I killed my neck P90. Need (cheap) replacement.

[Erlend_G]

So...

Yesterday I went on the "big operation prochedure" of dampening/muting my P90's metal covers; that gave off a HORRIBLE squeal under mid/high gain; even at livingroom volumes.

So, I gathered up the courage, to perform the operation, that was going to be pretty simple (I thought):

1.Unscrew pickups
2. Heat solder & remove with soldering "braid", to remove cover from pickup
3. Apply silicone between pickup & cover, clamp it together, and let it dry overnight.


Now! My bridge pickup is absolutely! squeal free. It has lost some of it's original "metallic ring", and sounds darker. Maybe the pickups were designed/intended as for the covers to "sing along"; but it made them USELESS for me, so I tried to fix it.

But. While struggling, with a 12USD soldering iron, I had borrowed - that would NOT become hot enough to melt the darn solder, to get the cover off-

I became agitated, and somehow managed to mash the soldering iron into my neck pickup's windings. It's completely dead now.

So... I wonder, what are my choices, of a relatively cheap & fitting replacement? I'm afraid I can't afford a new SD; (yeah, this is the place to write that...)

but maybe GFS has something? :/

I'm really sorry how this turned out, but hey- **** happens;

and DON'T start working on expensive stuff, with CHEAP tools that doesn't work (and no patience).



any help appreciated.

-Erlend

 

[Erlend_G]

Re: I killed my neck P90. Need (cheap) replacement.

I feel like such an idiot.

Half the time I try to "fix something", it becomes worse than it ever was;
and I only got myself to thank for it.

luckily there's two beers i "forgot" to drink yesterday, while being "Mr Repairman", lol

and I got one functioning pickup.

-Erl

 

[Lucius Paisley]

Re: I killed my neck P90. Need (cheap) replacement.

Single pickup guitars are awesome. You didn't ruin a pickup, you gained a mod.

 

[Erlend_G]

Re: I killed my neck P90. Need (cheap) replacement.

Single pickup guitars are awesome. You didn't ruin a pickup, you gained a mod.

Yeah, until I find a cheap & nice replacement; I'm stuck to playing "80's heavy riffs" and surf music. lol

 

[Erlend_G]

Re: I killed my neck P90. Need (cheap) replacement.

Had no idea, that dampening the metal cover, would impart such a tonal difference from the pickup assembly.

As mentioned, the functioning pickup is now much darker, the "ding, ding ding" sound it made when I hit the low E- is gone;
it sounds "meatier" and "drier". Some of the chime and overtones are gone.

...but man, that squeal HAD to go. After all, I'm a heavy metal fan . I wish I could have the best of both worlds, but-

next step: new neck pickup. AFAIK, "any" P90 should and will fit inside the dogear cover (that is custom made for this guitar model).

or am I wrong? Like, if the pole pieces won't line up with the holes in the cover, and stuff... man, this is a mess.

Unsure if I can find a brand new, Epiphone direct replacement- and if so, if it'd be really expensive (like a Gibson p/u).

...hmm.

 

[Erlend_G]

Re: I killed my neck P90. Need (cheap) replacement.

Single pickup guitars are awesome. You didn't ruin a pickup, you gained a mod.

thanks for the post BTW.

My mood has been really down since I realized what I'd done. You made me smile.

\m/

 

[freefrog]

Re: I killed my neck P90. Need (cheap) replacement.

Had no idea, that dampening the metal cover, would impart such a tonal difference from the pickup assembly.

As mentioned, the functioning pickup is now much darker, the "ding, ding ding" sound it made when I hit the low E- is gone;
it sounds "meatier" and "drier". Some of the chime and overtones are gone.

...but man, that squeal HAD to go. After all, I'm a heavy metal fan . I wish I could have the best of both worlds, but-

next step: new neck pickup. AFAIK, "any" P90 should and will fit inside the dogear cover (that is custom made for this guitar model).

or am I wrong? Like, if the pole pieces won't line up with the holes in the cover, and stuff... man, this is a mess.

Unsure if I can find a brand new, Epiphone direct replacement- and if so, if it'd be really expensive (like a Gibson p/u).

...hmm.

Look there:

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Original-E...386385?hash=item3b425bda51:g:B~8AAOSw0wRZ8ZLi

Or there:

https://www.guitarfetish.com/P90-Guitar-Pickups_c_83.html

GFS P90's might come from the same factory than Epi ones, anyway.

And if it's still too expensive, there's a boatload of cheap MIC P90's to sell on websites like Amazon...

Good luck in your repair.

 

[Erlend_G]

Re: I killed my neck P90. Need (cheap) replacement.

Thanks

I've owned a GFS pickup before (A Dream 180), and really liked it.

what I need to know, is if it will fit (my guitar has custom radiused metal dogear covers).

 

[Erlend_G]

Re: I killed my neck P90. Need (cheap) replacement.

If you take the cover off a P90- (the "earless" variant, usually mounted into the body of the guitar with screws)

and then put it inside a "dogear" cover-

will it fit?

 

[freefrog]

Re: I killed my neck P90. Need (cheap) replacement.

Thanks

I've owned a GFS pickup before (A Dream 180), and really liked it.

what I need to know, is if it will fit (my guitar has custom radiused metal dogear covers).

It should fit:

https://forum.gibson.com/topic/80978-pickup-wiring-wildkat/


And if ever it doesn"t fit and requires some parts to be swapped, tinkering with P90's is still not a big deal once we have a clear view of the structure involved. Example: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jyId_04_4V8

 

[Erlend_G]

Re: I killed my neck P90. Need (cheap) replacement.

Okay.

Thanks alot for replies and help.

I think a GFS pickup is what I'll get- and try to use the "stock" dogear metal cover. (since it's radiused , not flat bottom, for the arched top guitar).

While I wait for it to arrive, I'll rock out on my "new, 100% squeal free" bridge pickup .

My "silicone" idea did actually work really well.

and - before I buy a new pickup- I'm gonna buy a real functioning soldering iron. That (and my poor patience) was the reason, for the death of my stock neck pickup.

-Erl \m/

 

[Erlend_G]

Re: I killed my neck P90. Need (cheap) replacement.

really diggin' the tone, now that the metal cover is "dampened"-

the tone is darker, pick attack is much more present and focused-
and the "ice picky" high end and "fizziness" is gone. Now the highs are much rounder.

 

[Mincer]

Re: I killed my neck P90. Need (cheap) replacement.

A good soldering iron is absolutely worth it. And hey, sometimes projects don't turn out- you learned something for the next time. I am sure the bottom of my closet is full of failed experiments, half-built pedals, etc. It happens to everyone who loves to tinker....and for every Stratocaster and Telecaster, Leo Fender invented a bunch of crap, too.

 

[solspirit]

Re: I killed my neck P90. Need (cheap) replacement.

The building blocks of experience

 

[Erlend_G]

Re: I killed my neck P90. Need (cheap) replacement.

A GFS P90, it is, then.

I'll mail and ask them, which model will (or can) fit inside my stock gold-covered metal cover.

(if everything fails, i hope the plastic dogear covers are "arched" beneath, to fit my guitar).

...

and well, if I could afford it- I'd send the guitar to a luthier, and route the lid for a neck humbucker; a Dimarzio "HFH" with series/parallell/split wiring.

But that's like 6 times the expense, of a new GFS P90.



Must order tomorrow... before I get too saddened, with a "half-working" guitar.

and also a soldering iron, dammit!

-Erl

 

[Empty Pockets]

Re: I killed my neck P90. Need (cheap) replacement.

no offense dude but your posts crack me up

just picturing this Norwegian guy struggling with his Wildkat and coming up with all these hair-brained schemes to make it sound better

I ****in love it. Keep up the good work

 

[Erlend_G]

Re: I killed my neck P90. Need (cheap) replacement.

no offense dude but your posts crack me up

just picturing this Norwegian guy struggling with his Wildkat and coming up with all these hair-brained schemes to make it sound better

I ****in love it. Keep up the good work

well... if i haden't messed up the neck PU-

i could go straight into making it sound better .

..

**** happens, and mistakes, to everyone.

thanks you find it comic.



-Erl