Prina
Avoiding imperial entanglements
- Joined
- Jan 5, 2023
- Messages
- 1,419
OK, using the "Private Stock" term is partially click bait but I'll get to that later.
I've been blown away by this SE245 Soapbar since I got it last March. In mint condition it already had a SD Stacked P-90 which was great for being noiseless but not awesome. Lew Collins, rest his soul, had a vintage Gibson P-90 from a set that he loved except for the noise. He'd replaced them with some Bare Knuckles which he like better overall but noted: "The Gibson seems to have more snarl than the BKP's and I actually preferred it as a bridge pickup to the BKPs. But the Gibson in the neck position wouldn't clean up. It'd get muddy when I lowered the volume control. The BKP set is deep and twangy and has less hum. But it doesn't have that sassy growl of the Gibson and I kind of miss that." He wasn't sure about its age but after some research it looks like the best estimate is a late '60s to early '70s though it could be more recent.
A year goes by since I got the pickup and eventually I also got a set of Wolfetone Mean & Meaner P-90s that Wolfe wired up with a 2 conductor cable + separate ground leads which allowed the option of making them RW/RP and hum cancelling in the middle position. I still wasn't sure about which pickup to put in the bridge position so I thought I'd try them both and go with the best. The Gibson was first up and after hearing that classic snarl I was so amazed that it's not leaving. And surprisingly, although it's a hum monster close to the amp, it's much quieter further away and the combined operation is nearly noiseless regardless.
In respect for both the pickup itself as well as Lew, I kept the original black cover on and then later changed the cream neck cover and toggle switch tip so the SE is now 'back in black':
Now back to the "Private Stock" comment. This was in the mid 2010's era when the Koreans had really hit their stride and were making some fantastic guitars including the Bernie Marsden models. I'm not sure how many 'extras' that Bernies have but this 245 Soapbar got lots of love and has the following:
One piece neck
Rosewood fretboard that's as nice as on my Core P245 and better than on my Stripped 58, though not the birds of course
Neck heel bottom that matches the back, either intentionally for matching or to build up the depth of the one piece neck so it fit
The 3 piece back has probably all of the pieces from the same piece of wood, and at very least the biggest two parts are the same with bookmatched endgrain
I've been blown away by this SE245 Soapbar since I got it last March. In mint condition it already had a SD Stacked P-90 which was great for being noiseless but not awesome. Lew Collins, rest his soul, had a vintage Gibson P-90 from a set that he loved except for the noise. He'd replaced them with some Bare Knuckles which he like better overall but noted: "The Gibson seems to have more snarl than the BKP's and I actually preferred it as a bridge pickup to the BKPs. But the Gibson in the neck position wouldn't clean up. It'd get muddy when I lowered the volume control. The BKP set is deep and twangy and has less hum. But it doesn't have that sassy growl of the Gibson and I kind of miss that." He wasn't sure about its age but after some research it looks like the best estimate is a late '60s to early '70s though it could be more recent.
A year goes by since I got the pickup and eventually I also got a set of Wolfetone Mean & Meaner P-90s that Wolfe wired up with a 2 conductor cable + separate ground leads which allowed the option of making them RW/RP and hum cancelling in the middle position. I still wasn't sure about which pickup to put in the bridge position so I thought I'd try them both and go with the best. The Gibson was first up and after hearing that classic snarl I was so amazed that it's not leaving. And surprisingly, although it's a hum monster close to the amp, it's much quieter further away and the combined operation is nearly noiseless regardless.
In respect for both the pickup itself as well as Lew, I kept the original black cover on and then later changed the cream neck cover and toggle switch tip so the SE is now 'back in black':
Now back to the "Private Stock" comment. This was in the mid 2010's era when the Koreans had really hit their stride and were making some fantastic guitars including the Bernie Marsden models. I'm not sure how many 'extras' that Bernies have but this 245 Soapbar got lots of love and has the following:
One piece neck
Rosewood fretboard that's as nice as on my Core P245 and better than on my Stripped 58, though not the birds of course
Neck heel bottom that matches the back, either intentionally for matching or to build up the depth of the one piece neck so it fit
The 3 piece back has probably all of the pieces from the same piece of wood, and at very least the biggest two parts are the same with bookmatched endgrain
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