Need a single coil in neck position...which p90?
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Posted on Oct 19, 2010 02:01 pm
Quincysan
http://www.unitedmusicians.info
Contributor Since: Nov 11, 2007
Yo!
Hue's recent "none blacker" guitar acquisition inspired me to get mine taken care of finally. I yakked about doing it a few months ago but I'm just getting around to it. To recap:
It's a Squier 51, single coil in the neck position, humbucker in the bridge position. It's kind of like a fat strat, but with a more me-friendly ergonomic.
I'm thinking about putting a p90 in the neck position and leaving the humbucker as is (hb sounds ok, previous owner put in something custom). Any suggestions on which flavor p-90 to check out?
I want the "p90 sound" but I'm certainly not going to break the bank getting something vintage put in. Anyone know anything about these Bill Lawrence p90's?
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HuePinnipedal Czar (: 3= Member
Since: Apr 11, 2004
Oct 19, 2010 02:11 pm These guys may give you some unconsidered options. Sorry doesn't really help with deciding, but P-90s arent the same size as humbuckers, so maybe there are some here that would do without major mods/routing.
www.guitarfetish.com/GFS-Guitar-Pickups_c_7.html
Maybe the Dream 180 ?
TadpuiI am not a crook's headMember
Since: Mar 14, 2003
Oct 19, 2010 03:20 pm Yeah, a P90 is larger than a single-coil and smaller than a humbucker. So to put a P90 in there, you'd have to route the body to accomodate one. Or if you put a P90 in place of a humbucker, you'd have to buy an adaptor plate.
But, Bill Lawerence gets a lot of good press. I've never played them before but next to the big guys, BL is mentioned near the top of the heap of pickup manufacturers.
Quincysanhttp://www.unitedmusicians.infoContributor
Since: Nov 11, 2007
Oct 19, 2010 06:51 pm I kind of expected to get some routing done. I don't expect this to be cheap :-(...however! The Bill Lawrence "p90" looks to be your typical single coil form factor. It also claims to be noiseless.
I'm a little suspicious of this "noise free" stuff. Any idea how noise free single coils work? Bill's noise free single coils certainly look like a plain ol' single...not one of those stacked humbucker things.
Here's the Bill Lawrence:
wildepickups.com/Wilde_Bill_s_NF_Singles.html
L280 is the "p90"
I know we went over this a few months ago in one form or another but if you'd be so kind to refresh me on your opinions of these mods I'd certainly appreciate it:
1.) Strip the paint. Don't care what it looks like, I want longer sustain at any aesthetic cost, even if the sustain gained is marginal, especially considering...
2.) Bigsby B5 tailpiece with a custom rocking bar bridge bent to my 9.5" radius.
3.) Graphtech Teflon injected "Tusq" nut. I installed this several months ago. I know Tad mentioned last time that tuning/string breakage issues would be a concern, this nut was a preemptive strike against such unpleasantness.
4.) Shield the inside of the guitar from fluorescent lights and other would-be tone frustrators.
5.) Upgrade the wiring gauge if necessary...not sure what gauge I should expect or request. I could use some guidance here for sure.
If you can think of any tone enhancements I might as well get done now please let me know. As always, I really appreciate the input!
HuePinnipedal Czar (: 3= Member
Since: Apr 11, 2004
Oct 20, 2010 09:11 am I'm pretty sure that 'noise-free' pups are achieved with a dummy load on the same circut, with an opposite polarity... er, something like that.
A 'tusq' nut? I hope no pinnipeds are hurt in the making of those.
Quincysanhttp://www.unitedmusicians.infoContributor
Since: Nov 11, 2007
Oct 21, 2010 02:37 pm Hahaha, the Tusq nut is emulated pinniped bone only, but also with Teflon.
I met with the tech last night and this is most definitely my go-to guy. I bet he has 1500 sqft of shop space in his basement and tons of awesome stuff (electronics, tremolos, nuts, bridges etc etc) in plastic containers lining the walls. I am happy to report that heaven exists, and it is in a basement in Olathe, Kansas.
"p90? Got one in this drawer...but would you rather have a Fender lace sensor?"
"Not sure"
So he hooked up the lace and I played it for a few. Kept the lace and gave him $30 for the pickup, labor and new strings.
He also happens to have a Bigsby B5 lying around and he convinced me into getting a roller bridge for it. He wasn't a fan of the idea to strip off the finish for increased sustain. He's a "pretty guitar" type of guy. Every guitar he's made looks like a 10 lb PRS...but with a little BC Rich attitude. Is it an instrument or a weapon? This man blurs the line, hah. Not terribly surprised that he won't strip it. A lot of work to do something that in his eyes is probably some vile sin.
Next week the B5 goes in!
