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Chi-Sonic Pickups

#21
alpho said:
I posted a few days ago that I had rattling pickups on my new Lakland Hollowbody 30. I called Lakland and they sent me some neoprene(?) tubes to replace the springs. I installed the tubes and now all is quiet.

Now that I've removed and reinstalled the pickups, I set the heights to what I measured before I removed them.
The Lakland websites has specs on their website for Chi-Sonics, which are lower than I set them, and I'm satisfied with the sound.

I'm curious: have any of you found Chi-Sonic heights that particularly please you?
Click to expand...

Can you share your heights in mm, and what method you go about measuring them?
 
#22
I found pickup height specifications in a PDF file, "Factory Pickup-Height Sheet," listed Invalid Link Removed. I chose these specs, copied from the sheet, and assumed that they applied to the short-scale bass:
HOLLOWBODY WITH CHI-SONIC
Bridge E= 11/64" G= 8/64"
Neck E= 12/64" G= 9/64"

In mm:
Bridge E= 4.5mm G=3.0mm
Neck E= 5.0mm G=4.0mm

I followed these instructions on the Pickup-Height Sheet:
"Pickup heights are measured from the bottom of the open string to the top of the pickup. In the set up process, this is done after the truss rod has been adjusted and the string heights have been set. It is best to use a ruler that reads in 1/64's. All measurements are given in 1/64's for ease in reading."
 
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#24
alpho said:
I found pickup height specifications in a PDF file, "Factory Pickup-Height Sheet," listed Invalid Link Removed. I chose these specs, copied from the sheet, and assumed that they applied to the short-scale bass:
HOLLOWBODY WITH CHI-SONIC
Bridge E= 11/64" G= 8/64"
Neck E= 12/64" G= 9/64"

In mm:
Bridge E= 4.5mm G=3.0mm
Neck E= 5.0mm G=4.0mm

I followed these instructions on the Pickup-Height Sheet:
"Pickup heights are measured from the bottom of the open string to the top of the pickup. In the set up process, this is done after the truss rod has been adjusted and the string heights have been set. It is best to use a ruler that reads in 1/64's. All measurements are given in 1/64's for ease in reading."
Click to expand...
Thanks!
 
#27
Hey everybody; I'm just jumping into this older thread. I recently picked up a Lakland Hollowbody 34". I find the Chi-Sonic pickups to be quite weak and thin sounding. Also, quite a bit of single coil hum when not touching the strings or bridge. Does that sound normal for this bass, or is something wrong here?
 
#28
Kenan said:
Hey everybody; I'm just jumping into this older thread. I recently picked up a Lakland Hollowbody 34". I find the Chi-Sonic pickups to be quite weak and thin sounding. Also, quite a bit of single coil hum when not touching the strings or bridge. Does that sound normal for this bass, or is something wrong here?
Click to expand...

My set sound very loud, but a lot of buzz too. Apparently that's normal, but to me that's unacceptable. I cannot perform with such a noisy bass.
 
#30
MrUsefulAlien said:
To follow up, I had a broken coil in one pickup, Lakland was kind enough to send a used replacement set.
They too hum a lot, although they work properly, so when both pickups are at full there's no hum. But if I roll back one of the volumes it has that SC hum all over again.
Click to expand...

I’d guess that that probably has to do with the broader, wider frequency response of these pickups, together with the fact that they have a quite loud output. You win some and you loose some :) It’s all a compromise in life.
 
#31
mickebas said:
I’d guess that that probably has to do with the broader, wider frequency response of these pickups, together with the fact that they have a quite loud output. You win some and you loose some :) It’s all a compromise in life.
Click to expand...
That's a good point, except the Grestch 5440, hagstrom Viking and Epiphone Allen Woody were dead quiet and giggable.
The lakland is not playable live with the level of hum it produces, which is a shame since it is such a well built bass.
 
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#32
MrUsefulAlien said:
That's a good point, except the Grestch 5440, hagstrom Viking and Epiphone Allen Woody were dead quiet and giggable.
The lakland is not playable live with the level of hum it produces, which is a shame since it is such a well built bass.
Click to expand...

Yes, that's a shame for sure. Are the other basses you mentioned single coil pickup basses or humbuckers?
And do you have hum even when both pickups are on full? If so, there seems to be another issue that may be fixed by a guitar tech. I'm so used to playing jazzbasses with the singlecoil hum when dialing one pickup more than the other, but I've somehow learnt to live with it most of the times because the sound is better. But of course there's a limit when the hum destroys the actual sound.
 
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#33
mickebas said:
Yes, that's a shame for sure. Are the other basses you mentioned single coil pickup basses or humbuckers?
And do you have hum even when both pickups are on full? If so, there seems to be another issue that may be fixed by a guitar tech. I'm so used to playing jazzbasses with the singlecoil hum when dialing one pickup more than the other, but I've somehow learnt to live with it most of the times because the sound is better. But of course there's a limit when the hum destroys the actual sound.
Click to expand...

Other ones are humbuckers I believe, the viking had a coil tap but no hum. The lakland hums when either pickup is favored. I have 2x jazz basses and the hum is not comparable.
I've shielded the lakland, used shielded wire and it's still unplayably noisy. A real pity since it sounds great and feels better than all those other basses, especially since it doesn't neck dive!
 
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#34
MrUsefulAlien said:
Other ones are humbuckers I believe, the viking had a coil tap but no hum. The lakland hums when either pickup is favored. I have 2x jazz basses and the hum is not comparable.
I've shielded the lakland, used shielded wire and it's still unplayably noisy. A real pity since it sounds great and feels better than all those other basses, especially since it doesn't neck dive!
Click to expand...

Ah, that’s a shame. I hope you can get it functioning by help from some good guitartech. Or play it with both pickups on full... but it’s still a drag and an issue for Lakland to help you solve I feel.
 
#35
mickebas said:
Ah, that’s a shame. I hope you can get it functioning by help from some good guitartech. Or play it with both pickups on full... but it’s still a drag and an issue for Lakland to help you solve I feel.
Click to expand...
Thanks, they did help by sending 2 used pickups all the way here to Europe for free which still exhibited the same beahvior, but they said "yeah it's just life with single coils, all the best". They tried I guess!
 
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#37
alpho said:
I found pickup height specifications in a PDF file, "Factory Pickup-Height Sheet," listed Tech Docs - Lakland Bass Guitars. I chose these specs, copied from the sheet, and assumed that they applied to the short-scale bass:
HOLLOWBODY WITH CHI-SONIC
Bridge E= 11/64" G= 8/64"
Neck E= 12/64" G= 9/64"

In mm:
Bridge E= 4.5mm G=3.0mm
Neck E= 5.0mm G=4.0mm

I followed these instructions on the Pickup-Height Sheet:
"Pickup heights are measured from the bottom of the open string to the top of the pickup. In the set up process, this is done after the truss rod has been adjusted and the string heights have been set. It is best to use a ruler that reads in 1/64's. All measurements are given in 1/64's for ease in reading."
Click to expand...
Do you think 'top of the pickup' means the chrome cover or the black plastic?
 

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