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5 string Passive Bass

iriegnome

iriegnome

Bassstar style
Supporting Member
Nov 23, 2001
11,263
5,577
61
Kenosha, WI 53140
#1
I am looking for suggestions... I have six 5 strings all have active systems. I think I may need to move away from active. It seems the mid/high boost from the active basses are just not what I am happy with. It has taken a while with all of my active basses to come to a realization of this, but it is something I think I should look into.
 
#2
I am a passive player, and a few years ago, I got a great deal on my first fretless, I couldn't resist, even though it was active...sounded good, but I didn't care for the active electronics. The pups were passive...so...

I ripped 'em out, and rewired it like a Jazz, pretty awesome bass now.
 
#3
Hi iriegnome,

Hopefully this is information you haven't already thought of, if I'm being too obvious I apologize:

Do you always use the same amp? If so, you might want to stick with the active basses and check out some different amps. The way your mids/highs sound will change depending on the amp.

Go to a lot of music stores and play as many basses as you can until you find one that does what you want.

In my experience, the mids/highs of passive pickups aren't quite as articulated as those from active pickups. Of course, that's just my personal opinion.

Also, I have found that it is very difficult to properly express to people the kind of sound you are looking for. What one person might consider a "warm" tone might be the equivalent of another person's "muddy" tone. Thus I don't know that I would bother trying to describe the sound you want to a store clerk, probably best just to try the basses/amps and listen for yourself.

However, others may have had better luck than I in expressing what they want in their sound.

Good luck finding your tone!
 
#4
I was in the same boat as you a few years ago, i have always played active basses and i was curious to see if a passive bass worked for me.

Like the last poster said go to the store and play as many basses as you can until you find the one that suits your needs.

I went to every store and tried every bass with the similar amp set up and i did end up buying one at the end of the day.

I am sure a handful of poster will say "get a p-bass" or "get a jazz bass" but at the end of the day you are simply trying to look for your tone and that's what every player in this forum is aiming for.

Good luck.
 
#5
I bought my SWR Bass 750 in 2001. I have used it exclusively ever sense. I don't have any passive basses to use on my amp to give it a try. I have played thousands of basses over the years. I do not have a bunch of stores around here.
 
#6
I continue to be amazed by the tonal breadth from the Q-Tuners on my RIM Custom. 36" scale, chambered ash body, wenge/ash thru-neck, 38-58-78-104-134 nickel wounds, 4-way pickup switch plus master vol and tone, and the open clear yet punchy deep fatness of the most awesome pickups ever made. Into an Avalon U5 you cannot believe how good this sounds and how responsive it is!

Alex
 
#7
I think it may the PUs. A lot of active basses are fitted with ceramic-magnets PUs, whereas a lot of passive basses use ALNICO(Aluminium-Nickel-Cobalt) PUs.
ALNICO sound a lot warmer and more organic and have more low mids.
I have ALNICO PUs (SC, P and MM) on all my basses. All the basses I ever liked had ALNICO PUs. Some of them were passive, some had/have active electronics. And they all sound better to my ears than basses equipped with ceramic magnet PUs.
 
#8
The new Fender American Standard Jazz and Precision 5s are passive and are getting high marks on this forum. As far as moding the electronics on your present basses, that is a crap shoot and I wouldn't advise it. Better off to sell or trade for something passive.
 
#11
I was in the same boat as you...........I'm only gigging with my 5's, and they were all active instruments (Sadowsky, Modulus, Warmoth Gecko). For my newest bass, I definately wanted to go passive, and at this point I am more than happy with the results.

My Crook Custom is a 5 string passive, with Bill Lawrence PuPs (reverse P, J), an aluminum Hipshot B Bridge, and the control set up is Vol, Blend, (blank), and Tone. The (blank) is set aside for the Lawrence Q control. I bought it with the PuPs, but we wanted to see how the bass sounded without it first. I'm really pleased at this point, and I may never install the Q.

This bass sits in the mix like no other, with focused tone that is neither too brittle on top, nor too muddy on the bottom. My primary band is heavy on Telecasters, with acoustic guitar, and occasional baritone guitar, mando, and fiddle, and lots of vocal harmony. That leaves only a precious bit of space for the bass to sit in the mix and not get in the way nor get walked on, and this one does the trick!

Here is a pic:


P7070129.jpg
 
#12
iriegnome said:
I am looking for suggestions... I have six 5 strings all have active systems. I think I may need to move away from active. It seems the mid/high boost from the active basses are just not what I am happy with. It has taken a while with all of my active basses to come to a realization of this, but it is something I think I should look into.
Click to expand...

If you're fortunate enough to find a Roscoe Beck V, buy it. Awesome passive 5 string.
 
#15
iriegnome,

There's one more thing you might consider...

In addition to your pickups, scale length has a significant effect on your tone as well. You might want to consider the scale length of your new bass along with the kinds of pickups you want to go with.
 
#16
Before dropping coin on another bass, you could always explore the option of different strings or different pre-amp/pickup combos. I have a decent collection of basses, all active, but active basses can really vary. A lot of the newer preamps available can handle passive sounds, but still offer a wide range of tones and adjustments on the fly.
 

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