Hhh sg

[dc_mally]

hey, i have a HHH sg, and im having a lot of trouble getting the sounds i want from it.

At the moment i have SD APH-1's in the bridge and middle but im finding the tone a bit too harsh. I have tried a Bill Lawrence L-500L in the bridge but thats a bit too hot and the Tone Zone just seemed too muddy.

Ive been thinking Humbucker size P90s... but im just after any other humbucker suggestions from you guys first...

Cheers,
Dave.

 

[blueman335]

Re: Hhh sg

Dave, I have an SG Custom too as do some other forum members, and we've all faced the HHH dilema. God knows they're beautiful guitars, but getting the PU's and wiring right can be a challenge.

For the bridge I like a C5 or '59B, both with 250K pots. I wire a dedicated volume & tone for the bridge. The 250K's cut out the excess treble & play up the mids. Crunch, punch, and bite.

For the neck I've used a '59N or JazzN, and in the middle a Phat CatN. For whatever reason middle HB's just don't sound anything like they do in the bridge or neck position; big disappoinment to just about everyone. If I do another HHH, I'll use an HB sized P-90 in the neck & middle both. You can leave the remaining two pots as volumes for each of them individually, or wire them with a common volume (blend pot) and a common tone. I've found this to be better for faster changes between PU's (important playing live).

 

[dc_mally]

Re: Hhh sg

thanks, i was worried that would be the case.. seems a waste not having all as humbuckers.

im tempted to go H, P90, P90 or even all 3 P90s...

ive noticed the C5 being a commonly recomended pickup, especially as a nicer alternative to the JB.. ill have to try one out someday, and this might just be the perfect oppertunity.

 

[blueman335]

Re: Hhh sg

thanks, i was worried that would be the case.. seems a waste not having all as humbuckers.

im tempted to go H, P90, P90 or even all 3 P90s...

ive noticed the C5 being a commonly recomended pickup, especially as a nicer alternative to the JB.. ill have to try one out someday, and this might just be the perfect oppertunity.

I wish middle HB's sounded better too. Too many coils jammed too close, and they don't all hit the string internodes right. Gibson's known this for 50 years and still keeps doing it for "historic" reasons. After Jackson, Ibanez, and others proved in the 1980's that HSS & HSH are highly viable options with a huge demand, Gibson still didn't respond with their own SG version using P-90's & a 5-way switch. We're still waiting.

Fortunately there's a number of HB-sized P-90's available now that allow us to convert our Gibson/Epiphone guitars to HSS & HSH. And SSS is a very good idea too. These have twin magnets and that allows you a lot of flexibility in dialing in your tone for each PU. In the neck position, I like a A5/A3 or A5/A4 pair, and in the bridge an A8/A4.