Bartolini MK1 Pickups/Pre... any other fans??

[JazznFunk]

Hey folks... I've read some of the past discussions of the Bartolini MK1 pickups/preamp system, and the majority have been unfavourable in one way or another. I am wondering if there are any folks out there who DO like this system, other than myself! I had no experience with them until I bought my two Laklands (44-01 and 55-01), and I must say that the preamp and pickups more than exceeded my expectations. My past active bass experiences include several MusicMan basses and a Fender Deluxe Active Jazz V. I also have been using a Sadowsky outboard pre at times since my first bass acquisition in 1997. BTW, running my Laklands in passive mode and running them through the Sadowsky outboard pre is STELLAR. Makes me wonder what a Sadowsky pre would sound like in a Lakland, perhaps in a JO4 or 5.

In praise of the MK1 system, I must say that my 55-01 performed much better than many other comparable and even MORE expensive basses in my last 2 studio projects, and got nothing but compliments from the engineers; very quiet, very present & track-filling.

I realize that there ARE better systems out there by far, but when not comparing apples to oranges, this system seems like a fabulous setup at its price point. Does anyone else have similar experiences?

One last thing... what exactly is under the covers of these pickups? Are they a split-coil system of some sort?

[ibz]

I like 'em seriously, they sound good and have sort of a slightly agressive nature to 'em, but can be smooths out and sound really smooth and wide sounding.

[capnsandwich]

I've got 3 basses with Bartolini pups and preamps. 2 of them have the mk1's and 1 has the ntbt 18v pre and the xxM45c quad coil pups. While the quad coils were very expensive and sound like it, the mk1's do the job for me as well. I do like the ntbt preamp better than the mk1 but the mk1 fits well with the Lakland 55-01 that I have. I also have an Ibanez sr506 converted into fretless and they sound pretty decent in there too. I could use a warmer pickup for the fretless but for a standard stock pup they sound pretty darn good.

Overall I think the mk1 package is a perfect middle of the road system. If you want something better then you're gonna have to pay for it. They're out there but you're not going to find them on a $700 bass brand new. The mk1's do the job.

[IconBasser]

I really like the way they sound, very deep and smooth. I'm debating whether I should replace my Carvin soaps with these or some "real" barts.

[BassikLee]

The MK-1 is a split coil, kind of reverse P thing, the low strings are picked up by the coil closest to the bridge, and the high strings by the coil closest to the neck. I replaced mine in my cort/elrick with basslines, but only cuz I got those for a steal. My MK-1s are currently in the "we'll find a use for you" pile!


Lee