Controls preffered?

[andruca]

I usually try to get along with what comes with the bass. Still, reflecting on this thread, I've noticed all my current basses have electronics slightly modded from stock. Not a fan of drastic pickup/preamp swapping, but there's little inexpensive mods that really add serious juice. From left to right:

1) The Epi EB-0 has a coil tap (single, series, parallel) for the mudbucker, to maximize what it can offer.

2) Both my Stingray5s (old 3-coil ceramic pickup) have a little switch to swap coils when in single+phantom mode (to use the neckside coil soloed -it's the bridgside coil stock- and invert phantom coil so it keeps cancelling noise).

3) My Star Bass (old Korean ProSeries) came with a VVTT layout. I hate that even on LesPauls/SGs. I changed it to a VVT + 5-pos tone cap selector (ranging from 10nF to 57nF).

4) Those DIY FSOs (fretless PJ 5er and Jazz Bass) both have push-pull neck pickup vol pots for series-parallel wiring.

5) That Schecter CV-5 has a blend pot instead of the stock 3 position pickup selector.

 

[Baa]

I go with the Les Paul setup.
2 pickups with separate V/T and a three way switch.
I tried all kinds of variations and passive/active, but always go back to that.

 

[NoiseNinja]

I prefer 1 pickup wired directly to the output jack socket, which is how my current main bass is wired, and then adjusting the tone by using external equalizers, preamps and effects, which admittedly is a rather extensive part of my current setup.

Though if the bass happens to have 2 pickups I prefer there to at least be a pickup blend control onboard.

But admittedly I also happen to have a bizarre fascination with basses that have an over excessive amount on onboard controls.

So for me it's either an absolutely minimal number of onboard controls, none or at most just a single volume or pickup blend control, or the complete opposite extreme, something that approximates an early sci-fi movie spaceship control board, that is several different kind of switches and an array of pots equipped with knobs of all kind of different sizes, forms and colors.

Really though it's really more of a strictly visual aesthetics thing to me than it's an actual question of functionality.

Though I do actually genuinely like the tone that you get from just a single pickup configuration, as well as the added brightness of it not being loaded with any pots or caps, and I am really just interested in 1 single great basic clean tone, and then anything else needed added to that obtained via external devices, and I really don't have any need for being able to procure 10 different mediocre basic clean tones on the fly.

But I could still totally see myself possibly modding a bass with an extensive array of dummy switches and knobs, just because I like the looks of it.

 

[user362432]

Vol/Blend/Bass cut-bust/Treble cut-bust. That's all you need.

 

[GreyEagle]

I've been hooked on two pup basses from the beginning. My Kimberly & Rhythmline basses were double pups & my Ampeg Big Stud was also two pickups. The 3 position toggle in the upper "arm" (above the bout...) was a boon for me as I was into multiple effects/tones/sounds in the mid-70's - 80's. My main axes are a Deluxe Jag & a Marcus Miller (Jazz style) nowadys.