"Supro" inspired single coils for a 6-string lap?

[Timothy Foster]

I'm considering replacing the bridge/humbucker pickup in my Duesenberg with a single coil. I've never really gotten on with humbuckers as a guitar player, and while I see the appeal of that sort of tone on a lap steel, the Supro vibe applies better to what i'm doing, on my rig... Single coils would also make for a more seemless switchover to guitar on my tele through the same rig, whereas now the tonal differences and different gain structure require lots of knob turning when going from one to the other.

I'm aware of the Lollar Supro reproduction, and read a few posts praising it on the forum... problem is, it's $250 -- a bit steep for a pickup IMHO. Is there anything else that will get me there at a lower pricepoint (in a standard humbucker profile)? Or is the Lollar really worth saving up for?

[Stephen Abruzzo]

I don't know of any other way of getting that Supro mojo short of getting an old Supro offset pick-up and having it reconditioned. Don't know how much that would cost though.

As to getting in the general ballpark....I've heard that maybe a really good P90 will get you close.

Perhaps Bryan Gunsher at BG Pups can shed some light on this:
http://bg-pups.com/

He makes super pups......I have his pups in 3 of my steels.....humbuckers, Tele-style single coils and a P90.

[Roman Sonnleitner]

I have a Lollar Chicago Steel in one of my lap steels, it was Lollars first take on the Supro tone (but with a different look). Since I also have a '52 Supro Supreme, I can confirm that the Chicago Steel has definitely a similar tone and response. Unfortunately, it is still pricey (though not as pricey as the Supro replica), and doesn't come in a humbucker form factor.

A HB-shaped P90 might be the cheapest/easiest to find alternative, but the P90 tone is not quite the same as the Supro tone - the P90 has more bass, and used in a lap steel (which I also tried, with a Seymour Duncan vintage-style P90), it is mellower, fuller, less in-your-face, than that nasty (in a good way) Supro string-through pickup.

[Timothy Foster]

Thanks guys. I just realized that Lollar is an actual string-through replacement pickup; would probably require customized brackets/shims/bodywork on the lap steel, which I'm not prepared to do at this point...

I'll check out those BG pickups Stephen, and many thanks for your feedback Roman -- seems you've been down a similar path.

I have an (indefinitely borrowed) Supro string-thru as well, and it is that somewhat bright, gritty in-your-face tone that I like... It doesn't have a screaming hot output either; the grit seems to be generated by the pickup structure itself, and it seems therein lies the magic.

[George Piburn]

If you are looking for the Supro sound in a new pickup, then the Lollar Reproduction is the Ticket!

About mounting it. the bridge needs to be 7/16 off of the deck if you do not want to do any routing.

For my 1/2" bridges I used Jason's recommended 1/16 deep pocket.

Price wise - they are worth it in every aspect. If saving money is your only concern then there are several good choices ,BG - Vintage Vibe - Lollar - Ryan Rukavina - Jerry Wallace - to mention a few.

If the existing pocket is a standard HumBucker Pocket several companies offer a P90 in a Humbucker housing that drop right in and sound pretty great.

Hopefully this will help you.

The one below was set up Left Hand Play with a 1/2" Round Bridge Unit.

[Kelvin Monaghan]

Hi Timothy , If you have invested in a Duesenberg then save your pennies and buy a Lolar Supro there is nothing that comes close , it's the bomb .

I have owned a couple of Supros and the Lolar is spot on, when you see the beautiful workmanship you will realise it's worth every cent it's a work of art.

As George said it's easy to mount.

Cheers

[Timothy Foster]

Doh... OK -- you guys sold me on it!

Regarding mounting -- when you mention being 7/16" off the deck, this is essentially the string/saddle height versus the surface of the instrument? I did a quick measurement and it does seem to be almost exactly that, so I may be able to get away without routing...

If I was to get some sort of P90 conversion mount, Id assume it would still have some sort of spring suspension instead of being completely rigid like on a real supro where it's integrated into the bridge? Do you think that could pose a problem, say leaning your hand on it and tilting it slightly -- causing the string to bottom out on the pickup or something? That may be a stupid question, just trying to visualize it and thinkin of worst case scenarios

EDIT... actually, I guess where there's a will there's a way... maybe swap the springs out for some precut spacers -- like the plastic "risers" used for mounting PCB boards to a chassis, etc... but if anyone has practical experience I'm all ears!

[George Piburn]

Regarding the 7/16 height thing , we use wood veneer which is .020 thickness (1/40) to shim the bridge or pickup as needed.

About the P90 thing I would need to see a photo of the existing pickup to make a determination and suggestion for a Replacement.

Assuming it is a standard Humbucker pocket, they tend to be 1-1/4 deep so a spring loaded PuP system is fully adjustable up and down. Season to personal taste.

Some of the parts companies and GeorgeBoards can sell you a Flat Mounting Ring that fits the Humbucker pocket yet is flat about 1/16 thick, so you can get a flat position on the top of the Pup apposed to a standard HB which are tilted. People with wood skills can make their own Mounting Ring for exotic wood species.

the photo below is one of the P90's in a humbucker housing.



Humbucker Pocket