Epiphone g-400 custom

[bluesguy72]

Im going to check out one of these tonight if i buy it chances are ill swap the pickups, i was thinking a custom custom bridge, phat cat neck in the middle, and a alnico ii pro in the neck. opinions? suggestions? past experiences? ive been wanting a 3 humbucker guitar for a while to add a bit more contrast to my collection. i play alt blues rock stuff, like a mix of the black keys and older blues like hendrix and clapton, with some modern rock like the eagles of death metal. i appreciate any help.
thanks,
bluesguy

 

[jake_xms3_punk]

Re: Epiphone g-400 custom

I have a similar combo in mine, but A5 instead of A2. C5/59 Bridge, tonerider rebel 90 (phat cat clone) in the middle (with A5's instead of A2's) and a 59 in the neck, KILLER combo. i think anything other then a p90 in the middle is useless (for me anyway)

how are you going to wire it up? mine has a push/push pot to turn the middle pickup on & off in any position, with a master tone and a volume for each pickup. the 3 way is just like on a regular 2 pickup guitar.

 

[blueman335]

Re: Epiphone g-400 custom

I've got something similar in my Epi SG Custom. What a beautiful guitar. As you guys have found out, middle HB's are there mainly for looks. P-90's sound better in that slot.

I have a C5 with an UOA5 mag, Phat CatN, and '59N. I started off with a C8 in the bridge, but swapped the mag for an UOA5 to get more vintage dynamics. The C8 was fine though. In the middle location, if I had it to do over again, I'd use a Phat CatB, as that middle spot hits the string nodes funny, and a little stronger PU works best. I've tried some mag swaps in my Phat Cats (taken out all the A2's) and prefer twin A4's for a middle position P-90. Gives a fuller sound without too much treble.

I wanted to get the most versatility in the wiring so I did this:
Bridge HB - has it's own volume & tone pots, both push-pulls, so I get coil cut and phase. When you have those two on a HB, lifting teh phase push-pull when in coil cut mode, swaps which coil is on.

Neck/Middle - have their own volume and tone. The voluem is a blend pot, so I can dial in any amount of neck or middle PU: all newck, all middle, or anywhere in between. The tone put is a push-pull to coil cut the neck HB.

This gives me around 30 PU & coil options. It also allows me to flip the toggle to go from middle to bridge, or neck to bridge, for rhythm to solo. I hate having to dial down the volume on one, and dial it up on another when I want to change PU's. I want to do it fast on stage.

If I got another HHH guitar, I'd probably put an HB in the bridge and P-90's in both the neck and middle, like a pair of Mean 90's (the neck with the stock mags, and the bridge model in the middle with A4's).

 

[GuitarDoc]

Re: Epiphone g-400 custom

With three pups you have a lot of oportunity for experimentation. In my ustom, I have the C8 in the bridge. The CC (A2 mag) was way too dark and blahh. The UOA5 may be a reasonable alternative for the A8.

In the middle I have a bridge Mean 90 (P-90) with the stock A5/A5 mags. Because it is a bridge model it is a bit heavier/darker sounding than I prefer and I wished I had put in a neck model. Now I'm thinking that I may want to try an A9 in it to liven it up a bit. Anyway, I don't think a bridge P 90 is the right pup for the middle spot. Blueman may love it, however, because he likes his pups a little darker than I do. I suggest a neck model in the middle position and if it's too bright you have lots of options to tone it down a bit (UOA5, A4, even A2 and any combination of those and A5) or even the tone knob.

In the neck of an SG, my favorite has become the Screamin Demon. Very articulate, clear sounding pup with even frequency response from lows to highs and good mids (much better than the '59). The '59 is a great pup, but my recommendation for an SG is a bridge model with UOA5 mag to soften the highs and add more mids.

So...

Bridge...C8
Middle...P-90 neck model
Neck...Demon, or '59b with UOA5

 

[bluesguy72]

Re: Epiphone g-400 custom

thanks for the ideas, would you suggest phat cats or one of gfs' humbucker sized p90s? or maybe some of their humbuckers for the neck and bridge too?
i really appreciate it.

 

[jake_xms3_punk]

Re: Epiphone g-400 custom

from what I've heard the gfs mean 90s are great pickups, never heard a bad word said against them, but I've never tried one so I can't say from experience. all I've tired are phat cats and the tonerider rebel 90, both great pickups!

 

[Ventilator]

Re: Epiphone g-400 custom

My friend has one of those guitars.

Dimebucker bridge, phat cat middle, 59 neck.

Phat cat in the middle had to be screw swapped to sound the way he wanted.
The 59er in the neck sounds good stock.
The dimebucker flat out needs more mids, so a CC in the bridge would be a good choice.

 

[dominus]

Re: Epiphone g-400 custom

The Mean 90 is a great pickup. I only use bridge pickups though, so it just needed a little more output for me. If you're not playing death metal, I'm betting it'd work perfectly for you, in the bridge or in the middle position. I've got mine for sale in the Trading Post subforum if you want one and want to save a few bucks.

 

[GuitarDoc]

Re: Epiphone g-400 custom

I think the GFS Mean 90 is a great sounding pup. I've got them in two different guitars: bridge of my go-to LP; and middle of my SG Custom. I absolutely adore the sound in the LP...thick and warm, but with edge and bite. In my SG, I have a bridge model in the middle position and I think the neck model would have been better, it's not quite bright enough for my taste. But I'm going to get an A9 to try in it to see if that helps.

 

[LtKojak]

Re: Epiphone g-400 custom

If I got another HHH guitar, I'd probably put an HB in the bridge and P-90's in both the neck and middle

Rick, this is GREAT idea! :notworthy

Why didn't I think of it before...? :banghead:

I have my G-400 Custom ready to do this: I've got a P-94 set, I just need a bridge p'up to match'em.

Any suggestion?

 

[jake_xms3_punk]

Re: Epiphone g-400 custom

Rick, this is GREAT idea! :notworthy

Why didn't I think of it before...? :banghead:

I have my G-400 Custom ready to do this: I've got a P-94 set, I just need a bridge p'up to pair'em up.

Any suggestion?

phat cat or another p94? tripple p90 goodness :naughty:

 

[blueman335]

Re: Epiphone g-400 custom

thanks for the ideas, would you suggest phat cats or one of gfs' humbucker sized p90s? or maybe some of their humbuckers for the neck and bridge too?
i really appreciate it.

Try a GFS Mean 90. It's about half the cost of the Phat Cat, sounds great, and it has a few advantages:
- Separate ground wire (3 wires instead of 2)
- The base plate screws to the coils like every other P-90 in the world (in a Phat Cat the cover has to be soldered on to hold the PU together, which is not the best arrangement)
- It comes stock with A5 mags which usually sound much better in P-90's than A2's.

GFS HB's have not gotten the praise here that Mean 90's have, they seem to be more hit-or-miss (there's more things to mess up in making an HB). I'd look for used Duncans online (not 'Duncan Designed') for HB's.

 

[hamerfan]

Re: Epiphone g-400 custom

In the middle I have a bridge Mean 90 (P-90) with the stock A5/A5 mags. Because it is a bridge model it is a bit heavier/darker sounding than I prefer and I wished I had put in a neck model.

I had the same problem with a A5/A5 Phat Cat, i changed it a A5/A3 ... much better

 

[Artie]

Re: Epiphone g-400 custom

- The base plate screws to the coils like every other P-90 in the world (in a Phat Cat the cover has to be soldered on to hold the PU together, which is not the best arrangement)

But isn't the Phat Cat specifically designed to be a HB drop-in replacement? Aren't the SP90-1/2/3's the "true" P90's?

Just askin'. :scratchch

 

[blueman335]

Re: Epiphone g-400 custom

But isn't the Phat Cat specifically designed to be a HB drop-in replacement? Aren't the SP90-1/2/3's the "true" P90's?

Just askin'. :scratchch

Phat Cats are real P-90's, made to fit in an HB slot. I don't know why they short-cutted the separate ground wire and baseplate screws. Maybe there's a some benefit to doing it that way.

SP90-2 and 3 use ceramic mags, which is odd for P-90's, as most guys that want that kind of PU are looking for more of a vintage tone. As with my Phat Cats, I also pulled the stock mags out of my SP90-2 and 3, and was able to get the tones I prefer more.

 

[Artie]

Re: Epiphone g-400 custom

Ah, thanks. But yeah, a separate ground wire would be nice. Phat Cats in series might be an interesting sound. A' la the old Gibson L6S.

 

[bluesguy72]

Re: Epiphone g-400 custom

Sweet, well im gunna play with the stock pickups for now, see what they are like, get an idea of how i want them wired up. I have a set of stew mac golden age parson street humbuckers that i had ordered for a build then ended up putting duncans in. So i might give them a shot before i order anything, maybe ill just use those and order a phat cat or something. Anyways, the guys here that have this guitar, do you like it? gig worthy? how do you wire it up? i like the idea of 3 volume anda master tone, but i want to be able to use the middle pickup alone and i feel like rolling down the neck volume would be a little annoying mid-gig.

 

[bluesguy72]

Re: Epiphone g-400 custom

if i were to connect it to the volume pot then put the output of the volume to a push/pull tone would it only come on when i pull the tone knob?

 

[blueman335]

Re: Epiphone g-400 custom

I gig with Epi's (SG's, LP's, 335's, etc). No need to make any apologies. Get yours set-up right, and the tones dialed in, and you'll be getting compliments on your sound like I always do.

There are different ways to wire three volume controls for an HHH. I like a blend pot for the neck & middle volume to share, so I can flip the toggle and go from middle to bridge instantly. Ideally, changing from PU to PU should be quick; you're usually going into or out of a solo, and probably be stepping on a pedal too. You don't want to have too many things going on at once and fumble the intro to a solo, or come out of it too late and miss a rhythm chord or two.

If I was you, I'd use those Golden Age HB's you have now, and get a Mean 90 for the middle. If you need to tweak the EQ on any of them, swap magnets.

 

[bluesguy72]

Re: Epiphone g-400 custom

That is exactly what I won't to avoid. I want to be able to have just that regular p90 tone by it's self, maybe a rotary switch or something, although I'm not a big fan , what about a lefty pot? So as you roll up the volume on the middle while rolling down the neck or bridge in one smooth motion? Just ideas.. I have a broken shoulder right now so itll be a little while before I can do any mods anyways just wanna get some ideas brewing pick the option that best suits me.