Do P90 pickups sound drastically different in different guitars?

jaymenon

I’m having a fabulous time playing a cheap Strat partscaster (below) which has a pair of cheap AlNiCo II P90s.

I can’t believe how lovely the P90s sound.

Which makes me wonder, does a P90 pickup sound significantly different on a Gibson style hardtail guitar? (shorter scale length, set neck, mahogany etc)

Or are the differences really subtle ?

https://i.imgur.com/iN7nx7v.jpg

PAL

If there inexpensive pickups what are the electrics ! because they can have an effect on the sounds of the pickups as 
  well. The amp would also have an effect on sound it's a rabbit hole really. If it is sounding good I would just play it and enjoy it.
  Good luck.

timmypix

All pickups sound different in all guitars!

But yes, the difference imparted by the differing scale lengths and bridge types/materials will affect how the strings are responding and in turn what the pickups are picking up. Distance from pickup to bridge is a big factor in how a pickup responds, too; I'm not sure if there's much of a difference between the position of a P90 in a pickguard in front of a Strat bridge compared to a P90 mounted in front of a tune-o-matic.

It'll be subtle to most non-guitarists, but I think most of us would hear a difference. Especially when playing, when you can hear how it's responding to your pick attack a bit better than if you're just listening.

Nerine

There’ll be differences, but perhaps not quite drastic as you’d expect. 

I find a lot of this stuff is blown waaaayyy out of proportion and it’s perpetuated to the point where it seems to almost become incorrectly absolute. 

The guitar the pickups are installed in will affect the sound of the pickups a bit. Yes. 

I’ve played two identical Suhrs that had the same Thornbucker pickups. One was Swamp Ash and Roasted Maple construction, the other was Alder (I think) and Rosewood. 

They did not sound the same. They were subtly (yet obviously) different through an amp (and unplugged), but that difference would probably disappear in a mix or when other instruments are playing. 

As for a completely different body shape or construction type, there’s no real way to know how different the pickups will end up sounding. I would expect it to be more different than the two Suhrs I back to backed, but who knows. Physics and resonant frequencies etc works in funny ways sometimes. 

Schnozz

I really like Seymour Duncan Phat Cats because they're quieter and most of my guitars are routed for Humbuckers.

I had a Yamaha SG1802 and the high output SP90-3s were too noisy.

Maybe something vintage would have been nicer, but I'd go with what I know and return to the Phat Cats.

PhilKing

The pickups won't change their sound, but with a fender scale length, they will pick up more harmonics and have a bit richer sound.  I have a 25.5" scale Les Paul, and it sounds a lot more open than my other LP's, even though it has the same pickups as one of the others.

Dave_Mc

Pretty much what @Nerine said. That being said, I think the trem might affect its tone a bit.  I've got a P90 in my Fret-King with a Wilkinson 2-point trem (granted yours is 6-point), and it sounds quite a bit different from my other P90s. Admittedly it's not the same P90 as in my other guitars, but my feeling is that a lot of the difference is coming from that floating trem.

NelsonP

The p90s in my Epiphone Casino (they are Gibsons) sound very different to those in my Gibson 57 special. I use to have a 2019 DC jr and that sounded different again.

So, based on that, I would say yes I think. Although maybe Gibson have different kinds of P90s too?

stickyfiddle

Worth bearing in mind that while they're relatively simple pickups, there is a huge range of styles of P90s, from really light 50s style ones to big high-output modern ones like Gibsons fits on most of its modern stuff. I'd say that difference is similar in scope to vintage PAFs vs high output Super Distortions or whatever 

OilCityPickups

One of the major reasons that a P90 or any other pickup will sound different on different guitars is the fact that pickups are not just working by induction, they are also microphones ... albeit crude ones. Unless you vacuum pot your entire pickup in a medium like epoxy resin it will - if only to a slight degree - be microphonic. When acting as 'microphones' pickups read more of the 'acoustic' sound of an instrument, and so read more of differences in construction between instruments.
This is why people tend to like unpotted pickups and looser windings ... however the down side is the lack of controllability with very microphonic pickups.  
 

elstoof

The mounting can play a part too right, P90 with foam vs wood shim vs springs etc?

Basher

OilCityPickups said:

One of the major reasons that a P90 or any other pickup will sound different on different guitars is the fact that pickups are not just working by induction, they are also microphones ... albeit crude ones. Unless you vacuum pot your entire pickup in a medium like epoxy resin it will - if only to a slight degree - be microphonic. When acting as 'microphones' pickups read more of the 'acoustic' sound of an instrument, and so read more of differences in construction between instruments.
This is why people tend to like unpotted pickups and looser windings ... however the down side is the lack of controllability with very microphonic pickups.  
 

I think this has just explained why the P90s in my hollow guitars (e.g. the Lollars in my Eastman T64) sound so markedly different to the ones I've had in solid Les Pauls (a special and an R6) which I remember as much "leaner and tighter", for want of a better term.

From what you're saying, the Lollars will be picking up more of the body resonance of the hollow instrument with would explain the extra low end. I know you get this with humbuckers too in a hollowbody but in my, albeit limited, experience the difference seems greater with P90s. 

noisepolluter

stickyfiddle said:

Worth bearing in mind that while they're relatively simple pickups, there is a huge range of styles of P90s, from really light 50s style ones to big high-output modern ones like Gibsons fits on most of its modern stuff. I'd say that difference is similar in scope to vintage PAFs vs high output Super Distortions or whatever 

I’m very interested to try @OilCityPickups take on the Gibson 50’s P90’s as I find the modern ones in my LP special quite dark - happy to sacrifice a bit of output for more sparkle.

First however I’m going to get the stock circuit board with 300k volume pots replaced with a loom with 500k to see if that improves the clarity a bit - will also make it easier to swap to non-Gibson pickups if I do decide to make the change.

OilCityPickups

noisepolluter said:

stickyfiddle said:

Worth bearing in mind that while they're relatively simple pickups, there is a huge range of styles of P90s, from really light 50s style ones to big high-output modern ones like Gibsons fits on most of its modern stuff. I'd say that difference is similar in scope to vintage PAFs vs high output Super Distortions or whatever 

I’m very interested to try @OilCityPickups take on the Gibson 50’s P90’s as I find the modern ones in my LP special quite dark - happy to sacrifice a bit of output for more sparkle.

First however I’m going to get the stock circuit board with 300k volume pots replaced with a loom with 500k to see if that improves the clarity a bit - will also make it easier to swap to non-Gibson pickups if I do decide to make the change.

Over the past thirteen or so years I've been repairing and rewinding if necessary genuine 1940s/1950s P90s I've found a huge variation between examples. 1940s super early P90s can run about 9k but seldom below 8. I've measured many 50s ones and they mostly pan out around 8k with a very few at perhaps 7.6k. 
The 'staple' was introduced to try and curb some of the bass happy tendencies of the P90 (and because at the time Les Paul liked DeArmonds over Gibson pickups). 
You can get more sparkle by lowering the winding count certainly ... but that's not how Gibson did it. 

Funkfingers

noisepolluter said: 

I’m going to get the stock circuit board with 300k volume pots replaced with a loom with 500k to see if that improves the clarity a bit.

It should. It might even increase the clarity a little too much.

Recent experience with a 2021 LP Standard suggests that nominal 440k is the wisest compromise value.

mburekenge

I'd love to try one of the Asher Marc Ford models

p90fool

P90s are no different to any other pickup in being influenced by the guitar they're mounted in. My SG sounds slightly sweeter on the the bridge pickup than my Les Paul does for example, as does my 99 quid Epiphone, disappointingly!

It's quite subtle though, to the point where after playing for a few minutes I just forget about it. 

What isn't subtle though is the effect of positioning on P90s, way more than humbuckers in my experience, probably due to their narrower field. 
Some late 60s SGs have the bridge pickup a lot further from the saddles than other models, in fact it took me three scratchplate attempts to find the sweet spot on my SG. 

Your Strat has the pickup a bit further from the saddles than say a P90 equipped Les Paul, so that's a big factor that's worth bearing in mind, probably way more than scale length or body materials.  

StuartMac290

breaking said:

I'd love to try one of the Asher Marc Ford models

I got Bill Asher to build me essentially one of these in his T Deluxe body shape - it's in my profile picture. It's the best guitar I've ever played, and the Arcane Sweet 90s are incredible.

mburekenge

Looks incredible!

StuartMac290

mburekenge said:

Looks incredible!

In all honesty I've never played an Asher that wasn't!

blueskunk

Single P90 in the next of my Epiphone Century is a real eye opener. EQ pedal and overdrive can produce some very cool tones. Responds to picking attack and placement of picking close to the bridge of the pickup. 

Had to raise the pole peices as the pickup is placed really far from the strings, apparently it’s like this on all Century’s. 

It’s due a set up soon so might address this then. The Epiphone P90 seems on the money but is pretty noisy. 

Anyone had experience with hum cancelling P90s whilst we on the subject?