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Gibson SG Classic: replacing P90 w/Humbucker?


niceguy

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:eek::cry:

 

I suppose there are some, there's always the p100 design - a p90 with a ghost coil- so there's the humbucking effect with the same output and a very similar voicing. I'm sure there are true humbuckers that size that'd work, maybe even the mini-humbucker, but i love the sound of single coils, so i'm somewhat baised against changing it out and probably not the best person to be taking advise from on the matter :p

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I'm actually going to try putting in P-100s into my SG Classic this weekend, I'll let you know how it sounds. That being said, the P-100 is a stacked humbucker that looks like a P-90. Seymour Duncan also makes a stacked humbucker that looks like a P-90, it's the STK-P1, DiMarzio makes P-90 sized side by side humbuckers, Virtual p90, ToneZone P-90, P-90 Super Distortion, and DLX Plus.

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Why would you buy a classic if you want an HB tone? This defies explanation!!!


Anyway - if you're married to the idea, you can try mini-HBs - IIRC, they are the same size as P90s

 

 

P-90s are actually a fair bit larger. in a body you can coax the mounting ring SOMETIMES, but in a pickguard you're screwed.

MiniHB->P-90 is a pretty easy conversion. Backwards isn't.

 

My suggestion would be buying a good used faded, getting a neck P90/bridge HB pickguard made up, and doing it that way.

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DiMarzio offers a variety.

 

 

Yep they've got a few to choose from. Looks like a good bet.

 

If you want to get rid of your P90's let me know. I'm looking for a black set for my LP Special.

 

AL

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Yep they've got a few to choose from. Looks like a good bet.


If you want to get rid of your P90's let me know. I'm looking for a black set for my LP Special.


AL

If it's the color you're worried about I think that you can just swap covers...could be mistaken though.

 

A word of warning about the SD stacked P90's; they are too deep because they are stacked and the SG body is so thin.

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Ok, I've got the P100s in. Now mind you, I've modified them, with a coil split at about the 8k mark on the top coil (yes, that means I unwound them to that point, spliced in the tap, and rewound them) SO I have a P-90 when split/tapped, and P-100 when both coils are used. No additional routing was required.

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I agree, don't do it. I only did it because I'm an electronics technician, and can unwind, tap, and rewind pickups, so I can still get the P-90 sound when using a push-pull. That being said, a P-100 does NOT sound like a conventional humbucker. In a conventional humbucker (PAF style) the two coils are wired in SERIES. Meaning two coils 4k each (roughly in the case of a PAF), reverse wound and reverse polarity from eachother, which gives you a total of 8k. In the case of the P100, the two coils are wound in SERIES, this would mean to get an output of 8k, each coil (if they were equal) would have to be 16k (which is why I unwound the top coil, tapped it, and re wound it.

 

So, a P-100 and a Humbucker have very different sounds, the P-100 is more clear and has more trebble. the LC (inductive capacitance) of the P-100 is closer to a P-90, so it sounds MORE like a P-90 than a humbucker, but of course, not EXACTLY like a P-90. The P-100 is an entity unto itself, much like a filtertron, or a lipstick, etc etc etc. To each their own. I wanted the ABILITY to get rid of the hum, but still tap into the P-90 (by literally tapping into the top coil)

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Besides, the perfect tone is different to each player. I don't much like DiMarzio Super Distortions, but somehow Jimmy Page made them work. Many Strat players hate the "vintage noiseless" pickups Fender makes, but Clapton has been playing those for YEARS...and, here's the weird thing...he STILL sounds like Clapton!!!

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