That fear is COMPLETELY rational; a blade spinning at 15,000 rpm…that cuts through hardwood like butter? You can be down to the bone before you even realize you slipped.
Enjoy the benefits of a premium membership!
Upgrade Account
-
TalkBass has been independent since 1998. Add your voice.
Create a free account to reply to discussions, view embedded media, and browse with fewer display ads.
Join free Log in
Want zero display ads or expanded classifieds tools? Compare plans.
Changing pickups - actual improvement or hooey?
- Thread starter Gothic
- Start date
I am not.
My position is that you can largely shape your tone with other methods to get to at least 90-95% of where you want to go. Strings, pots, capacitors or other (passive) wiring wizardry within the bass as well as preamps, amps, pedals, any signal processing can get you close enough to rethink a pickup change. And "close enough" really can be close enough or even pretty damn spot on if we consider the bass in a band mix. Some people may choose to rest there and not pursue this any further. Others, not so much. I'm with both groups, honestly.
Anyway, if the above still don't get you there, changing a pickup may. But also, it may not and it may actually get you farther away from what you're aiming for. So far, I've never changed a pickup on a bass. I did on many, many guitars (would've been fine if I didn't) but never on a bass. I could always get that "close enough" on pretty much everything.
Only bass I considered (still do think about putting a SPB-1 in there at times) changing the pickup was on the cheapest bass I got and for quite some time, the only one. It's a Harley Benton PB-20. A precision FSO. Having bought that for the ungodly sum of 93 euros, I suspect the pickup's one of those sold on ebay for 5-10 euros. Still, with the help of my Behringer v-amp pro, I don't think it sounds half bad...
Of course all that's about purely the sound. Response and "feel" are things that can't really be quantified or clinically explained and that's another big reason I'd consider changing a pickup.
I went crazy for a few years doing hardware experiments on my various basses. I found that unless you have REALLY BAD pickups, changing them out for an equivalent, but different make or model gives the very LEAST bang for the buck. Sure there are some tiny differences, but only in your bedroom. Playing out, no one can hear anything different. I was really really disappointed at the money I spent with so little return. Changing strings gives a much better result. And bridges and pots and capacitors, what a joke.
I've tried a lot of pickups over the years and don't just replace them as a rule every time I get a new bass (which isn't often enough lol). I am very fond of the Fender Original Pbass pickups though after several years of reading about the praises of the GZR's I finally got a set and could not be happier. They turned my awesome Pbass into an awesomer pbass.
I've never been a fan of modifying my basses...I usually "try before I buy" and if a bass suits my needs...I buy it. The only thing I replace immediately are the strings. I really like S.I.T. Medium Powerwound strings and have put them on every bass I've owned in the past 8 years.
I'm not either, and have actually sold a couple basses rather than mod them. But hey, when you get a good deal on a more expensive bass used and you love how it feels but not how it sounds, well hey, I'll yank that crap pickup right out of there immediately.
Even if it isn't expensive, I wouldn't hesitate to mod it. My aforementioned PB-20 is one of the best playing basses I've ever played after I leveled and crowned the frets. And sprout occured three years after I bought it and during a record high temps summer over here. Nothing five minute with a file can't fix. Played lots of gigs with it and everything's still fine on it.
Granted, it was pure crap out of the box and had a tonne of problems but yeah, kinda sorta love the damn thing!
And now this thread has me re-thinking the SPB or the GZR. Damn.
Once the drummer and guitarist start making a racket the difference in PBass pickups is going to be negligible. Lol
I think the takeaway from this thread is that changing pickups can be lateral moves or life-altering "I have seen the light" moments. Had my share of both. I'd say don't take mods lightly, and do your research.Even if it isn't expensive, I wouldn't hesitate to mod it. My aforementioned PB-20 is one of the best playing basses I've ever played after I leveled and crowned the frets. And sprout occured three years after I bought it and during a record high temps summer over here. Nothing five minute with a file can't fix. Played lots of gigs with it and everything's still fine on it.
Granted, it was pure crap out of the box and had a tonne of problems but yeah, kinda sorta love the damn thing!
And now this thread has me re-thinking the SPB or the GZR. Damn.
I swapped out the stock MM pickup in my fretless SR4 for an Aguilar DCB and the bass sounds much different. Is it better than the stock? Debatable. The bass had the dreaded weak G string and now the strings are balanced. It definitely improved my opinion of the bass and made me not sell it.
But while they probably can't, or don't care, most of what we do as players is for us. And until you, as a player, are happy with your rig, instrument, tone your enjoyment is affected.
If it matters to you, it matters. Different strokes for different folks, and diversity really is a good thing!
On the topic of the OP, every time I have changed a pup, it was to learn. When I get a bass I take time to learn what I can do with it as is. I'm not trying to make it sound like anything else, but I do want to see if I can make tones I like with it. Single coil, humbucker, active, parallel, series, ceramic, alnico they ALL can make great sounds. It's all good!
But I also am learning that to get the most if what a bass can do, I may have to play it a certain way: harder/softer touch, closer to the neck/bridge it all matters. There one thing I haven't been able to bring myself to do, however, is play bass with a pick, even though I already know that a fair amount of music I like was created that way. But I grew up watching bassists pluck with fingers and somewhere my mind has decided that's the way it's supposed to be done, oh well!
IME the thing people in the crowd notice more than anything else by far is fanned frets. (It's actually kind of a nuisance.)
They're just unsure whether that's really how it's supposed to look or they're too high.
So we should save the money we would spend on pickups, and instead spend it on other things? Great! And then we can than threads saying, no need to buy this preamp or pedal, just change the pickup instead. Greater!
I really like this video. If you think changing pickups is a waste of time, you'll think this is proof; and if you think that there are worthwhile differences between the pickups, you'll also think this is proof. Everyone wins
I find substantial differences between pickups. The '62 Precision Reissue compared to the '63, for instance.
But I also find huge differences in adjusting pickup height, changing strings, etc. And candidly, I wonder how many bass players are confused about the ideal tone without knowing it. Sure, their tone goal might be different from mine and neither is wrong, but I wonder if everyone has experienced the amazing "dead" tone. Flats which were new forty years ago and have a million hours on them, perhaps even with a foam mute. In my view, the really yummy, piano-like tone is difficult to manage in a live mix. In many ways, the most effective bass tone, which basically turns the bass into a stringed drum, is really effective. Percussive. A sonic bully.
But I also find huge differences in adjusting pickup height, changing strings, etc. And candidly, I wonder how many bass players are confused about the ideal tone without knowing it. Sure, their tone goal might be different from mine and neither is wrong, but I wonder if everyone has experienced the amazing "dead" tone. Flats which were new forty years ago and have a million hours on them, perhaps even with a foam mute. In my view, the really yummy, piano-like tone is difficult to manage in a live mix. In many ways, the most effective bass tone, which basically turns the bass into a stringed drum, is really effective. Percussive. A sonic bully.
In most situations,I only change out pickups because a string is not the same volume as the others.
Usually because the string was in a split coil gap or a pole piece was defective.
An example was back when I had a seven string bass.
The maker put a split coil duo coil humbucker from a six string bass into a seven string bass that I had bought.
(BEADGCF tuning.The D string was in the split in the coil.Resulting in a low volume D string)
I replaced those with duo coil Delanos.
Or on another occasion the C string on a six string bass was quieter than the others.
Even with a set of new strings.
Switched out cheap Belcats for Aguilar pickups.
In both instances the switch was not to get a tone or sound change.
That is done at the amp EQ.
In order to upgrade the sound you must know what aspect of sound is lacking and that the new pickups will correct that lack.
Usually because the string was in a split coil gap or a pole piece was defective.
An example was back when I had a seven string bass.
The maker put a split coil duo coil humbucker from a six string bass into a seven string bass that I had bought.
(BEADGCF tuning.The D string was in the split in the coil.Resulting in a low volume D string)
I replaced those with duo coil Delanos.Or on another occasion the C string on a six string bass was quieter than the others.
Even with a set of new strings.
Switched out cheap Belcats for Aguilar pickups.
In both instances the switch was not to get a tone or sound change.
That is done at the amp EQ.
In order to upgrade the sound you must know what aspect of sound is lacking and that the new pickups will correct that lack.
Last edited:
i'm almost sure i get your point, and i don't have a problem 'breaking most things about an EB choice down to that', but:
i happen to put feel before anything else: if it feels just right to me = i'll try anything to make it sound great/good/acceptable...i'm after that "feels too good to put it down" thang!per the OP: i'm with you on the idea that there are other things (maybe many things!) that a player can do to change up the "sound" of an ax besides changing pickups (i.e., e.g., changing pickups first --- immediately). that said: changing pickups is the first, obvious move for players with experience who already know what they want! (and for those who know what they don't want.)
the thread POV seems to be a reaction to the 'automatic choices' of some (vs. the informed decisions by others --- two entirely different approaches) and the responses seem to bear that out.IME: making an EB sound good is a piece of cake compared to making/finding one that feels good.
Uhm,,,,,,~~~”does the pickup make a diff?”
Uhm, YES!
Of my bass’s, two are Fenders and one a Squier and they have all improved from pickup swaps from stock to EMG variants.
