NotGuitarSavvy Posted October 2, 2022 Share Posted October 2, 2022 Hi all, as my user name says, I am not guitar savvy at all. Would love your guidance please. My son is nearly 14 and wants to upgrade the pick ups on his Epiphone SG Special Satin E1. They have the original pickups which are "Epiphone 700T Humbucker bridge pickup, Epiphone 650R Humbucker neck pickup" according to the music store website we purchased it from. Can we put the Epiphone P-90 Pro (soapbar) pick ups on this guitar? I don't even know what they cost here in Australia or where to source them. My husband is very good mechanically so would be able to fit and solder the new pickups. The only reason I mention these in particular is that it is what is used on the more expensive Epiphone SG's i've looked at. Is there a different pickup I should be looking at? This guitar cost us $379, the Epiphone SG Special P-90 guitar is $769. Is it cheaper to upgrade the pickups or should we be looking to upgrade to a new guitar? MY son is no longer a beginner, hence he's beginning to focus on the quality of his equipment. He is also aware of costs and i'm pretty sure this is a factor in why he wants to just upgrade the pickups instead of replacing the guitar. He practices for 1.5 to 2 hours everyday plus has 1.5 hours of tutoring a week. If money were no issue we'd buy him a top of the range guitar. Really appreciate your advice. Thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jdgm Posted October 2, 2022 Share Posted October 2, 2022 Hmm...I might think about a new guitar for Xmas, but if money's tight.... You could replace the pickups (they must be humbucker size and shape) for not too much money. Can you buy Kent Armstrong or Wilkinson or Artec pickups over there? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sparquelito Posted October 2, 2022 Share Posted October 2, 2022 Most P90 pickups are wider than those humbuckers. If you want to avoid routing-out the pickup cavities, you might consider one of these drop-ins:https://www.premierguitar.com/10-humbucker-sized-p-90s-you-should-try Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dub-T-123 Posted October 2, 2022 Share Posted October 2, 2022 That is a correct suggestion but the problem is that they have no idea why they would want a P90 or what changing it is going to do The more expensive SG isn’t necessarily more expensive because the pickups are better, it has a different neck joint and bound fretboard. Though both guitars are SG shaped, the more expensive one is more similar to the physical construction of the real Gibson SG Changing the pickups will not make this guitar the same as the more expensive one I would not recommend upgrading this guitar. It wouldn’t make sense to upgrade the pickups and leave the original “wiring”. By the time you’ve gone through everything that should be upgraded you’ve spent as much as the guitar cost to begin with and you’re still stuck with the most low end bolt on SG I recommend selling this and looking for a better guitar on the used market. Also keep in mind that the best guitar ever is going to sound bad when you plug it into a bad sounding amp. With an electric guitar, the amp is very important to the sound you get. Basically you want a guitar that is functional in terms of the fretwork, intonation, tuning stability, and electronics. It should feel good in your sons hands and make him enjoy playing. The guitar doesn’t need to be expensive to satisfy these needs. Any guitar that meets these basic needs is going to sound great when plugged into an appropriate amp I’m guessing that as an Australian looking at SG shaped guitars your son is an AC/DC fan. Just as another little tip, Angus Young’s sound is most associated with humbuckers. So the P90 guitar really probably isn’t even what you’re looking for 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jdgm Posted October 2, 2022 Share Posted October 2, 2022 Most excellent post 👍👍 covers it all I think. "Changing the pickups will not make this guitar the same as the more expensive one - I would not recommend upgrading this guitar. It wouldn’t make sense to upgrade the pickups and leave the original “wiring”. By the time you’ve gone through everything that should be upgraded you’ve spent as much as the guitar cost to begin with and you’re still stuck with the most low end bolt on SG. I recommend selling this and looking for a better guitar on the used market. " This is the best advice and I completely agree - from expensive experience, believe me. There is some difference in 'bolt-on' guitar neck vs 'set or glued in' neck. Fender and Squier designs all work very well as bolt-ons, Gibsons, many Epiphones and specially the SG design are usually much better with a glued-in neck. IMO and YMMV. Good luck and best wishes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mihcmac Posted October 2, 2022 Share Posted October 2, 2022 There are lots of humbucker sized P90's that simply drop in, my favorite has evolved to using Mean 90's by Guitar Fetish. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Larsongs Posted October 3, 2022 Share Posted October 3, 2022 (edited) I agree the thought of selling this one & finding a better Guitar in the Used Market.. It just makes more sense than sinking good money into an entry level Guitar that you’ll never recoup…. Edited October 3, 2022 by Larsongs Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rabs Posted October 3, 2022 Share Posted October 3, 2022 (edited) The cost of the guitar and even the brand really dont mean much. I have played really nice cheap guitars and really bad expensive guitars. So id say the first question is, does he like his current SG and does he like the way it plays... If the answer to that is yes then id say that changing pickups isnt a bad idea at all if you cant afford a more expensive guitar like a Gibson or a Fender (which also by the way is not guaranteed to be 100% great just cos of the name, we have enough threads about that). I wish it were as simple as, go buy that guitar, it will be perfect.. Guitar players can be really picky about what they like and dont like and its the small details that count. The thing is, that the only real way to understand that is to try as many guitars as you can in a shop. As each one of us has different tastes and like different guitars for different reasons its too personal a thing to be able to generalise. As in the same way all of our music tastes are slightly different. Also more often than not, as a player grows in experience, taste changes and so does the guitar you want to play.. Its why we spend so much time in places like this talking about it 😄 There is however much more choice in cheaper end guitars than ever out there. Edited October 3, 2022 by Rabs Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kidblast Posted October 3, 2022 Share Posted October 3, 2022 (edited) Hi, welcome to the forum and good for you for taking the interest in your son's interest in guitar. If it "Sticks" with him, it's something he will do for the rest of his life Now to your conundrum and asking for suggestions. So far, good ones are posted here. I would not suggest upgrading either. If you consider the cost of a decent set of pickups would probably as much if not more than the guitar you say he has (Epiphone SG Special Satin) costs new. Regarding P90s, many of us love them, and they do what they do well, but they tend to be noisy and buzz a lot when used in high gain/overdrive kind of amp settings. Humbuckers are usually much quieter in those settings So P90s are not for everyone really. The Epiphone SG Standard in the US lists for $499 new. Have you considered looking for one of these used? Is that something he'd be okay with? I'm pretty sure you could find something that would be close to what one would pay for a decent set of pickups. You may have to search a bit to find one that's in excellent to mint condition. It's probably not the most elegant solution but if he's okay with that, that might be a way forward. Edited October 3, 2022 by kidblast Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mihcmac Posted October 3, 2022 Share Posted October 3, 2022 (edited) NotGuitarSavvy described the typical SG Special that comes with 2 Humbuckers (of different types covered or uncovered) have a "Bolt-on Neck" that is frequently reported to have wonderful action. These guitars resale value is usually around $150 US. If you install an $80 set of pickups in one it usually doesn't increase the value but can improve the tone, depending on what your sons ears want to hear. You mentioned P90's of which there are humbucker sized versions as well as many other types of pickups of the same size and shape that will drop right in. https://www.guitarfetish.com/Humbucker-Sized_c_578.html Currently there are two Epiphone SG's with P90's and Set Necks The SG Special with a Wraparound bridge list for $449 and the SG Classic below with a TOM bridge list for $429 Edited October 4, 2022 by mihcmac Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Larsongs Posted October 4, 2022 Share Posted October 4, 2022 (edited) I’ve played a handful of cheap Guitars that Sound good.. I’ve played a handful of expensive Guitars that didn’t sound good. The majority though are cheap Guitars that don’t sound good.. Why? Inferior quality content.. Most high end Guitars sound pretty darn good.. Why? Superior quality content.. If the OP really wants good Sound & he’s set on modding he needs high quality Pickups like Lollar, Duncan or Fralin.. They’re not cheap.. Roughly $3-$400 a Set.. Then the cost of installing.. Another $150.00 or so.. Is it really worth it? Not IMO.. It would be a total waste of time to buy & pay for install of cheap Pickups.. He already has them! Sell the Guitar & buy a better Guitar.. Buy a Used entry level Gibson & it will have high quality Components & USA P90’s or USA Humbuckers.. It doesn’t get any better than that! Edited October 4, 2022 by Larsongs Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pinch Posted October 4, 2022 Share Posted October 4, 2022 23 hours ago, kidblast said: Hi, welcome to the forum and good for you for taking the interest in your son's interest in guitar. If it "Sticks" with him, it's something he will do for the rest of his life For God's sake, don't tell her!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kidblast Posted October 4, 2022 Share Posted October 4, 2022 3 hours ago, Pinch said: For God's sake, don't tell her!! Wups! you're right what WAS I thinking - too late! 🥴 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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