Mid/Late 70's DiMarzio Pickups... Any Good?

Floridabwoy · #1 10-02-2008, 06:51 AM

I am working on my first bass. I can tell you anything you want to know about software and drum machines, but I do not know anything about Basses. So I bought a SX Jaguar J bass and I bought a pair of Dragonfire Pickups becuase, I wanted white pup covers and they were $12 and the Dragonfires were $19 w. the pickups.

So a guitar player once told me "who cares about the vintage guitar. I want the vintage pickups". So I have the opportunity to get a pair of late 70's Daddario pickups for my bass. They have a little rust on the pickups (will that affect the sound?/can you remove the rust w/o hurting the pickups?). They seller said they sound great.

I play blues and reggae. What do you guys think?

GeoffByrne · #2 10-02-2008, 07:23 AM

D'Addario? Not DiMarzio?

Floridabwoy · #3 10-02-2008, 07:50 AM

you are correct.

They are DiMarzio...

emblymouse · #4 10-02-2008, 08:40 AM

I believe the current DiMarzio Model J's are basically like those original 70's ones. Those were pretty much the first replacement pick ups on the market. Correct me if I'm wrong pick up gurus. If so, they are pretty hot and warm to aggressive sounding which would suit the styles you are playing.
It is debateable whether they will sound better just because they are old. I don't know anything about Dragonfires, but $19 seems pretty cheap, and that may not be a good thing.

GeoffByrne · #5 10-02-2008, 04:21 PM

Get the DiMarzios & to heck with the colour of the pickup covers.

mcm · #6 10-06-2008, 06:44 PM

Model j's kick ass!

BigOldHarry · #7 10-06-2008, 06:50 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by emblymouse

I believe the current DiMarzio Model J's are basically like those original 70's ones. Those were pretty much the first replacement pick ups on the market. Correct me if I'm wrong pick up gurus. If so, they are pretty hot and warm to aggressive sounding which would suit the styles you are playing.
It is debateable whether they will sound better just because they are old. I don't know anything about Dragonfires, but $19 seems pretty cheap, and that may not be a good thing.

yup - pretty well sums it up. Oddly, that cream color was considered tre cool back then - now it is just butt-ugly... but I recall mine sounded pretty darn good...

craig.p · #8 10-07-2008, 05:10 PM

Well, I guess I'm in the minority. I tried exactly the pickups you mention in a Precision back in the mid 1970s, and I was disappointed. They gave me a very "clicky" hi-fi sound, a very modern sound, almost like a piano, with no body or midrange or "sock," if you know what I mean. Which was exactly the opposite of what I was looking for. I disliked them so much I never even played on stage with them. Used them for one practice, then that evening put the stock pickups back in. The pickups had white covers.

#include <MK> · #9 10-07-2008, 06:52 PM

These are the ceramic magnet, plastic bobbin pickups. Yeah, I agree with Craig. I tried a set once in the mid 80's and thought they were terrible.