darkstar like pup?

[tony moore]

is anyone aware of a pickup available that sounds like a darkstar?

i've owned a few darkstarred basses over the years and really miss that neck (up near the fingerboard) sound. deep and dubby but still detailed and dynamic.

i have a pbass mutt i'm messing with and have tried both a fender telebass pup and a dimarzio model one and both were too hairy and murky.

i have an old hagstrom jazz like bass and it's neck pup nails the tone, but the pole spacing is tiny and doesn't even come close to lining up on the pbass in the extreme neck spot.

any ideas?

i've tried emailing and calling fred to no avail :-( and i want something i can order now

thanks!

tony

 

[bass bart]

I've ordered hanson chi-sonic pickups, but haven't received them yet, so I can't tell for sure. But from what I've read, their sound should be in the same ballpark as darkstars.

 

[tomatmojotone]

What you are looking for is a alnico rod pickup with 8000-9000 turns of 44 gauge wire. Any number of custom builders should be able to make it for you.

 

[MPU]

What you are looking for is a alnico rod pickup with 8000-9000 turns of 44 gauge wire. Any number of custom builders should be able to make it for you.

When I had my Darkstar rewound I remember finding from the old Dudepit that it had 42ga wire and 6,5k resistance. DS has no alnico rods, it has big steel core with adjustable steel poles with BIG ceramic magnet.
Marko

 

[Jazz Ad]

Darkstars have a very peculiar tone.
For that bubbly neck tone, Hofner staple pickups do a good job but they need to be very close to the neck, not in P position.
ChiSonic are worth a try but I'm not too familiar with them.

 

[TheBass]

I guess it's more the near-fingerboard positition that makes this deep and dublike kind of sound rather than the type of pickup. The bartolini neck PU on my Lakland Hollowbody makes this sound as well. The same PU In bridge position sounds totally different.

 

[tony moore]

thanks guys.

note that i did mention my desired locale is in the extreme neck position near the fingerboard.

also note that i've tried a couple pups, both humbuckers, and they do make a difference in addition to their locale. darkstar's are single coil and from experience, i find this contributes to their detail and dynamic.

the hofner staple is a great suggestion! wonder if the pole spacing will be too tight for a pbass tho? i'll look into it.

i've about those tv jones pickups. has anyone played or heard them?

 

[Stranger Danger]

Has anybody confirmed if Fred is alive or dead?

 

[scotch]

Has anybody confirmed if Fred is alive or dead?

I actually got him on the phone a few months back. He said he had a pickup for me, but he never followed through on it. :'(

Nice guy. Just wish I could get a damn pickup from him!

 

[Stranger Danger]

I actually got him on the phone a few months back. He said he had a pickup for me, but he never followed through on it. :'(

Nice guy. Just wish I could get a damn pickup from him!

Well then it seems to me that the only reasonable conclusion is that he doesnt want to do it anymore. If thats the case then he should take down the website.

 

[deepestend]

Old thread, but any new discoveries?

 

[old spice]

http://curtisnovak.com/
This might be what you're looking for.