3 Pickup Bass owner....how did you configure your knobs and electronics?

[Korladis]

If it were me I would build it with a 5 way switch like a Fender Strat guitar has. Who's got the time to make all the adjustments (and remember them) with the stack knobs and cutout switches = I don't. The simpler the better for me. If you are unfamiliar with the 5 way it's like this: bridge, bridge middle, middle, middle neck, neck. Two tone knobs and 1 Volume.

So how do you get all three or bridge and neck, then?

 

[MobileHolmes]

I think, in general, a passive tone for each pickup just isn't that useful. I've played some stack knob J basses, and just wasn't that impressed by having a treble cut for each pickup. I'd probably want 3 volume pots, since on bass, I generally vary the tone by blending pickups, and rarely ever solo them

 

[Korladis]

I think, in general, a passive tone for each pickup just isn't that useful. I've played some stack knob J basses, and just wasn't that impressed by having a treble cut for each pickup. I'd probably want 3 volume pots, since on bass, I generally vary the tone by blending pickups, and rarely ever solo them

I don't find any tone knobs that useful, really.

 

[MobileHolmes]

I don't find any tone knobs that useful, really.

I go back and forth. On my P,
I sometimes use it. On my active basses, it's more like set and forget

 

[Korladis]

I go back and forth. On my P,
I sometimes use it. On my active basses, it's more like set and forget

I pretty much don't use them.

On my Peavey, I think it's been years since I've turned the tone knob except by mistake.

On my Rickenbackers, I only use the tone knob of the bridge pickup for its pull switch function (which is a minority of the time I'm playing).

And on my T-bird, I had the tone knob removed and replaced with a rotary pickup switch.

 

[Christoph Navratil]

Hi there,

I have a couple of three-pickup layouts on my basses.
Chris Larkin Reacter 5B - P90/J/P90
Chris Larkin Razerbird - EBO/P single/P90
Chirs Larkin Syra - P single/P regular/J
Fender Jazz - J/P regular/J

I used several different switching layouts - 3 volumes, blendings, on-off switches, toggle switches and for me two toggles are working best.
The Syra Bass has two Gibson style switches - switch one is connecting the P regular and J-style pickup, the second switch is connecting the P single pickup and switch one. This delivers all possible pickup connections.
The Razerbird Bass layout works quite similar - the Telecaster switch connects the EBO and P90 and the Gibson style switch the Tele-switch and the P single pickup.
The Reacter B5 Bass has three on-off switches - if anyone wonders why there are some empty holes, this bass had some active circuitry on it, that I don't use anymore.
The Jazz Bass had three volumes, one for each pickup - sorry no picture, sold long ago.

By the way, most of my basses were built without any tone control, as I don't use it.

Cheers,
Christoph

Chris Larkin Razerbird

Chris Larkin Reacter B5

Chris Larkin Syra

 

[Bruce Boogie]

Simplify ~ if you're gigging anything like regular ~ Simplify
Knobs and buttons and switches get in the way
I love the Jag bass look but feel I should disconnect all the hardware or hard wire to one sound.
When I'm playing I don't want to think about knob twiddling and switching ~ get on and BOOGIE !
All the subtle nuances disappear on stage and the crowd (mostly) don't give a poo about the exact tone.
Simplify ~ Simplify ~ Simplify

 

[Penman]

Hey all,

Im currently have a custom bass being built for me. Its gonna be a Landing Bass in a J P J three pickup format. Ive decided to go with 3 stack knobs. Of which, each pickup receives a volume and tone.

On top of that I will have three small jaguar style On-Off switches for each pup. I basically wanted to get individual control over every pickup and have options as well. Right now the builder is planning on using 500k stack pots, but I may go with 250k pots. Not too sure.

I wanted to see how other 3 pickup bass owners configured their knobs and electronics. And if you want to give some opinion on the route Ive gone, please chime in. Here's a few picks of my bass from a month or so ago.

 

[Penman]

This is my 3 pick-up Fender Jaguar Modified Bass. I prefer the original look of its manufactured setup. The bottom knob is still the tone knob. The toggle switch is a three position for the top 2 pick ups (Neck and P-Pickups), Switch in position one is the neck only, position 2 is neck and P, position 3 is P-Pickup only.

The 2 top pots are volume knobs. Top most pot is the Neck And P-pickup volume knob. The pot below it is the bridge pick up volume knob. Pricing was one of the determining factors for my electronic selection and space in the existing cavities of the original bass body.

A good amount of wood was being taken out because of the new pick-ups with the addition of the third neck pickup. I play in several different styles like most of us but I wanted to be able to retain some traditional sound but play and experiment with my own versions of new sounds that work well also.

She was designed to both cut through the mix or disappear in the mix with little to no adjustments necessary which is why I went with the simple controls and the 1/4 pound Seymour-Duncan pickups. I had a clear vision for it, so I would recommend picking those things that are particular to you and your playing style as well as Genres you plan on playing in. If you need high versatility then design it for that. Build what you need but in order to do that you need to first look at yourself and what you enjoy playing. For reference I play Blues, Jazz, Latin, Metal, Rock (all versions), Pop, Reggae, Electronica and Hip Hop.

Hope this helps. Have fun building your 3 pickup bass!

May the Bass Be with You!

 

[jt_productions]

Fender Tele bass body with tele, p, and jazz bass pick-ups and a 32 position switching system.

 

[boristhespider7]

That looks a beauty...any chance we can see a pic of the whole body?

 

[boristhespider7]

View attachment 2748145 This is my 3 pick-up Fender Jaguar Modified Bass. I prefer the original look of its manufactured setup. The bottom knob is still the tone knob. The toggle switch is a three position for the top 2 pick ups (Neck and P-Pickups), Switch in position one is the neck only, position 2 is neck and P, position 3 is P-Pickup only.

The 2 top pots are volume knobs. Top most pot is the Neck And P-pickup volume knob. The pot below it is the bridge pick up volume knob. Pricing was one of the determining factors for my electronic selection and space in the existing cavities of the original bass body.

A good amount of wood was being taken out because of the new pick-ups with the addition of the third neck pickup. I play in several different styles like most of us but I wanted to be able to retain some traditional sound but play and experiment with my own versions of new sounds that work well also.

She was designed to both cut through the mix or disappear in the mix with little to no adjustments necessary which is why I went with the simple controls and the 1/4 pound Seymour-Duncan pickups. I had a clear vision for it, so I would recommend picking those things that are particular to you and your playing style as well as Genres you plan on playing in. If you need high versatility then design it for that. Build what you need but in order to do that you need to first look at yourself and what you enjoy playing. For reference I play Blues, Jazz, Latin, Metal, Rock (all versions), Pop, Reggae, Electronica and Hip Hop.

Hope this helps. Have fun building your 3 pickup bass!

May the Bass Be with You!

That looks a beauty...any chance we can see a pic of the whole body?

Sorry, forgot to include the quote

 

[joebar]

When I was younger, I hotrodded a bass with JPJ- all active PU's; wired it VVV no tone.
Sounded pretty dean good and I used it for years

 

[Basvarken]

Here's my three pickup bass

The chickenhead is a rotary switch with six positions:
1. single coil at the neck
2. both single coils as humbucker
3. mudbucker at the bridge
4. single coil at the neck plus mudbucker
5. both single coils as humbucker plus mudbucker (in series)
6. both single coils as humbucker plus mudbucker (in parallel)

The reflector knob is volume.

On the back I have a tone pot that is accessible via a small hole in the control plate.
I hardly ever use it. But sometimes when I do, I just use a pick to dial it back a bit.
(I'm sorry it is not really clear in the pic below, but it is there ;-) )

 

[MikePlaysBass]

If you really want to use every possible pickup combination or whatever, Stewart McDonald sell a multiple position switch that looks like a regular toggle except in addition to the straight toggle a pull on the toggle up or down acts as another toggle switch. Anyway, it might be what you're looking for.

Regardless of what wiring scheme you end with, be sure to document it. I had an old guitar I put every possible switch I could think of for it for fun (parallel/series, split coil, out of phase, you get the idea). Looking inside that rat's nest now, I'd have no idea what was connected to what, but since I made a schematic of it, I can trace individual contact points to debug it.

 

[HaphAsSard]

If you really want to use every possible pickup combination or whatever, Stewart McDonald sell a multiple position switch that looks like a regular toggle except in addition to the straight toggle a pull on the toggle up or down acts as another toggle switch. Anyway, it might be what you're looking for.

Have you got a link for that? I'm interested, and haven't had any luck, patience or enough English language skills in finding it. Thanks in advance.

 

[Funkyputz]

My warrior has three bartolini's. It has a blend knob and on the neck side of the blend is a three way switch selecting neck/ neck &middle/ middle. It's a simple configuration that lets me do any combination. I like it a lot

 

[solderfumes]

I used Dan Armstrong Super Strat wiring, to give me many different combinations. I wrote about it here:

NBD: my Threecision/Threelecaster Frankenbass

If you're going with three volume controls, I'd suggest you use 1M pots so that they don't load down the pickups too much.

 

[JoeWPgh]

There's not much point to individual tone controls. Any one of them will affect all 3 pickups to some extent.

 

[Penman]

That looks a beauty...any chance we can see a pic of the whole body?