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500K all the way...for my PJ

J

j_nition

Jul 28, 2009
233
3
#1
rewired the Quarter Pound P/J set with 250K Alpha pots in my SX P/J...

Did'nt like it! Lost alot of my bite and cut in the mix and generally felt weaker.
Switched back to the stock 500K mini pots and now I'm loving it again!


Just goes to show, it's all in what your ears tell you is right. Anyone else have a similar story?
 
#4
I sell 500k and 1meg pots to bassists pretty regularly. They're for cats who want more high end and wish to sit a little taller in the mix.
 
#12
For PJ basses anyway ive found 500k is the common choice. Even on the fender PJ schematic that always arises on google uses a 3way pup selector and 2 500k pots with a .1uf cap.....thats a pretty 'bright' setup as far as bass goes, bearing mind only using 2 500k pots is the same as 1 250k pot (correct me if im wrong, i may be). I think line6man swears by a switch for pickup selecting.

Im ripping the pre from my PLyte, as its, well very bad. Passive seems the way to go, as its reliable and cheap. I wouldnt mind keeping the fender logo pickups, the P seems solid,
the jazz however isnt. So searching about ive found that the most common matches for a PJ setup is a Quarter Pounder P, with a DiMarzio ultra Jazz (wired in Series).

Theres alot to think about when thinking about the electronics. I would consider putting a S1 switch on that quarter pounder P. It seems to be the only P pup worth putting it on. 3way toggle and seperate volumes, each a pushpull/seriesparallel for each pickup and a tone control?
 
#13
pandathe3 said:
For PJ basses anyway ive found 500k is the common choice. Even on the fender PJ schematic that always arises on google uses a 3way pup selector and 2 500k pots with a .1uf cap.....thats a pretty 'bright' setup as far as bass goes, bearing mind only using 2 500k pots is the same as 1 250k pot (correct me if im wrong, i may be). I think line6man swears by a switch for pickup selecting.

Im ripping the pre from my PLyte, as its, well very bad. Passive seems the way to go, as its reliable and cheap. I wouldnt mind keeping the fender logo pickups, the P seems solid,
the jazz however isnt. So searching about ive found that the most common matches for a PJ setup is a Quarter Pounder P, with a DiMarzio ultra Jazz (wired in Series).

Theres alot to think about when thinking about the electronics. I would consider putting a S1 switch on that quarter pounder P. It seems to be the only P pup worth putting it on. 3way toggle and seperate volumes, each a pushpull/seriesparallel for each pickup and a tone control?
Click to expand...

The Ultra Jazz bridge pickup is a good choice. You could probably get by with the stock P pickup. If you want to save money try the Ultra with the stock P to see if you like it.
As far as volume controls go, if you are use a three-way selector then you will only need one volume control, unless you really want more control over the blend. Those push pull volumes on each pickup would give you every available option though. I do know that having both pickups in the same circuit will load each other down. For the best P signal the J signal circuitry needs to be removed from the picture, hence the three-way switch.
 
#16
Does anyone happen to know of any before and after clips of the difference between 250K and 500K pots? I'm very curious about the difference!

If not, that's ok, I plan on doing a comparison myself very soon. But if someone has done it already and recorded it that'd save me some money.

Thanks!
 
#17
LowBC said:
I sell 500k and 1meg pots to bassists pretty regularly. They're for cats who want more high end and wish to sit a little taller in the mix.
Click to expand...

Unfortunately the bass volume and presence in a mix will depend not only on the bassist, also the producer, soundman, and the other band members. If any guy think a potentiometer will make his bass more present in a mix is completely fool...
 

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