madgrinder Posted June 14, 2004 Share Posted June 14, 2004 What exactly IS a P-90? and what tone does it create differently? ...it's Mr Stabby, da da da da da daaaah, da da da da da da daaaah... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gabriel E. Posted June 14, 2004 Share Posted June 14, 2004 A P-90 is a specific model of single coil pickup produced by Gibson starting in the 50s (or maybe late 40s?). It's physically much bigger than the single coil pickups in a Strat or Tele. It's also wound a lot hotter with a higher output. They are often referred to as "soapbar pickups" since they resemble a bar of hand soap. http://www.molonatorguitars.com/images/p90.jpg "You never can vouch for your own consciousness." - Norman Mailer Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Werewolf by Night Posted June 14, 2004 Share Posted June 14, 2004 O.K., imagine a Les paul with a Tele's single coils, only wound really "hot" and fed through a compressor to add a plump sweet sustain that still has clarity and can "cut"; and has a great degree of sensitivity to your touch, so that lightly picked notes have a shimmer and sparkle, snapped-back strings have a lot of spank, and classic British blues style light up-strokes get fat, round tones with a blunted attack and a swelling bloom in the following envelope. Kinda like this ... (Both the clean and distorted parts are the same P-90 equipped LP) (In the interest of not being misleading, some of the "swell"-effects were done by using damping and muting to "touch control" a noise-gate) Ask yourself- What Would Ren and Stimpy Do? ~ Caevan James-Michael Miller-O'Shite ~ _ ___ _ Leprechaun, Esquire _ ___ _ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guitarzan Posted June 14, 2004 Share Posted June 14, 2004 p90= the best qualities of a humbucker (fatness) and the best qualities of a single coil (tone and cut) oh P90 i love you. and don't kid yourself, i CAN get major heavy tone with my p90 Godin. though not the best choice for drop d riffing, but when was that considered a great tone? http://www.soundclick.com/bands/pagemusic.cfm?bandID=193274 rock it, i will Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blue Strat Posted June 14, 2004 Share Posted June 14, 2004 Originally posted by Guitarzan: though not the best choice for drop d riffing, but when was that considered a great tone? Soundgarden seemed to thing it was, and I'd have to agree that they used it to great effect. BlueStrat a.k.a. "El Guapo" ...Better fuzz through science... http://geocities.com/teleman28056/index.html Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guitarzan Posted June 14, 2004 Share Posted June 14, 2004 i wasn't knocking anyone who actually plays guitar Blue, i was refering to the overgained drop d stuff that is blurred and muddy with no definition. and i am just being a smartass. don't take me too serious. http://www.soundclick.com/bands/pagemusic.cfm?bandID=193274 rock it, i will Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dennyf Posted June 14, 2004 Share Posted June 14, 2004 Some great examples of P-90 tone: 1. Mountain, "Flowers of Evil," side two (the live-recording side). (Yeah, I know, CDs don't have sides) 2. Lou Reed, "Rock & Roll Animal," all live. Despite an obsession with phase-shifters, you can still here the P-90 "rawk." I like 'em best in Juniors and Specials. I don't know if there's any actual difference between the dog-ear and soapbar varieties, but the planks with the dog-ears have the most distinctive P-90 tone to my ears. band link: bluepearlband.com music, lessons, gig schedules at dennyf.com STURGEON'S LAW --98% of everything is bullshit. My Unitarian Jihad Name is: The Jackhammer of Love and Mercy. Get yours. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
strat0124 Posted June 14, 2004 Share Posted June 14, 2004 Also another example of P90 tone (as TapeOp said) is Keith Richards opening riff on Brown Sugar. Said to be an SG with P90's through a Twin wide open. My first good guitar was a (and still have) 65 SG with P90's. It walks the dog. I also think those pickups are THE slide pickup. I currently use a hotrodded Jet Jr, with a Hot P90 just for slide. Occasionally for a special show, I'll bring out the SG. Its just a bit fragile and I'd have a coronary if something happened to it. I got it when I was in the sixth or seventh grade. I can tell cranked P90 tone right away, those who know do as well. Down like a dollar comin up against a yen, doin pretty good for the shape I'm in Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BillWelcome Home Studios Posted June 14, 2004 Share Posted June 14, 2004 Originally posted by madgrinder: What exactly IS a P-90? and what tone does it create differently?My frist P-90s came on my 1957 Gibson Les Paul. I gave the guitar way more than 20 years ago, and I have been looking for that sound ever since. I played my leads from the neck pickup... real big sound. Bill "I believe that entertainment can aspire to be art, and can become art, but if you set out to make art you're an idiot." Steve Martin Show business: we're all here because we're not all there. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lee Flier Posted June 14, 2004 Share Posted June 14, 2004 Why the "sudden" interest in P-90's? Cuz I guess a lot of people are just now finding out how much they RULE!! What I personally can't figure out is why everybody didn't know this all along. I've had my '52 Les Paul w/P-90's for 20 years and it's practically all I play. And even before I owned it, I was looking for one for years. I don't get how anybody prefers to play guitar without P-90's. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tedster Posted June 14, 2004 Share Posted June 14, 2004 I remember the first time I played my P-90 equipped Ibanez Talman through a Fender Vibrolux Reverb. Ahhhhhh... "Cisco Kid, was a friend of mine" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dennyf Posted June 14, 2004 Share Posted June 14, 2004 Originally posted by Geenard: My first good guitar was a (and still have) 65 SG with P90's. It walks the dog.Lucky dog. I DON'T still have mine, but that was a sweet guitar. Regretting that one is why I hardly ever get rid of a guitar now. Does yours have the small pickguard or the "full-face" style? Mine had the small one, which made me think it was a '67, but now I'm thinkin' it might have been a '65. band link: bluepearlband.com music, lessons, gig schedules at dennyf.com STURGEON'S LAW --98% of everything is bullshit. My Unitarian Jihad Name is: The Jackhammer of Love and Mercy. Get yours. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Werewolf by Night Posted June 14, 2004 Share Posted June 14, 2004 I really, really regret not snagging a particularly sweet, unbelievably clean (just a little "buckle-rash") '60 Les Paul Special that I ran across in a shop a few years back; that was one seriously good guitar! Like a super fat Tele, you could've done just about anything with that axe. Ask yourself- What Would Ren and Stimpy Do? ~ Caevan James-Michael Miller-O'Shite ~ _ ___ _ Leprechaun, Esquire _ ___ _ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PBBPaul Posted June 14, 2004 Share Posted June 14, 2004 I have a '65 Gibson ES330 hollow body with P90s. It is my absolute favorite sounding guitar. Like Geenard's SG, my 330 is pretty much retired from gigging now and only comes out of the studio for special occasions. Pic of beautiful guitar with P90s below. Ignore the goofy looking guy playing it. http://home.centurytel.net/pontiacblues/paul3_2.jpg Our new and improved website Today's sample tune: Lonesome One Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fantasticsound Posted June 14, 2004 Share Posted June 14, 2004 I think the problem with humbuckers is they have very little character compared with single coil's. This, however, is a plus for high gain timbres, where the high frequency content is goosed by the distortion. Single coils, by contrast, have immense character when used clean or with judicious amounts of tube overdrive. I find them to be obnoxious in most high gain situations unless considerable attention is paid to rolling off some high end, either at the guitar or on the amp. A carefully crafted overdrive with single's driving it can be finessed, played or all out forced to squeeze variable timbres out of one guitar/amp setting. Various single coil varieties from Fender and Gibson have distinct sounds, and I love all of 'em. But my two favorite electric guitar timbres are a neck P-90, clean with just a shade of overdrive, and a Strat, neck position, SRV or Mark Knopfler style. Hard to say I really prefer one over the other. It's as hard as deciding between a Ferrari or a Porsche. Two decidedly different approaches to magnificence! It's easiest to find me on Facebook. Neil Bergman Soundclick fntstcsnd Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dondottcomm Posted June 15, 2004 Share Posted June 15, 2004 I've got P90's in my L/P special..Ya gotta have P90's in something!After all anything less would be uncivilised ..LOL What? you mean I can take this block of fine swiss and make a song??...COOL! Don Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bbach1 Posted June 15, 2004 Share Posted June 15, 2004 Originally posted by dondottcomm: I've got P90's in my L/P special..Ya gotta have P90's in something!After all anything less would be uncivilised ..LOLOh damn, now I'm suddenly in the market for another guitar. I've got to keep off the forums. bbach Beauty is in the eye of the beer holder. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Major Tom Posted June 15, 2004 Share Posted June 15, 2004 O.K., imagine a Les paul with a Tele's single coils, only wound really "hot" and fed through a compressor to add a plump sweet sustain that still has clarity and can "cut"; and has a great degree of sensitivity to your touch, so that lightly picked notes have a shimmer and sparkle, snapped-back strings have a lot of spank, and classic British blues style light up-strokes get fat, round tones with a blunted attack and a swelling bloom in the following envelope. OOOHHHH I want a P90 guitar sooo bad...I've come close on a couple ebay deals, still waiting for that bargain... Also looking for a good deal on some P90-in-a-humbucker-size to drop in one of my existing guits... Oh damn, now I'm suddenly in the market for another guitar. I've got to keep off the forums. Isn't the internet wonderful! Did GAS exist to anywhere near the extent it does today before the 'net? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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