Switching a Guild Blues 90 from P90's to Mini Humbuckers?
- Thread starter MojoTooth
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Walter Broes
Enlightened Member
If you can get your hands on the pickup surrounds Gibson used for Les Paul Deluxes, it should be no problem, as these were essentially soapbar P90-covers with a hole cut into them.
I have been thinking about doing this, but haven't tried yet.
Jason Lollar has some videos showing how to do it: http://www.lollarguitars.com/mm5/merchant.mvc?Screen=mini-humbucker-installation
beinhard
Jason Lollar has some videos showing how to do it: http://www.lollarguitars.com/mm5/merchant.mvc?Screen=mini-humbucker-installation
beinhard
beinhard said:
wow, this will be VERY helpful!! I might just have to changr my blues 90 over to mini buckers, if not Lollar P9o's. The stock Sd's really sound rough imo.
Didn't Guild make some mini-buckers? Now If I could only find a set of those! If not Maybe some Duncan Antiquities or Lollars. Hmmmm
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Sacrilege!
Good P90s are the sexiest, nastiest, best sounding pickups ever. I'd put in some boutique P90s before putting in hums. Hell, I'd get a different guitar before putting in Hums. I hate seeing a guitar changed from what it was born to be.
What is it about the stock pickups that you don't like?
Good P90s are the sexiest, nastiest, best sounding pickups ever. I'd put in some boutique P90s before putting in hums. Hell, I'd get a different guitar before putting in Hums. I hate seeing a guitar changed from what it was born to be.
What is it about the stock pickups that you don't like?
I dont know all the terminology to use but they sound shrilly and like they have super highs. maybe what i am looking for it that they are too hot? I like the sound of the vintage P90's in my friends early 70's firebird, they sound less shrill and hot and still fat but without as much of a distorted/high gain sound.GAD said:
Per Lollar website, this sounds like what I am trying to say and the tone I want"
"Copied from Sean Costello’s ‘53 Goldtop these P-90s have lower output, more delicate attack, less midrange and bass, and are coupled with weak magnets. Overall tone is brighter with less of a grind to the distortion quality and is slower to overdrive an amp than the stock P-90 set."
murkat
Member
the mini humbucker bezel and fixture is a tricky thing. Les paul deluxes were specific cavity route for the mini's.
You can convert a deluxe with minis to P90's easy, but not if the other way around.
There is going to be some heavy modding and routing involved to adapt to the mini's if there like Gibson's.
Have youu considered a magnet change, swap? Alnico 2 and or 3's will really smooth it out as well with a mojo 22 oil cap.
You can convert a deluxe with minis to P90's easy, but not if the other way around.
There is going to be some heavy modding and routing involved to adapt to the mini's if there like Gibson's.
Have youu considered a magnet change, swap? Alnico 2 and or 3's will really smooth it out as well with a mojo 22 oil cap.
Walter Broes
Enlightened Member
I stand corrected on the mini-installation then!
Guild used Duncan's hot P90's for the bluesbirds, with ceramic magnets. I do agree with GAD that a good P90 is a much cooler pickup than any kind of humbucker.
Tone pot capacitors will not change the sound of your guitar unless you use the tone pots often.
Guild used Duncan's hot P90's for the bluesbirds, with ceramic magnets. I do agree with GAD that a good P90 is a much cooler pickup than any kind of humbucker.
Tone pot capacitors will not change the sound of your guitar unless you use the tone pots often.
murkat said:
The video that Beinhard linked us to shows Lollar changing a LP style from P90s to minis with ease. Did you see those vids? I am dumb to these things but it didnt look like there were too many mods. Or is the Guild Blues 90 built different.
Yes, if I change to another set of P90's I would go with a set of Lollars that have Alnico 2's or have Mojotone here in town wind me a custom set with a blend of Alinco's for a vintage tone.
http://www.lollarguitars.com/mm5/mercha ... 90-pickups
http://www.mojotone.com/Guitar-Parts/Cl ... F-Spaced_6
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I recently bought a Gibson Les Paul Special with P100s in it. They're being replaced with a set of Sheptone P90s.
All the reading I've done indicates that a lot of people consider Lollars to be "too modern sounding" whatever that means. Lots of people don't like the sound of the Lollars from what I've read because they don't sound like vintage P90s, which I think is what you're after (as am I).
I'll post an update after I install the Sheptones and let you know what I think of them. FWIW, the P100s in this guitar are sterile and boring - just like Fender HB1s.
What kind of tone are you after? For me, the archetypal P90 tone is Mississippi Queen, and almost the entire Aqualung album. THAT's the tone I'm after. I don't know if a Bluesbird will get that. I had an Epiphone '56 Reissue which was a beautiful guitar, but the maple cap altered the tone. I'm after plank of 'hog with raw P90s tone, which is what led me to the LP Special.
All the reading I've done indicates that a lot of people consider Lollars to be "too modern sounding" whatever that means. Lots of people don't like the sound of the Lollars from what I've read because they don't sound like vintage P90s, which I think is what you're after (as am I).
I'll post an update after I install the Sheptones and let you know what I think of them. FWIW, the P100s in this guitar are sterile and boring - just like Fender HB1s.
What kind of tone are you after? For me, the archetypal P90 tone is Mississippi Queen, and almost the entire Aqualung album. THAT's the tone I'm after. I don't know if a Bluesbird will get that. I had an Epiphone '56 Reissue which was a beautiful guitar, but the maple cap altered the tone. I'm after plank of 'hog with raw P90s tone, which is what led me to the LP Special.
GAD said:
That's why I would opt for the Lollar 50's wind soapbar since they are a lot lower output or the Mojotone vintage clone because they are low output too. My only experience with P90's before opting for the Blues 90 was the set that are in the early 70's Firebird my friend has and I love those.
murkat
Member
Jason can wind you up some skanky nice P90's, and mojo are good people as well.
Lindy fralin knows P-90's very, very well. You tell him what you want tone wise, what guitar, he will nail it top shelf.
jason adapted the mini to a p90 app. good stuff.
I was inclining to what it is in a true mini gibson situation to another application.
Lindy fralin knows P-90's very, very well. You tell him what you want tone wise, what guitar, he will nail it top shelf.
jason adapted the mini to a p90 app. good stuff.
I was inclining to what it is in a true mini gibson situation to another application.
Mojotone is only 15 mins from my house and I have been there to talk to them a few times, i'd likely go with their pups to save a little dough and them make the leap to the Lollars if needed. My luthier was wanting to the the minibuckers route because he said the lollar minibuckers are unreal toneful.
matsickma
Senior Member
Why not consider adding a set of reissue or stock DeArmonds? They might be a drop in and if not you may only need to size the edge ring on the pickup. If you want to get real fancy you can order the pickup rings (item 13 in the parts list provided below) from Fender from the Telesonic guitar. It takes a few months to get them but they are available.
http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl...a=X&ei=i6erTOrNAcG88gaq1YSyCA&ved=0CCMQ9QEwBg
http://support.fender.com/diagrams/telecaster/0101800C/SD0101800CPg3.pdf
http://support.fender.com/diagrams/telecaster/0101800C/SD0101800CPg1.pdf
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http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl...a=X&ei=i6erTOrNAcG88gaq1YSyCA&ved=0CCMQ9QEwBg
http://support.fender.com/diagrams/telecaster/0101800C/SD0101800CPg3.pdf
http://support.fender.com/diagrams/telecaster/0101800C/SD0101800CPg1.pdf
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Matt now that is something I haven't thought about.
Another question I;d like to know the answer to is the specs of the Franz P90's. How "hot" were the wound/what was the meter reading on a Bridge and Neck Franz P90. If I could get a set wound to those specs I'd be in business.
Another question I;d like to know the answer to is the specs of the Franz P90's. How "hot" were the wound/what was the meter reading on a Bridge and Neck Franz P90. If I could get a set wound to those specs I'd be in business.
Walter Broes
Enlightened Member
I have four sets of Franz pickups, and two of them read 5K each, the other two 6K each. Pickup makers winding neck and bridge pickups to different specs is a fairly recent thing, and wasn't done in the 50's and 60's.MojoTooth said:
Franz pickups might be a little bright for a guitar on the solid side of semi-solid though, I think. They can get piercing on a big hollow box with the wrong amp, and I can't imagine them sounding any woollier on a more solid guitar.
matsickma
Senior Member
If I recall correctly the width of the Franz Pickup is wider than a P90. I tried to drop a set into a Blues90 and decided I didn't want to trim the P90 hole. I think a Franz would sound good on a heavily chambered guitar like a Blues90 but you may need to change the saddles on the bridge to graphite to cut the brightness down. I have a pair mounted in a Semihollow DeArmond Starfire Special (i.e., looks like a SF3 but semihollow). It is bright but not bad in the neck position and I usually keep the tone pot turned down on the bridge pup to "2 or 3" to have more of a growling sound.
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