Les Paul Jr/ '54 Custom pickups

[JonnyScaramanga]

I've got a Gibson '54 Les Paul Custom reissue (the one with P90s in it), and I recently tried out a Les Paul Junior (one of the new satin ones for £599).

The guitars sounded totally different, which isn't surprising because the construction is very different. Surprisingly, the Junior's pickup seemed to have more output.

So here's my question: Are the bridge pickups in these guitars the same? Annoyingly, I can't get Gibson's pickup page to load at all, but as far as I know they only offer one P90 as an after market pickup. Where can I find out the specs (magnet, DC resistance) of these guitars' pickups?

[andrewrg]

Try www.lespaulforum.com Loads of knowledgeable folk there.

[JonnyScaramanga]

Thanks Andrew. I'm having loads of trouble getting registered there though. I'm on my second attempt after my first one never got validated by moderators.

[gingerpaul]

I can't get registered on there either. I've tried a couple of times now.

[Basher]

I'm no expert but I think that both just have "Gibson P90 Pickups" on the spec sheet.
I'm not sure that Gibson even make multiple types of P90s.

I had a 1990s LP Special and I now own a '56 reissue Goldtop with P90s. They both used the generic Gibson P90s and I think the difference in sound might just be about the construction.
The more mid-forward nature of the all-mahogany Special made it seem a bit "pokier". Likewise the extra "chime" and maybe more refined sound of the Goldtop might lead me to think it was a bit lower in output. However, I'm pretty sure that they were both quite powerful guitars (up there with PAF-type humbuckers, possibly louder), just slightly different sounds.

(FWIW, I miss the Special. I love the Goldtop but the Special was really light and resonant in a way that the heavier, maple-capped '56 isnt!)

[JonnyScaramanga]

Originally Posted by Basher

I'm no expert but I think that both just have "Gibson P90 Pickups" on the spec sheet.
I'm not sure that Gibson even make multiple types of P90s.

I think you're probably right Basher. I just wondered whether their might be some difference between the pickups on standard production Gibson models (the Junior) and the Custom, Art, Historic models (Black Beauty).

Originally Posted by Basher

(FWIW, I miss the Special. I love the Goldtop but the Special was really light and resonant in a way that the heavier, maple-capped '56 isnt!)

I totally agree. I couldn't believe how much I liked the Junior. I've been really tempted to buy one (I've seen a couple on eBay go for not much more than £400). My Custom is so heavy I wouldn't want to use it for an entire gig, and the Junior just feels thrashable.

Main thing is that I preferred the Junior for high gain sounds, so I'm wondering if a pickup change could get the Custom closer to the Junior. It was really annoying that a £600 guitar pwns my pride and joy!

[guitargeek62]

Hasnt the Jr got the P-100 humbucking one? Thought i read that somewhere...........

[rdmf48]

I've just been reading "the Legacy Of Les Paul 1915 -1963", which has a section at the beginning of the book on the man himself, and then whole chapters on Goldtops, 58-60 Sunbursts, etc. Loads of guitar porn pictures There's a comment about the Juniors and Specials sounding more powerful, but it looks like it's down to the wood used. There's a quote from Walt Fuller from 1975 stating that the pickups in the Juniors and Specials are exactly the same as those used in the Goldtops.

[WezV]

whilst there may well be some difference in the output of the pickups i guess we are talking about a percieved output difference here. if you are really interested to see differences its worth checking the output with a multimeter to see what it is.

it could be that gibson are using different values on different models but there are a lot of factors here that will change the tone and could influence perceived output. the wood and hardware used will have an effect but i think the main differences will be the neck join and lack of neck pickup on the junior. They use a full width tenon on the juniors that has quite an effect on the final tone. also the lack of a neck pickup reduces magentic pull on the strings and lets them vibrate a bit fuller

[guitargeek62]

All i know is, this thing sounds incredible!