SD P-Rails or similar - experiences, opinions?

[WellyBlues]

I was quite keen on getting a Gibson SG so I could try to follow the Duane Allman/Derek Trucks slide path. But the thing holding me back a bit was that I love single coils more, in a general way. Hard to explain, but I listen to lots of blues (obviously) but also plenty of alt-country/Americana, much being single coil. The sound from Buckers in general a bit dense/heavy for my tastes I guess.

Anyway, Ash Customworks could do a Radian or even a custom in the price range (b'day present to self). So then I start thinking what options would I choose. Buckers or P-90s? Then I thought what about SD P-rails or some other coil splitting type pickups?

So, what have forumites experienced, heard, etc? Would I get a good approximation of both worlds with P-rails or similar or would they be rubbish at everything? And what are the best of those types of pickups?

[TmcB]

I recently installed a P-Rails in a friends SG and I think the best way to describe is jack of trades, master of none.
All three settings are very usable and sound good but none of the settings it models are quite as good as the real thing.
Great for a player guitar, not so much for a recording guitar if you get my drift. They're not rubbish at what they do, but I found myself wanting a meatier humbucker setting, a more raucous P-90 and a spankier single coil. The good thing is that each setting does sound very different from the others so you do have 3 distinct sounds in there.

Depends totally on whether you're a versatility nut. If you love having all the options available to you then go right ahead, I think you'll enjoy them.
I'm not that type of guy so I prefer a dedicated setup to the sound I'm after.

[sambrowne]

I agree with Tony. Sounds like you should start with a tele or strat style guitar for those single coil sounds, which it seems are your "main" sound, and then get an SG or something down the track when cash allows.

I have several humbucker guitars and one with coil tapping which gives me enough single coil sounds for my needs, but hearing a coil tapped humbucker and a single coil next to one another, there's no debate - the actual singles are much better for single coil tones than the "half a humbucker" tone of a coil tap. So much so that I am on the lookout for a 52 reissue tele for this very reason.

[WellyBlues]

You make a good point Sam. My Blazer is a strat copy (ash body, maple neck I believe) with 3 single coils so that is covered. Needs some TLC though.

I keep thinking that if buckers are too dense maybe P-90's are the best option. So how well do P-rails etc cover the bucker and/or P-90 spectrum? or Is a P-rail a less dense humbucker that might suit me better?

[AiRdAd]

I recently installed a P-Rails in a friends SG and I think the best way to describe is jack of trades, master of none.
All three settings are very usable and sound good but none of the settings it models are quite as good as the real thing.
Great for a player guitar, not so much for a recording guitar if you get my drift. They're not rubbish at what they do, but I found myself wanting a meatier humbucker setting, a more raucous P-90 and a spankier single coil. The good thing is that each setting does sound very different from the others so you do have 3 distinct sounds in there.

Depends totally on whether you're a versatility nut. If you love having all the options available to you then go right ahead, I think you'll enjoy them.
I'm not that type of guy so I prefer a dedicated setup to the sound I'm after.

i totally agree with your comments Tony. they sounded great, and I enjoyed them, but the 'master of none' hits the nail on the head.

[sambrowne]

I'd suggest a low output humbucker might be better than a P90, or at least worth considering. A PAF style bucker is a really gnarly beast, quite different to a full on high gain bucker which sounds a bit shit outside of highly distorted tones. A nice low output bucker can sound good from clean right up to grinding hard rock riffs, though they demand a bit more from the player than a more full-on high output bucker.

[aliasceiza]

I've used SD P-rails in a covers band for the last 2 years, and so far all comments on them are about right, however, unless you're a tone freak, I wouldn't be too concerned about not being Spanky" enough, or more this or that, you get the same with every guitar...the recording VS work horse Senario is good, although, personally, I don't have any issues with the humbucker setting, only minor issues with the P-90 setting, and the neck single coil setting is fine by me, but for recording I play them through a tech21 paradriver DI and a GT2, so I can make it sound however I want, so it's not really an issue!

Also, the neck P-90 setting with some light drive is cool in my covers band, not as think as a Gibson P-90, but clearer, which I prefer anyway!

[tj43]

Damm, I had almost decided to get some P Rails and now I am not so sure, already have single coil guitar and a p90 guitar and two HB guitars to choose from, was seriously considering the prails for my sons G400, might just go for some nice SD zebra's and have them coil split equipped, Pro Guitar shop have some good deals and the comment about jack of all master of none is very useful. Thank goodness for sites like this one for supplying balanced points of view for impulsive/indecisive (is that the right term? not so sure now...?) folks such as myself.

[Basket Case]

I have a black neck one with 3 way mini toggle switch if you're interested.

[tj43]

hi and thanks for the offer but will need to pass at this stage, will keep it in mind,