Anyone done this Audere Fender N3 pickup mod?

[matti777]

I'm just wondering if anyone has modified the N3 pickups per Audere's info and what was the result?
Apparently it gives a more traditional jazz tone even though the pups are a stacked design.

From their site:

'N3 pickups need to be modified to work with a Z-Mode preamp but IMO the best mod will clearly change the sound of the pickup.

My recommended mod will remove a Notch Filter response from the pickups mid range. Removing the notch filter will make it sound much closer to a traditional Fender single coil pickup.

This mod has not been used by many of our customers because most of them have long ago replaced the stock N3 pickups with after market versions in order to get a more traditional sounding pickup.'

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[testing1two]

It's a dealbreaker for me since it disconnects the pole pieces from ground so when your fingers touch the pole pieces, a hum is introduced into the signal.

My opinion is this: if I only had money to upgrade one thing, better pickups and the stock Fender preamp (or no preamp at all) would be preferable to the Audere with the N3 pickups.

 

[sunbeast]

It's a dealbreaker for me since it disconnects the pole pieces from ground so when your fingers touch the pole pieces, a hum is introduced into the signal.

My opinion is this: if I only had money to upgrade one thing, better pickups and the stock Fender preamp (or no preamp at all) would be preferable to the Audere with the N3 pickups.

He describes two versions of the mod which will make the pickups compatible with his preamps- one that “improves the tone” but also ungrounds the polepieces or alternatively one that keeps the original tone and grounds the polepieces. So you get to have your cake and eat it too if you want (though I personally would be most likely to swap out both pickups and preamp in these basses). The Audere pres are a big upgrade IMO and worth the simple basic mod to the pickups if you are attached to keeping the originals.

If you want to try the version of the mod that Audere says improves the tone but a little polepiece hum is that bothersome you can coat the poles with a layer of fingernail polish or similar to stop the hum with no effect on the tone.

 

[Mad Katz]

The general Audere direction appears to be correct, most of the open pole pieces pickups are affected nowadays, especially in the city centers with excessive radio noise. Experienced direct audio detection on N3 from 2014, regardless of the preamp schematic. Came up with the N3 mod after a while that is however much more complex than the above. Works well for me, but unlikely become generally available in observable future.