Pick-Up Suggestions

[Greg]

I play a '78 Fender Precision bass that is in need of a new pickup. This bass sounds great... ash body, maple neck. I'm not all that knowledgable about pickups, so I need some recommendations. I like a very agressive (ie clear) but, of couse, nice bottom. I'm just a dirty rocker !!!

I'll also need some help wiring this thing up. I doubt it's that complicated, I just don't know how to do it.

 

[Gus]

Try a CS from Fender or even the current fender Alnico ones. Fralins sound good.

Sometime http://www.angela.com/ has good prices.

 

[jrmintz]

It depends on what sound you're trying to get - I like Seymour Duncan vintage bass pickups very much, but I like the sound of old passive basses best.

 

[Greg]

I was definitely leaning towards a passive pickup. I play rock, sometimes heavy, but also parts where nice midrange is needed... I want the bass to cut through but have balls !!!

 

[louder]

alo
take a look at the seymour duncan forum,and you`ll get all that you need.
but please,stay passive.
best regards
pedro

 

[NewYorkDave]

Another vote for passive here.

It's hard to beat an original-style P-bass pickup for general purpose use.

 

[Greg]

I just spent a little time reading at the Seymour Forum... looks like the Quarter Pound (QP) is a hot item. It seems that this is some high output passive?

Still going to look a little more though.

 

[MikoKensington]

I had a '77 with a QP in it. Just a great choice. My friend has it now along with a '51 P Bass reissue that we routed out for a split P (huh huh) pickup. What does that have? A Quarter Pounder. That one still needs a badass on it.

I just bought a 2001 P-bass. When I get some extra dough that one is going to get a QP too.

Do it Greg! It sounds like a vintage P-Bass on Steroids. Roids Rule. Break Stuff. Rage!

 

[louder]

alo
greg,talking from experience,never liked a single "hot something",except hot rails(guitar).they all sound "to much?",and toneless.but that`s just me,who loves dusty hill(zz top)bass sound.
hope this helps.
best regards
pedro

 

[idylldon]

Check out Jason Lollar's offerings before you decide. He'll also do a custom wind for you if want. Give him a call and tell him what you're looking for and he'll deliver it. I finally found the pickup for the neck of my Tele, and it's a Lollar Charlie Christian model.

http://www.lollarguitars.com/replacement_pickups.htm

Cheers,
--
Don

 

[Gus]

Some of the fender stuff is very good. A friend of mine a good bass player and I tested a few Js at my house a few years ago. Two american standard (mid 90s) Js one one piece lite ash one alder a mexican J with cs60s poplar. and a japan made stacked knob 60s J with Fralins another japan 60s with CSs. Alembic pre into a QST 1,500watt and a SVT pro pre into a crown PB3 at about 700 watts mono into a 18" in a sealed box.

All pickups sounded good the problem is the body and neck can affect the tone. The only 1/4 pounder I have tried was for Ps and the set I have sound muddy compaired to an mid 90s AS fender P pickups.

 

[OldHouseScott]

I would also add Rio Grande pickups to the list. For a P bass, they make both a vintage style and an overwound "Muy Grande". Hot and clear is how I would describe their guitar offerings. I would expect their bass pups to be the same.

HTH

 

[Kev]

[quote author="Greg"].... I'm just a dirty rocker .[/quote]

go with the classic passive

 

[CJ]

What happened to the old pickup?
If you want your old sound back, have somebody rewind you pickup.
That way, you preserve the aging in the magnetics.

 

[Greg]

[quote author="CJ"]What happened to the old pickup?
If you want your old sound back, have somebody rewind you pickup.
That way, you preserve the aging in the magnetics.[/quote]

Good question... when I bought the bass many years ago, it had some active basslines or something in it. I'm not sure exactly. It sounded good but had a rather mid scooped sound which I didn't like. But the bottom end was amazing.

I decided to order the 1/4 Duncans. If I don't like them, I will try more options. In fact, I might order a few pair and see which one I like best. I've never experimented with pickups.... I'd rather compare preamps or compressors !!! :grin:

This bass is very very heavy compared to other P basses I've used. I feel that the sound of this bass is very unique... because it doesn't really sound like a modern P bass. I hope the 1/4 Duncans don't destroy the sound. But then again, I bet the ones in there now do that already.

 

[Emperor-TK]

Check out Jason Lollar's offerings before you decide. He'll also do a custom wind for you if want. Give him a call and tell him what you're looking for and he'll deliver it. I finally found the pickup for the neck of my Tele, and it's a Lollar Charlie Christian model.

Don,

I'd love to hear what this sounds like? Do you have any recordings made with it that you can share?

-Chris

 

[Gus]

Greg

I have a set of 1/4 for the p bass I like the stock fenders better. The 1/4 have too strong and big of a field IMO for where they are on the string.

A pbass pickup strings are moving more at the p pickup area than say a MM stingray. The pickups are hard to set up IMO it could be I did not spend enought time adjusting them and as always it is a taste issue

Think of the distance of the magnets to strings as a tone control. With strong magnets you need to move them farther away and the tone changes.

I have P 1995 model and the stock pickups sound very good.

Think field area and magnet pull that can cause the string to be restricted to more up and down

 

[Greg]

Thanks for the heads up Gus...

I'll post back after I get them in and wired up.

 

[wilebee]

duncan antiquitys p-bass

 

[Rossi]

Since this is a DIY forum: I once wound a pick up myself using reed magnets and the thinnest laquered copper wire I could find (0.01 mm, I think). The winding machine I built from old toy stuff (Fischer Technik, for those who know). It's really not that hard to do.

The PU I built was a split coil that fits into a J-Bass PU cover. It is hum free, and it sounds good too, although I might use a few more windings on the next one to make it sound dirtier.