Aguilar's new pickups...

[Supertanker]

Aguilar AG-4J

The Aguilar AG-4J pickups are designed to have both clarity and warmth and will reproduce all of the dynamics and nuances in your playing.

This pickup set is modeled after a mid 60’s single-coil Jazz Bass® pickup. The AG-4J uses all the period correct parts, including Heavy Formvar wire and Alnico V magnets. Aguilar developed a proprietary winding pattern to give these pickups great string-to-string consistency while sounding full and articulate. The pickups complement any bass and are a great match with Aguilar’s OBP on-board preamps.

Available as a calibrated neck and bridge pickup set (also available separately) for four string basses. Both, the AG-4J single pickups and sets are direct replacements for Jazz Bass® style basses.

Specs:
Wire: Heavy Formvar, 42 gauge

Magnets: Alnico V

Cable: Single conductor, cloth-covered

http://aguilaramp.com/products_pickups_AG4J.htm



I have the perfect candidate for these pickups...

[Hizzoner]

anyone tried these yet?

[Keith Guitars]

I tried these very briefly at NAMM last year.

I thought they sounded great!
It's very much a vintage recipe - they're basically a refined Fender pickup to my ears. Unlike a lot of older Fender pickups, these might also be consistent from one to the next.
Very 'fast' and with a strong peak, but not overly spiky transients, and a good musical contour to each note.
(Of course, the Aguilar amps I was using to demo the pickups certainly didn't hurt!)

These guys know what they're doing. I'll be interested to see if they branch out into the 5-string and soapbar market, or stick only with the vintage/retrofit stuff.

Cheers!
Martin

[Supertanker]

Originally Posted by Keith Guitars

I tried these very briefly at NAMM last year.

I thought they sounded great!
It's very much a vintage recipe - they're basically a refined Fender pickup to my ears. Unlike a lot of older Fender pickups, these might also be consistent from one to the next.
Very 'fast' and with a strong peak, but not overly spiky transients, and a good musical contour to each note.
(Of course, the Aguilar amps I was using to demo the pickups certainly didn't hurt!)

These guys know what they're doing. I'll be interested to see if they branch out into the 5-string and soapbar market, or stick only with the vintage/retrofit stuff.

Cheers!
Martin

Thanks for the review!

I have not gotten a set yet.

While waiting I purchased a set Fender 70's series pickups.

The Aggies are next on the list.

I would love to see them have a full line of pickups 4/5/6, P's, J's, and soapbars...

[i_got_a_mohawk]

I started a new thread on these a while back, don't think there had been anyone in to review it then tho.

They do sound promising tho!

[bajocallao]

just installed some on my 75 reissue
so far I like the sound

[depalm]

I'm pretty happy with my Nordstrand and Lollar JBs sets. Aguilar gotta make them really good to change my mind.

[Jim C]

Seems like I've read that exact add copy before.
Good luck to them but I find it doubtful that there will be any major differences in sound from what others have done (to copy Leo) while using the same materials and a passive design.

Seems like the last clever idea was when Duncan experimented with aging magnets to simulate what happens to an Alnico magnet after it gets old.

[Reynoldbot]

I'm a certified aggie fan, so I went ahead and took the plunge with these pickups and put them in my Fender Jaguar. And, they sound pretty darn good! The stock pickups sounded a bit weak and a tad sterile, whereas the Aguilar pups sound very warm and full, with a bit of an aggressive growl to them that I find really appealing. I'm not an expert on the nuanced differences between all of the well-known replacements (fralin, nordstrand, aero etcetera), but I'm quite happy with the way these sound.

I should mention that I also have the Aguilar OBP-2 installed, and they pair together quite nicely. The stock preamp in the Jaguar is very tinny and metallic, and only offers boost for treble and bass, whereas the OBP-2 offers boost/cut, which is nice. I feel like I get many more usable tones with the OBP-2 and the AG-4J 60's than I did with the stock electronics. As far as output, I feel like they are pretty much just as loud as the stock pups. They might be a tad louder, but not much.

[maurilio]

Ask Aguilar where they got the basic recipe...



... then again, it's just a simple single coil design....

M

[Supertanker]

Originally Posted by maurilio

Ask Aguilar where they got the basic recipe...

George Beauchamp?
Adolph Rickenbacker?
Leo Fender?

[JehuJava]

I don't understand Aguilar anymore...

[Aguilar/Dave B.]

Originally Posted by JehuJava

I don't understand Aguilar anymore...

What is it that you don't understand?
I ask this sincerely. I'm open to all questions.

Dave Boonshoft

[JonPol]

I'd love to hear a shoot out between these and some nordstrands. Even though aguilar has some of the most reputable products from amps, pres, and pedals I just can't bring myself to trying out these without some real comparisons first

[cybersnyder]

They're selling pickups and already have great preamps. Next step would be a prewired, no solder jazz plate. I guess the problem is that the OBP-1 is designed for 18V and you can't easily fit to 9V in the cavity. But my OBP-1 sounds great at 9V IMHO.

[JehuJava]

Originally Posted by Aguilar/Dave B.

What is it that you don't understand?
I ask this sincerely. I'm open to all questions.

Dave Boonshoft

Well, I never understood the discontinuation of the world's greatest pre's and amps (DB series...fortunately I have a 680, 900, and 924). Not enough people make these for bass.

I don't understand the move into pedals. Too many people already make pro pedals.

And I certainly don't understand the move into pickups. A lot of people specialize in this already as well.

[Aguilar/Dave B.]

Originally Posted by JehuJava

Well, I never understood the discontinuation of the world's greatest pre's and amps (DB series...fortunately I have a 680, 900, and 924). Not enough people make these for bass.

I don't understand the move into pedals. Too many people already make pro pedals.

And I certainly don't understand the move into pickups. A lot of people specialize in this already as well.

I can understand where you are coming from. Players who are interested in bass products using tubes have less to choose from these days. It wasn't practical for us to keep building some of our more expensive tube products like the DB 680. Lots of people have them and love them; but they sold slowly once they were mature products. Remember the DB 680 was in production for ten years.

Personally, I like the feeling I get when we create new products. I like to learn and grow. We believe that the our design concept for products has grown and evolved from the days of the DB 680 and that we should be producing products that reflect where we are today.

Lots of people made preamps and tube products before we designed the DB 680. We got into it because we believed that we could make a better musical tool. The same idea applies to all our products, including pedals and pickups.

We have been making onboard preamps for a long time, and it has always been in the back of our minds to make pickups. When we finally got around to it, I initially thought "man, this is too simple". But the more we learned about the design and build process, the more we felt we could contribute something special. I invite you to compare our pickups to others and see what you think.

I hope this helps you understand how we roll.

BR,

Dave B.

[JehuJava]

It does. Thanks for the response. And for what it's worth aggie products are typically top notch. Keep up the good work. I'm sure I'll play a set of picks sooner or later and I expect them to be as sweet as all the other aggie products I've played.

Less confused,
Alan

[Randall]

Is a hum cancel version on the way also?

[Supertanker]

Originally Posted by Randall

Is a hum cancel version on the way also?

And a 5 string Fender version?

Also I would love to have an OBP in a jazz plate...