P90 experts - step this way!

victorludorum · November 2016

I currently have a guitar with a single coil in the neck (6k ish i think) and an Oil City Blitz in the bridge. I've had a bucker sized P90 sitting around for ages (vintage vibe guitars) that has a reading of just over 10 and I'm thinking about sticking it in the neck position instead of the Strat pickup. The thing that is stopping me is the potential vol difference because of the output difference, but I'm wondering if simply setting the P90 quite low will counteract this enough so that the difference isn't that noticeable. I've never had a P90 before, so am I on the right track here?

Sassafras · November 2016

I seem to remember reading that a pickup's resistance wasn't a reliable indication of it's power but I may be wrong.
I think inductance is a truer measure of their power.
As you can tell, I'm not really up on electronics.

WezV · November 2016

try it, there are no incorrect pickup combos.

yes, it might make it hard to balance volume but you can get close by adjusting heights. I like a humbucker in a tele neck position. You generally notice the tone difference more than the volume one.

also, vintage vibe p-90 sized humbuckers were the first custom pickup I used about 12 years ago. DiMarzio, SD's and the other usual suspects before, U.K. Made swinesheads and bkp's shortly after.... Totally non standard construction but I remember them being pretty good

victorludorum · November 2016

I'm considering going for a rewind, which shouldn't cost the earth, and that way I can get exactly what i want, which would be a '50s type wind. I'm going to give it a crack in the meantime as it might just work nicely off the bat. As @Sassafras says resistance is not a perfect guide, but I'm pretty sure that what I have will be pretty meaty, so it'll be a bit of fun even if it's not a long term solution ;-)

57Deluxe · November 2016

P90s pack far more punch than Fender Strat style single coils

olafgarten · November 2016

I love P90's they are great, like a Strat single coil but a lot fatter and with more bite.

Cyberlawyer · November 2016

I just got my first guitar with P90s and to be honest I'm blown away. All the clarity and bite of a single coil with all the midrange punch and growl of a humbucker, they don't even seem that susceptible to hum which I was worried about. Maybe it's just because the guitar already had some Booteek hand wound jobbies installed, or maybe it's just the honeymoon period that goes with all new gear, but I'm impressed.

OilCityPickups · November 2016

victorludorum said:

I currently have a guitar with a single coil in the neck (6k ish i think) and an Oil City Blitz in the bridge. I've had a bucker sized P90 sitting around for ages (vintage vibe guitars) that has a reading of just over 10 and I'm thinking about sticking it in the neck position instead of the Strat pickup. The thing that is stopping me is the potential vol difference because of the output difference, but I'm wondering if simply setting the P90 quite low will counteract this enough so that the difference isn't that noticeable. I've never had a P90 before, so am I on the right track here?

With a DCR of over ten your HB sized P90 is wound with finer wire than a normal P90 ... you simply can't get 10k worth of 42awg wire in a humbucker cover. Therefore its DCR is no indicator that it will be louder than your Bliitz Spirit ... around 8.5k with 42awg wire. It will be a bit quieter if anything (and a bit more compressed because of the wire gauge). I would hazard a guess that it's been wound with 43awg to keep close to the 10,000 turn P90 'sweet spot'.

victorludorum · November 2016

TheGuitarWeasel said:

victorludorum said:

I currently have a guitar with a single coil in the neck (6k ish i think) and an Oil City Blitz in the bridge. I've had a bucker sized P90 sitting around for ages (vintage vibe guitars) that has a reading of just over 10 and I'm thinking about sticking it in the neck position instead of the Strat pickup. The thing that is stopping me is the potential vol difference because of the output difference, but I'm wondering if simply setting the P90 quite low will counteract this enough so that the difference isn't that noticeable. I've never had a P90 before, so am I on the right track here?

With a DCR of over ten your HB sized P90 is wound with finer wire than a normal P90 ... you simply can't get 10k worth of 42awg wire in a humbucker cover. Therefore its DCR is no indicator that it will be louder than your Bliitz Spirit ... around 8.5k with 42awg wire. It will be a bit quieter if anything (and a bit more compressed because of the wire gauge). I would hazard a guess that it's been wound with 43awg to keep close to the 10,000 turn P90 'sweet spot'.

You are spot on, sir, and thanks for the info :-) His site says 9,500 turns of 43awg. I've no idea what magnets it has, but I'll give it a crack and see how it goes. If it's too hot for my liking, it'll be coming your way for some changes in a month or so. Thanks Ash :-)

metale · November 2016

I've had a neck humbucker-sized P90 (6.9K awg 42, alnico IV magnets) overpower a bridge humbucker (9.4K awg 42.5, alnico V magnet).

Tweaking heights never got me there, so had to split them: coupling the P90 with another P90 and the humbucker with another humbucker.

P90s are pretty punchy, and I think it has much to do with the double magnet design.

Note: the P90 did balance well with another bridge humbucker (14K awg 43, alnico IV).

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P90 experts - step this way!

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