Thanks for this - great to have the 3 back to back to compare! I'm sort of covered for Humbuckers (1968 Les Paul Custom & the recent Epihone 59 with Gibson electronics) and P90s (Casino w Lollars & Duesenberg Starplayer) BUT i recently tried the new Gibson Deluxe 70s Gold Top reissue and was blown away by the clarity and 'edge' it has - this could easily be my 'other LP' for double tracking and rhythm parts. The minis seem to do away with any 'flab' that humbuckers might have and tighten things up and sit in their own frequency lane . . . your comparison pretty well demonstrates what I was hearing trying these at the Gibson dealers! 👍😊
A slightly different ballgame, but I was looking at 335s and couldn't decide between HBs and P90s. I was thinking I'd probably buy the HB model and put a P90 in the neck. But man, EVERY TIME I watch one of these types of videos it makes me want a mini humbucker...
Just got a new Gibson LP Deluxe 70’s and it’s an incredible guitar. Excellent fit and finish and the neck is perfect IMO. I bought it online based on this comparison and I’m not the least bit disappointed. The mini humbuckers sound fantastic. Very clear and articulate yet still smooth and warm. Don’t get me wrong, though. The P90 one is next on my list (and was actually my first choice but the one I was sent had several issues with it). Can’t wait to get one, hopefully sooner rather than later because I’m getting older and would like to enjoy it for a while. 😂
I have a 1971 Gibson Les Paul Deluxe w/ the mini humbuckers - I think this demo shows how great these minis sound in the Les Paul! It's my favorite guitar and pickup combo 🤩
P90s!!! The minis after that! Great video, really great to hear comparisons using chord patterns that are somewhat recognizable, which to me makes it easier to hear the difference in pickups.
I wish they hadn't put that god awful 50's neck on the 70's mini-humbucker version. I wanted to buy that guitar so badly, but went with a standard because the 60's neck is just so much nicer to play. Complete miss by Gibson making a 50's spec and calling it 70's just because it has different pickups.
I love them all. But I can clearly hear, why humbuckers are most common Les Paul pickup. p90 and MiniHumbuckers feels to me like more specific usage. And MiniBuckers just looks wrong to me on Les Pauls.
My 1979 Gibson deluxes are absolutely brilliant, I bought guitars in 1980 and have never looked back, have never even needed to take the truss rod covers off ! ...... Volute and three piece necks, I don't think that the re - issues have these but I'm not sure, I never looked back.
I like the mini humbucker most, but p90 is close second. Reg humbucker can sound too washed out at times, the mini corrects that and gives it more clarity. Can't beat the P90 aggressiveness/energy tho. Hard to decide between the two, but there's something about the mini humbuckers sound that strikes a chord (pun intended) with me. Great comparison!
Totally agree, the clarity and warmth from the minis is very appealing. I currently play a maton ms500 with twin stock humbuckers, but they don't have that drive and clarity so this has made my mind up
Agreed! A great tonal reference on that would be the guitar work of Jeff Carlisi of 38 Special. All those great guitar solos would have been a Les Paul Deluxe Goldtop with the mini humbuckers.
P90s really shone on this with plenty of power, grit and bite. The humbuckers sounded dull to me. The mini humbuckers are there own thing, much lower output but still usable
All 3 sounded amazing and fit to a certain application. I was blown away by the aggressiveness of P90s , which I must say were my favourite , probably also thanks to you gear , which made them shine. I never tried mini HB though , and your video made me want to try them! Thx , great video and great sounds.
Hey….just subscribed …,always enjoyed your music bliss content and tones….on the subject of pickups on a les paul..,,have previously owned to Gibson BFGs which have the best of both worlds with P90 neck and burstbucker in the bridge …would recommend them to anyone
Great evaluation and description, I would agree with your assessment 100%. Having owned all three of these guitar/pickup combinations I also favor the P90s. That said, I'm still glad to have each of them on-hand as each has a time and place for their use. Count me as a new Subscriber. Thank You, great content Sir.
A very good video! Surprisingly the P90 sounded a little dull in the clean demos and a little harsh in the crunch demos ... with some disharmonious overtones from the bridge pickup. The regular humbuckers were sometimes a littel muddy but with crunch/distortion they had the best, rich and harmonic sound for me with. The mini humbuckers seem to be a good compromise with an emphasis in the high-mid and treble range but without the snotty, disharmonious overtones of the P90. If I had to chose only one Les Paul, overall I would still prefer the regular humbuckers...
So, I actually kept score while I was listening (I'll reply-to-self with a detailed breakdown of those scores and potentially a more detailed analysis thereof). But it's interesting to me that for as different as they are, this one came out super duper close for me. In fact, just adding up simple scores (3 points for every 1st place, 2 for every 2nd, and of course, 1 for every 3rd), they even came out to be a perfect 3-way tie at 12 apiece). To completely abuse the term "objective", I'm going to say therefore, that they are [ahem] "objectively" a 3-way tie, since their overall scores all added up to be the same. Probably the much more important system of measure, though, than a simple naked "tally", would be the more "overtly subjective" measure of what my overall impressions and sensations were listening to them. Even in this much more important and nuanced system of measure, though, I still would struggle somewhat to name a definite 1st place. I can, however, probably more confidently name a 3rd place - and I'll give that one to the minis. Here's why: each pickup had assets and each had liabilities, and at their best, they all shone brilliantly. At their best, they probably ARE a tie for me. But I think I'd give the minis last place subjectively, though, simply because their liabilities tended to be the liabilities that offended me the most. At their best, they're bright and articulate and dazzling, and without the hum of the P90s to boot. But at their worst, I found them to be harsh and brittle, and besides, I found that even if the minis were the most articulate overall, I found the articulation of the P90s to be far far sweeter and less one-dimensional. There is a lot of nuance and character to the P90's articulation, where the articulation of the minis sometimes sounded brutal and robotic. I definitely felt the minis were the least soulful of the three. If we were to separate the scores out to just clean and just dirty, then on balance, the P90s were my favorite of the three for clean tones and my least favorite of the three for dirty tones. The minis were the exact opposite, taking the top score for dirty, and the bottom score for clean. The Humbuckers came in in the middle on both counts, and I suppose, if for no other reason than for that, I'll go ahead and award them the #1 spot subjectively, because they are a masterful jack of all trades, as opposed to the others, which are each more "min/maxed". I liked the Humbuckers almost as much as the P90s when clean, and almost as much as the minis when dirty, and much better than the others in the opposite direction. Moreover, the raw scores don't account for "how important" particular strengths and weaknesses were for me. I'll save all that for the reply-to-self breakdown, but those breakdowns will only further diminish the minis overall and, I suppose, even further bolster the Humbuckers and P90s, and probably especially the humbuckers. So, I'll stop here for now and thank you for an excellent video. If you'd like to know more, see that reply, which will be incoming as quickly as possible. :-) Cheers, and thanks again!!!
Promised "reply-to-self" with the scoring breakdowns: Scoring system: each 1st place is worth 3 points, each 2nd is worth 2, and each 3rd is worth 1. Total points available: 36. Highest possible score: 18. Lowest possible score: 6. Perfect average score: 12. Clean Neck: 1st: P90 2nd: Humbucker 3rd: Mini Clean Middle: 1st: P90 2nd: Mini 3rd: Humbucker Clean Bridge: 1st: Humbucker 2nd: Mini 3rd: P90 Dirty Neck: 1st: Mini 2nd: Humbucker 3rd: P90 Dirty Middle: 1st: Mini 2nd: P90 3rd: Humbucker Dirty Bridge: 1st: Humbucker 2nd: P90 3rd: Mini Neck Overall: 3 way tie (4pts each) P90: 1st and 3rd Humbucker: 2nd and 2nd Mini: 3rd and 1st Middle Overall: 2 way tie: P90 and Mini P90: 1st and 2nd Mini: 2nd and 1st Humbucker: 3rd and 3rd Bridge Overall: Humbucker Humbucker: 1st and 1st P90: 3rd and 2nd Mini: 2nd and 3rd Clean Overall: 1st: P90 (7 points, 2 1sts and a 3rd) 2nd: Humbucker (6 points, 1 of each ranking) 3rd: Mini (5 points, 2 2nds and a 3rd) Dirty Overall: 1st: Mini (7 points, 2 1sts and a 3rd) 2nd: Humbucker (6 points, 1 of each ranking) 3rd: P90 (5 points, 2 2nds and a 3rd) Final Score: 3-way tie: 12pts apiece. Assets and liabilities: Mini Assets: Brightest, most articulate Mini Liabilities: sometimes harsh and brittle, articulation kinda brutal and soulless. My least favorite of the three on clean. Bridge in dirty is offensively shrill. Neck in clean is very "plastic". Humbucker Assets: Warmest and richest, by far the best Bridge. Best balance of clean and dirty Humbucker Liabilities: can be dead and murky sounding. Least favorite middle position. P90 Assets: the perfect middle ground compromise between the Mini's brightness and the Humbucker's warmth. Much sweeter, more nuanced and soulful articulation. P90 liabilities: Huuuuuuuummmmmm, and also my least favorite for dirty. I can't quite put my finger on what it is I dislike about the sounds overdriven, but it's pervasive. Overall least favorite: the Mini. At their best, they're breathtaking. But their liabilities are the ones I find the most offensive. Overall favorite: Humbuckers: the best "jack of all trades", even if a master of none (except for the bridge). Much less "min/maxed" than the other two, covers the most ground well. One I find the most intriguing: Mini One I find the least intriguing: Humbucker One I WANTED to like the best: P90 One I THOUGHT I would like the best: P90 One I THOUGHT I would like the least: Mini. The greatest highlight moments for me: P90 neck clean and Humbucker bridge dirty. Most extreme victories for me: P90 Middle Clean and Humbucker bridge dirty. Favorite positions on each guitar: P90: Clean: Neck. Dirty: Middle. Overall: Neck. Humbucker: Clean: Neck. Dirty: Bridge. Overall: Bridge Mini: Clean: Bridge. Dirty: Middle. Overall: Middle. Misc thoughts 1 of 2: Even though the Mini scored higher for me overall than the Humbucker on dirty, I think I might still actually prefer the Humbucker for dirty overall anyway: why? Because the most important position for me when playing dirty (by far) is the Bridge position, which the Humbucker won for me....by far. Yeah, I genuinely do like the mini neck and middle dirty better than the Humbucker equivalents, but those positions are less important to me than the bridge - combined. Perhaps, for heavy playing, a guitar with a bridge Humbucker and a Mini neck would be ideal (pending the results of how the middle position would sound - which I have not yet had a chance to hear as of this writing, though given how it'd be mixing a dual coil with a dual coil, I would imagine that I'd like it just fine.) Misc thoughts 2 of 2: For clean tones, by contrast, the bridge position is actually the least important to me, making what I perceive to be the P90's weakness there to be less important than its dominance in the neck, which is the most important clean position to me, or in the middle position, where I felt the P90's dominance over the others was the most pronounced and dramatic. While it may seem like the obvious solution for me, then, would be to get a guitar with a P90 neck and a bridge Humbucker, I know for a fact this is not true for me because I have heard the Middle sound on these blended guitars and do not like it at all. Rather than the two pickups "blending", they instead, to my ears, more "stack unpleasantly". And so, seeing as how "clean Middle" is generally more important to me than "clean Bridge", it would for me amount to a net loss to go "PH" on a guitar where I'd mostly be playing clean vs P.P. Again, it'd depend on how the (as yet unheard) middle position would sound, but if favorable, I could see PM becoming a good solution, though given that it's a single and a multi-coil pickup being blended, then just like the aforementioned PH, or, I suppose like a Precision Bass neck and a Jazz Bass bridge, I don't like the way the attempted blends sound in the middle on any of those, so I suspect I would not like this blend either. And there you have it. The full breakdown and some additional thoughts. Overall the Humbucker takes it, though the standalone highlights are mostly P90, and the standalone lowlights are mostly Mini, despite my finding it the most intriguing. Thanks again for the video!! 🍻
That was well done. I`m mostly a bass player but I have watched many guitars in action. The P90`s always sounded right to me. The other 2 are great but suited to certain playing. imo The big humbucker just shouts Peter Townsend.
P-90 are best in middle position. The Humbuckers are great, too. The Mini Humbuckers have much clarity. Check out Jeff McErlain‘s video How To Dial In A Les Paul before changing your PUs!
Well done comparison! I could hear differences with each pickup type. In some comparison videos, the presenter deliberately makes the guitars sound the same as much as possible and dares us to pick which is which :D In clean, I prefer the mini-humbuckers. And that surprised me. In general, the full-sized humbuckers had a bottom-heavy sound. Have you ever played a Firebird? Although those have "mini humbuckers", they are not the same as the mini-humbuckers on Les Pauls or other Gibsons. I'm curious how that stacks up.
Great comparison. No talking is always best between samples. I surprised myself. I didn’t like the mini hb’s but I found surprisingly close to the P90’s.🙏 p.s, I’ll always go with the humbucker and I think you can eq to a close P90 sound…
I honestly prefered the humbuckers in this comparison as they had more bottom end and sounded a bit more whide. The P90’s comes in close second and they got some nice bite to them. The mini humbuckers didn’t sound very good with distortion imo, also they seem to be very noicy.
This video is the perfect example that pickups have different usages depending on the song and genres. Thank you for giving me a good reason to go pick up a new guitar.
Dude, I needed to see this comparison. I had a 2018 Gold Top Les Paul Classic with P90's. I sold it March of this year, 2023. It was over 10lbs, too heavy! All 3 guitars in this post sound great! Man, I think I'm going again with the P90's. A 50's standard Gold Top. Thanks for the post!!
Those mini humbuckers have the cleanest tone
I was definitely surprised how much brighter they were than the P90, sort of half way to a Tele.
Great comparison. For me I prefer the Humbuckers, then the P90’s and mini’s last
Thanks for this - great to have the 3 back to back to compare! I'm sort of covered for Humbuckers (1968 Les Paul Custom & the recent Epihone 59 with Gibson electronics) and P90s (Casino w Lollars & Duesenberg Starplayer) BUT i recently tried the new Gibson Deluxe 70s Gold Top reissue and was blown away by the clarity and 'edge' it has - this could easily be my 'other LP' for double tracking and rhythm parts. The minis seem to do away with any 'flab' that humbuckers might have and tighten things up and sit in their own frequency lane . . . your comparison pretty well demonstrates what I was hearing trying these at the Gibson dealers! 👍😊
A slightly different ballgame, but I was looking at 335s and couldn't decide between HBs and P90s. I was thinking I'd probably buy the HB model and put a P90 in the neck. But man, EVERY TIME I watch one of these types of videos it makes me want a mini humbucker...
P90s clean, but regular hummies with crunch sound best imo.
Excellent video you got yourself a new subscriber!
Minihumbucker for the win!!!!
P90’s all the way…clean & crunchy. They just growl like no others.
Mini deveria ser padrão absoluto.
Just got a new Gibson LP Deluxe 70’s and it’s an incredible guitar. Excellent fit and finish and the neck is perfect IMO. I bought it online based on this comparison and I’m not the least bit disappointed. The mini humbuckers sound fantastic. Very clear and articulate yet still smooth and warm. Don’t get me wrong, though. The P90 one is next on my list (and was actually my first choice but the one I was sent had several issues with it). Can’t wait to get one, hopefully sooner rather than later because I’m getting older and would like to enjoy it for a while. 😂
I have a 1971 Gibson Les Paul Deluxe w/ the mini humbuckers - I think this demo shows how great these minis sound in the Les Paul! It's my favorite guitar and pickup combo 🤩
Thank you for the video, it's just what I was looking for. For me mini humbucker for life 😂 p.s. hi from Italy!
P90s all the way home....it is how it should be.
P90s!!! The minis after that! Great video, really great to hear comparisons using chord patterns that are somewhat recognizable, which to me makes it easier to hear the difference in pickups.
I wish they hadn't put that god awful 50's neck on the 70's mini-humbucker version. I wanted to buy that guitar so badly, but went with a standard because the 60's neck is just so much nicer to play. Complete miss by Gibson making a 50's spec and calling it 70's just because it has different pickups.
I love them all. But I can clearly hear, why humbuckers are most common Les Paul pickup.
p90 and MiniHumbuckers feels to me like more specific usage.
And MiniBuckers just looks wrong to me on Les Pauls.
Well done! I'm in the P90 camp also. They've got it all. Thanks
I think Mini Humbucker sounds the Best
The cleaner, the more I liked the P90s. The more gain, the more I liked the HBs. The minis were versatile and clear but lacked a certain prettiness.
Helpful comparison. And thanks for playing the same riffs with each guitar, as not all reviewers do that.
My 1979 Gibson deluxes are absolutely brilliant, I bought guitars in 1980 and have never looked back, have never even needed to take the truss rod covers off ! ...... Volute and three piece necks, I don't think that the re - issues have these but I'm not sure, I never looked back.
I like the mini humbucker most, but p90 is close second. Reg humbucker can sound too washed out at times, the mini corrects that and gives it more clarity.
Can't beat the P90 aggressiveness/energy tho. Hard to decide between the two, but there's something about the mini humbuckers sound that strikes a chord (pun intended) with me.
Great comparison!
Totally agree, the clarity and warmth from the minis is very appealing. I currently play a maton ms500 with twin stock humbuckers, but they don't have that drive and clarity so this has made my mind up
Agreed! A great tonal reference on that would be the guitar work of Jeff Carlisi of 38 Special. All those great guitar solos would have been a Les Paul Deluxe Goldtop with the mini humbuckers.
I played the P90 the Goldtop 58 Reissue and the Custom... p90 is a monster machine. Killer.
P90s really shone on this with plenty of power, grit and bite. The humbuckers sounded dull to me. The mini humbuckers are there own thing, much lower output but still usable
P90s are cool. I love them, I play them but, man, they sure do buzz and hum. It definitely takes a bit of taming to get under control.
All 3 sounded amazing and fit to a certain application.
I was blown away by the aggressiveness of P90s , which I must say were my favourite , probably also thanks to you gear , which made them shine.
I never tried mini HB though , and your video made me want to try them!
Thx , great video and great sounds.
Mr. Beard, nicely done. I'm on board with your opinion. My '65ish Firebird 3 has P90s that just grab by the short hairs.
Thanks.
Hey….just subscribed …,always enjoyed your music bliss content and tones….on the subject of pickups on a les paul..,,have previously owned to Gibson BFGs which have the best of both worlds with P90 neck and burstbucker in the bridge …would recommend them to anyone
Awesome thorough video! This really helped me out as I've been trying to decide between a P90 vs Mini Humbucker Les Paul.
Surprised my the minis! Maybe I need a third Les Paul….
Great evaluation and description, I would agree with your assessment 100%. Having owned all three of these guitar/pickup combinations I also favor the P90s. That said, I'm still glad to have each of them on-hand as each has a time and place for their use.
Count me as a new Subscriber. Thank You, great content Sir.
Great video, as usual. Oh, your reverb also makes me happy! LoL
After so many years of hating on mini humbuckers your video has humbled me. They sound great 🤘🔥
A very good video!
Surprisingly the P90 sounded a little dull in the clean demos and a little harsh in the crunch demos ... with some disharmonious overtones from the bridge pickup.
The regular humbuckers were sometimes a littel muddy but with crunch/distortion they had the best, rich and harmonic sound for me with.
The mini humbuckers seem to be a good compromise with an emphasis in the high-mid and treble range but without the snotty, disharmonious overtones of the P90.
If I had to chose only one Les Paul, overall I would still prefer the regular humbuckers...
Very good comparison, and usefull. Congrats.
Where sound what you have no 67 12 firebird with mini hums
So, I actually kept score while I was listening (I'll reply-to-self with a detailed breakdown of those scores and potentially a more detailed analysis thereof). But it's interesting to me that for as different as they are, this one came out super duper close for me. In fact, just adding up simple scores (3 points for every 1st place, 2 for every 2nd, and of course, 1 for every 3rd), they even came out to be a perfect 3-way tie at 12 apiece).
To completely abuse the term "objective", I'm going to say therefore, that they are [ahem] "objectively" a 3-way tie, since their overall scores all added up to be the same. Probably the much more important system of measure, though, than a simple naked "tally", would be the more "overtly subjective" measure of what my overall impressions and sensations were listening to them.
Even in this much more important and nuanced system of measure, though, I still would struggle somewhat to name a definite 1st place. I can, however, probably more confidently name a 3rd place - and I'll give that one to the minis. Here's why: each pickup had assets and each had liabilities, and at their best, they all shone brilliantly. At their best, they probably ARE a tie for me. But I think I'd give the minis last place subjectively, though, simply because their liabilities tended to be the liabilities that offended me the most. At their best, they're bright and articulate and dazzling, and without the hum of the P90s to boot. But at their worst, I found them to be harsh and brittle, and besides, I found that even if the minis were the most articulate overall, I found the articulation of the P90s to be far far sweeter and less one-dimensional. There is a lot of nuance and character to the P90's articulation, where the articulation of the minis sometimes sounded brutal and robotic. I definitely felt the minis were the least soulful of the three.
If we were to separate the scores out to just clean and just dirty, then on balance, the P90s were my favorite of the three for clean tones and my least favorite of the three for dirty tones. The minis were the exact opposite, taking the top score for dirty, and the bottom score for clean. The Humbuckers came in in the middle on both counts, and I suppose, if for no other reason than for that, I'll go ahead and award them the #1 spot subjectively, because they are a masterful jack of all trades, as opposed to the others, which are each more "min/maxed". I liked the Humbuckers almost as much as the P90s when clean, and almost as much as the minis when dirty, and much better than the others in the opposite direction.
Moreover, the raw scores don't account for "how important" particular strengths and weaknesses were for me. I'll save all that for the reply-to-self breakdown, but those breakdowns will only further diminish the minis overall and, I suppose, even further bolster the Humbuckers and P90s, and probably especially the humbuckers.
So, I'll stop here for now and thank you for an excellent video. If you'd like to know more, see that reply, which will be incoming as quickly as possible. :-)
Cheers, and thanks again!!!
Promised "reply-to-self" with the scoring breakdowns:
Scoring system: each 1st place is worth 3 points, each 2nd is worth 2, and each 3rd is worth 1. Total points available: 36. Highest possible score: 18. Lowest possible score: 6. Perfect average score: 12.
Clean Neck:
1st: P90
2nd: Humbucker
3rd: Mini
Clean Middle:
1st: P90
2nd: Mini
3rd: Humbucker
Clean Bridge:
1st: Humbucker
2nd: Mini
3rd: P90
Dirty Neck:
1st: Mini
2nd: Humbucker
3rd: P90
Dirty Middle:
1st: Mini
2nd: P90
3rd: Humbucker
Dirty Bridge:
1st: Humbucker
2nd: P90
3rd: Mini
Neck Overall: 3 way tie (4pts each)
P90: 1st and 3rd
Humbucker: 2nd and 2nd
Mini: 3rd and 1st
Middle Overall: 2 way tie: P90 and Mini
P90: 1st and 2nd
Mini: 2nd and 1st
Humbucker: 3rd and 3rd
Bridge Overall: Humbucker
Humbucker: 1st and 1st
P90: 3rd and 2nd
Mini: 2nd and 3rd
Clean Overall:
1st: P90 (7 points, 2 1sts and a 3rd)
2nd: Humbucker (6 points, 1 of each ranking)
3rd: Mini (5 points, 2 2nds and a 3rd)
Dirty Overall:
1st: Mini (7 points, 2 1sts and a 3rd)
2nd: Humbucker (6 points, 1 of each ranking)
3rd: P90 (5 points, 2 2nds and a 3rd)
Final Score: 3-way tie: 12pts apiece.
Assets and liabilities:
Mini Assets: Brightest, most articulate
Mini Liabilities: sometimes harsh and brittle, articulation kinda brutal and soulless. My least favorite of the three on clean. Bridge in dirty is offensively shrill. Neck in clean is very "plastic".
Humbucker Assets: Warmest and richest, by far the best Bridge. Best balance of clean and dirty
Humbucker Liabilities: can be dead and murky sounding. Least favorite middle position.
P90 Assets: the perfect middle ground compromise between the Mini's brightness and the Humbucker's warmth. Much sweeter, more nuanced and soulful articulation.
P90 liabilities: Huuuuuuuummmmmm, and also my least favorite for dirty. I can't quite put my finger on what it is I dislike about the sounds overdriven, but it's pervasive.
Overall least favorite: the Mini. At their best, they're breathtaking. But their liabilities are the ones I find the most offensive.
Overall favorite: Humbuckers: the best "jack of all trades", even if a master of none (except for the bridge). Much less "min/maxed" than the other two, covers the most ground well.
One I find the most intriguing: Mini
One I find the least intriguing: Humbucker
One I WANTED to like the best: P90
One I THOUGHT I would like the best: P90
One I THOUGHT I would like the least: Mini.
The greatest highlight moments for me: P90 neck clean and Humbucker bridge dirty.
Most extreme victories for me: P90 Middle Clean and Humbucker bridge dirty.
Favorite positions on each guitar:
P90: Clean: Neck. Dirty: Middle. Overall: Neck.
Humbucker: Clean: Neck. Dirty: Bridge. Overall: Bridge
Mini: Clean: Bridge. Dirty: Middle. Overall: Middle.
Misc thoughts 1 of 2: Even though the Mini scored higher for me overall than the Humbucker on dirty, I think I might still actually prefer the Humbucker for dirty overall anyway: why? Because the most important position for me when playing dirty (by far) is the Bridge position, which the Humbucker won for me....by far. Yeah, I genuinely do like the mini neck and middle dirty better than the Humbucker equivalents, but those positions are less important to me than the bridge - combined. Perhaps, for heavy playing, a guitar with a bridge Humbucker and a Mini neck would be ideal (pending the results of how the middle position would sound - which I have not yet had a chance to hear as of this writing, though given how it'd be mixing a dual coil with a dual coil, I would imagine that I'd like it just fine.)
Misc thoughts 2 of 2: For clean tones, by contrast, the bridge position is actually the least important to me, making what I perceive to be the P90's weakness there to be less important than its dominance in the neck, which is the most important clean position to me, or in the middle position, where I felt the P90's dominance over the others was the most pronounced and dramatic. While it may seem like the obvious solution for me, then, would be to get a guitar with a P90 neck and a bridge Humbucker, I know for a fact this is not true for me because I have heard the Middle sound on these blended guitars and do not like it at all. Rather than the two pickups "blending", they instead, to my ears, more "stack unpleasantly". And so, seeing as how "clean Middle" is generally more important to me than "clean Bridge", it would for me amount to a net loss to go "PH" on a guitar where I'd mostly be playing clean vs P.P. Again, it'd depend on how the (as yet unheard) middle position would sound, but if favorable, I could see PM becoming a good solution, though given that it's a single and a multi-coil pickup being blended, then just like the aforementioned PH, or, I suppose like a Precision Bass neck and a Jazz Bass bridge, I don't like the way the attempted blends sound in the middle on any of those, so I suspect I would not like this blend either.
And there you have it. The full breakdown and some additional thoughts. Overall the Humbucker takes it, though the standalone highlights are mostly P90, and the standalone lowlights are mostly Mini, despite my finding it the most intriguing.
Thanks again for the video!! 🍻
This is very perfect content for us to know the difference between guitar and what we should pick the right one. Thank you ❤🎉
Great playing indeed
I love p90s but find overdriven mini humbuckers just great
Mini humbucker just has so much punch and cut to my ear. I really liked em.
That was well done. I`m mostly a bass player but I have watched many guitars in action. The P90`s always sounded right to me. The other 2 are great but suited to certain playing. imo The big humbucker just shouts Peter Townsend.
My favorite are the p90
Goldtop sounded best
Love the mini buckers and P90's!
P-90 are best in middle position. The Humbuckers are great, too. The Mini Humbuckers have much clarity.
Check out Jeff McErlain‘s video How To Dial In A Les Paul before changing your PUs!
Them mini's are so gooood!!
I can see a need for all of them.
Well done comparison! I could hear differences with each pickup type. In some comparison videos, the presenter deliberately makes the guitars sound the same as much as possible and dares us to pick which is which :D
In clean, I prefer the mini-humbuckers. And that surprised me. In general, the full-sized humbuckers had a bottom-heavy sound. Have you ever played a Firebird? Although those have "mini humbuckers", they are not the same as the mini-humbuckers on Les Pauls or other Gibsons. I'm curious how that stacks up.
I'd love to se a LP with a Burstbucker in the bridge and a minihumbucker in the neck, wonder why Gibson never offered this hybrid.
Great video btw
Great video.
Great comparison. No talking is always best between samples. I surprised myself. I didn’t like the mini hb’s but I found surprisingly close to the P90’s.🙏 p.s, I’ll always go with the humbucker and I think you can eq to a close P90 sound…
P90 for cutting through the mix
Mini for fitting in the mix
Bucker for the soloist
Thanks for the good comparison! The minis are my personal favorite, I think they are under utilized.
I honestly prefered the humbuckers in this comparison as they had more bottom end and sounded a bit more whide. The P90’s comes in close second and they got some nice bite to them. The mini humbuckers didn’t sound very good with distortion imo, also they seem to be very noicy.
the best sound production in a guitar review video I have seen and heard.
This video is the perfect example that pickups have different usages depending on the song and genres. Thank you for giving me a good reason to go pick up a new guitar.
Mini all the way!
Dude, I needed to see this comparison. I had a 2018 Gold Top Les Paul Classic with P90's. I sold it March of this year, 2023. It was over 10lbs, too heavy! All 3 guitars in this post sound great! Man, I think I'm going again with the P90's. A 50's standard Gold Top. Thanks for the post!!
the 2018 classics has no weight relief . i dont know about the 50s standard but i do feel the 2018 run is special.. i have one
P90s have a great acoustic quality to them. My favorite jazz gtr setup is a 175 with a p90 in the neck. Early Jim Hall stuff. Beautiful.
PAFs are too tubby. Never been a fan.
Best comparison of this yet.