Need some help choosing pickups on a S/P90 mahogany telemaster

[DavidTCIC]

Hi! First time posting on this forum!
I'm looking to get some new pickups for my s/p90 mahogany offset telecaster with rosewood neck, but i have no idea what should i get.
The factory pickups that come on my guitar read 5.9k on the sc bridge, and 6.1k on the p90 neck. I never use the middle position on my other guitars, but on this one i use it a lot since it sounds really good. I like the idea of having the neck pup slighly overpowering the bridge.
I also like adjusting the bridge close to the strings.
What do you suggest? I play alt rock, and i'd like something that sounds prototypically telecaster, with classic voicing and vintage output, but with a modern feel.
I play a bassman and a jcm800, nothing gainy. Just crunch, and broken clean tones.
Right now i'm looking on a sd jd bridge and a lollar p90 50's winding or a sd antiquity p90 for the neck position. Would that work?
Like i said, i actually like the idea of the neck slighly overpowering the bridge on the middle position, because on this guitar it sounds fantastic as a faux, brighter neck position, and i want to replicate that with the new pups.
Looking forward for your replies!
Thank you!

 

[DavidTCIC]

Re: Need some help choosing pickups on a S/P90 mahogany telemaster

Ahh! Almost forgot! In japan Fender released this exact guitar with a twisted tele on the bridge and a sp90 on the neck. It actually sounds good, there is a video showcasing that setup on youtube, but i would rather go with something with less output and more classical tele sounding

 

[AlexR]

Re: Need some help choosing pickups on a S/P90 mahogany telemaster

The twisted Tele I think is simply a wind that sounds more like a strat pickup. Don't think its overwound.....at least the neck version I had was firmly in the vintage camp.

Duncan is certainly going to be much higher in the K reading than what you have there. Not sure if it will also be more output, but I suspect that will be the case. The lowest is the Alnico 2 at 6.6k bridge. The p90's are in the 8k area, as they don't have specific pickups to mate with low output singlecoils.

One of the members here runs Zhangbucker Pickups.....and probably has a combination you would like. With low output pickups for bridge and options for the neck to balance it you would get what you want. He does a great job in the middle position too - something you obviously want to get right too as a good tone there doesn't always happen if you just randomly select pickups.

 

[GuitarDoc]

Re: Need some help choosing pickups on a S/P90 mahogany telemaster

Am I missing something here?

You like the sound of your pups but you want to buy new ones. What is it specifically that you don't like about your current pups and how would you like each one to change?

 

[GuitarDoc]

Re: Need some help choosing pickups on a S/P90 mahogany telemaster

Also...what is a "Telemaster"?

 

[DavidTCIC]

Re: Need some help choosing pickups on a S/P90 mahogany telemaster

Telecaster in a jazzmaster body!
I like the bridge pup, but the neck p90 is really muddy. I want to change both because the lower i can get with a low wind p90 with alnico 2 is in the 7.5k realm, so changing the bridge for something with more output seems the best thing to do to match volumes.
I am currently thinking on going with a sd donahue on the bridge (7.6k) and an antiquity on the neck (7.7k), in order to get a slightly hotter neck to match what i like about the middle position on the factory pickups (5.9k and 6.1k).
Someone offered me the antiquity for 70€ and the donahue for 50€ used, and i think that is a great bargain.
I also consider a lollar 50s winding.

 

[jeremy]

Re: Need some help choosing pickups on a S/P90 mahogany telemaster

i think the jd and ant p90 are a great set. if the p90 isnt as powerful or bright as you'd like, mag swaps are cheap and easy

 

[DavidTCIC]

Re: Need some help choosing pickups on a S/P90 mahogany telemaster

Thanks! I sort of figured out the jd would be a nice choice since asats pair them with a seth lover.
Have you tried the lollar 50s? There is no demos on youtube comparing them to the ants, but i understand they are brighter and more fendery
Wondering what you guys would choose, lollars or ants.
Thank you!

 

[Mincer]

Re: Need some help choosing pickups on a S/P90 mahogany telemaster

The JD is indeed the best choice here, and if you aren't going to have a Seth Lover in the neck and stick with a P90, the Antiquity would be my choice, too.

 

[zionstrat]

Re: Need some help choosing pickups on a S/P90 mahogany telemaster

The JD is indeed the best choice here, and if you aren't going to have a Seth Lover in the neck and stick with a P90, the Antiquity would be my choice, too.

3rd the JD...

But since you're experimenting, have you considered a Firebird pup? Brighter than your current pup and noiseless.

Always hard for me to choose. They are very different pups but I love p90s and FBs in the neck.

Sent from my SM-G960U1 using Tapatalk

 

[DavidTCIC]

Re: Need some help choosing pickups on a S/P90 mahogany telemaster

I ordered both the jd and the antiquity. They should arrive here by monday. Let's hope i'll love this combo!
Thank to all of you, this was a tough decission!

 

[Mincer]

Re: Need some help choosing pickups on a S/P90 mahogany telemaster

Come back and let us know how they sound- I am sure you will love it!

 

[GuitarDoc]

Re: Need some help choosing pickups on a S/P90 mahogany telemaster

For sure you'll love the JD...great sounding pup.

The Antiquity should also be to your liking, but remember you can tweak it to perfection with different magnets and pot values.

 

[GuitarDoc]

Re: Need some help choosing pickups on a S/P90 mahogany telemaster

Also, keep in mind that you are complaining about your 6.1k neck P-90 being "muddy", yet you are going with a 7.8k A2 magnet P-90 (Antiquity)...more mids, more output. Higher mids and higher output is generally a cause of "more" mud (all else being equal). The JD works well with a 250k pot, but the P-90 works best with a 500k pot. You'll probably need to do some playing around with pots and mags and pup heights to get the combination just as you want/expect.

But in and of themselves, those are two great pups.