GFS pickup test - Vintage 59 bridge and Mean 90 neck

[McBlobby3]

hey, my guitar can split double coils to single coils. does that mean that if i change my pickups i can still do that?

[OsainteveO]

@McBlobby3

Not all pickups have that capability. Usually if it says '4 conductor' then it will coil split.

[90fourninety]

@McBlobby3 Your guitar can control your pickups however you want, just ask a guitar tech to wire it up to your needs.

[OsainteveO]

@90fourninety

Careful with that advice.

I'll say it again: NOT all humbucker pickups can coil split. Most replacement pickups do it, but some 'vintage' spec'd pickups only come with 2 conductor wiring - there's no way to wire a coil split (unless you're going to do surgery on the pickup itself)

[RythmTR]

I like all that comparison, you should make a similar video with my bumstead sg with my pickups selection

[87RAZORZ]

How long did take for them to come in?

[RickyRoro777]

That sounds really good! Now all I need to know is, will these pickups turn to mud on really low tunings, or will they keep their warmth and clarity?

[OsainteveO]

@RickyRoro777

The only low tunings I've ever used are dropping the low E down to D and tuning the guitar to E flat. It handles both of those well.

If you're going for that Nu Metal tone, I don't think this is the right choice.

[RickyRoro777]

@OsainteveO Alright, thanks. I might try them anyways to see what they sound like though, since they don't cost a whole lot in comparison to other pickup manufacturers.

[OsainteveO]

@RickyRoro777

You're absolutely right! GFS pickups are cheap and allow people to experiment without spending a lot of money.

Keep in mind that the neck pickup (Mean90) is NOT a humbucker and will hum like a single coil.

[LukeLoganHodge]

Which would you reccomend a '59 or a retrotron bridge pup to add a little more bite/crunch in a epi lp standard?

[trashedxj]

that was some beautiful playing, dont know if its yours or a covor but either way DAYYUUUMMMMM nice cleans ya got there. how does f spacing differ from "regular?"

[Luke0739]

they sound a lot better distorted than i was expecting

[sexpistolio]

great demo! thanks!

[andrew4773]

Hi I just wanted to ask if GFS pickups are descent enough for them to be compared to a seymourduncan Seth Lover?

[OsainteveO]

@andrew4773

It seems to vary by model. The Vintage 59 gets good reviews, but some of the GFS line doesn't. The price is cheap enough, that you can experiment and sell it if it isn't what you wanted. You can also go to harmonycentral and read reviews on GFS pickups.

[andrew4773]

@OsainteveO Thanks! Im building a 72 tele thinline and I'm thinking in buying the vintage 59 or the mean 90, any advice?

[andrew4773]

@OsainteveO thanks man! Im building a 72 tele thinline and I'm thinking in installing the Vintage59, but I'm also considering the mean 90...

any advice man?

[OsainteveO]

@andrew4773

Neither of them are very powerful, which would suit a Thinline well. If you want over-the-top treble, you can look at the GFS Retrotron. I did a review of it and didn't like it, but others think it's great. Pickups are far too subjective to give a concrete opinion on. That's the best I can do you you - good luck!

[TheGuitarist365]

@andrew4773 I have the Mean 90 and here's my review ( I have one on my channel)

The neck pickup is great...amazing for clean blues, rock, jazz, everything. It has a ton of treble and when you hook it up to a good tube amp...heaven

The bridge pickup is too brittle for my liking, and it doesn't have the snarl of most P-90's when dirty.

I would go with this guy's setup

[CaitlinBrooksMusic]

Thanks so much for posting this clip. I've been curious about GFS pickups and ModBoards lately.

I am ambitious about eventually building a solid-body electric guitar, and I think I'll use GFS pickups for it.

[kellchatmoko]

Hi OsainteveO, can you please share what capacitors are in your guitar? I already have these pick-ups. love them! thanks!

[OsainteveO]

I've taken the tone controls out, so there are no caps in it. I wired both pickups into 1 volume pot (500K) to keep life simple!

[kellchatmoko]

wow! that's really pretty simple setup. nice tone! thanks! lastly, what is you EQ settings on your Vox amp? thanks again!

[OsainteveO]

I'm forever tweaking the settings on the amp. Usually, the bass is 8-10, mid 4-6. The treble varies a lot depending on which model I'm on - it can go anywhere from 0 to 6.

[singlecoillove]

Got this the same pickups in my Washburn 335 copy. It's a nice setup. Sounds good on you Les Paul too.

[dantesblackrose13]

I'm so lucky i found this video, haha. I've got an ebony Epi LP '08 standard that I was thinking of putting this exact pickup setup in, and you've sealed the deal for me. I'm also installed a set of the 'Greenkey' tuning machines that GFS sells and slapping a Bigsby B7 on it. Trying to turn it into my twist on a really classic piece.

[TheGuitarist365]

Good luck with that! I myself have never done anything major to my guitars

Thanks

[razormusik]

That's a beautiful guitar! Sounds great also.

[VincentValentineXIII]

this might not be the place, but whats a good GFS with a Strat single coil sound but with a little more humbucker balls?

[OsainteveO]

@VincentValentineXIII

I can't help you with GFS, but Seymour Duncan makes a model called SSL-5. It keeps the strat sound but gives it more balls.

[VincentValentineXIII]

okay thanks

[93si00]

The very last lick you play (6:10)...is that with the Mean 90? For the majority of the video the V59 sounded like it was hotter than the M90, but that last lick sounded "hotter". Would you suspect a V59 in the neck to sound "hotter" (more trebly, if that's a word) than the M90 in the neck. Thanks.

[OsainteveO]

@93si00

The last lick is on the V59.

A V59 in the neck would be thicker. I can't say if it would be more trebly. I find neck humbuckers to be too muddy, but I haven't tried the V59 neck model. As I always say, they're cheap and easy to re-sell if you don't like it.

[m3dicated]

sounds sweet and clear. (:

[jamemusical]

Wow it sound's awesome so clean and quite : ) I love this pick up : )

[ace69er]

Sounds TASTY as. WHAT guitar did you mount those GFS's in? Is that a LP or some replica?

Your blurb doesnt state.

AC30 sounds good too.

[OsainteveO]

Epiphone LP. It was a limited quilt top/black hardware model that they did a few years back.

btw, not an AC30 (very expensive). VT30 ($300!)

[mrmacaroniman]

could you send me the tabs for what you were playing at 1:25-2:15

[OsainteveO]

I don't do tabs, but the chords are CM7(3rd position), DM7(5th position) and GM7(10th position). You can google those names to see the fingering charts.

[mrmacaroniman]

thanks

[subsahara121]

Nice sounding pickups man.... they sound like Duncans

[jayrobb9]

I've been tossing up between the GFS V59 and the Classic II to drop into the bridge of my Squier 51.

I think this vid has sold me on the V59.

By the way, that amp sounds beautiful.

[Murkerr]

Nice tune!

[kingofvideos96]

wats that tune at 3:02-3:54

[OsainteveO]

Just something I made up. They're the same chords that I used in the overdriven section right after that.

[asdesas]

Sweet indeed, OsainteveO! Great tones and playing! I love GFS stuff but have never tried the Vintage 59--but now I think i should! Check my vids of Fat Pat / Crunchy PAt and Mean 90 if you'd like.

[JMcG92]

What kind of "tweaking" have you done to the Vox might I ask?

[OsainteveO]

No modifications, just tweaking the dials. I found that turning down the gain and cranking the power amp really improves the sound (almost like a real tube amp).

[rockindavid310]

i think you brought me back on the verge from metal to classic rock, just hearing that little lick from stair way to heaven....just brings a kid back you know?

[stratman9]

What a GORGEOUS tone!! How noisy is the Mean 90? Because I'm SERIOUSLY considering this combo now. The '59 has such great body and definition while that mean 90 has just the right blend of thickness and sparkle. I'd just be worried about 60 cycle hum in the middle and neck positions - how bad is it?

[OsainteveO]

You're right, the mean 90 is a single coil and there is hum. All I can say is that it's no worse than my Tele. I always say that for the price, why not give it a shot.

[longez172]

hey man, i just bought a mean 90 and a vintage 59 where did you find a wiring diagram for that setup?

[OsainteveO]

In the box...

If you didn't get one, I sure you can email them and they'll email you the diagram. You can also try googling it.

The Mean 90 is easier because it's only a single coil. The only trick is to reverse the wires in the diagram because the Mean 90 is wired in reverse. Otherwise it will sound thin with both pickups at the same time.

[woodshome11]

Thank you for the posting, well done. Nice to hear the clean sounds too.

[vienna3109]

Hope you keep posing lessons ur a great instructor .

[OsainteveO]

Thanks for the comment!

I know it was just a type-o, but sometimes I feel like I'm "posing" lessons :)

[dalescudder]

I have this combo in a semi-hollowbody. the Mean 90 is al ouder pickup than the vintage 59 by design. That can be compensated for by lowering the mean 90 and raising the vintage 59, or just by using volume controls.

[OsainteveO]

Sound perception is relative. You may be right in that the M90 is louder. But the fact that it's a single coil, and sounds thinner, seems to make them about equal (at least to my ears).

[sunp]

a rookie question here, is the neck supposed to be brighter than the bridge? or the other way around? and usually the bridge would have more gain, yes? help appreciateddd!

[OsainteveO]

The bridge will be brighter, and they are usually wound to be hotter. Getting a pickup designed for distortion will sound nice and tight with a high gain amp, but it will sound boring when played cleanly. A low output pickup will sound good on a clean amp, but will sound 'looser' with high gain. It's a compromise and you have to decide which sound is more important to you.

[redlipstick678]

awesome this was totally what i was looking for. im thinking of getting the mean 90 for bridge and neck. have you ever tried the Seymore duncan phat cat? how does the mean 90 compare.

thanks so much for doing this!

[OsainteveO]

I've never tried the Phat Cat, but I have tried Duncan's 59 and the GFS 59 is just as good (although slightly hotter).

[coontardo]

Nice tone! I am thinking about going with the same pickup combination in my Ibanez semi-hollow.

Do you find that these two pickups are reasonably balanced when switching back and forth (when the v59 is in full hb mode)?

[OsainteveO]

I would say there's very little volume drop. I've always found that a full HB in the neck is too overpowering and I end up lowering them way down. The Mean90 was just what I was looking for. This is now my most versatile guitar (by far).

[captainchrismo]

Wow! What a nice sweet tone coming from not only the neck pickup but the bridge as well!

[ChasTheOhm]

Nice sound, I like the overdriven sound.

[lmm166]

Awesome post. CHEERS!!!

[23456applejuicebum]

Thanks for posting. I like that you play the same thing for each test so we can hear the difference. That combination of pickups seems to give a lot of variety, I might just order the same set.