The
Vintage Noiseless series is a line of
electric guitar pickupsA pickup device is a transducer that captures mechanical vibrations, usually from suitably equipped stringed instruments such as the electric guitar, electric bass guitar, Chapman Stick, or electric violin, and converts them to an electrical signal that is amplified, recorded, or broadcast.-...
made by Fender. Introduced in 1998, they feature a stacked-coil design. The range includes models for electric guitars and basses. The Vintage Noiseless pickups were an original equipment material on the
American Deluxe seriesThe Fender American Deluxe Series is a line of middle-range electric guitars and basses introduced by Fender in 1998 and upgraded in 2004 and again in 2010.The American Deluxe line replaced the Plus Series models of 1987....
instruments made between 1998 and 2003. They are now widely used on many Mexican-made and Custom Shop guitars such as the
Eric ClaptonThe Eric Clapton Stratocaster is the signature model electric guitar of English guitarist Eric Clapton, and was the first signature model guitar ever released by Fender.-Background:...
and
Jeff BeckThe Jeff Beck Stratocaster is an electric solid body guitar made by Fender Musical Instruments for British rock guitarist Jeff Beck. This Artist Signature guitar was introduced in 1991 and upgraded ten years later...
signature models since 2001.
Samarium Cobalt Noiseless
The
Samarium Cobalt Noiseless series (SCN) is another line of replacement stacked electric guitar and bass pickups, designed by
Bill LawrenceBill Lawrence is a recording musician and an electric guitar pickup designer/maker and guitar designer/maker in the musical instrument industry, designing pickups and guitars for Fender, Gibson, Peavey and other companies from the 1950s to the present.MusicianThe Bill Lawrence story began...
. Introduced in 2004, they are similar to the Vintage Noiseless pickups, but employ miniaturized samarium cobalt alloy magnets instead of
AlnicoAlnico is an acronym referring to iron alloys which in addition to iron are composed primarily of aluminium , nickel and cobalt , hence al-ni-co, with the addition of copper, and sometimes titanium. Alnico alloys are ferromagnetic, with a high coercivity and are used to make permanent magnets...
5. The SCN pickups were a standard equipment feature on the
American DeluxeThe Fender American Deluxe Series is a line of middle-range electric guitars and basses introduced by Fender in 1998 and upgraded in 2004 and again in 2010.The American Deluxe line replaced the Plus Series models of 1987....
series from 2004 to 2010.
Hot Noiseless/SCN
Hot Noiseless and
Hot SCN models for
StratocasterThe Fender Stratocaster, often referred to as "Strat", is a model of electric guitar designed by Leo Fender, George Fullerton, and Freddie Tavares in 1954, and manufactured continuously by the Fender Musical Instruments Corporation to the present. It is a double-cutaway guitar, with an extended top...
guitars also exist and claim a hotter output than a standard Noiseless Strat pickup.
The Hot Noiseless pickups use a dual-coil design with
ceramic magnetsFerrites are chemical compounds consisting of ceramic materials with iron oxide as their principal component. Many of them are magnetic materials and they are used to make permanent magnets, ferrite cores for transformers, and in various other applications.Many ferrites are spinels with the...
; likewise, the Hot SCN employ samarium cobalt alloy magnets.