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Villex New Villex Pickups and Passive 3-Band EQ Booster
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Recommended By
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Average Price
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Average Rating
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100% of reviewers
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None indicated
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10.0
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Description:
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New line of Villex Pickups
Passive 3-Band EQ Booster (Bass/Mids/Highs) with optional XLR output
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Author
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fullrangebass
Registered User
Registered: May 2005
Location: Europe
Posts: 3606
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Review Date: Tue December 4, 2007
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Would you recommend the product? Yes |
Price you paid?: None indicated
| Rating: 10
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Pros:
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Full, detailed sounding pickups w/ versatile 3-band passive EQ
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Cons:
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None
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No need to say that I have so far been very impressed from Villex products, namely their pickups, their Passive Rotary Tone Booster (PRTB) and the guitar booster. I have bought and tried many pickups and preamps through the years and while there are many great products out there, none has impressed me (sonically) as much as Villex.
There was a talk for a new line of Villex pickups coming out, as well as a passive EQ that would independently boost highs/mids/lows. It sounded like mission impossible, but Villex has made all promises come true so far; so I went ahead and ordered a pair of the new Villex pickups and EQ for a Bart equipped high end bass. The bass had 5 holes drilled for controls. I wanted to try something different from the vol/vol configuration that Villex suggests (which I truly love on my Dingwall Voodoo), so I asked Villex if I could use a 4 position rotary switch instead. First surprise here: Unlike the Villex “Classic” mid-control which is part of the sensor curcuit, the pickups are independent from the Passive Booster EQ circuit!!! This means I could use the 4 position rotary switch (just like I like to have). Still the EQ board is ready to receive the output wires from the pickups, any moment I choose to go to Vol/Vol configuration.
The appearance of the pickups show no sign of what is about to be heard. The pots came already soldiered (just as I asked for), leaving only the pickup wires to be soldered to the 4 pos rotary switch, the rotary switch to the volume and the hot and ground to the output jack. The wiring diagrams were included and all were clearly and idiot-proof labelled. The whole soldering and pickup placing took less than 30min. Impressive.
Now it’s time to plug in. Expectations are high. The “Classic” Villex pickups are full, balanced and organic. How do the new compare?
When I plugged the new Villex equipped bass the sound came out full, detailed, balanced and LOUD. The output is hotter than Villex “Classic” but it sounds very vibrant and dynamic, not compressed at all. Still all the pots are in full counter-clockwise position. The bass frequencies are solid, full and clear, the mids are nice and open and the highs are present in a very nice way. Villex “Classic” has been described as dark sometimes; the new Villex pickups are far from that. The highs are present, yet not harsh, metallic, clanky or clicky. Still the sound is Villex only fuller, more balanced and more detailed.
The signal to noise ratio is excellent even with all controls in full(super great for recording as well as performing).
An added (and very interesting) bonus is the XLR option output (just like Wal or Manne to name a few). I have not used in the studio, yet but I may add a second output if this bass turns into a full-time studio bass.
The 4 position rotary switch allows for a wide range of sounds straight from the start. The bridge pickup is brighter, the parallel more open, the series setting is the loudest with complex mids while the neck pickup alone is thick along the lines of the full, detailed and balanced.
Now it’s time to start using the Passive EQ Booster. The treble adds a nice bite and airy detail to the sound (never getting to sound clanky or harsh). The mids are musically voiced to add body and substance to (but not to blur) the notes and the bass adds great thickness to the sound without muddying or darkening the sound. It’s very impressive that the controls do not subtract from one another while providing great sounds along the range. Even when the controls are wide open the sound is not compressed, artificial or “plastic”. I was not able to make the bass sound thin, anaemic or weak (in any frequency or setting) and this has nothing to do with the good output of the pickups and the circuit; it’s all related to the quality of the sounds produced.
The whole Passive EQ Booster circuit works in a way that is quite different to the Passive Rotary Tone Booster (sound-wise). It is very versatile, with a great range of tones, great sounding yet PASSIVE. I have no idea how Villex did it, but it works.
The range of sounds provided cannot be fully appreciated through small PC speakers (unless the PC is connected with reference near-field monitors). My iAmp800 along with my 4x10” & tweeter and 15” have really allowed me to listen to a new universe of sounds. My ADAM A-7 near field monitors are doing a great job too.
I am very impressed. The promise has become reality. Fantastic new sounds as well as a versatile Passive 3-band EQ Boost!!!
Highly recommended!!!
I have already placed the order for another set of new Villex pickups and Passive EQ Booster
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Life not understood (apprehended) is life not truly lived.
First you need to feel what you want to be, and then you need to be what you want to feel
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Marcus Willett
Supporting Member
Registered: February 2005
Location: Branson, Missouri
Posts: 2580
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Review Date: Tue May 19, 2009
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Would you recommend the product? Yes |
Price you paid?: None indicated
| Rating: 10
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Pros:
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Many tonal options, high S/N ratio
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Cons:
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For some it's a bit pricey
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I've had the new Villex NVT soapbars for a while, but for various reasons (long story, not relevant anyway) only recently had them installed. Been using my NVT equipped bass a bit now, and I gotta say it's a pretty damn impressive system.
One thing that I (and a lot of folks I would imagine) want is that quality of the notes just "speaking" effortlessly. This is to say, when you pluck the string it's just "there" and you don't have to fight the instrument to get the note out. To do this without the tone being overly bright or overly thinned out (like soloing the bridge pickup, for example), has for me anyway always been a holy grail of sorts and damn near impossible. I've heard and used many active systems, and getting that quality while still preserving the organic quality of a passive system just never seems to happen.
The NVT system is the closest I've seen to that ideal. Just last night I used the bass on a jazz trio gig and was amazed at the subtlety that I was able to play with while at the same time the sound was warm and defined. I couldn't really find an EQ setting that sounded bad. I tried every combination....all controls fully clockwise, fully counter, all flat, various combinations...they sounded different but all good and musical.
One thing I liked is that the EQ never seems to sound extreme. It will shape your tone but not so much that you have to "EQ the EQ".
Additionally, there is an almost "active" like pickup blending at work. As most Jazz Bass players know; backing off either pickup a bit (when both full-on) produces a drastic change in tone and volume. With the NVT system, it's much smoother and feels and sounds much more like true (i.e., active) blending. Between that characteristic and the 3 band EQ, a world of tones are available.
Sometimes this can be a bad thing....too many options might mean endless twiddling, and consume more of your mind than the music you're playing. Fortunately as I said all settings sounded good so I didn't feel the need to endlessly tweak...found a sound that worked very well quickly and made only modest tweaks (usually backing off the neck pup during a solo).
All in all, a fantastic system. So much so that I am ordering a new body from Warmoth routed just for the Villex soapbars.
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Check out my CD Soundscapes at:
http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/MarcusWillett
www.facebook.com/marcuswillett
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