Double Bass 4 individual pickups built into the bridge

[vbass007]

I have 4 individual pickups/transducers built into the bridge on Double bass to pickup every string. What would be the correct distance between the pickup and the string(where the string crossing the bridge)?

 

[Wasnex]

I have 4 individual pickups/transducers built into the bridge on Double bass to pickup every string. What would be the correct distance between the pickup and the string(where the string crossing the bridge)?
View attachment 3720322

The answer will vary by the characteristics of your bass and your tonal goals. I have attached the manual for the K&K Double Big Twin which explains placement and mounting.

 

[vbass007]

The answer will vary by the characteristics of your bass and your tonal goals. I have attached the manual for the K&K Double Big Twin which explains placement and mounting.

Thanks for your reply

 

[Francois Blais]

Is it the Double Big Twin you'll get?
If so, the pickups are not mounted into the bridge, they're just held with adhesive on the surface.
The Wilson pickups are inserted into the bridge.

 

[vbass007]

Hi Francois, I have Mallia pickups, they are inserted into the bridge.

 

[Wasnex]

Is it the Double Big Twin you'll get?
If so, the pickups are not mounted into the bridge, they're just held with adhesive on the surface.
The Wilson pickups are inserted into the bridge.
View attachment 3720420

I believe the recommendation is to eventually mount the K&K elements with super glue as the adhesive does not accurately transfer the high end. Obviously some experimentation to find the best placement should be done before gluing the elements in place.

In the following thread @doublehorn documented his journey with the Double Big Twin. Double Big Twin. Move to the wings?

I think the thread is a useful read, but it's best to take one's own journey, as your bass may require different placement or you may prefer a different tone.

 

[vbass007]

Sorry about the confusion, these are Mallia pickups, 4 pickups individually inserted into the bridge. thanks

 

[Wasnex]

Sorry about the confusion, these are Mallia pickups, 4 pickups individually inserted into the bridge. thanks

No worries. The thread I linked for you may still be an informative read, but I can't think of any way to experiment with placement.

I can't find anything on the Mallia pickup, but conceptually they are probably similar to the Wilson K4. If you don't have directions for your pickup, here is a page that shows what Wilson recommends: Mounting It's recommend to mount the K4 elements 9mm below the strings.

 

[vbass007]

Great! Thanks for your help. I guess it’s similar to Wilson K4, it’s custom made pickups and I got the bass with those pickups been already installed.

 

[Wasnex]

Great! Thanks for your help. I guess it’s similar to Wilson K4, it’s custom made pickups and I got the bass with those pickups been already installed.

How does it sound?

From the photos it looks like it was done right, but as I mentioned results can vary a lot by bass. If you are not getting good results, I would leave the Mallia alone and just try another pickup. I don't think it would be possible to remove the Mallia without compromising the bridge.

One thing to consider is piezo pickups typically want a very high impedance somewhere between 1Meg and 10Meg. Some even want higher. If the impedance is too low, the sound will be sort of quacky (lots of high mids) and lack low end.

 

[vbass007]

The pickup came with the bass, it seems that the strings response is very sensitive and it takes a few more adjustments with amp EQ to get rid of those high mids and more warmer sound. But I would consider to get a new bridge and change to a different pickup.

 

[David Jayne]

I wonder if you could hold them with neo magnets on the opposite face..... Then you could experiment all you like before committing to glue.

 

[Wasnex]

The pickup came with the bass, it seems that the strings response is very sensitive and it takes a few more adjustments with amp EQ to get rid of those high mids and more warmer sound. But I would consider to get a new bridge and change to a different pickup.

What is the input impedance of your amp. This is exactly the type of sound you get when the impedance is too low. However, based on the limited reading I have done on the Double Big Twin, it is considered a bright pickup and I would not be surprised if the Mallia is bright as well.

How does the bass sound acoustically. Can you work around the Mallia? Some people like combining the outputs of two pickups. If you read the thread I linked above, two pickups were used with Radial Phazer to compensate for phase errors between the pickups.