Sassy P90 review – MrGlyns Pickups
I wanted to build a Parts-caster Strat that retains some of the traditional “Stratty” tones, but avoids that shrill ice-picky bridge pick-up sound. I wanted a fatter sound with more mids when playing lead. I also wanted a warm jazz tone from the neck pick-up. I didn’t want to muddy things up by adding humbuckers, or run into pot/cap complications with HSS or HSH.
I’ve never had a P90 guitar before, but decided to take a punt on Mr Glyn’s Sassy [P90] set of two necks and a bridge, and Emerson 5-way Strat kit with 500K/0.022uf controls.
I’m very happy with the results. The clarity of tone is great. Ok so SSS Strats are already famed for clarity, especially if the pickups have “pre-CBS” as their inspiration. So you may wonder “why?” The difference here comes when one really digs in with the P90s. They are very dynamic, and offer “extra”. When played with a lighter touch it gives you “stratty”, especially from the 2 and 4 positions. But it can snarl too, and gives tones that are certainly not obviously stratty (which is what I wanted). Neck pickup with tone rolled down to 3 is a nice warm jazz tone and, with eyes tight shut, one wouldn’t even guess that it’s a Strat. Bridge pickup with tone on 4 is a super smooth and creamy lead sound. With the tone on 10 it’s as bright as anyone could wish for. In between “jazz” and “Neil Young/Crazy Horse”, you’ve got great funk (2), country-rock (3), and Knopfler/Mayer (4) noises. A very versatile set-up!
Tim [August, 2023]
