Who has/remembers 1st generation GFS Retrotron Memphis and/or Nashville pickups?

[Gear_Junky]

I have a pair of the current-production GFS Retrotron Memphis alnico 2 pickups in my archtop (they're fantastic):

but do you remember a few years ago when they looked like this:

that's a picture of the original Nashville (ceramic), but I don't have an actual picture of the original Memphis. I am assuming they're in the same shell, but I've heard otherwise.

I'm curious to hear your experience/impressions with them. Maybe pictures of your guitars? I am not basing any decisions on this, I just happened to buy some of each at GFS clearance recently and don't even have a guitar for them, so I wanted to do a little "research". Thanks!

 

[stevieb]

Not doubting they sound great, but that's a goofy-looking design. IMHO, maker went too far in trying to differentiate them in an admitted crowded market.

 

[Gear_Junky]

I think I could agree, especially if you think of them as filtertron "copies". They'd look goofy in a gretsch (except maybe electromatic 5120's which already look goofy with those "dumbuckers"). They can look good and even great in other guitars which are being "styled" as gretsch without being full copies.

This is a matter of taste, of course, so it doesn't need defending, but to me they look cool on their own. Cool in the sense of being much better/stylish looking compared to the old boring covered and uncovered humbuckers, the ugly strat singles and the unfinished look of telecasters (1 covered, 1 exposed). Again, this is a matter of taste, so don't go defending your precious strats and les pauls.

The current retrotrons look a little goofier in person than in pictures. The old ones actually look better in person. They're kinda like a visual breed of filtertrons and hilotrons.

Here's a couple of examples: reverend guitars. those aren't the same pickups, but the same shells. Not necessarily my favorite "look", but a good example:

not bad.

Not doubting they sound great, but that's a goofy-looking design. IMHO, maker went too far in trying to differentiate them in an admitted crowded market.