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REVIEWS
TV JONES RAY BUTTS
FUL-FIDELITY FILTER’TRON
Our current Maker’s Mark series began with the background
of these units but, suffice to say, Ray Butts designed and made
Filter’Tron pickups before signing the manufacturing over to
Gretsch, and his original name for his pickup was the Ful-Fidelity.
Having been granted custody of Ray’s archives and parts, Tom
has recreated the original Ray Butts design as close to the original
specifications as possible.
Early bridge Filter’Trons had taller covers, and prospective
customers must account for the height – approximately 25.2mm
with a shim and 22.5mm without – to ensure these will fit their
guitar without extra routing to achieve the necessary clearance. The
Set a neutral clean amp tone, select the pole screws also protrude beyond the baseplate by about 7mm.
bridge pickup, form an A major barre chord
at the 5th fret and pick through the strings IN USE
evenly. Determine which strings sound Given their history and spec, it’s no surprise that the Ray Butts
balanced and which are comparatively loud pickups sound extraordinarily close to our vintage Filter’Trons.
or quiet. To increase the volume of a string, These have a touch less weight in the lows, especially on the neck
raise its corresponding pair of pole screws, pickup, and they’re not quite as gutsy, but they do have marginally
and to reduce output, lower the screws. higher fidelity.
Use your ears and be aware that the strings The sound is clearer and less gritty than the vintage units – the
and pole screws don’t always line up. Vintage- Ful-Fidelities are extremely refined and capture detail superbly.
style Filter’Trons had 1.9-inch screw spacing The key difference is that you don’t get the slight blurriness in the
in the bridge and neck. Consequently, the upper mids that has become associated with classic Filter’Tron
screw heights may look wonky once you’ve tone. Overall, they’re arguably more practical but slightly less
dialled in a balanced response. characterful, and that’s an observation rather than a criticism.
Here, the only sets with vintage spacing
are the High Sensitives, Ray Butts Ful-
Fidelities and Mojotrons. All the others KEY FEATURES
have two-inch bridge spacing, with the PRICE $175 each
DESCRIPTION Humbucking pickups, made in the USA
Sparkle’Trons measuring 2.2 and 2.1 inches.
Setting pole-screw height is the key to FEATURES 42 AWG magnet wire, 1/4” alnico V magnet, unpotted
DC RESISTANCE 4.25k (bridge), 3.77k (neck)
achieving the balanced Filter’Tron growl. CONTACT tvjones.com
Repeat the procedure for the neck pickup
and, once you can switch between the two
with a consistent level and even balance, the These authentic vintage-style Filter’Trons deliver impressive clarity
in-between setting will sound fantastic. 9/10 and are well worth the money
GUITAR MAGAZINE 109
