Jaguar Bass Pickup Change/Rewire Help

antoniolopez90 · #1 03-06-2011, 10:52 PM

Hi all Im new here looking for some help on something I'm clueless on.

So I have been reading reviews on pickups for a few days I believe the dimarzio model J pickups will be the sound Im going for. Similar to a P in the lows but still with clarity(in parallel mode?).

What I was thinking was utilizing the three dpdt switches in the upper horn for
1: series parallel neck p/u
2: series/parallel bridge p/u
3: series/parallel between p/u's

I also had planned to change out the master volume for a stacked vol/vol. And the tone knob for a Push/pull tone knob to disable the neck pickup when both p/u are in series.

It seems on my jaguar my bridge p/u has to be on when both p/u are in series so I really only need to be able to disable the neck pickup correct? When in parallel I can just bring down the vol to zero to take it out of the mix correct?

I was planning on going with 500k pots and .33 capacitor as dimarzio tech support recommended to me.

So the sound Im going for is like realy good lows kinda like a precision bass. Also lows with a good top. Maybe a neck in series and bridge in parallel for sort of a P/J sound?

Questions:

1. Will this be as versatile as I hope or am I expecting much?
2. Will I lose some of the sounds that my jaguar currently has?
3. Does anyone have good sound clips of the model J in parallel mode?
4. Is there anywhere I can gather enough information to make my own wiring diagram? Or is there any awesome people here who might draw one up for me

?
5. Should I have any problem connecting this to the preamp? as I plan on keeping that as is for now.
6. Should I just try to sell my jaguar and buy a precision or a p/j?
7. Is there something obvious that says "DON'T DO THIS" that I cant see hehe?

Any help insight or opinions would be greatly appreciated. TB seems to be an awsome place for people to share their knoledge. Im glad to be a part of it and hopefully one day I can contribute also

walterw · #2 03-06-2011, 11:23 PM

parallel on each pickup is probably only useful when the pickups are in series with each other, too keep the overall resistance from getting too high, causing mud.

individually, parallel just sounds a little weaker than series. (it's why parallel P-bass pickups aren't popular.)

series/parallel makes a big difference when both coils sense the same string, which is why it makes a huge difference on jazz basses.

antoniolopez90 · #3 03-08-2011, 03:14 PM

well Im not sure if thats what im looking for. I thought putting the pickups in parallel individualy would make them sound jazz like. If not then I might as well just buy a precision. another thing that i worry about is on the neck pickup my E string is super boomy. Every other string has good clear definition but the E string just sound like bleh muddy and undifined. I dont thing its the winds at the neck, and I made sure the saddle had a good break point by flipping it over to the other side which had no wear. Tried new strings, and pickup adjustment saddle adjustment. Im about to give up. help would be great on this too?

walterw · #4 03-08-2011, 08:27 PM

the jag is a nice bass that they don't make anymore. unless you either liked it as is or had a really clear and specific idea for modding it, i'd sell it.

antoniolopez90 · #5 03-08-2011, 11:47 PM

Well I do like the bass, I can get tones I really dig. I guess what I'm looking for was more lowend. I realy couldn't archive this because of the e string problem.

So today I concluded the pre. owner filed the nut a lot for some reason. So I shimmed it with a slice of plastic. Put about a drop of wood glue spread out to keep it from shifting. Tommorow I will see about filing the nut slots back down after its all settled.

Research on talk bass helped immensely. Truly awesome site!

antoniolopez90 · #6 03-08-2011, 11:51 PM

Oh also. A gotoh 201 ordered from warmoth was delivered and installed in hopes of fixing the e string. While it didn't do that, I feel it really improved the acoustic sound of the bass. More string vibration traveling to body I say. Also the 201 had a cool spot sanded for the bridge ground which I think also solved some buzzing/grounding problems!