I've often wondered if they, too, were the same pickups. According to FMIC, however, they have different part numbers. Here are the numbers for the Fender Modern Player pickups...
0093481000 - Neck
0093482000 - Bridge
...and here are the numbers for the Blacktop Precision pickups.
0090794000 - Neck
0090793000 - Bridge
So, they claim they're not the same, but I wouldn't be surprised to find out they were identical.
Sorry if I revive a dead thread, but just in case you're still interested or anyone comes here via forum search or Google (like I did): the pickups are not the same.
The first noticeable difference is that the Blacktop's PUs have all four wires routed to the outside, the Modern Player's only two (at least in the above-mentioned Gen. 1; Series 2, different story). In case of the MP's, the connection points are buried under tons of synthetic resin or something like that, making it rather difficult to do anything about it.
Rumor has it, they also differ in output and tonal character, the BT's being said to be a little hotter and boomier - this would be plausible considering the BT came with 3x 500k pots and 0.047 μf tone cap, the MP with 3x 250k / 0.068 μf.
However, when it comes to dimensions, they should be perfectly interchangeable.
But this may be all very theoretical anyway: in my experience, it's almost impossible to find one or the other anywhere anymore...
Worthwhile reply! I’ve had this thread bookmarked in case anyone replied. Since you’re so familiar, any idea how either of these compare to the similar looking Roscoe Beck pickups? Cheers.
Sorry if I revive a dead thread, but just in case you're still interested or anyone comes here via forum search or Google (like I did): the pickups are not the same.
The first noticeable difference is that the Blacktop's PUs have all four wires routed to the outside, the Modern Player's only two (at least in the above-mentioned Gen. 1; Series 2, different story). In case of the MP's, the connection points are buried under tons of synthetic resin or something like that, making it rather difficult to do anything about it.
Rumor has it, they also differ in output and tonal character, the BT's being said to be a little hotter and boomier - this would be plausible considering the BT came with 3x 500k pots and 0.047 μf tone cap, the MP with 3x 250k / 0.068 μf.
However, when it comes to dimensions, they should be perfectly interchangeable.
But this may be all very theoretical anyway: in my experience, it's almost impossible to find one or the other anywhere anymore...
Thx, but familiar I am mostly with my own 1. Gen Modern Player, so my knowledge is pretty much limited to that.
The pickups on the Roscoe Beck look a lot like those on the 2. Gen Modern Player, which also came in 4 and 5 string versions: splittable coils, blind covers (not the actual pole pieces) between the strings and all. Since the RB's PUs were made in the USA and seem to be pretty well built, I highly doubt they used the exact same ones for the MIC models - only with luck will those be copies that are even comparable technically/sonically.
I never heard or played any of the two in real life, so corncerning the sound you'd have to rely on reviews or so.
Again, as far as dimensions go, they probably fit perfectly amongst each other, again, any of these seem to be very hard to find.
If you are looking for stellar quality replacements to fit into your BT/MP/RB without drilling or routing, you might take a look at these: Bridge/Neck. Both Harry Haeussel and Adrian Maruszczyk not only have an impeccable reputation among German bass players, they are also extremely friendly and helpful. You can simply contact them for any questions, should you take the Haeussels into consideration.