P90 or Dream 90?

[Dannomite]

I'll start off by saying that I'm putting together what's going to be a semi hollow, open tuned slide guitar with a brass top out of an Epiphone Special II. Before I hack away at the body, I need to figure out what pick ups I'm going with. I've decided that I want to go with P90's from Guitar Fetish (keeping it low budget) but need some expert advice on the difference between a traditional P90 vs a GFS Dream 90.

Will there be a difference in tone and if so, how much? Going with a P90 would be a safe bet, but I like the aesthetic appeal of the Dream 90s with pearl. If the difference is minimal, I'd like to go with the Dream 90s. That being said, if the Dream 90s are good, would it be beneficial to go with coil tapped Dream 180s? Would a coil tapped 180 sound like a 90? Thanks

GFS Alnico Vintage Soapbar Black Pickup

Dream 90 Humbucker Sized P90 Black Pearl\Gold

Dream 180 Vintage-Voiced Humbucker Black Pearl Gold

 

[Spiteface]

For a start, the regular P90 won't fit. I assume your Epi special II has humbuckers, yeah?

So if you want P90-ish tone, you'll be looking at the likes of the "Dream 90" pickup.

I haven't tried any of those pickups, so my advice is only from a purely practical perspective rather than tonal.

 

[Dannomite]

The size/shape isn't an issue. I'll carve out the cavity if I need to. I just need to determine what type of pup I'm going with so I can cut the appropriate size hole in the brass top I'll be installing.

 

[Dannomite]

I've decided to just go with a traditional style P90. The guitar is going to be heavily modded, so it's no issue. I've also decided not to go with the GFS P90 because the reviews I've read are hit or miss and I don't feel like gambling on this one. I'm going to spend a little more and go with Seymour Duncan. They have a great site with lots of sound samples, but I want to get a public opinion on what P90 I should get for sort of a dirty slide blues sort of sound. I've read for slide blues, I should look for higher mids (yes?) which the SP90-2 and STK-P1 have. The difference is that one has higher treble and the other has higher bass, but not by much. Which would be more beneficial, treble or bass?

 

[mrrazorblade227]

Well personally I would go for a darker sound, but thats because I don't like things overly bright, I'm thinking the brass might make the guitar sound a bit brighter, so maybe darkening it up with a bassier pup might be preferable.

 

[Dannomite]

Good point. I'll go with the SP90-2. I checked prices and it's $40 cheaper for the set than the STK-P1s. Probably would have gone that route anyways because of cost. Thanks

 

[mrrazorblade227]

No problem