Pickup Swap on 594 Soapbar

J

jbright44

New Member
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Jul 27, 2017
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Hey folks.... Wanted to get some opinions from the hive mind here on potential pickup swaps on my 594 soapbar. LOVE LOVE the guitar. But I also have a regular 594 with humbuckers and find that the 2 guitars just don't sound "different enough" from each other and I find myself playing the 594 more. I'm curious if any of you have done pickup swaps in the soapbar versions of these to get more of that classic LP Jr. Soapbar sound.

If so, what have you swapped to?

Pics of the guitar in case you want to see them!

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I can’t answer your question and this is off topic but if I had a soapbar 594 I would put Lollar Firebird pickups in it.
Nice looking guitar, is that a korina back?
 
I've wanted one of these for a while with the soapbars. Now you are making me reconsider given lack of a tonal difference, as I already have a 594 with humbuckers in it. Next up for me is probably a Silver Sky with maple neck (after my Chief Household Officer approves my purchase requisition ;)) That is one great looking guitar!
 
The pickups in the 594 Soapbar are, without question, the best P90 pickups I have ever heard in any guitar, of any brand. I was really surprised to see that anyone would want to pull them. Having played a few other brands, I’d not found anything I was happy with, but fell in love with the 594 Soapbar Limited pickups.

Can’t offer an option... but I can offer a good home to your rejects... just PM me!
 
IMO the reason they are sounding similar is because of the rosewood neck. P90's are clear and articulate with lots of highs. The rosewood neck makes the midrange prominent which will make the highs sound muted. So it isn't that you have the wrong pickups, you have the wrong neck (if you want that tasty P90 signature sound). A maple neck would sound very bright. The hog neck would be right in the middle which is what is used for most P90 guitars.
 
AP515 said:
IMO the reason they are sounding similar is because of the rosewood neck. P90's are clear and articulate with lots of highs. The rosewood neck makes the midrange prominent which will make the highs sound muted. So it isn't that you have the wrong pickups, you have the wrong neck (if you want that tasty P90 signature sound). A maple neck would sound very bright. The hog neck would be right in the middle which is what is used for most P90 guitars.
Click to expand...
Don’t tell him that... I’m trying to get him to send them to me! Lol

Seriously, the rosewood does have its own tone, My 594 has the standard neck.
 
I love my 594 Soapbar; also had the 594 (traded in for a McCarty Trem), but I found that they sounded very different, so I don't understand what's happening.

Here's a track I recorded a while with both guitars playing a solo line, same amp (DG30). They sound very different to me! YMMV, of course.

First lead part is the 594 Soapbar; starting halfway through is the 594 Humbucker model.

https://soundcloud.com/lschefman/messy-20
 
[QUOTE="LSchefman, post: 604253, member: 812"... First lead part is the 594 Soapbar; starting halfway through is the 594 Humbucker model.
[/QUOTE]
That soapbar lead is tasty! So different from the buckers. I really think that unless he is EQing them out, his problem is the rosewood neck is leveling everything off.
 
LSchefman said:
I love my 594 Soapbar; also had the 594 (traded in for a McCarty Trem), but I found that they sounded very different, so I don't understand what's happening.

Here's a track I recorded a while with both guitars playing a solo line, same amp (DG30). They sound very different to me! YMMV, of course.

First lead part is the 594 Soapbar; starting halfway through is the 594 Humbucker model.

https://soundcloud.com/lschefman/messy-20
Click to expand...


I guess I'm the problem. I listened. What you guys call "so different" to me sounds "very similar" even in your recording. I mean they sound different, but just barely and only because I know to listen for it. If you hadn't told me, I would have never said "that's 2 different guitars"
 
jbright44 said:
I guess I'm the problem. I listened. What you guys call "so different" to me sounds "very similar" even in your recording. I mean they sound different, but just barely and only because I know to listen for it. If you hadn't told me, I would have never said "that's 2 different guitars"
Click to expand...
That's interesting. They say everyone's ears are different. Here is good evidence. To me there is a grit in the first half that is missing in the second half. They both sound good, and in general they sound similar, but there is a drive and sparkle on top of the P90 half that really adds to the song.
 
jbright44 said:
I guess I'm the problem. I listened. What you guys call "so different" to me sounds "very similar" even in your recording. I mean they sound different, but just barely and only because I know to listen for it. If you hadn't told me, I would have never said "that's 2 different guitars"
Click to expand...

It's certainly true that one person's 'subtle' is another person's 'OMG that's so different'!

The soapbar lead sounds more vowel-like, or more horn-like, and the regular 594 sounds brighter on top with less midrange growl. However, the two pickups are installed on the same platform, so there are naturally going to be real similarities. The soapbar and humbucker also drive the amp differently.

I wound up trading my humbucker 594 in on a McCarty Trem a few months ago because I felt it sounded very similar to my McCarty Singlecut PS, and the McTrem is more of its own thing. So I get where you're coming from.
 
LSchefman said:
I love my 594 Soapbar; also had the 594 (traded in for a McCarty Trem), but I found that they sounded very different, so I don't understand what's happening.

Here's a track I recorded a while with both guitars playing a solo line, same amp (DG30). They sound very different to me! YMMV, of course.

First lead part is the 594 Soapbar; starting halfway through is the 594 Humbucker model.

https://soundcloud.com/lschefman/messy-20
Click to expand...
Recordings sound great! Just for the record, they sound different to me as well :). Were both guitars on the bridge pickup?
 
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