Warm, round, vintage, fat P/J pickup set?

[Scott01]

Ok well long story short I'm dieing real bad for a decent P-bass sound but I dont have the money to buy a decent one outright, and as of yet I haven't found anything on the second hand market that really jumps out at me.

I was thinking of getting an SX bass as a project and building that up, or a MIM P-bass but I couldn't find anything worth buying.
Then I thought, why have I still got my squier P/J... I mean I dont use it and I dont really want to sell it because I know I will lose quite a bit of money in selling it.

So, What I wanted to know is would it be worth modifying my squier P/J into something that would be worth playing again. At the moment its completely original, the pickups are really weak/gutless and the strings are thin and very tinny - the open E sounds so pathetic I dont like to use it.
It's practically the opposite of what I'm looking for tonewise, however the finish and feel of the guitar is actually quite decent.

I want a nice round and warm P-bass sound, almost vintage sounding but with a decent amount of bottom end and warmth, yet nothing thats to boomy or muddy sounding. And I'd like to keep a fair amount of clarity, without the clangy-ness (which I think some nickel-plated or pure nickel strings would take care of).

Do you think it's possible? I know it won't transform it into an American Fender, and I dont expect that, just something of an improvement would be satisfactory for me
If so, what modifications should I make? Pickups? Strings?
I play fingerstyle only, and I play pretty much all sorts of music except for stuff like punk, heavy metal etc etc.

I only plan to spend maybe $100-$150Aud (around $80-$120Usd) on the split-P pickup, however if you think that replacing the bridge Jazz pickup aswell would make much more of an Improvement then I'll also look into that. (I usually play without the J pickup because it gives a really yuck sound - courtesy of the squier electronics/pickups).

Any help at all is greatly appreciated guys, thanks.

[ibnzneksrul]

Seymour Duncan makes 'vintage' (among others) sounding P and J pickups:

http://www.seymourduncan.com/products/basses.shtml

And it definitely sounds like you need a good set of strings.

[Scott01]

Mmmm I'm now tied between the SPB-1 and SPB-2.
Supposedly the SPB-1 gives that classic vintage tone (which I'm after), and the SPB-2 is similar to the SPB-1 but with a much fuller/fatter sound (which sounds even more like what I want).

Although it says the SPB-1 has moderate output where as the SPB-2 has "high" output, what exactly is the difference?

Edit: After looking at the "tone chart" on the Seymour Duncan page, I think I'm more in favour of the quarter pounder (SPB-3) now...

[Nedmundo]

Based on reading your first post, I was going to recommend the Seymour Duncan SPB-2 Hot, which I used for awhile. It's a heavily overwound version of the "vintage" SPB-1, which gives it more output, boosted lows and especially low mids, and attenuated highs. If you don't want "clang" and want a hefty, smooth low end, it's a great choice. It's an excellent overall pickup with an old-school vibe. Sounds FANTASTIC through a good 1x15" rig. Compared to a current stock MIA Fender pickup, it has more output and fatness, more clarity in the lows, and less treble. With the treble on full, it's about like the treble rolled off 25% on the stock pickup.

[ibnzneksrul]

Quarter Pounders are pretty popular, I put a set in a Jazz Bass I used to have and it made a big improvement in the tone. Nice full range sound.

Can't comment on the SPB-2s though, never had 'em.

[BassoP]

I've got a 1/4 in my P, and it is real modern sounding. Lots of lows and highs, less mids (and a crapton of output). Not a bad pickup, but probably not my first choice anymore. I'll probably pull it for a fralin when I get some spare cash.

[jsamans]

I built up my Squier "P-bass special" P+J -- I think it was worth it. I have pretty much replaced every part on this thing -- the only thing left original on the bass is the body, at this point. Gotoh bridge, EMG P+J pickups, pots, and jack, Schaller tuners, Allparts jazz bass replacement neck with pearl block inlays and white binding.

Doesn't answer your question, really, except to say that IMO it is worth building up the Squier, at least for an active pickup configuration. If you are looking for more vintage tone, the crap wood they use in those bodies might not make it worth it.

[Scott01]

Yea, I just looked up the squier's specifications and it turns out that the "Squier Standard Series Precision Bass" uses agathis wood for the body whereas I previously thought it was alder wood... Not sure about the difference between the two although I thought alder was a more commonly used wood.

I guess I'll stick with the SD SPB-2's as they sound most like what I'm after, and if worst comes to worst and I put them in the squier to find that I dont like it, I can always take them out again and keep them for another p-bass later on...