250K or 500K pots?

[OctopusRider]

I am putting in Lollar P90 Dog Ears in my Epi Casino. The pots are all bad and I want to replace them too. Should I go with 500K or 250K pots? The pickups are Neck 8.2K and Bridge 9.1K if it makes a difference.

Where is a good place to order these from? Allparts is only bulk ordering (20 pots) I see. I have no need for that many.

Any help would be great!

 

[ErikH]

Re: 250K or 500K pots?

Jason recommends 500K with his P90's. I must say, I agree. I have one in my SG Jr with 500K pots and couldn't be happier with it. It's wound to 10K with a tap somewhere around 7K.

 

[ExplorersRock]

Re: 250K or 500K pots?

You can order individual ones from allparts bro, they're $6 each! Also, check Guitar Center, Musician's Friend and Music123. Stick to CTS, Bourns, Gibson, Fender, Dimarzio, or even Seymour. They all make good pots and if you're replacing, get the good stuff. I prefer CTS and Bourns myself.

I would go 250k since they are single coils. If not sure, you could hook up 500k push-pull pots with a resistor so when you pull up they are 250k. This way you can hear both and then decide. Next restring put in whatever you like better permanently. I'm gonna do this soon. Buy 4 500k push-pulls, hook up a resistor and then I can decide without too much hassle when I drop in new pickups. Here's the link on the how-to

http://www.seymourduncan.com/blog/tips-and-tricks/create-a-two-stage-potentiometer/

 

[blueman335]

Re: 250K or 500K pots?

With HB's and P-90's, you always want 500K's for the neck, to prevent a muffled, muddy sound, unless that's what you're in to.

Bridge P-90's, being single coils, are usually bright and thin compared to HB's. Lollars are warmer than a lot of P-90's, so you may want 500K's there too.

 

[GuitarDoc]

Re: 250K or 500K pots?

I use 500s with all my P-90s, bridge or neck. You get a P-90 for that characteristic bite and growl that you can't get from any other pup. Why put in a 250 and lose that bite? Or...why get a P-90 if you don't want that P-90 tone? 500k all the way every day!

 

[blueman335]

Re: 250K or 500K pots?

I use 500s with all my P-90s, bridge or neck. You get a P-90 for that characteristic bite and growl that you can't get from any other pup. Why put in a 250 and lose that bite? Or...why get a P-90 if you don't want that P-90 tone? 500k all the way every day!

There's usually plenty of 'bite and growl' left in most bridge HB's & P-90's with 250K's, and who maxes out the treble on their amp to '10'? The exceptions I make to that are for bridge Rio Grandes and Lollars, which are warm enough with 500K's.

The average A5 bridge P-90 is a very bright PU and I can't see using 500K's on those. Bridge slot + A5's + single coil + 500K's...with most P-90's that combination is sharp and thin enough to cut glass. When I think of P-90's, I think of clear, ariculate, open tones backed with some midrange muscle, in other words a balanced sound that's not top heavy and piercing (that's what Fender's are for).

 

[OctopusRider]

Re: 250K or 500K pots?

Thanks for the advice.