob to cut the middle pickup off or on. The middle pickup with the volume knob enables you to roll in the desired amount to blend with either neck or bridge. The pull knob on my original '67 Tele cuts the Seymour Duncan Vintage Stack split coil in half to single-coil. Later on, over the years I found that feature useless. We decided to make that tone control knob cut the middle pickup off and on. Upward position is off. The pickups are all Seymour Duncan; Mini Humbucker in front, Hot Stack in middle, and Vintage Stack in bridge." āBrent Mason
Building The Limited-Edition Brent Mason Telecaster | Dream Factory | Fender
For more on the guitar and its story, I recommend watching the video about it.
So, what do we need for this wiring? We know the pickups, but we don't know exactly what's used for the electronics and how it's wired. Fender didn't release a wiring diagram for the signature model yet and Joe Glaser didn't publish anything about it. My diagram (Fig. 1 - scroll below) will work exactly as it should, but maybe the original guitar is wired slightly different. As you know, many roads lead to Rome.
I was able to find a photo of the wiring Fender did (Photo 1) and extracted a still shot of Brent's original guitar from the Fender video mentioned above (Photo 2).
Photo 1
Photo courtesy of FMIC
Photo 2
Photo courtesy of FMIC
On these two photos, we can clearly see:
- The push-pull pot is wired to switch the middle pickup on and off.
- All three pickups are wired for full humbucking functionality with both coils in series.
- No treble-bleed networks are used on the two volume pots.
- Mason still has the '67 original Sprague "Circle D" 0.05 uF high-voltage ceramic tone cap in his guitar.
This only leaves us with two unknown parameters: resistance of the three pots, and on/off wiring of the middle pickup. I think it's three 250k audio pots, but if you want a tad more high-end, using a 500k audio push-pull master tone pot is worth a try. I would use two 250k audio volume pots to benefit from the much better taper range compared to a 500k potāthe nature of the (passive) beast.
To activate or cut off the middle pickup there are two different ways: connecting the pickup to the switch or using a push/pull volume pot for the middle pickup. I decided to use the second version because when connecting the pickup directly to the switch, the volume pot stays connected to the circuit, adding some load to it, resulting in less high-end. Please note that the master tone pot will not work on the middle pickup when the master volume is not set to "10" (aka fully opened). When you start to roll down the volume, the middle pickup gets disconnected from the master tone, no matter if you switch the pickup itself or the volume potāthat's part of the game.
Fig. 1
To keep the wiring diagram (Fig. 1) as clean as possible, I showed all ground connections only with the international symbol for it rather than drawing several black wires through the diagram. I also only show two pickup wires (hot and ground) but keep in mind that these are humbuckers with a four-conductor wiring plus separate ground wire, so you'll have to solder some wires together to end up with only two pickup wires. The separate ground wire always goes directly to ground (casing of a pot, etc.) and assuming you're using Seymour Duncan pickups, you'll have to follow this color code:
- Black wire = hot output
- White and red wire are twisted together, soldered, and isolated
- Green wire = ground
For other pickups, you'll have to use the corresponding color code from the manufacturer. For single-coil pickups, you don't need to do all this.
Is this wiring perfect or are there any mods that can be done? At least it's perfect for Mason and his playing. If it's good enough for him, it should be good enough for all of us. But this is only half the truth.
If you have Brent's playing chops, you don't depend much on any equipment. Even with the cheapest, meanest, off-tuned junk guitar, Mason will sound much better than most of us. The better you play, the less you depend on equipment. It's absolutely okay and no sacrilege to mod this circuit to your personal needs. If you want to use the push-pull pot for splitting one of the pickups rather than switching the middle pickup on and off ... go for it! If you want to use treble-bleed networks for the volume pots or want to implement splitting for all three pickups, there's no law against doing so.
That's it for now. Next month we'll continue with our DIY relic'ing project.
Until then ... keep on modding!- Rig Rundown: Brent Mason [2021] - Premier Guitar āŗ
- First Look: Fender Brent Mason Telecaster - Premier Guitar āŗ
- The Telecaster Mod Guide - Premier Guitar āŗ
- Fender Esquire Basics - Premier Guitar āŗ
- Ultimate Broadway Nashville T-Style Guitar Build & Test - Premier Guitar āŗ
Over the decades with Hüsker Dü, Sugar, and solo, Bob Mould has earned a reputation for visceral performances.
The 15th studio album from the legendary alt-rocker and former Hüsker Dü singer and 6-stringer is a rhythm-guitar record, and a play in three acts, inspired by sweaty, spilled-beer community connection.
Bob Mould wrote his last album, Blue Heart, as a protest record, ahead of the 2020 American election. As a basic rule, protest music works best when it's shared and experienced communally, where it can percolate and manifest in new, exciting disruptions. But 2020 wasnāt exactly a great year for gathering together.
Mouldās album landed in a world of cloistered listeners, so he never knew how it impacted people. For a musician from punk and hardcore scenes, it was a disquieting experience. So when he got back out on the road in 2023 and 2024, playing solo electric sets, the former Hüsker Dü and Sugar frontman was determined to reconnect with his listeners. After each show, heād hang out at the merch table and talk. Some people wanted their records or shirts signed, some wanted a picture. Others shared dark stories and secret experiences connected to Mouldās work. It humbled and moved him. āIām grateful for all of it,ā he says.
These are the in-person viscera of a group of people connecting on shared interests, versus, says Mould, āāI gotta clean the house today, so Iām going to put on my clean the house playlist that a computer designed for me.ā āEverything has become so digitized,ā he laments. āI grew up where music was religion, it was life, it was essential. When people come to shows, and thereās an atmosphere, thereās volume, thereās spilled drinks and sweatāthatās what music ritual is supposed to be.ā
His experiences on tour after the pandemic heartened Mould, but they also gave him traction on new ideas and direction for a new record. He returned to the simple, dirty guitar-pop music that spiked his heart rate when he was young: the Ramonesā stupid-simple pop-punk ecstasy, New York Dollsā sharp-edged playfulness, Pete Townshendās epic, chest-rattling guitar theatrics. In other words, the sort of snotty, poppy, wide-open rock we heard and loved on Hüsker Düās Flip Your Wig and Candy Apple Grey.
Mouldās time on the road playing solo in 2023 sparked the idea for Here We Go Crazy.
Photo by Ryan Bakerink
Mould started writing new songs in the vein of his original childhood heroes, working them into those electric solo sets in 2023 and 2024. Working with those restraintsāguitar chords and vocal melodiesāput Mould on track to make Here We Go Crazy, his new, 15th solo record.
Lead single and opener āHere We Go Crazyā is a scene-setting piece of fuzzy ā90s alt-rock, bookended by the fierce pounding of āNeanderthal.ā āWhen Your Heart is Brokenā is a standout, with its bubblegum chorus melody and rumbling, tense, Who-style holding pattern before one of the albumās only solos. Ditto āSharp Little Pieces,ā with perhaps the recordās chewiest, darkest guitar sounds.
āItās a very familiar-sounding record,ā he continues. āI think when people hear it, they will go, āOh my god, this is so Bob Mould,ā and a lot of that was [influenced by] spending time with the audience again, putting new stuff into the set alongside the songbook material, going out to the table after the show and getting reactions from people. That sort of steered me towards a very simple, energetic, guitar-driven pop record.ā
Of his new album, Mould says, āI think when people hear it, they will go, āOh my god, this is so Bob Mould.āā
Mould recorded the LP in Chicago with longtime bandmates Jason Narducy and Jon Wurster at the late, great Steve Albiniās Electrical Audio. Then Mould retreated to San Francisco to finish the record, chipping away at vocals and extra guitar pieces. He mostly resisted the pull of ānon-guitar ornamentationā: āItās a rhythm guitar record with a couple leads and a Minimoog,ā he says. āItās sort of cool to not have a 64-crayon set every time.ā
Mould relied on his favorite, now-signature late-ā80s Fender Strat Plus, which sat out on a runway at OāHare in 20-below cold for three hours and needed a few days to get back in fighting shape. In the studio, he ran the Strat into his signature Tym Guitars Sky Patch, a take on the MXR Distortion+, then onto a Radial JD7. The Radial split his signal and sent it to three combo amps: a Fender Hot Rod DeVille, a Fender ā68 Custom Deluxe Reverb reissue, and a Blackstar Artisan 30, each with a mic on it. The result is a brighter record that Mould says leaves more room for the bass and kick drum. āIf you listen to this record against Patch the Sky, for instance, itās night and day,ā he says. āItās snug.ā
Mould explains that the record unfolds over three acts. Tracks one through five comprise the first episode, crackling with uncertainty and conflict. The second, spread over songs six to eight, contrasts feelings of openness with tight, claustrophobic tension. Here, there are dead ends, addictions, and frigid realities. But after āSharp Little Pieces,ā the album turns its corner, barreling toward the home stretch in a fury of optimism and determination. āThese last three [songs] should give us more hope,ā says Mould. āThey should talk about unconditional love.ā
The record closes on the ballad āYour Side,ā which starts gentle and ends in a rush of smashed chords and cymbals, undoubtedly one of the most invigorating segments. āThe world is going down in flames, I wanna be by your side/We can find a quiet place, it doesnāt need to be the Albert Hall,ā Mould starts. Itās a beautiful portrait of love, aging, and the passage of time.
Bob Mould's Gear
Mould paired his trusty Fender Strat Plus with a trio of smaller combo amps to carve out a more mid-focused rhythm-guitar sound in the studio.
Photo by Mike White
Guitars
- Late 1980s Fender American Standard Strat Plus (multiple)
Amps
- Fender Hot Rod DeVille
- Blackstar Artisan Series amps
- Fender '68 Custom Deluxe Reverb
Effects
- Tym Guitars Sky Patch
- TC Electronic Flashback
- Electro-Harmonix Freeze
- Wampler Ego
- Universal Audio 1176
- Radial JD7
Strings, Picks, & Power Supply
- D'Addario NYXLs (.011-.046)
- Dunlop .46 mm and .60 mm picks
- Voodoo Labs power supply
And though the record ends on this palette of tenderness and connection, the cycle is likely to start all over again. Mould understands this; even though he knows heās basking in act three at the moment, acts one and two will come along again, and again. Thankfully, heās figured out how to weather the changes.
āWhen things are good, enjoy them,ā he says. āWhen things are tough, do the work and get out of it, somehow.ā
- YouTube
Many of the tracks on Here We Go Crazy were road-tested by Mould during solo sets. Here, accompanied only by his trusty Fender Strat, he belts āBreathing Room.ā
Seven previously-unheard Bruce Springsteen records will be released for the first time this summer with āTracks II: The Lost Albums,ā coming June 27.
A set spanning 83 songs, "The Lost Albums" fill in rich chapters of Springsteenās expansive career timeline ā while offering invaluable insight into his life and work as an artist. ā'The Lost Albums' were full records, some of them even to the point of being mixed and not released,ā said Springsteen. āIāve played this music to myself and often close friends for years now. Iām glad youāll get a chance to finally hear them. I hope you enjoy them.ā
From the lo-fi exploration of āLA Garage Sessions ā83ā ā serving as a crucial link between āNebraskaā and āBorn in the U.S.A.ā ā to the drum loop and synthesizer sounds of āStreets of Philadelphia Sessions,ā āThe Lost Albumsā offer unprecedented context into 35 prolific years (1983-2018) of Springsteenās songwriting and home recording. āThe ability to record at home whenever I wanted allowed me to go into a wide variety of different musical directions,ā Springsteen explained. Throughout the set, that sonic experimentation takes the form of film soundtrack work (for a movie that was never made) on āFaithless,ā country combos with pedal steel on āSomewhere North of Nashville,ā richly-woven border tales on āInyoā and orchestra-driven, mid-century noir on āTwilight Hours.ā Alongside the announcement of āThe Lost Albums,ā a first look at the collection also arrives today with āRain In The Riverā ā which comes from the lost album āPerfect World,ā and encapsulates that projectās arena-ready E Street flavor.
āThe Lost Albumsāwill arrive in limited-edition nine LP, seven CD and digital formats ā including distinctive packaging for each previously-unreleased record, with a 100-page cloth-bound, hardcover book featuring rare archival photos, liner notes on each lost album from essayist Erik Flannigan and a personal introduction on the project from Springsteen himself. A companion set ā āLost And Found: Selections from The Lost Albumsā ā will feature 20 highlights from across the collection, also arriving June 27 on two LPs or one CD. āThe Lost Albumsā were compiled by Springsteen with producer Ron Aniello, engineer Rob Lebret and supervising producer Jon Landau at Thrill Hill Recording in New Jersey.
For more information, please visit brucespringsteen.net.
Tracks II: The Lost Albums
LA Garage Sessions ā83
1. Follow That Dream
2. Donāt Back Down On Our Love
3. Little Girl Like You
4. Johnny Bye Bye
5. Sugarland
6. Seven Tears
7. Fugitiveās Dream
8. Black Mountain Ballad
9. Jim Deer
10. County Fair
11. My Hometown
12. One Love
13. Donāt Back Down
14. Richfield Whistle
15. The Klansman
16. Unsatisfied Heart
17. Shut Out The Light
18. Fugitiveās Dream (Ballad)
Streets of Philadelphia Sessions
1. Blind Spot
2. Maybe I Donāt Know You
3. Something In The Well
4. Waiting On The End Of The World
5. The Little Things
6. We Fell Down
7. One Beautiful Morning
8. Between Heaven and Earth
9. Secret Garden
10. The Farewell Party
Faithless
1. The Desert (Instrumental)
2. Where You Goinā, Where You From
3. Faithless
4. All Godās Children
5. A Prayer By The River (Instrumental)
6. God Sent You
7. Goinā To California
8. The Western Sea (Instrumental)
9. My Masterās Hand
10. Let Me Ride
11. My Masterās Hand (Theme)
Somewhere North of Nashville
1. Repo Man
2. Tiger Rose
3. Poor Side of Town
4. Delivery Man
5. Under A Big Sky
6. Detail Man
7. Silver Mountain
8. Janey Donāt You Lose Heart
9. Youāre Gonna Miss Me When Iām Gone
10. Stand On It
11. Blue Highway
12. Somewhere North of Nashville
Inyo
1. Inyo
2. Indian Town
3. Adelita
4. The Aztec Dance
5. The Lost Charro
6. Our Lady of Monroe
7. El Jardinero (Upon the Death of Ramona)
8. One False Move
9. Ciudad Juarez
10. When I Build My Beautiful House
Twilight Hours
1. Sunday Love
2. Late in the Evening
3. Two of Us
4. Lonely Town
5. September Kisses
6. Twilight Hours
7. Iāll Stand By You
8. High Sierra
9. Sunliner
10. Another You
11. Dinner at Eight
12. Follow The Sun
Perfect World
1. Iām Not Sleeping
2. Idiotās Delight
3. Another Thin Line
4. The Great Depression
5. Blind Man
6. Rain In The River
7. If I Could Only Be Your Lover
8. Cutting Knife
9. You Lifted Me Up
10. Perfect World
Bruce Springsteen - Tracks II: The Lost Albums Trailer - YouTube
Enjoy the videos and music you love, upload original content, and share it all with friends, family, and the world on YouTube.Billy Corgan and The Machines of God announce 'A Return to Zero Tour' kicking off on June 7th, featuring classic tracks and deep cuts from iconic albums. Tickets available for presale on April 1st. Don't miss this unforgettable experience! Tour dates include Baltimore, Boston, New York, and more.
Today, Billy Corgan, the frontman of the iconic rock band, The Smashing Pumpkins, has announced a new solo project titled āBilly Corgan and The Machines of Godā who will commemorate the anniversaries of the legendary albums with sets drawn from Mellon Collie and The Infinite Sadness and the double album Machina/The Machines of God & Machina II/The Friends & Enemies of Modern Music as well as the 2024 release, Aghori Mhori Mei with a national US tour set to kick off this summer. The tour, titled A Return To Zero, will launch on June 7th and feature the four piece group also embarking on previously-confirmed festival shows.
The A Return to Zero Tour will reintroduce a four-piece, two set guitar lineup in which music from these seminal Pumpkins albums were created. The shows will feature classic tracks and deep cuts from the highly acclaimed records. In addition to Corgan, The Machines of God will feature recently recruited Smashing Pumpkins guitarist Kiki Wong, drummer Jake Hayden and bassist Kid Tigrrr (Jenna Fournier).
Tickets for the upcoming tour will be available for artist presale beginning Tuesday, April 1st at 10:00AM local time through Thursday, April 3rd at 10:00PM local time. Following the presale, the general onsale will begin Friday, April 4th at 10:00AM local time. Please see tour dates below and purchase tickets at ticketmaster.com.
Along with this touring announcement, The Smashing Pumpkins have revealed the details of the long-awaited and reconstituted release of the 2000 concept albums Machina/The Machines of God and its companion Machina II/The Friends & Enemies of Modern Music which have been extensively remixed and remastered. Corgan's Madame Zuzuās tea shop in Highland Park, IL will exclusively offer this expansive 80-song box set; featuring a 48-track āMACHINAā plus an additional 32 bonus tracks of demos, outtakes, and live performances, marking the first time these two records will officially be united. Additionally, the rock band will release a 16-song reissue of the original Machina/TheĀ Machines of God vinyl on August 22nd, and pre-orders will begin on June 27th.
This year will also celebrate the 30th anniversary of The Smashing Pumpkins era-defining acclaimed album, Mellon Collie and The Infinite Sadnesswhich set the sound for a generation. To commemorate the album, Corgan has partnered with Chicagoās Lyric Opera to world-premiere A Night of Mellon Collie and Infinite Sadness, a seven series performance taking place November 21ā30, 2025.
These noteworthy music announcements follow on the heels of an already exciting 2025 for Billy Corgan; earlier this year the rock legend also launched his applauded podcast series āThe Magnificent Others.ā
Beyond these accomplishments, the GRAMMYĀ® Award-winning musician, versatile producer, songwriter, poet, also serves as the President of the National Wrestling Alliance, owns Madame Zuzuās, a beloved tea shop in Highland, IL, and remains a devout philanthropist through varying initiatives focusing on animal advocacy and NO KILL shelters.
Billy Corgan and The Machines of God - YouTube
Enjoy the videos and music you love, upload original content, and share it all with friends, family, and the world on YouTube.Tour Dates
- June 7 - Baltimore, MD // Baltimore Soundstage
- June 9 - Boston, MA // Paradise Rock Club
- June 11 - Muskoka, ON // Kee to Bala
- June 12 - Toronto, ON // HISTORY
- June 13 - Montreal QC // Beanfield Theatre
- June 15 - New York, NY // Irving Plaza
- June 16 - Philadelphia, PA // Theatre of Living Arts
- June 17 - Allentown, PA // Archer Music Hall
- June 19 - Detroit, MI // St. Andrewās Hall
- June 20 - Joliet, IL // Taste of Joliet (Festival Performance)
- June 21 - Grand Rapids, MI // Intersection
- June 23 - Pittsburgh, PA // Roxian Theatre
- June 25 - Cleveland, OH // House of Blues Cleveland
- June 26 - Cincinnati, OH // Bogartās
- June 27 - Milwaukee, WI // Summerfest*
- June 29 - Minneapolis, MN // Varsity Theater
Cut the cord! PG contributor Tom Butwin goes hands-on with three compact wireless guitar systems from Positive Grid, NUX, and Blackstar. From couch jams to club gigs, find the right unit for your rig and playing style.
Positive Grid Spark LINK Guitar Wireless System
Enjoy a stable, noiseless experience with a compact wireless unit design, ultra-low latency, and an extended range. Other features include 6 hours of playing time per charge and a secure 110-degree hinged input plug connection.
NUX B-8 Professional Wireless System - 2.4GHz
A pedal-style professional wireless system geared for electric guitars, acoustic-electric guitars, bass guitars, and even electronic instruments, and transmits 24-bit 48 kHz high-quality audio.
Blackstar Airwire i58 Wireless System
This professional wireless instrument system is designed for guitars, basses, and other instruments with 1/4" outputs. Operating in the 5.8 GHz frequency band, it avoids interference from crowded Wi-Fi signals while delivering authentic tone, ultra-low latency (<6 ms), and high-resolution sound with no treble loss.
Learn More:
https://www.positivegrid.com/
https://www.nuxaudio.com/home.html
https://blackstaramps.com/