Can I run active and passive pickups in the same bass?

[primus150]

I got an EMG 35TW for christmas to put in my Epiphone Explorer bass in the bridge position... but the thing is, I really like the deep and fat tone I get from the passive neck pickup. Can I use both in the same bass, or do I need to swap the neck pickup out too?

[line6man]

Active pickups have a lower output impedance than passives, so in order to use them together, you will have to put a buffer on the passive pickup to lower it's impedance. Otherwise, the relatively direct resistance of the active pickup will load the passive pickup down.

[walterw]

translation: no.

the active pickup will swamp the passive when they're on at the same time, and the pots that are right for the active pickup will make the passive one sound like mud even when it's by itself.

[line6man]

Originally Posted by walterw

translation: no.

the active pickup will swamp the passive when they're on at the same time, and the pots that are right for the active pickup will make the passive one sound like mud even when it's by itself.

All you need is a buffer to take the passive's impedance down though.

[walterw]

true enough, at which point you basically have two active pickups.

[line6man]

Originally Posted by walterw

true enough, at which point you basically have two active pickups.

No, you have an active and a buffered passive.

I suppose it depends on whether your active pickup is a low-impedance-coil-with-a-gain-boosting-preamp, or a regular-pickup-coil-with-a-buffer.

[walterw]

oh look, a hair; let's split it!

an active pickup is a passive pickup with a buffer built into the housing.

i do take your point about a regular pickup followed by a buffer vs. a coil designed solely to be run into a preamp, so that the coil can be wound just for its sound with no regard to impedance or output strength.

that means music man stingrays have active pickups, right?

[Shoewreck]

You may wire a toggle to switch between deep passive neck and active bridge.