Bare Knuckle Pickups Forum
Forum Ringside => Pickups => Topic started by: Gabel on September 09, 2007, 03:31:04 PM
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First I'd just like to say hello to everybody, those from UG or The Tavern probably know who I am (Dave for an example).
Anyway my birthday is in the next month and I have decided to get some new pickups for my Les Paul. I think the ones I have now ain't "open" enough . I have began thinking about putting a pair of Mississippi Queens in. I really like the sounds of P90s and love the way they sound. I haven't tried an MQ, but does it sounds similar or very close to a real P90? I basically want a pickup with more "sparkle" and top end, feeling that my LP can lack that.
I play classic rock and blues mostly. My amp is an Orange Rocker 30 with an Eminence Red Fang.
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Having recently bought a P90-loaded guitar, I can confirm that P90s do indeed have that sparkle in the top end you're talking about.
MQ's have a great reputation - I think you'll be very happy with 'em.
I've got Mules in my LP and while I love them, they don't sparkle like P90s do.
:twisted:
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Well I was thinking about Mules, but I find humbuckers to lack some of the spark and top end and string separation that single coils has. I'm also a huge fan of P90s.
The only thing is, how "real" does the MQs sound? I hear that some humbucker sized P90s doesn't sound like real P90s.
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MQs are quite hot. They do a great early Black Sabbath tone. But they don't sound like my 'true vintage spec' Bare Knuckle P90s in my Les Paul Special.
You might like Riff Raffs in your Les Paul. Humbucker tone with extra clarity and top end edge....
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i was just going to say that twinfan took his MQ out (didn't you?) as it was too hot, though I haven't tried one myself.
Welcome to the forum, gabe! :D
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It's still there.
For now...
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You might like Riff Raffs in your Les Paul. Humbucker tone with extra clarity and top end edge....
+1 for Riff Raffs :P
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Well I remember the P90s I tried were quite hot.
But is the MQ good for classic rock and blues?
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It's still there.
For now...
oh ok, sorry about that dave. :oops:
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The MQ's are nice and very P-90 like, but for classic rock and blues in a Les Paul the PG Blues set is hard to beat. They are specially wound Stormy Mondays with an out of phase neck pickup. They can drive but also get all the Peter Green sounds. I have them in my goldtop and they really do sound great.
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I think the PG Blues would be perfect, or an Alnico II Stormy Monday set. You can get a LOT of grind out of the Stormy Monday. I think that the Riff Raff might have too much high freq energy for your taste, as I read in another thread, a fizzy top end is not to your liking. Not that the Riff Raff is fizzy (No BKs are), but with the wrong amp combination it could be really, really, really bright.
That being said, I've been playing my Riff Raff/Stormy Monday LP clone exclusively the past 2 months. :)
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if people are finding MQ's a bit hot why not try a manhattan instead. Its humbucker sized p-90 but its underwound for more of a jazzy flavour that might translate as the 'openness' you seek
nice covers too
for comparison my manhattan neck pickup is 6.1kohms and the MQ is 7.9 bridge, 7 neck.
I havnt tried it out yet because the guitar its for is still being sprayed
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Can you link me to the Manhattans?
Couldn't find anything on the BKP site...
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There isnt anything on the main site - just a picture in the gallery
http://www.bareknucklepickups.co.uk/forum/viewtopic.php?t=1732
Dont know why tim hasnt added them to the main page :?
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Ah.
But I guess you can order then? :wink:
What's the price for a set?
I really liked the stock P90s in most Gibsons I have tried, one being a '77 LP Special DC with two P90s, which were pretty hot. I wanted to check their specs and this is what I grabbed from Wikipedia:
"Various sources generally agree that DC impedance is around 7-8 kΩ for neck pickups and 8-9 kΩ for bridge pickups."
The Mississippi Queen might be the closest then?
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If you want a MQ but with more of a vintage wind (like the BKP-90) then all you have to do is ask Tim. I'd be very surprised if it was a problem to wind a MQ for a more vintage flavour.
:twisted:
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I have emailed Tim, haven't asked him about custom winding it, but which one he would recommend.
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I'd also tend to go for humbuckers, besides all the other advantages mentioned, do not forget that P90s can get quite noisy.
And a set on the lower side (SM, MQ) would be better as they are usually more open, airy, sparkly than the hotter ones.
Also I would look at the source of tone, the guitar. If it's dark you could for example add an aluminium tailpiece or use brighter strings, e.g. blue steel from dean markley. BKPs are awesome, but the better the acoustic tone, the better the sound they can produce.
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Well I began thinking about a MQ in the neck and then a vintage voiced BK humbucker in the bridge.
What would you recommend for a bridge pickup?
I want a humbucker then that has a very open sound and good top end, but I still want it to be fat. This was why I was thinking about P90s. They can be both deliver the top end and openess while still retaining the fat (listen to the song The Seeker by The Who and you'll get just what I mean).
Hum isn't that much of a trouble for me, using a Strat a lot. I don't use that much gain anyway.
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I have decided to get humbuckers instead.
As I said I want open sounded humbucker with fat mids and nice top end. Quite vintage voiced too.
I'm thinking about a set of Alnico IV Mules or Stormy Mondays.
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I've got a matched pair of Riff Raffs in my Shaftesbury LP Custom, and they have great drive and clarity to them, without getting anything like muddy and meaningless. My doubleneck has the Stormy Mondays in which are a little bit less raucous, but beautiful when you're not messing about with an overdose of overdrive!
If you have a valve amp either will reward endlessly, just the 'Stormy Mondays' have a little less bite to them.
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I have decided to get humbuckers instead.
As I said I want open sounded humbucker with fat mids and nice top end. Quite vintage voiced too.
I'm thinking about a set of Alnico IV Mules or Stormy Mondays.
You should really look at the PG Blues set. They are a new set that was introduced at LGS this year and they get exactly the sound it looks like you are looking for, the older blues/rock LP tones.
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From what I red they're for Peter Green/ Gary Moore stuff.
How would Mules compare? I read they're based on the PAF, which tends to have a good bite.
Basically I use very "controlled" amounts of OD and never a lot.
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Those PG blues are great for a vintage tone, I tried them at the LGS and was very impressed by them.
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Ah.
Well are there any pups out there that compare to them?
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The mules are a fatter sound, if you listen to early Fleetwood Mac, then you have the sound of the PG Blues. The mule is a thicker HB sound, more Free like. That is not to say that the PG Blues will not rock, because they really do when you put more gain on the amp, but they maintain a level of clarity too. My Stormy Monday set in the 335 is instant Crossroads.
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Well having listened to a lot of early Peter Green stuff the PG Blues does certanly get my attention. It's quite a thin tone, but sounds nice. They seem like a good choice!