that's a good idea, thanks! wonder how those unused holes will affect the bridge sonically, though- maybe not that big an issue.
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I used a bridge with K4 holes and no pickup. I later had the holes filled in and didn't notice a difference.
I´d choose exactly this position, too. Right below the bass side wing. With my Balsereit pickup, which has a similar design, I tried some different locations. This one works best and sounds most balanced.
But since the K1 is so small I wouldn´t hesitate to drill several holes into the bridge if you still want to try different locations. Below the treble side wing might be interesting.
I am using Wilson K1 for a couple years now, and I would recommend it always. It is ,of course, a pickup so not the most natural sound but rotating it and finding the right position can make a pretty good tone.
The live sound is very good and very feedback resistant. Previously I used Realist (good for quiet gigs only-in my opinion) and after that an Underwood (to much sustain and fretless bass guitar sound for me), both ok but K1 is just more good in every situation. I play mostly bluesy, jazzy and country styles and mostly in theaters and festivals, lot less in the clubs..and always with P.A.
The live sound is very good and very feedback resistant. Previously I used Realist (good for quiet gigs only-in my opinion) and after that an Underwood (to much sustain and fretless bass guitar sound for me), both ok but K1 is just more good in every situation. I play mostly bluesy, jazzy and country styles and mostly in theaters and festivals, lot less in the clubs..and always with P.A.
I absolutely agree, I have the same experience with the Realist and Underwood, K1 is way better than those for me too…Fishman Full circle is also good (pretty much similar sound), but it has more harsh treble and less clarity at low end…
The thing with the K1 is to find the sweet spot.
On mine, the place where I had the hole drilled, was not good.
I should have asked the luthier to drill a few holes at different spots.
On mine, the place where I had the hole drilled, was not good.
I should have asked the luthier to drill a few holes at different spots.
which brings me to my original question, if anybody had any luck drilling *under* the height-adjustment screw? (is that structurally even reasonable?) my luthier was adamant about the "official" location halfway up the E-string side and drilled thusly, and while that slot offers quite a range of tonal options depending on the PUs orientation, I'm not quite happy yet. Forsaking the versatility of the K4 , I'd like more spectrum along with the definition, so I guess I'll give it a shot.
Suggestions of perforating the bridge to hearts content to find the ideal slot are probably to be weighed against preserving sufficient bridge mass for it to fulfill its primary duty
Suggestions of perforating the bridge to hearts content to find the ideal slot are probably to be weighed against preserving sufficient bridge mass for it to fulfill its primary duty
On the basses that I’ve tried it, you get more bass and less “string” sound the closer to the top that you put it.
I don’t remember for sure but I think that I had one bass with screws and the Wilson under. It should work. Just consider that if you put the pickup to close to the top, you won’t be able to turn it 360degress because of the cable. It’s also very important to have the hole properly drilled. If you use a hand tool, the hole might get uneven resulting in a less than optimal sound.
Unless you drill it like a swiss cheese, I don't think it'd be an issue.Suggestions of perforating the bridge to hearts content to find the ideal slot are probably to be weighed against preserving sufficient bridge mass for it to fulfill its primary duty
IMO, three or four holes would be enough to experiment and not harm the bridge structure in any way.
which brings me to my original question, if anybody had any luck drilling *under* the height-adjustment screw? (is that structurally even reasonable?)
I tried going more closer to the body but got nothing special, to much of body-muddy sound so I keep it in a regular under wing position. If that sounds too thin than try to add a preamp with higher input impendence, it is the thing that opens the tone and goes lower than if you just go in bass amp. I learned this from guys here and I am thankful for that!
My AER amp one has 1Mohm and it is not enough for any of pickups I've tried, not bad but, much better with preamp.
I use either fdeck scheme copy or Headway EDB 2 H.E. Both work great.
Not an gear expert but lot of live playing experiences. Good and badLive Double bass with amps, drummers and microphones can be frustrating, but I still love it
Just trying to help if you don't have more ideas.
thanks, that's very helpful. Yes I use the fdeck with my Wilsons always.
You do have a hole drilled very close to the top of the bass, but then again, you don't have height adjusters to split the bridge structure.
From your first comment I gather K1 way south will sound close to Realist ("body-muddy" is a well-coined term).
You do have a hole drilled very close to the top of the bass, but then again, you don't have height adjusters to split the bridge structure.
From your first comment I gather K1 way south will sound close to Realist ("body-muddy" is a well-coined term).
If You feel, you need a pickup close to the body, I recommend Full Circle installed threats up! (I used for years) It’s similar to realist, but much more clarity and much better feedback rejection…
thanks. Quite a few basses I came across in the past had an FC installed, and I never really liked the sound, purely a matter of taste. There is a japanese PU of similiar concept to the FC that I got to try out once, which I much preferred. But I'm still fancying exploiting the Wilsons talents further from the strings and closer to the top- maybe that is an inherently misguided plan.
