Pickup for rockabilly

vinnie1971

vinnie1971

New member
Hi all

I play lots of styles of music, but I am a fan of rockabilly. I have a Cort YorkTown that I use mostly for rockabilly and blues - rock, very occasionally I like to get jazz tones out of it. The mighty might vintage alnico humbuckers (Classic Rockers) sound reasonable if not a little "boxy".

I also have a dearmond which I have put APH1s in with series / parallel on each pickup which gives a very spanky tone somewhere between a single coil and a filtertron. I think this guitar is quite successful at covering the genres I use it for.

I am looking for a pickup to mostly do rockabilly but also cover blues, do I am thinking, either a P90 (Phat Cat?) or a bright spanky humbucker that I can put series parallel switching on.

Anyone have any suggestions? ( I considered Gretsch buckers or filtertrons but the sound I like is the Scotty Moore P90 sound, plus I think humbuckers can do rockabilly pretty well by lowering the pickups and raising the poles). So not filtertrons but dynasonic type pickups hit the spot for me too.

Here are is the Cort

b43d31256e84843ca3083394f4fdb962.jpg


And the Dearmond- which I am very pleased with how's it's turned out
c1f8fcd59ef338501e1ff34196214ad0.jpg






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Re: Pickup for rockabilly

Clint 55 said:
P rails?
Click to expand...

Wow!!!! I just checked out a demo. P rails sound like they are gonna hit the spot especially with the triple shot...

Thanks for that.

Is the triple shot wiring straightforward? I guess a regular 2p3t switch will do it with humbucking in the middle position?

or possibly a dial a split using a bourns blender control - centre detent humbucking then dial one way for single coil and the other for P90. Could work really well if that humbucker sounds a bit too fat.



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Re: Pickup for rockabilly

^ Yeah I thought they'd work perfect for that! Yes the triple shots look pretty easy to wire up. Even if you don't go triple shot, you're still gonna want to wire somehow that gives you all 4 options I'd say.
 
Re: Pickup for rockabilly

vinnie1971 said:
I am looking for a pickup to mostly do rockabilly but also cover blues, ... or a bright spanky humbucker that I can put series parallel switching on.
Click to expand...

The '78 Model and Seths are bright and spanky/Fendery, the Seth moreso. But you'd need to order 4-conductor Seths to do the parallel coil switching option. A single coil would be better as they tend to have the low-end thump along with the top-end for Rockabilly. A vintage P-90 would be better for that. (Not the modern overwound stuff.)
 
Re: Pickup for rockabilly

Series parallel is of interest - I like the tones on the demos of the mismatched coils


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Pickup for rockabilly

mjsmanahan35 said:
Ibanez Prestige RG1527 7 strings
Seymour Duncan Blackouts AHB-1 bridge Active pickups

https://youtu.be/2vCFKwrcq8E
https://youtu.be/DcgEbAOacm4

Jackson DK2 Pro Series 6 strings
Seymour Duncan JB Bridge Passive pickups

https://youtu.be/1ve4t_PxWrA
https://youtu.be/Oruf42vYWrM

www.facebook.com/maschalismos



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Click to expand...

Thanks, but not really the vintage tone I am after, however the Maxon pickups used in 1970s Ibanez, El Maya and other Fujien / Cushin Gakki / Matsumoku etc would - those super 58s and super 70s are very bright and spanky for humbuckers.


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Re: Pickup for rockabilly

beaubrummels said:
The '78 Model and Seths are bright and spanky/Fendery, the Seth moreso. But you'd need to order 4-conductor Seths to do the parallel coil switching option. A single coil would be better as they tend to have the low-end thump along with the top-end for Rockabilly. A vintage P-90 would be better for that. (Not the modern overwound stuff.)
Click to expand...

I have previously done surgery on a pair of vintage pickups that I later found out to be going for $200 a pair or more on eBay! Luckily it's all reversible - single hookup wore with outer braid as ground - I put coil split wires on the serial link wires between the coils - and swapped out the magnets. But ordering 4 conductors would be easier [emoji106]


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Re: Pickup for rockabilly

After listening to a lot of demos, I don't think P Rails have the right tone(s) a lower output P90 or low wind humbucker (with 4 conductors ) sounds the way to go...


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Re: Pickup for rockabilly

I would have thought the Filtertron would have been a no-brainer......but thats just me perhaps.
 
Re: Pickup for rockabilly

AlexR said:
I would have thought the Filtertron would have been a no-brainer......but thats just me perhaps.
Click to expand...
For me it's cliche and overused, plus I prefer the original Gibson P90 sounds and early humbuckers to filtertrons.


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Re: Pickup for rockabilly

Darg1911 said:
Maybe also check out TV Jones.
Click to expand...

True - if I could get some dynasonics in a humbucker format that would be good. Filtertrons don't cut it for me, the archetypal sound was Gibson P90s or Dearmond Rowe dynasonics.


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Re: Pickup for rockabilly

For a PAF for Rockabilly, I would think the Seths would be great. I also like the Gibson A2 BB1 and BB2, and yes...the Ibanez Super 58s.

P-90s are killer for this genre, but I haven't been real impressed with any of the "P-90 in a PAF box" choices I've heard. You might make some inquiries to the Duncan Custom Shop, or somebody like Jason Lollar.

Bill
 
Re: Pickup for rockabilly

Boogie Bill said:
For a PAF for Rockabilly, I would think the Seths would be great. I also like the Gibson A2 BB1 and BB2, and yes...the Ibanez Super 58s.

P-90s are killer for this genre, but I haven't been real impressed with any of the "P-90 in a PAF box" choices I've heard. You might make some inquiries to the Duncan Custom Shop, or somebody like Jason Lollar.

Bill
Click to expand...

I have early Maxon super 80s which use the superdistortion format of 12 14mm hex poles which when swapping out the double size ceramic magnet for ALNICO 8 sounds very close to somewhere between a super 58 and a super 70. Those short fat poles and less mass near the string make for a bright spanking vintage tone. I guess fillisters would make them sound more like super 70s and more usable with Alnico 2.

I was hoping that there was going to be a recommendation on a P94 type pickup - I listened to lots of phat cat demos and to my ear they sound good but I think there are PAFs that do rockabilly better.


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