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basses for newbies (SX batch build thread)
- Thread starter chunger
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Haha well there you go Chunger, at least I know I can trust my ears now! Keep up the good work and in that case I really like both sounds, pretty much fits my tonal preferences for both instruments.
just out of interest, can the jazz bass be coaxed into growling with some of that jazz bass growl I often hear about? I tend to prefer bright instruments which can be tamed rather than warm instruments which will be harder to make aggressive if needed, what do you think or do you prefer to stick with the natural tone of the bass and the range of the tone control and volumes have to offer?
just out of interest, can the jazz bass be coaxed into growling with some of that jazz bass growl I often hear about? I tend to prefer bright instruments which can be tamed rather than warm instruments which will be harder to make aggressive if needed, what do you think or do you prefer to stick with the natural tone of the bass and the range of the tone control and volumes have to offer?
Congrats Chunger...damn, now I have to start saving my pennies. Both pups give the sound that they were supposed to make.
Any chance you'd be shipping international?
Hey there. . . if you're willing to pay the shipping fees and recommend to me a safe, insured shipping method, I am more than happy to send a set out to anywhere on the planet. There is lead time though as obviously this is not an "off-the-shelf" item and they will have to build these for me.
please email [email protected]
We tend to know when something is crazy good, and these are crazy good. . . they are, however, 1st pass prototype and testing is ongoing and I may make minute voicing adjustments in subsequent prototypes unless the word from the field is "Leave the thing alone!".
The prototype A pickup to my ears and through my rig (Thunderfunk TFB550--> 4 ohm Acme B2) cuts REALLY well in the midrange (upperish) and treble. "growl" is a subjective thing, but to my ears, these pickups are growley-snarley. The stock NJ4 was a lot more grindy and open. Through Jasaman's Walter Woods and Accugroove cab, this thing has borderline excessive treble. . . I mean through that rig, you can get the treble to really take your head off. It's all there but really harmonic and "nice". In my mind, if what you want is a setup that is aggressive and comes forward in the mix and, want to have enough treble to where you're throttling the tone knob, this one would work. If your definition of growl is a little more in the lower midrange area, the voicing may not be as ideal for you. But man, those sound clips are flat and the bass is flying off the speakers. . . even cheap computer speakers.
Had a great night tracking with #4 and #9. I was extremely impressed with both and the new pups in #9 are crazy! I'm going to take #9 on a gig tonight and see if they perform as well live as they did in the studio. From a players perspective, the pups in #9 felt incredible to play being very responsive to both finger picking and slap. There are a ton of highs that can be easily tamed with the tone knob. I thin I rather have those highs with the ability to control them as opposed to wanting more and having to crank the treble on the amp. Can't wait to see how they respond live.
Chunger was able to put some NJ4SE's in my beloved #3 with his crazy push/pull mod. I played it last night and really liked them but was still memorized by #9. I did notice that the strings were totally shot and worn out so I changed them toady. Wow!! What a difference. #3 is back! I have been going back and forth between #3 and #9 all morning and I love them both in different ways. #3 has a deep controlled sound that leaves the tone control in your own hands. #9 is a wild beast that needs some taming but is fun and bursting with sonic possibilities.
I'll let you know what I think after taking #3 and #9 on the gig tonight. Great job Chunger!!! I having fun playing your amazing mods.
Chunger was able to put some NJ4SE's in my beloved #3 with his crazy push/pull mod. I played it last night and really liked them but was still memorized by #9. I did notice that the strings were totally shot and worn out so I changed them toady. Wow!! What a difference. #3 is back! I have been going back and forth between #3 and #9 all morning and I love them both in different ways. #3 has a deep controlled sound that leaves the tone control in your own hands. #9 is a wild beast that needs some taming but is fun and bursting with sonic possibilities.
I'll let you know what I think after taking #3 and #9 on the gig tonight. Great job Chunger!!! I having fun playing your amazing mods.
sorry if I sounded unimpressed by the clips. They sounded like the perfect solid, typical but better, P and Jbass sounds.
Probably just my laptop speakers. I prefer a lower midrange voicing for my jazz basses so that they growl.... Well what I call growl is what you call grind I think... Subjective terms aren't what they used to be lol
Probably just my laptop speakers. I prefer a lower midrange voicing for my jazz basses so that they growl.... Well what I call growl is what you call grind I think... Subjective terms aren't what they used to be lol
No problem. . . feedback is what I'm really after when posting tests and sound clips. There's a lot of sonic range within the framework of "jazz bass" and every player wants something different. If you don't like it for some reason, I really want to know why precisely. . . if you do like it, well, I want to know why precisely.
The fun of it all to me is to hear something. . . you know. . . in your head
and then incrementally work towards making that sound come out. It's fascinating stuff and satisfying to hear it on tape.Feedback is usually useless if not qualified IMO so I agree with trying to explain precisely why.
I'd be really interested to hear how each of those basses sat in a live mix, looking forward to the gig reports to come soon
for the weekly church service that I play my trusted fenders have all the tones I need, a solid defined parallel tone, a fatter more grindy neck p'up and a burpy aggressive bridge pickup all of which can be nicely sweetened and tamed with the tone control.
I guess it's all about what you're after, for me that higher mid emphasis would cut well but wouldn't necessarily have the punch and "oomph" needed to fill the bottom end like I said earlier I have only listened to them on my laptop speakers so can't gauge the low response very accurately I'm afraid.
Sorry for being blind, just noted the description by each clip of the pickup and tone settings... I really should learn to read
Chunger your work is inspirational, I'm going to try the push pull series/parallel wiring for my maple necked jazz tomorrow hopefully, always been sceptical of it's tonal usefulness but after this thread I'm too curious not to try it.
I'd be really interested to hear how each of those basses sat in a live mix, looking forward to the gig reports to come soon
for the weekly church service that I play my trusted fenders have all the tones I need, a solid defined parallel tone, a fatter more grindy neck p'up and a burpy aggressive bridge pickup all of which can be nicely sweetened and tamed with the tone control.I guess it's all about what you're after, for me that higher mid emphasis would cut well but wouldn't necessarily have the punch and "oomph" needed to fill the bottom end like I said earlier I have only listened to them on my laptop speakers so can't gauge the low response very accurately I'm afraid.
Sorry for being blind, just noted the description by each clip of the pickup and tone settings... I really should learn to read
Chunger your work is inspirational, I'm going to try the push pull series/parallel wiring for my maple necked jazz tomorrow hopefully, always been sceptical of it's tonal usefulness but after this thread I'm too curious not to try it.
Just listened to the clips... I've come to the conclusion that you (Chung) and Jasaman like the "bass in yo' face!" sound What I mean by that is that both the Chungified P pup and the A prototype have an upper midrange growl (snarl?) and to my ears are a bit less scooped than the stock NJs. I found this to be true comparing the stock NP4 to yours and the stock NJ4 to the A (just pulled up the previous clips for comparison). It seemed to me (through these headphones) that the stock NP4 and the 10% overwind both had a smoother, fatter feel while the Chung P had more edge with less lows. Same with the A. I don't think either of these pups would have any problem cutting through! For my tastes, from what I've heard so far I actually prefer the stock Nords, though I'm still looking forward to hearing that 5% overwound NP4 that I think might take my favor.
Good job to both you and the guys at Nordstrand on recreating the ballsyness of the stock SX j pup. And I really like the look of that overseas bass you were evaluating - I'd rock one for sure.
What I mean by that is that both the Chungified P pup and the A prototype have an upper midrange growl (snarl?) and to my ears are a bit less scooped than the stock NJs. I found this to be true comparing the stock NP4 to yours and the stock NJ4 to the A (just pulled up the previous clips for comparison). It seemed to me (through these headphones) that the stock NP4 and the 10% overwind both had a smoother, fatter feel while the Chung P had more edge with less lows. Same with the A. I don't think either of these pups would have any problem cutting through! For my tastes, from what I've heard so far I actually prefer the stock Nords, though I'm still looking forward to hearing that 5% overwound NP4 that I think might take my favor.Good job to both you and the guys at Nordstrand on recreating the ballsyness of the stock SX j pup. And I really like the look of that overseas bass you were evaluating - I'd rock one for sure.
oh my... they both sound great. i have been looking for a new p pickup and have had a idea in my head of what i was looking for. i believe i may have found it. delicious...
What an amazing thread! I greatly admire your work ethic chunger. Your attention to detail borders on obsessive and we all benefit because of it. I'm excited about your 'chungified' pickups and basses and I don't even have a horse in this race.
Spoke with Nordstrand today about the prototype A jazz bass pickup. After getting feedback from the field, I'm thinking the pickup can afford to lose a little bit of high frequency, if there's a way to shift the mid frequency spike down a little bit, and gain a little bass response, it'd be right where we want it.
Right now it's at a 43 gauge wire, and it's uncertain whether we can fit 42 gauge wire in there (the jazz case is narrow and we're pushing the coils up towards the top the case making it thin as well). But if possible, this would increase our bass response.
Because of the thin coil structure, the prototype was wound "normal", and a simulated hand-wind may shift the mid-spike frequency down a little bit but may be difficult implement to due the thin coil structure.
A slight reduction in magnet length would decrease both bass and treble response but it would lose treble much faster than bass, and the pickup is plenty hot. . . losing a little output is no problem.
Eh. . . I'll have to think on it some more. The pickup sounds really good the way it sits right now.
Right now it's at a 43 gauge wire, and it's uncertain whether we can fit 42 gauge wire in there (the jazz case is narrow and we're pushing the coils up towards the top the case making it thin as well). But if possible, this would increase our bass response.
Because of the thin coil structure, the prototype was wound "normal", and a simulated hand-wind may shift the mid-spike frequency down a little bit but may be difficult implement to due the thin coil structure.
A slight reduction in magnet length would decrease both bass and treble response but it would lose treble much faster than bass, and the pickup is plenty hot. . . losing a little output is no problem.
Eh. . . I'll have to think on it some more. The pickup sounds really good the way it sits right now.
back to the usual shenanigans. . .
#12 is up
It came with a pretty pearloid pickguard, but there was a massive gap at the neck heel.
Drilling for inserts again with my little cheap drill guide clamped in place. So much less "exciting" than before.
#12 didn't need a shim. . . rare in an SX. It was also burgandy metalic in the past. . . weird.
I had to take it back to a stock SX pickguard to close the gap. Black on black would not be my first color choice, but it's what I have on hand.
And. . . #12 is ready for PLEK.
#13 gets inserts installed as well. I'm short 2 SX bridges, so I had to steal one from another bass. I'm waiting for 4 Babicz FCH bridges still and they are just not coming in stock.
Pickup alignment was just a hair off. . . enough for me to think about re-setting the bridge. . . and then, I decided to just leave it be.
#13 ready for PLEK
I am in process of finalizing my spec for the 1st production batch of basses. . . I am inquiring about the possibility of chambering the bodies to force the average body weight into a more favorable range for the quality of Alder that is available to the factory. . . knowing full well it will increase the instrument price. The SX's are already "cheating" on the specs at ~1.63" body blank width while standard is 1.75". I'm hoping it's doable.
#12 is up
It came with a pretty pearloid pickguard, but there was a massive gap at the neck heel.
Drilling for inserts again with my little cheap drill guide clamped in place. So much less "exciting" than before.
#12 didn't need a shim. . . rare in an SX. It was also burgandy metalic in the past. . . weird.
I had to take it back to a stock SX pickguard to close the gap. Black on black would not be my first color choice, but it's what I have on hand.
And. . . #12 is ready for PLEK.
#13 gets inserts installed as well. I'm short 2 SX bridges, so I had to steal one from another bass. I'm waiting for 4 Babicz FCH bridges still and they are just not coming in stock.
Pickup alignment was just a hair off. . . enough for me to think about re-setting the bridge. . . and then, I decided to just leave it be.
#13 ready for PLEK
I am in process of finalizing my spec for the 1st production batch of basses. . . I am inquiring about the possibility of chambering the bodies to force the average body weight into a more favorable range for the quality of Alder that is available to the factory. . . knowing full well it will increase the instrument price. The SX's are already "cheating" on the specs at ~1.63" body blank width while standard is 1.75". I'm hoping it's doable.
The custom P I'm building is black on black I love that look myself. makes the chrome pop
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