houndman55 Posted September 26, 2014 Share Posted September 26, 2014 Hey, Was the humbucker invented solely for the purpose of stopping the P90 humfest? I mean humbuckers are far superior for that sustained tone that the les paul is known for. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pippy Posted September 26, 2014 Share Posted September 26, 2014 Yes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stein Posted September 26, 2014 Share Posted September 26, 2014 ....But I might add the humfest continues because some of us are still using the P-90. Ah, the grind! the flavor! The sear and the punch! It's like catnip to a cat. I get excited. To my ears, the hum coming up to volume when the drummer starts a count is like smoke from a pan when one is searing a T-bone steak. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pippy Posted September 26, 2014 Share Posted September 26, 2014 Weirdo. P. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rabs Posted September 26, 2014 Share Posted September 26, 2014 ....But I might add the humfest continues because some of us are still using the P-90. Ah, the grind! the flavor! The sear and the punch! It's like catnip to a cat. I get excited. To my ears, the hum coming up to volume when the drummer starts a count is like smoke from a pan when one is searing a T-bone steak. Lol... love it I kinda feel like that too... I like their sound so much that I don't care about hum... its like raw power in your hands ;) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cjsinla Posted September 27, 2014 Share Posted September 27, 2014 Hey, Was the humbucker invented solely for the purpose of stopping the P90 humfest? I mean humbuckers are far superior for that sustained tone that the les paul is known for. At least that's your opinion, they are just different flavors IMO. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
flyingfrets Posted September 27, 2014 Share Posted September 27, 2014 ....But I might add the humfest continues because some of us are still using the P-90. Ah, the grind! the flavor! The sear and the punch! It's like catnip to a cat. I get excited. To my ears, the hum coming up to volume when the drummer starts a count is like smoke from a pan when one is searing a T-bone steak. EXACTLY!!! Weirdo. P. Perhaps, but he's right Lol... love it I kinda feel like that too... I like their sound so much that I don't care about hum... its like raw power in your hands ;) Yup. That's why I dumped the 'buckers outta "Black Magic" (yeah, she's an Epi, but WHAT an Epi!) in FAVOR of custom built P90s. Also did the Strat staggered polepiece mod on the neck pickup. My GOD!!! What a sound... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stein Posted September 27, 2014 Share Posted September 27, 2014 Pippy's right. I am weird. He's not the judgemental type. He is making an experienced, intelligent observation. Now, I got to thinking: bear with me. EVERY "humbucker" version of a single coil I have ever tried I didn't like. Not at all. I am not saying "didn't like as much", I am saying not at all. not one bit. ESPECIALLY P-100's. Not only do they not sound like P-90's to me, but they don't sound or play good at all. Hate them. Not that I didn't try. I had them laying around like paperwieght and refrigerater magnets. I digress. Tried Stacks in Strats. Plenty of them. Even as a possibility, an option of being able to switch to a "quiet" position, there is no reason to have that position. Even as the appeal of a quiet pup for SOME things was there, if even to play quietly by myself, indulge in the "fidelity" of a good amp, or, address the complaints of others (and there were plenty), I have never tried and liked a stacked humbucker that I liked to play. I learned to use the volume knob between. That's a different subject, digress again. Point: my amps, I make quiet. I don't use pedals that much. I don't use noisy ones. Also, I have actually tried noise gates and such because, honestly, P-90's ARE loud hummers. Not like Strats or Teles. Didn't like those either. Question and thoery: what about a device, or a pedal, that ADDS hum? Would it make things sound better? Traditional humbuckers have always sounded good to me, unlike "stacks" of single coils. Could these be even more improved with a little hum? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jdgm Posted September 28, 2014 Share Posted September 28, 2014 Could these be even more improved with a little hum? Buy an EH Clone Theory! Or is it that you remember tape hiss...maybe..... I have P90s. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stein Posted September 28, 2014 Share Posted September 28, 2014 Buy an EH Clone Theory! Or is it that you remember tape hiss...maybe..... I have P90s. The Deluxe Reverb, the origonals, (any blackface Fender) are prone to resister noise, "hiss", if you will. Now you got me thinking, would some amps benifit from a device that adds some hiss? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
flyingfrets Posted September 28, 2014 Share Posted September 28, 2014 My kids would tell you that you don't really know "weird" till you've spent a few hours with me :P ! But now,I digress... I don't enjoy P90s because of their hum, and I don't believe it actually adds to their character. But I recognize it as an inherent part of their character, so the noise is an acceptable trade-off (to me). Playing alone, the noise does kind of jump out at you, but in a band setting, it's no more an issue that a Strat or a Tele (neither of which I care much for. Yeah, they're single coils, but they just don't have the voicing of a P90). Happily, my son is learning that using a particular guitar is as much about context as any other factor. He'd played "Black Magic" unplugged and loved the set up (very low, fast action), but said he didn't care for the sound through an amp...till he borrowed it to jam with a couple of his buddies a few weeks ago. That's when he discovered that the hum disappears into the ambient noise of a band and NOTHING cuts through like a P90. He said the guitar really came alive in that setting and after he let the other guitar player use it on a few tunes, the kid was making serious inquiries whether I'd want to sell it (No, I don't! Too much of me in it now to part with it). But all that being said, I have quite a few 'bucker equipped guitars (all varieties, '57 Classic, '61 Zebras, Burstbuckers, Probuckers, blah, blah,blah...) and truly love the sound of those too. There's just something so unique about the sound of the P90s...in my son's words, "Nobody expects to hear that kind of "spank" out of a Les Paul. And I have to say I agree. So, is this a case of weird minds think alike?!!? :lol: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pippy Posted September 28, 2014 Share Posted September 28, 2014 Pippy's right. I am weird... Stein knows I was just joshing!....... And you, ff, used the same word I choose to describe the sound of the P-90; 'Spank'. Sums it up perfectly!.................. P. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NHTom Posted September 28, 2014 Share Posted September 28, 2014 To quote Mike Ness..........."I'll put up with the hum any day just because that's become part of our sound" NHTom Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stein Posted September 28, 2014 Share Posted September 28, 2014 I find that Strats and Teles don't hum nearly as loud as P-90's. In my estimation, given the same volume setting, P-90's are at least twice as loud in the hum. I think it's correct that when the whole band is going, the hum doesn't get noticed. It's the in-between, especially when no one is playing, or talking. And I find that it's mostly those who aren't used to it that get the most annoyed. The only way I have found that works is to just turn the volume down when not actually playing. It's a good habit for other reasons as well. Pippy knows that I know that he knows when I say everyone in one way or another likes a good spanking. Perhaps another good analogy, more "Scots", if you will, would be to use drink. Humbuckers are robust and smooth like beer. Strats are like wine, weak, but refined with a little bite. P-90's are the whiskey of the bunch. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
flyingfrets Posted September 28, 2014 Share Posted September 28, 2014 P-90's are the whiskey of the bunch. THAT is a great analogy...BTW, I happen to be a Jack Daniels/Jim Beam guy. I'm beginning to see a pattern here... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
2PoFoAGibSon Posted November 25, 2014 Share Posted November 25, 2014 I want this sooo bad..it sucks being 2PoFoAGibSon..< ^ : Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SoundMaster Posted November 26, 2014 Share Posted November 26, 2014 Original post deleted by author. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr. C.O. Jones Posted November 27, 2014 Share Posted November 27, 2014 Man, just when I thought I was over it you guys start to speak about how nice the P90´s sound. Two weeks ago i found an SG with P90 for sale with a Marshall combo for an awesome price. Sent a mail to that guy asking for more info and some more pics, and........ still waiting! Same thing with a Slash Signature LP TB, but with this one i can understand why he doesn´t contact me, he was selling it for the price of a Studio!!! I think it´s probably a Chibson. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
capmaster Posted November 27, 2014 Share Posted November 27, 2014 My only P90 guitar, a Weimann Blues Bird with Seymour Duncans stock, is a fantastic instrument, but outperformed by my Gibson Les Paul guitars featuring humbuckers. Wound G3rd tones are the only application left for this particular guitar strung .012"-.054". I think I would never again buy any guitar with P90s. It had to be P100s. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jimi Mac Posted December 1, 2014 Share Posted December 1, 2014 Pippy's right. I am weird. He's not the judgemental type. He is making an experienced, intelligent observation. Now, I got to thinking: bear with me. EVERY "humbucker" version of a single coil I have ever tried I didn't like. Not at all. I am not saying "didn't like as much", I am saying not at all. not one bit. ESPECIALLY P-100's. Not only do they not sound like P-90's to me, but they don't sound or play good at all. Hate them. Not that I didn't try. I had them laying around like paperwieght and refrigerater magnets. I digress. Tried Stacks in Strats. Plenty of them. Even as a possibility, an option of being able to switch to a "quiet" position, there is no reason to have that position. Even as the appeal of a quiet pup for SOME things was there, if even to play quietly by myself, indulge in the "fidelity" of a good amp, or, address the complaints of others (and there were plenty), I have never tried and liked a stacked humbucker that I liked to play. I learned to use the volume knob between. That's a different subject, digress again. Point: my amps, I make quiet. I don't use pedals that much. I don't use noisy ones. Also, I have actually tried noise gates and such because, honestly, P-90's ARE loud hummers. Not like Strats or Teles. Didn't like those either. Question and thoery: what about a device, or a pedal, that ADDS hum? Would it make things sound better? Traditional humbuckers have always sounded good to me, unlike "stacks" of single coils. Could these be even more improved with a little hum? Have you tried the Blues-90 stacked coil P90's? The ones that come in the JT Riboloff designed Gibson Blues Hawk... They have some simply superb tone! They just might be an acceptable compromise... The closest I have come to them are the Wilkinson W90 stacked P90 style pickups in my Vintage (brand) V100GT. I think they have some simply awesome and quite possibly superior tone to most P90 type pickups. Although I must confess I've not owned any guitars with true P90's in them to compare... I'm looking to change that and have total GAS over a Gibson SG Junior model guitar these days and suspect I will end up owning one before too long... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stein Posted December 1, 2014 Share Posted December 1, 2014 My only P90 guitar, a Weimann Blues Bird with Seymour Duncans stock, is a fantastic instrument, but outperformed by my Gibson Les Paul guitars featuring humbuckers. Wound G3rd tones are the only application left for this particular guitar strung .012"-.054". I think I would never again buy any guitar with P90s. It had to be P100s. I don't think you would like P-100's. If you don't likr P-90's, you won't like P-100's. If you like P-90's, you won't like them either. P-100's are actually 2 VERY hot coils wound reverse of each other. One coil is like 14k or something like that. The output is reduced back to "normal" by a lot of the two coils cancelling each other out. "Hot" pups seem to lack a lot of sparkle and definition to begin with, so there isn't much to start with. Two coils cancelling a lot of output also tends to cancell out the "good" stuff along with it, that there isn't much to start with. That's my thoery, anyway. I got to hand it to the designer(s) though, frequency and overall tonality are real close to a P-90. But they are a real boring, dull sounding pup. They just don't have any of the harmonics or color, or fidelity of...well, anything really. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stein Posted December 1, 2014 Share Posted December 1, 2014 Have you tried the Blues-90 stacked coil P90's? The ones that come in the JT Riboloff designed Gibson Blues Hawk... They have some simply superb tone! They just might be an acceptable compromise... The closest I have come to them are the Wilkinson W90 stacked P90 style pickups in my Vintage (brand) V100GT. I think they have some simply awesome and quite possibly superior tone to most P90 type pickups. Although I must confess I've not owned any guitars with true P90's in them to compare... I'm looking to change that and have total GAS over a Gibson SG Junior model guitar these days and suspect I will end up owning one before too long... As much as it "seems" I know a lot about all the different P-90's, there are lots I haven't tried. I have a Gibby with "H-90's", that is basically a true P-90 with a smaller, added coil to the bottom. They were mistakenly referred to (in Gibson literature) as "humbucking", but they aren't and not made to be. In fact, adding the extra coil makes the pup a little louder, and a little noisier in the hum department. But other than that, if the coil is off, is an actual Gibby P-90 and sounds like one. The reason I bring that up, is that alledgedly, Gibson has used this same pup in other designations, like P-90H. But Gibson seems to be kinda secretive about it and no one knows for sure. Either they don't want to say, or they actually don't know in the "answer department" at Gibson customer service. A lot of pups Gibson makes are only available in the guitars. Not enough poeple really have that much experience with a lot of these various outside-the-radar P-90's Gibbson uses at times. But I would of corse, like to know. Lots of makers have taken to making "stacked" or noise-cancelling P-90's, like a holy mission. Of corse, they all swear it still sounds like the real deal. About the only one I would be interested in hearing if it's really true is the Fralin version, only because 1) P90's are a specialty of his, and 2) the ones he makes ARE good and sound like REAL p-90's. (Yea, I tried them). I am not really anxious about the possibility of a P-90 without noise because, I have heard it all before with Strat pups and tried many, many of them. None do. Never had. And that's coming from a guy who actually believes Jesus raised from the dead. Digressing back to P-90's and P-90ness, I CAN tell you that the Gibby P-90 DOES sound real close to a REAL, "vintage" P-90 like taken out of an old Gibby. AND thus, the Fralin as well. I don't know if the ones you can get now for sure are exactly the same as the ones I have had, (like the same wire supplier, etc.) So... What I MIGHT say to a guy who IS a potential P-90 fan and hasn't tried a real and true P-90, is that while you may like, or love the P-90 pups you have and they aren't full on real P-90's, you might have somewhere good to go trying them out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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