Steve Luke Posted July 21, 2005 Report Share Posted July 21, 2005 I've got a set of P90 soapbars to fit into a solid body. Can anyone give me advice on how best to do this? Obviously the depth of the pup cavity will dictate the distance of the gap between the pup and the strings - what is the ideal distance for this gap? Also, should teh P90 be bolted flat right up against the bottom of the pup cavity? My P90's came with a pair of rubber pads each, so I'm wondering if these should act as spacers between teh pup and the bottom of teh pup cavity, i.e. pup not bolted straight up against the wood. Many thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zionstrat Posted July 21, 2005 Report Share Posted July 21, 2005 Steve- PUP height is variable- I start at about 1/4 and lower if I get 'stratitis' (wobeling sound if pup is too close) or move up if I need more power- I use a piece of foam under my p90s but the rubber pads will do the same thing- EVH made a big deal about mounting pup directly to wood but most have since conculded that it had no effect- Cheers Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve Luke Posted July 21, 2005 Author Report Share Posted July 21, 2005 Steve- PUP height is variable- I start at about 1/4 and lower if I get 'stratitis' (wobeling sound if pup is too close) or move up if I need more power- I use a piece of foam under my p90s but the rubber pads will do the same thing- EVH made a big deal about mounting pup directly to wood but most have since conculded that it had no effect- Cheers ← So the rubber pads will act as spacers and allow some "springiness" to move the pups higher or lower? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GregP Posted July 21, 2005 Report Share Posted July 21, 2005 Ayup. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve Luke Posted July 21, 2005 Author Report Share Posted July 21, 2005 Ayup. ← So if I understand OK, the fact that the pup is only coming into contact with the pads and not the wood won't make much difference to the sound. In the same way that the pups on a strat are mounted onto the pickguard and are basically suspended inside the pup cavity without touching the wood - is this the same sort of idea? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GregP Posted July 22, 2005 Report Share Posted July 22, 2005 Exactly the same sort of idea. I find the P90 method of mounting to be a bit wobbly, but that's the nature of the beast unless you choose to 'engineer' something of your own to replace what is IMO a slightly flawed method of attachment. "Flaw" or no flaw, though, I love the sound of my LG, which has SD P90s in it. Once I got accustomed to the slightly 'wobbly' feel of adjustment, I forgot all about it. I anticipate that when you mount them, your first reaction might be the same. "What's this then? <wobble, wobble> Doesn't seem sturdy!" Don't worry, though, it'll be fine. Is this for a scratch-built guitar? Greg Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve Luke Posted July 22, 2005 Author Report Share Posted July 22, 2005 Yes, I've got 2 ideas on the go. One's a mahogany tele with P90's, the other's a shape I've designed myself based loosely on a Mosrite shape with a few changes. They'll both use pickguards, but obviously the pups will be mounted into the body. Thanks to everyone for all your v helpful advice. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GregP Posted July 22, 2005 Report Share Posted July 22, 2005 If it's for scratch-built, you have the luxury of making the pickup cavity exactly the right size for the P90s, which will reduce the 'wobbly' effect I mentioned. Can't wobble if there's no wiggle room to do so. Greg Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve Luke Posted July 22, 2005 Author Report Share Posted July 22, 2005 If it's for scratch-built, you have the luxury of making the pickup cavity exactly the right size for the P90s, which will reduce the 'wobbly' effect I mentioned. Can't wobble if there's no wiggle room to do so. Greg ← Yep, if my routing's OK! THese will be my first guitar projects, so I hope I can get the cavities just right. I've got some experience with routing, and I've had pretty clean results so far, so hopefully I'll have no problems routing the cavities to the exact size of the P90's, but as ever I'll practice on some scrap first - better to nalls up a scrap of pine than a £40 slab of mahogany! Thanks for the help. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GregP Posted July 22, 2005 Report Share Posted July 22, 2005 I hear that. I'm almost to the point of routing the pickup cavities on my project, and even with the luxury of using mounting rings (which will cover up flaws if there end up being any!) I'm still a bit... not 'nervous', but something like that. On the other hand, it could be a mixed blessing. My top needs work that I don't relish doing. Greg Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mickguard Posted July 22, 2005 Report Share Posted July 22, 2005 Steve, you can do what I'm doing --putting in a dogear instead of soapbar --the cover is slightly larger, gives you a little fudging room... (Well, I need that!). There's a guy on ebay selling his own spacers too --they're basically rings of plastic cut so you can raise the height of a dog ear--but they can also work as rings for a soapbar. They'll eliminate the wiggle and cover up the edges of the route. Apparently, Gibson made spacers too: http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewI...eName=WDVW&rd=1Gibson spacer Better yet, you can find them here CHEAPER Also, I cut up a mouse pad to put the P90 in my Melody Maker-- the pads were too thick. As for the wiggle thing--well, once you've adjusted it, it's not an issue anymore, it doesn't affect the sound or the playability. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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