Your Favourite P90 Guitar ?

earwighoney

RaymondLin said:

If the magnets are INSIDE the coil, the poles? won't that make it technically a single coil?

Yes a P90 is a single coil, just there are construction differences a normal P90 which has a butterfly bobbin, screws and two magnets underneath the bobbins.

A staple P90 has adjustable alnico magnets where the screws are with the adjustable mechanisms underneath the bobbin.

JezWynd

This is my second ES-125t and it's my favourite guitar ever.  It's a 1960; neck is slimmer than the '59 I had previously and took a bit of adjusting to but it sounds glorious plugged or unplugged.

WezV

RaymondLin said:

WezV said:

RaymondLin said:

If the magnets are INSIDE the coil, the poles? won't that make it technically a single coil?

Having one coil makes it a single coil

How many Coils does a P90 have?

I thought both have single coil and the difference is that P90 have a magnet at the bottom.  Single coils have magnets in the poles itself.

A p90 is as much a single coil as a tradional strat pickup.

They both have one coil.

mo6020

I've been mulling over something with P90s for a while, but this thread triggered my GAS so hard that I actually went to Andertons and GAK to try and get a Casino in Olive Green and was foiled by them being out of stock.... I'm kinda glad for that as I've bought too much gear the last 18 months  

DB1

The Fano Alt de Facto SP6 has a Lollar P90, as does the Collings (but twice as many). It sounds more 'acoustic' on the Fano, but that could be the construction - it's very 'alive', where the Collings is fatter and darker in tone. ES-175 was a limited run (of 50, I think) in 2006 and the way it sounds (and feels, now that I've refretted it and got rid of the railway sleepers that it had for frets) is about as 'vintage' as it gets - and I have had a 1956 2xP90 ES-175. The ES-125's P-90 sounds just like you'd expect it to. Lovely.

I couldn't really say which is a favourite, as they're all different, the closest being the 175 and 125, I suppose. Possibly I'd choose the Fano and the ES-125, although I'll have changed my mind tomorrow. Or later today.

 

hollywoodrox

I’m not keen on p90s but played a PRS 245 the other week and it wasn’t bad 
  So I’ll say that 

Dodge

TTony said:

I do actually buy guitars with P90s too, not just make them ...




Wiz points for anyone that correctly identifies those two

Both of them are delicious.  Tope one is a Hamer USA Artist P90.  Bottom one is one of your Nathan Sheppards perhaps?

TTony

Wisdom points are yours @Dodge !

That's my last surviving NSG.    Still a beautiful piece of work.

Philly_Q

I've got a silly number of guitars with P-90s, all Gibsons and Epiphones.  And in the past there was a Hamer, a PRS, a Fano and a Gordon-Smith.  Not sure if there's a favourite though.  Maybe my TV White singlecut LP Special cherry doublecut LP Junior.... I don't know.

Dodge

TTony said:

Wisdom points are yours @Dodge !

That's my last surviving NSG.    Still a beautiful piece of work.

Very kind. I wow'd your original post. Because...  well...  wow!

Both are stunners.

steer

My only P90 guitar is a Fender Modern Player Jaguar. Plugged straight into my amp, with no effects, it probably sounds the best out of all my guitars. 

TADodger

WezV said:

DavusPG said:

boogieman said:

WezV said:

Ooooh matron! That’s a beauty. 

What guitar is that? Looks stunning

long build thread here
https://www.thefretboard.co.uk/discussion/comment/2948615#Comment_2948615

TADodger said:

WezV said:

I'm all about the staples at the moment

 

@WezV - how does a staple P90 differ from the the norm please?

coil shape and wind are simialr... most of the difference is in the magnets.  They have a alnico magnet for each pole piece inside the coil, rather than 2 magnets underneath the coil and steel polepieces like a normal P-90.   The version on the archtop is adjustable, so each magnets can be raised or lowered.   Adjustable versions need a deeper pickup route

Gibson's staple pickup was basically a rip-off of the dynasonic  that Les was sticking in his les paul's

They are both fatter and brighter than a normal P-90

Useful, thanks @Wez. I still think that the P90 in my junior sounds a bit over bright, so may look into trying a staple at some point.

PhilKing

These are my P-90 guitars.  If I was pushed it would be hard to pick between the custom and the special though the Goldtop is great too.

earwighoney

@PhilKing

The Black Custom is X rated.

Keefy

DavusPG said:

Keefy said:

Beautiful - which humbucker sized P90s are those?

Bareknuckle Mississippi Queens.

TTBZ

Mines favourite by default as it's the only P90 I have - BKP Mississippi Queen neck pickup in my SG. Probably my favourite neck pickup ever, it does the singlecoil thing without being thin and weak. Don't really like neck humbuckers in general, it's too dull and thick. In an SG I still kind of prefer a humbucker in the bridge though. Had a BKP Pig 90 for a while which was a beast too. If I ever get a 2nd guitar with humbuckers I'll either try a bridge MQ or more likely an Oil City Critical Mass 90.

I'd love a black LP Custom P90 like the Epiphone 1955 one.

Dontgiveupyourdayjob

Bah, this thread's just giving me some serious GAS for something with P90s in, some cracking looking guitars in here!

Had 3 guitars with P90s but moved them all on for one reason or another. My Yamaha TVL signature was like a boat anchor and had an annoying switching system, an Epiphone LP Special I had briefly had an Uber chunky neck I couldn't cope with, and I had to sell the lovely Peerless era Casino I had to fund a car repair.

What I'd really want is a Gibbo 330, but way out of budget sadly! 

Jota

Keefy

Exorcist said:

 


My number one P90 guitar to play. (62 SG Special.)

I played one just like this in Manson’s about 5 years ago. It was the best sounding guitar I have ever played.

markblack

'53 ES125. fun when i fancy something different.