5 string P style pickup measurements - same as 4?

I think that many 5 string P pickups are the same size as 4 string but the pick halves have been spread apart a bit more. You want the A string to be picked up by only one of the 2 halves. Carvin has the treble pickup cover the A string while Fender and (I think) Lakland have the A string covered by the bass side pickup.

If you have body routes for 4 string the 5 string will either be a bit too wide or the A string will go over the active edges of both pickup halves.

 

Aguilar makes 2 different sizes.. That aggy 5p is larger than the normal P pickup in length..The CL is the shorter one I think.. . A guy that worked there and is on this forum told me they copied the alleva coppolo P5p pickup . But the two sound incredibly different.
Fender and Yamaha make one small coil and one long coil..
Duncan, Nordstrand each make P5 pups that are withing about 1/64th of each other in size to a standard 4 string P pup...
I have some Nord J pups that sound amazing... but their P pup is a little too scooped with a harsh top end IMO.

...

 

EMG and Norstrand also make a P pickup that is the same dimension for a fiver as a four string. Just FYI.

 

I know what you mean about the Nordy P pickups: the standard ones (used by Sadowsky and others) sound different than Fender. Have you tried the np5v pickup with "vintage-correct magnets" (alnico, I guess)? Just wondering if that version has a more vintage sound.

I'm currently having a vintage style P5 built for me by a local luthier and I requested the np5v pickups, but the bass is still in progress so I haven't heard them yet.

 

P.S. I am pretty sure (but not 100% certain) that the P5 route on Lull, Sadowsky, and Nordstrand P5s is the same as a P4 route: it's just that the coils in the P5 (underneath the pup covers) are wider to accommodate the additional string. Images below are not to scale, but seem to bear this out.

 

I have not tried the specified np5v.... I had a 3-4 different prototypes to eval for a builder years ago ... I was one of a few testing for their basses....I selected the one that i felt sounded closest to my familiar P.. Dont know if that is what they went with... .

But I will say that I really like the Nord J pups allot!

 

They are the same route.... same size coils too.. five or take 1/64th"
When i was doing some prototype evals on my Sad, i put a EMG 4 string pup just to get a basic idea of what was going on in the bass and how it reacted. It sounded pretty good but the continuous bar in the EMG did not pick up the G string as well as the others. But it did work just to get an idea of what it may sound like..
I find Sadowsky to be a bit mid scooped by nature.. even with the preamp off as compared to lets say a fender , or alleva coppolo.. Dont ask me how that happens with the preamp off . but it does.
I have a different bridge that i will try on my sadowsky to see if i can get it sound a little more fendery like my alleva coppolo ... cant wait to try it, because it plays like a dream

 

Thanks for the confirmation on pickup route.

In the grand scheme of things my Sadowsky P-bass sounds P-bassy, but I agree: Sadowsky basses sound different than their Fender equivalents -- I always mention this when bassists ask about my Sadowskys. Some call Sadowskys scooped, others call them flat, others say they have enhanced highs and lows. I agree with you: that tone exists even with the preamp bypassed. Whether it's better or not is simply personal preference. I usually prefer Sadowsky, but there are times that I appreciate the mid-focus of a passive Fender P.

 

I find that with the NP5 I usually engage the passive tone pot to shave off some off the edge that those pickups produce. Next time around I'm going to experiment with a different value capacitor on the tone cap to shift the treble cut frequency a little. Usually I find that helps a lot. I had a Fender American Standard P5 and I found that too bright as well. Just FYI, I installed a Bart P5 and even though it was more "hi-fi" sounding, the highs are very refined and it's a very clean sounding pickup.

 

its been 20 years since i used Bartolinis.. but im open to trying them again... ill bet they sound great

 

They sound like Barts! Having said that I also also mention that the Classic Bass Series ("CB) has extended highs compared to the originals. They are smoother, refined, polite, and not the 70's-80's chunky P tone that you get from that era of Fender P with an Ash body and maple neck. THAT combination is a different animal compared to an Alder body/rosewood P Bass. A lot of discussion is made around brand names and custom builders who make P clones but IMHO, the choices of Ash over alder, maple over rosewood really tells the story. I think you can take a plain old Fender P5 pickup and pick your choice of tone woods and arrive at P nirvana in a heartbeat.

 

Fender P with an Ash body and maple neck was one of the worst P bass tones.. IMO

 

Fortunately we have wood choices to suit our preferences. I use a wenge neck on my P5 and it's a growly beast compared to maple or rosewood. Knowledge is power.

 

Carvin specifically says their P pickup is a direct replacement for Fender 4 string and will work with 4, 5, 6 string bases. Same with Bill Lawrence.

 

The Bill Lawrence/Wilde P-46 is 4 string sized and will work with 5 strings. TB'er ric5 has made a bunch of 4 to 5 P conversions usually using 4 string P necks, I think.