PATB-90....anybody with me?

[ex-250]

I'm normally quite satisfied with current market pickups, don't really do any magnet swapping or hybriding or whatever. But I'd like this weird idea of mine to come to fruition...


I want to put a hum-sized P90 in the bridge of one of my guitars, only thing is its got a recessed floyd, an ebony board, maple neck through and alder wings. 25.5" scale. So a traditional P90 sound would probably end up too bright/thin in this guitar.

But what if it was a hum-sized P90 with the PATB poles, acting like the other PATBs in thickening up a tremeloed guitar? Like say a PATB-3 in a super strat is supposed to be make it sound a bit more in the PAF'd Les Paul territory, the PATB-90 would give a nice fat P-90 tone to a bright trem-equipped guitar.

This coked-out idea may result in a custom shop order, if I ever have the money laying around. Sound appealing to anyone else? Or even practical/plausible?

[dr. ad]

it's an interesting thought

in theory i'm thinking that the lack of adjustable poles may put a few people off, but i just realised i've never needed to tweak one that much and have never done it heh heh

as much as i b1tch about the noise factor, soundwise they make it pretty hard to miss

i say do it

[AlexR]

The original gibson alnico V neck pickup from the LP Custom had polepieces like a PATB

[IanBallard]

I think it would be a great idea. Hum is like tape hiss from analog recordings or skips on vinyl records.... it adds charm and when you crank it up loud enough, you'll never notice.

[MetalManiac]

I'm just concerned it would end up being a bird of a different feather, and not the idealized one you have drawn up.

[SrDeMaFp]

I'm just concerned it would end up being a bird of a different feather, and not the idealized one you have drawn up.

Same here. I do dig the idea of it, though.

[IanBallard]

Well, the PATB 'bucker isn't "like a PAF-type pickup" but people love f#$%@ out of it, so even if the theoretical PATB-90 doesn't impart the "classic tone" it should be a nice comromise, I would think.

[Kam]

All I want to know is why no one's done it before.

[DrNewcenstein]

What about that Phat-Staple?

[Despair]

Phat Staple isn't the same thing at all, has larger polepiece magnets directly under the string. I'd expect lower string pull, better sustain and smoother transients out of the PATB-90.

The staple's also a neat pickup. Only heard one once in the neck position, and that with a fair amount of effects, but it seemed somewhat similar to a P-90, but with more lower mids/deep bass and a fairly different top end. Less snarling upper mids, smoother, but not lacking in treble.

PATB version of a standard P-90 would have some interesting differences, but could preserve the dual magnet construction. I think Seymour Duncan could get it about as close to a P-90 as the PATB-3 is to a '59b. Biggest problem is it might need a bigger route...

[ex-250]

I'm just concerned it would end up being a bird of a different feather, and not the idealized one you have drawn up.

More just a harebrained scheme than an idealized dream. The end result would be something new and cool regardless of whether its accurate. Plus then you could put it in a hardtail gibby style guitar and get a monster super fat P90 sound. I'm gonna do it, one of these days. Goes in the list of stuff I may never get around to doing because of cost.