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Seymour Duncan SPH90-1 phat cat


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Hey Gang,

Sorry if this was already discussed. Is anybody using these pickups either in your Hamer or other guitars? I wanted to get an idea of what your opinion was of them. Here's the writeup on the Seymour Duncan site. They seem to cover alot of ground for a P-90 pickup.

Thanks.

application Authentic P-90 sound in a humbucker retrofit size pickup. Recommended for country, jazz, blues, rockabilly, classic rock and heavy rock.

description Originally developed in the Custom Shop for Hamer® Guitars, a Phat Cat is an actual single-coil P-90 Soapbar that fits under a humbucker cover and drops into humbucker-equipped guitars. The tone is big and fat, er, phat. It uses two Alnico 2 magnets for more sustain and softer attack. Also, the metal covers provide more shielding and noise reduction than standard soapbar covers. Comes with single-conductor hookup cable.

complete setup Available for both neck and bridge positions in a balanced set. The neck pickup is RW/RP relative to the bridge for hum-free performance when both pickups are used together.

guitars For use in any humbucker-equipped guitar. Works especially

well in balanced instruments with rosewood, ebony or maple

fingerboards.

available mods Choose nickel plated or gold plated cover

(included).

players Tom Dumont / No Doubt, Bill Frisell, Steve Pedulla / Thursday

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Lots of fans of them here.  They'll be along presently.  I have a pair in an import SATF and like them a lot.  Evidently they're the shiznit in a Newport.

SATF.

A newbie once asked what those letters stand for and some HFCer (I don't recall who) crudely replied that it stands for "some A-hole tried to F me." Now whenever I see the name of that guitar, that phrase involuntarily pops into my head. Just thought I'd share that with you.

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I got a chance to try them in an Artist Korina and was really impressed. I have recently play another Artist Korina with (I believe) Duncan 59's. What a difference, the 59's sounded lifeless and dull. I also played 2 Studios with standard Duncan P-90's and 59's as well as a Monaco Elite with standard P-90's and again no comparison. I am assuming they were standard Duncan P-90's, please correct if I'm wrong.

I'm wondering if it was the pickups (Phat Cats), the particular Korina or the combination of both that made this particular guitar sound so good. The Phat Cats sounded very full and warm in all 3 positions. I think the best comparison is a cross between a Les Paul Standard/Custom and a 335.

The guitar was a trade in. I'd love to get the guitar but GC has it priced as much as a new one or more. I'll try to give it a month and see if it's still there.

Rock on!

:)

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  • 2 months later...
Anybody ever put Phat Cats into a 25th Anniversary Artist w/ a mahogany top?

I'm thinking it would really brighten up my tone (and this is a good thing).

A couple of us have used the Harmonic Design Z-90s in the 25th annis. They roar. I still say it's one of the smartest things I've ever done. I can't say they were brighter, more open, airy, woody, or anything else, just really good sounding in that guitar.

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I love the Phat Cats on my Newport. I tried a Phat Cat on the neck of my Hamer Studio and did not like it. Here are some clips...

Neck position of Newport

http://www.mp3lizard.com/download.cfm?id=6260

http://www.somethingjenny.com/music.html (the 3rd song ,"Old Apartment" was done with a Newport bridge position)

-FunkyE9th

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I love the Phat Cats on my Newport. I tried a Phat Cat on the neck of my Hamer Studio and did not like it. Here are some clips...

Neck position of Newport

http://www.mp3lizard.com/download.cfm?id=6260

http://www.somethingjenny.com/music.html (the 3rd song ,"Old Apartment" was done with a Newport bridge position)

-FunkyE9th

no kiddin? i was thinking of putting a phatcat in the neck slot of my artist.

what kinda top is your studio?

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I love the Phat Cats on my Newport. I tried a Phat Cat on the neck of my Hamer Studio and did not like it. Here are some clips...

Neck position of Newport

http://www.mp3lizard.com/download.cfm?id=6260

http://www.somethingjenny.com/music.html (the 3rd song ,"Old Apartment" was done with a Newport bridge position)

-FunkyE9th

no kiddin? i was thinking of putting a phatcat in the neck slot of my artist.

what kinda top is your studio?

It's a maple top. I also tried the Rio bastard, didn't like it either. I ended up putting a TVJones.

I think Phat Cats will sound good on an Artist though, but that's just my guess.

-FunkyE9th

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It's a maple top. I also tried the Rio bastard, didn't like it either. I ended up putting a TVJones.

I think Phat Cats will sound good on an Artist though, but that's just my guess.

-FunkyE9th

besides cosmetics, whats the difference between artists & studios?

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Artists are hollow body, one F hole studio sized. Studios are, of course, solid body.

I've got phatcats in an artist and they sound really nice. They're not quite as raucous as a soapbar P90, not quite as twangy as a strat single coil -- they sit in a very nice range. I swapped a few others in that axe, including some Gibson P94s, and liked the phatcats best. The P94s are more crunchy, darker by a touch, and hotter. Not bad, but my preference was for the phatcats.

All that said, I'm thinking of yanking the phatcats and putting them in my newport.

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It's a maple top. I also tried the Rio bastard, didn't like it either. I ended up putting a TVJones.

I think Phat Cats will sound good on an Artist though, but that's just my guess.

-FunkyE9th

besides cosmetics, whats the difference between artists & studios?

Artist is hollow (or chambered whatever the right word is). Studio is a solid body. For some reason, and I don't know why, I really think the Phat Cats will sound good on hollow body guitars. That's why I think it will work better with the artist. I also think it will work better with non-maple top Artist...but these are just guesses. I've never tried Phat Cats on an artist.

-FunkyE9th

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I own a Newport Pro Custom. It had a pair of Seth Lovers in it. It was ok, but to my ear it had that kind of smokey, jazzy feel to it. There was a strong buzz among the HFC gang that Newports with spruce tops & PhatCats were made for each other. So I put in the PhatCats.

It was a good decision for me. To my ear, it gives that Scotty Moore/Carl Perkins/rockabilly feel to the Newport. Your mileage may vary.

noonan

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thanx guys. i will probably try a phatcat in my artists neck slot.

love the phatcats in my duotone (and the newport i had).

love the seth in the bridge slot of my artist.

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