Most prominently, David Gilmour’s 1952 Fender Esquire guitar was packed with Seymour Duncan pickups. They are so good that even Fender, Ibanez, Gibson, and other leading brands use Seymour Duncan pickups on their guitars. It’s hard to find anything wrong with the brand. Seymour Duncan has created top-notch pickups for over 40 years. Seymour Duncan SPH90 Phat Cat P-90 Pickup Gibson P-90 pickups are hard to find sold separately, which is why they’re not prominently featured on this list. Before we begin, though, I advise you to check this section about understanding pickups to learn about pickup types, construction materials, outputs, cavities, and more. Let’s now go on to the reviews of the most reliable and popular P-90 pickups you can buy right now. (You can go to the FAQ section if you have any doubts about pickup sizes). If this is the case, you can go for a humbucker-sized P-90. Lastly, keep in mind some Gibson or Fender guitars (or made with their designs) won’t accept “soap bar” or “dog-ear”-shaped pickups. The best alternatives also create a humming or feedback sound that’s similar to 60’s rock and early metal. More so, the sound tends to be twangy and powerful enough for rock, country, and blues. Keep in mind the best P-90s conserve all of the advantages I listed above whilst minimizing its drawbacks. 2”? It’s played on P-90s.Īlthough Gibson invented these pieces, other companies like Seymour Duncan and Fender have learned the trade and even bested the master.Įither way, any of the following pickups you choose is almost equally great and sells for similar prices. Remember the iconic solo of Pink Floy’s “Another Brick in the Wall Pt. You can check this section to see which artists have used P-90s and which guitars ship with P-90 pickups. Lastly, these units look like a humbucker and can fit in both humbucker or single-coil cavities (although there are exceptions). And when you put it through overdrive or tube amps, they deliver a fiery sound that belongs in blues, rock & roll and classic rock. On clean, they work great for jazz, soul, R&B, and similar genres. However, when you put it through high levels of gain or distortion, these pickups will lose bass response and become thin and brittle. Rhythm guitars of these genres thrive especially well with P-90s. On distortion, the P-90 has an edgy output that’s become very popular for alternative rock, hard rock, punk, grunge, and post-grunge. Overall, the tone is bright, warm, and thick, and represents a tonal blend between the single-coil and a humbucker. Also, unlike one-coil pickups, they have a moderately fat mid-low attack. However, it has more clarity and space than a dual-coil pickup, although it won’t reach its levels of power. The sound is chunky and almost as beefy as a humbucker. More so, it delivers less noise than single-coils, thus it can work as a middle ground between the two kinds of pickups. The result is a versatile tone that’s unique, raw, and growly. They are large and flat coils with a flat Alnico bar magnet under the coil, instead of magnetic pole pieces.
These units debuted on a Gibson Les Paul model and became a staple for classic rock music. The company introduced these devices in 1946 and became a standard for their guitars for years to come. P-90 pickups were created by Gibson as an alternative to the single-coil tapers. But if changing the pickups on your guitar won’t make you play it more often, then why do it? About P90 pickups
Installing a new pair of the best P-90 pickups on your old guitar can work miles towards getting you a professional sound. Here’s some more insight about when and why you should change your guitar’s pickups.
Instead, swap the most important pieces of the guitar and enjoy the sound of an instrument that’s essentially different and new. So don’t be guilty of wanting something that you can’t or shouldn’t afford, which might end up in a substitute, sub-par model to remedy your cravings. See, in modern guitars, pickups are the element that influences sound the most.
If you generally like how your guitar looks and feels, then changing the pickups could not only solve the issues of your ax (like too much noise) it can also bring you a whole new tone, more power, and a professional sound. Instead, swapping the pickups can be less expensive and could even bring you better results. It’s good for you not to fall on the hubris of wanting a new guitar every time you want to enhance the quality of your music. Gibson Golden Age Parsons Street P-90 Pickup