Help me MOD my 335 style guitar!

WarrenD

WarrenD

New member
Hi I recently purchased a used AXL badlands 335 style guitar with stock EMG humbuckers. I purchased it with the intention to try swapping them out with some P90 style pups because I'd heard that p90s in a hollow body guitar can have an interesting tone and can feedback in interesting ways? So we'll see..

The tone I'm going for is heavier blues to heavier classic rock and I especially like the growl of an overdriven vintage tube amp, so I'm looking for help determine the best p90 style pups to use because my challenge is I have been having a hard time getting this effect from my current amp.

I'm using a swart ast all tube amp.. I think it must be very high watts because it needs to be cranked way up in order to get the tubes to overdrive and it ends up being way too loud!! I'll probably need to start a separate post on good pedals to overdrive the swart ast, but the topic for this post is any recommendations on pups that might help get me closer to the tone I'm going for.

Any pups to avoid for a 335 style guitar and or Swart AST? Any pups you would recommend with a 335 style and swart? Anyone try p90s... Any brands to avoid?

Some say the swart AST amp falls in the middle between a tweed and maybe a black plate reverb .. So any experience with the best single coil pups Into either one of those amps would be nice to hear about.

Thx... This my first post here, just joined, really appreciate any advice.
 
Re: Help me MOD my 335 style guitar!

Well, I would try a set of P-Rails first, preferably in Triple Shot rings to get the most of them, although other switching opinions are available.
Or I would try a JB/Jazz combo. Or a pair of 59's. Maybe even an Alt8/59(or Jazzn), if you want to really go "out there".

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Re: Help me MOD my 335 style guitar!

Demanic said:
Well, I would try a set of P-Rails first, preferably in Triple Shot rings to get the most of them, although other switching opinions are available.
Or I would try a JB/Jazz combo. Or a pair of 59's. Maybe even an Alt8/59(or Jazzn), if you want to really go "out there".

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Thanks...this has given me a good starting point, have already started checking out more on YouTube. Had no idea about prails before and didn't know there were such a thing as switchable pups!!! Yes I'm a noob!!

Found this demo of the pRails in another 335 style guitar https://youtu.be/fraZuaxyGts

And now I'm leaning in that direction. Seems like I'm going to need a good overdrive pedal too?


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Re: Help me MOD my 335 style guitar!

Can't hurt. See if you can find a used TS-7. I picked one up cheap at a yard sale. Great tone, hot option and you can lock your settings in.

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Re: Help me MOD my 335 style guitar!

The Triple Shots will give you a few more options than those micro switches. You can run the humbucker mode in either series or parallel, in addition to choosing either P-90 or rail by themselves.

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Re: Help me MOD my 335 style guitar!

So this maybe the way to go. Found another demo of the prails into what might be a vintage fender Princeton https://youtu.be/_TrNVCcST0g but now I'm wondering whether or not there's any advantage to the triple shot over push pull nobs??


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Re: Help me MOD my 335 style guitar!

Triple Shots let you adjust the pickup at the source. Two or more pups can be sent to a three way much easier than figuring out intricate wiring diagrams.

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Re: Help me MOD my 335 style guitar!

I'm gonna say this....and it won;'t be popular. You need a different amp or a dirt box.

P-90 is not the answer Your problem: Amp is huge, loud and has too much headroom to grind/grit it up like you want. You THINK the solution is hotter pup.

That's the solution to "My pickups are too weak". not "Amp has too much headroom" Rarely is a pickup going to really change a mega-clean amp....

Can't say I'm familiar with Swart...but like I said - sounds to me like the problem is the amp.
 
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Re: Help me MOD my 335 style guitar!

I'd go for a Whole Lotta Humbucker set if you plan on using a nice amount of crunch. If not, then, I go with Seth Lovers. But for heavier blues and classic rock, I like the Whole Lotta Humbuckers.
 
Re: Help me MOD my 335 style guitar!

+1 for PRails - I have them in Triple Shots in my 335. I'm also enjoying a set of Railhammer Nuevo-90s in one of my Reverend solid bodies.

Also, I'm with Ace on the amp - for the tone/style you're after, a lower wattage amp might be the place to start.


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Re: Help me MOD my 335 style guitar!

Swart has quite a few amps out but if the amp is the 12" combo I'm thinking of (compact 12" combo, dual 6V6's), it's a nice amp. Only 20 watts or so but as you noted, no grit until you start to open it up ... and 20 watts in the bedroom is LOUD. Honestly, I'm with ACE, I think you may want to look at pedal options. Probably the best way to get you where you want to go with the gear that you have.
 
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Re: Help me MOD my 335 style guitar!

Darg1911 said:
Swart has quite a few amps out but if the amp is the 12" combo I'm thinking of (compact 12" combo, dual 6V6's), it's a nice amp. Only 20 watts or so but as you noted, no grit until you start to open it up ... and 20 watts in the bedroom is LOUD. Honestly, I'm with ACE, I think you may want to look at pedal options. Probably the best way to get you where you want to go with the gear that you have.
Click to expand...

Yes that's the one. I think y'all are right about the amp. Am definitely going to try to find a better pedal. Maybe the Ts7 is the way to go with this amp. I've heard it's good in some amps and terrible into others. I have the soul food overdrive and even cranked way up it doesn't have much grit.


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Re: Help me MOD my 335 style guitar!

Aceman said:
I'm gonna say this....and it won;'t be popular. You need a different amp or a dirt box.

P-90 is not the answer Your problem: Amp is huge, loud and has too much headroom to grind/grit it up like you want. You THINK the solution is hotter pup.

That's the solution to "My pickups are too weak". not "Amp has too much headroom" Rarely is a pickup going to really change a mega-clean amp....

Can't say I'm familiar with Swart...but like I said - sounds to me like the problem is the amp.
Click to expand...

Thanks. Seems most of the other folks here agree with you. I think you are right about the amp.

I'm still going to swap out the pups because I've been wanting to mod a 335 clone for a while. Still leaning towards those prails because of all the options though I must say the jb Jazz might sound great with the gear I have.. https://youtu.be/WzRKxF2bh3I Curious if those are humbuckers or P90 style??


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Re: Help me MOD my 335 style guitar!

The JB and Jazz are humbuckers. P90s are a different shape. There are some humbucker sized P90s though.
 
Re: Help me MOD my 335 style guitar!

I play a lot blues. My favorite SD pups for a semi hollow body are a set of Alnico IIs (not the slash version) or a set of Seths but of course everybody has their own tone they are looking for.
 
Re: Help me MOD my 335 style guitar!

JB and Jazz are full size humbuckers. \

That said - I am constantly surprised at how versatile they are in this Epiphone Dot Studio. No feedback problems doing 80's Metal on stage. Sounds kick @$$ through my little pro Jr. for some ripping Blues. Cool tones through a Fender Blackface Twin model clean....
 
Re: Help me MOD my 335 style guitar!

WarrenD said:
Yes that's the one. I think y'all are right about the amp. Am definitely going to try to find a better pedal. Maybe the Ts7 is the way to go with this amp. I've heard it's good in some amps and terrible into others. I have the soul food overdrive and even cranked way up it doesn't have much grit.


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Click to expand...

The Soul Food is pretty low gain for an OD. I think that any pedal that has a reputation for "going well" with a Fender will probably work well into your Swart. Being that it's clean, you need more drive to get the crunch that you seem to be after and that's not the Soul Food's forte. You probably want to be looking at higher gain OD pedals. I'm not a pedal nut so don't know everything that's out there. But, I would suggest posting on the Pedal board for lots of suggestions. None of this precludes swaping pickups on the AXL as being an option. The swap alone wont get you there but hotter pickups can help in combination with the pedal/pedals but more importantly, they'll change your tone to something that may suit you better.
 
Re: Help me MOD my 335 style guitar!

A set of Seths or antiquities along with a nice dirt pedal coupled to the Swart should get you darn near any blues/rock tone you hear in your head.
 
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