cbmccarthy Posted March 17, 2009 Share Posted March 17, 2009 Fellas: I'm new posting to the forum, so I'll just say that I love reading it and find it to be a tremendous resource. That said, I just became the proud owner of an antique red Gibson Custom Shop ES-330L. I'm thrilled with the tones I can get out of the guitar, the neck is the best I've moved on and, overall, it appears to be sturdy and excellently crafted -- thus far. But I've been having issues with feedback (which I knew to be an issue with P90s from the beginning, but have never had this much trouble with them). When I'm plugged in, the feedback hums and oscillates back and forth when I make the slightest movement or take even the smallest step. I've turned the volume down, too, but it's still audible. Plus, the tone is not nearly what it is when turned up to at least halfway. I have to say, I'm not the guy who stands in one place when I play. I like to get into it a bit. Is this just a quality issue with these pickups or a side effect of the Memphis Tone circuit? I've heard people at my local shop say flat out Gibson P90s aren't nearly as good as Fralins or Lollars, but I'm in the dark on that one. I haven't played either. If I continue playing and find it is still a problem, I'm going to consider changing out the pups. But I think I'm limited with the dogear P90 that this guitar takes. I mean, it's not like I could just drop a humbucker or mini humbucker in there because I haven't found a mounting for either that suits the dogear style. Any ideas? Suggestions? Gibson stock picture Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pohatu771 Posted March 17, 2009 Share Posted March 17, 2009 You've just got to learn to avoid it... also, lower the gain... they don't like that. You've discovered what Casino players have been struggling through for decades. I wouldn't trade it, though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
elantric Posted March 17, 2009 Share Posted March 17, 2009 If its high frequency microphonic feedback - wax dip the pickups solves that. Low frequency "woof" can be controlled a bit by stuffing the guitar with fiberfill Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cbmccarthy Posted March 17, 2009 Author Share Posted March 17, 2009 Thanks a lot guys. I'll take the appropriate steps. I don't think the Gibson pups are wax potted, so maybe I'll give that a try and just play my *** off after. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
elantric Posted March 17, 2009 Share Posted March 17, 2009 The ES-330 was my 1st Gibson in 1969 I sadly traded it for an SG due to fret access and problem feedback I had. Years later I learned I could have solved the my feedback issues by Wax dipping bridge P90 PU. You should have it done by a professional - as its very easy to damage the PU if you are untrained in such endeavors. google "wax potting pickups" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chongo Posted March 22, 2009 Share Posted March 22, 2009 Fellas: I'm new posting to the forum' date=' so I'll just say that I love reading it and find it to be a tremendous resource. That said, I just became the proud owner of an antique red Gibson Custom Shop ES-330L. I'm thrilled with the tones I can get out of the guitar, the neck is the best I've moved on and, overall, it appears to be sturdy and excellently crafted -- thus far. But I've been having issues with feedback (which I knew to be an issue with P90s from the beginning, but have never had this much trouble with them). When I'm plugged in, the feedback hums and oscillates back and forth when I make the slightest movement or take even the smallest step. I've turned the volume down, too, but it's still audible. Plus, the tone is not nearly what it is when turned up to at least halfway.[/quote'] Unless I'm sadly mistaken, the problem probably is NOT with your P90's (send them to me if you pull them from that guitar). A 330 is a true hollowbody and has feedback issues even with humbuckers. A 335 is a SEMI-hollowbody and has that big maple block down the center that the 330 lacks. Almost no feedback with a 335, but a 330 is a different animal by a LOT. You're unlikely to get *better* P90's elsewhere, Lollar or not. Move away from your amp. Lots. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
909one Posted March 24, 2009 Share Posted March 24, 2009 I just got the es-330l as well. I have had it for a few months. I love it. But the pickups are my least favorite part of the guitar. In comparision to my friend's Elitist Casino, they are much darker and way higher output. I personally like a lower output, more jangly sound, so I may get the low wind Lollar P-90's to replace these. I have feedback problems too. This is totally inherent to the guitar. They even market this problem as a 'feature' in the marketing literature for the guitar. I personally like the higher potential for feedback, it makes the guitar a little more expressive to play. In most situtations, its been totally controllable... but I don't play loud... I just have a 30 watt amp. In situation in recently i was playing much louder than usual, running two amps in series. When I played the first note, it was instant 'OOOOOOOOOOHHHHHHH'. I just switched to the neck pickup and it was fine. I don't like the idea of stuffing the guitar, it dampens the acoustic properties of it. I think the best thing is to get an eq pedal so you can eq out some of those low mids that are feeding back. That's probably what I would try first. Even putting a hi pass (bass cut) pot on the guitar (like G&Ls and Reverends) should help alot. Obviously, don't drill a new hole for this, but maybe consider a push pull put to replace. I haven't done this yet, but its something I have in mind. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chongo Posted March 27, 2009 Share Posted March 27, 2009 The ES-330 was my 1st Gibson in 1969 I sadly traded it for an SG due to fret access and problem feedback I had. You should have it done by a professional - as its very easy to damage the PU if you are untrained in such endeavors. google "wax potting pickups" Geez, I've wax-potted my own pickups for years with never a mishap. Ignorance must have been bliss <G>. *Headscratch* -- I think that, besides the hollow body vs. semi-hollow body differences between the 330 and the 335, isn't the neck joined at a different fret as well? I seem to recall that fret access was a problem with 330's and not so much with the 335... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jamester Posted April 5, 2009 Share Posted April 5, 2009 This is something I'm anxious to find out about myself with my new 330L. Haven't had a chance to crank her up yet... However, I am seriously leaning towards putting a pair of the Lindy Fralin noiseless P-90's in regardless; I've read a number of people now say that the Gibson P-90's are the thing they like least about the guitar. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
qblue Posted April 12, 2009 Share Posted April 12, 2009 The ES-330 would howl with humbuckers, because it is a hollow body. When the guitar was initially produced, it was a student model, and cheaper. Some would routinely change the pickups to humbuckers, to get Gibson quality for less money. A famous guitarist whose used this guitar is Emily Remler: http://www.allthingsemily.com/guitars-gear/ The P-90 is a great pickup; an H-90 pickup set could be more useful, with a dummy coil to reduce feedback(made by Gibson) and sounds like a P-90. However your best remedy is to get a longer cord or turn the amp or volume controls on the guitar down. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jamester Posted April 29, 2009 Share Posted April 29, 2009 Just thought I'd bump this thread to report that I did replace the stock P-90's with the Lindy Fralin noiseless ones, and it is a huge improvement in tone IMO. I expected the stock ones to have a punchy midrange (these are my first P-90's), but they were kinda trebly and not very well balanced overall. Not to mention very buzzy with single-coil hum. The Fralins are noticeably smoother and more solid in the mids, though still not as punchy as I thought a P-90 would be. Dead quiet though, and a tad less powerful. Made no difference to the howling though - the tops on these things vibrate so much it makes your forearm tingle! haha One thing I've done so far is to cut a wedge of foam, and slide it under the trapeze so that it's pushing down onto the top; it's also sticking out a bit and pushing into the strings. Not the most elegant solution obviously (though it's grey foam and kinda blends in with the tailpiece), but it made the sympathetic vibrations and harmonics stop from the strings behind the bridge, and seems to help a little bit with deadening the top, though not quite enough. Next I am going to wedge a block of foam into the guitar, under the bridge, which should do the trick. I know this will sacrifice my acoustic tone, but I want to gig with this guitar, and man...itl starts feeding back just in my teaching studio in lessons, on a quiet clean tone! gotta love it ;-) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Notes_Norton Posted April 30, 2009 Share Posted April 30, 2009 I have a 1970 ES-330 and frankly I think it is one of the most under-rated and under-appreciated guitars. When it became a collectors item, I bought an Epiphone Casino to bring on stage (they weren't making new 330s at the time). I bought the Epi used, it has Duncan P90s in it, and it sounds better than the Gibson with stock pups. I have no feedback problems, but then I keep the stage volume at 100dba or less and I wear 15db ear plugs. Anything over that will gradually destroy your hearing anyway, so if it's feeding back, and you aren't wearing ear plugs, you are doing permanent damage to your ears (which is your choice to make). I've heard of people stuffing rags, Styrofoam and balloons inside to reduce the feedback, but I've never had to try. BTW, how about some pictures of your 330? Here's mine. Notes Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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