Nantucket vs Supermassive vs Stockholm (standard P-90 size)

[Dave Sloven]

Okay, so I've been spoiled with BKPs.  The P-90s in my SG Junior just aren't doing it for me. Note separation is pretty awful, the low E sounding especially bad.  While I play around with pickup heights etc I contemplate replacing the pickup with one of two from the BKP range.

I wrote to Ben (BKP) about this a week or so back and this is what he said:

The Nantucket is raw and tight and very classic in nature. For a blend of classic punk, rock and more modern styles I think the Supermassive would slot in nicely. Stockholm may be too deep for punk, and the Nantucket may be too bright for progressive styles.

The pickups on Iommi's Monkey guitar are very unusual. The closest thing we have to offer a similar sound would be the Nantucket and the Riff Raff humbucker.

A pretty clear endorsement of the Supermassive for my application.

Playing the P-90 through my amp I tend to think that the problem is in part the interaction between the guitar and my amp. The P-90 seems to be seriously lacking in balls while the more subtle sounds that I liked in an SG Classic I played in a shop don't seem to be available through my amp.  If I had a Classic 30 or similar amp I'm sure I could get those sounds, but to be honest I'm really a metal and punk player and I never play anything like that much.  The pickup sounds okay playing some things.  I played some Thin Lizzy (Jailbreak) on it and that sounded nice enough. But for what I got the guitar for (punk) it sounds pretty average.

The problem is that I know very little about the pickup that's in there and how it might compare to the two options I'm considering.  I guess I am wondering how close it is to the Nantucket.  How would I identify which magnet it has without pulling the pickup apart?  If it is already an A5 that would seem to rule the Nantucket out, as anything too close to the current pickup seems like a waste of money.

Has anyone here played a Nantucket (or Mississippi Queen bridge) through a Peavey 5150 series amp?  Could you get a good sound out of it?  What were your amp settings (roughly)?  Thanks?

[littleredguitars2]

just wanted to point out you hit 666 posts! haha

can't help you about the nantucket though. sorry.

[Dave Sloven]

just wanted to point out you hit 666 posts! haha

Yeah, I noticed that!

[Dave Sloven]

Also, any ideas on capacitors to use with a single P90?  0.022uf, 0.033uf, or 0.047uf?

I'm thinking of fitting a fully-shielded vintage wired harness (it will obviously be simple, just two pots, a cap, and a jack) with a 500K push-push volume pot wired as a bypass and a 500K tone pot.

Not sure whether to go for the Russian poly, Orange Drop, or a PIO cap.

Also, I am wondering how similar in tone the Supermassive would be to an A-Bomb.  There are a lot of aspects of the A-Bomb sound that I like for punk and hardcore and I'm wondering if the Supermassive sits in the same niche.  See this thread:

https://bareknucklepickups.co.uk/forum/index.php?topic=23990.0

[littleredguitars2]

Also, any ideas on capacitors to use with a single P90?  0.022uf, 0.033uf, or 0.047uf?

I'm thinking of fitting a fully-shielded vintage wired harness (it will obviously be simple, just two pots, a cap, and a jack) with a 500K push-push volume pot wired as a bypass and a 500K tone pot.

Not sure whether to go for the Russian poly, Orange Drop, or a PIO cap.

Also, I am wondering how similar in tone the Supermassive would be to an A-Bomb.  There are a lot of aspects of the A-Bomb sound that I like for punk and hardcore and I'm wondering if the Supermassive sits in the same niche.  See this thread:

https://bareknucklepickups.co.uk/forum/index.php?topic=23990.0

well i'm goin from the abomb to the stockholm, which many say is quite similar to the supermassive because i want a super fat tone with a slight stratty element to it. the abomb didnt have that at all. and from what i'm expecting, it hits a lot of different areas in the rock/punk/and possibly metal genres.

[Dave Sloven]

From what I can tell the Stockholm is an overwound Supermassive in a humbucker sized format.  It seems to have a more output and more bass but maybe less by way of clean tones and less 'P-90 character' ... I'm wondering, if this guy in the thread linked above says the Supermassive is louder than an A-Bomb then maybe the Stockholm is comparable to the Miracle Man? It seems that resistance figures aren't much of a guide in comparing single coils to humbuckers

[littleredguitars2]

yeah man i dont know. personally i expected my a-bomb to have more output. i'm not sure what output i'm used to but the abomb seemed a lot lower than i anticipated

[Dave Sloven]

The A-Bomb sounds quite raucous in an SG.  I'd say it's louder than the Cold Sweat in that guitar, but I think that's because the mids-on-mids thing made the mids so pronounced.

EDIT:  I found this Supermassive clip on youtube.  What do you guys think?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p6pG2Rg4duI

[Dave Sloven]

I've added the Stockholm to the list as I've read elsewhere here that it is possible to order a custom pickup with the Stockholm guts in a regular P-90 housing.

I'm wondering how the following (bridge) models compare in terms of output (volume, EQ, etc, rather than resistance figures):

Nantucket
Supermassive
Stockholm
A-Bomb
Cold Sweat

I've added the two humbuckers at the end as they are the two models I have used in my other SG and they provide a good benchmark.  In terms of aggression I'd like something close to the A-Bomb but maybe with cleans closer to the Cold Sweat if possible.  I would like something that could work with an A-Bomb guitar as backups for one another, for hardcore applications, but it would also be nice if it could be backup to my other SG with the Cold Sweats in a pinch.

[littleredguitars2]

yeah someone mentioned to me that they were able to order an overwound supermassive and it made it very stockholm esque.

[Dave Sloven]

Any more opinions on these?

I'm really trying to work out what might be able to pair up with an A-bomb guitar.

Supermassive vs Stockholm - any real need to go for the latter option?  Is hotter better?

I'm thinking hardcore, fairly hairy, some real balls, but not Warpiggish

I'm tempted by Ben's suggestion of the Supermassive, but just wondering what people have thought of it compared to the Stockholm?  I also like the clip above of it in an SG, so I suspect it will be ok

With the Nantucket, I worry that it would be too trebly and shrill with my amp.  The stock pickup can be quite piercing.  My ears were ringing after playing it for an hour the other day.  I should have worn plugs!  It was only on 1.3 or something like that out of 10. I've played an A-Bomb, an A-Pig, and a Cold Sweat at that volume before without my ears ringing.  I've also heard the A-Pig *much* louder and not had that issue. It was very piercing

[Dave Sloven]

I'm going for the Stockholm ... I want something with the oomph and bite to handle some hardcore that sounds like Heresy on steroids, and the output of the Stockholm will do the trick  8)

EDIT: Order made  :)

[littleredguitars2]

Awesome.  My stockholm and trilogy loaded pickguard just shipped out today.  I can't wait

[Dave Sloven]

See - I told you it wouldn't take long!  That's a good turnaround for a wired pickguard

[Dave Sloven]

Got an email just now to say that it's been dispatched - that was quick for a special order!