Do Bartolinis sound this bad on a regular basis?

[Charlzm]

I don't know about these Ibanez basses and the specific pickups and electronics they use, but I have a Warmoth bass with a P/J configuration.

First, I put these Barts in it:
8SU and 9J-L1
To be fair, they are "vintage" voiced and described as "warm".
They didn't do anything much for me.

I swapped in these Nordstrands:
NP4a and NJ4SE
And this bass came to life like a monster.

Now, does Bartolini have a more lively set of P/J pickups? Probably. So it's a case of apples to oranges for me, but I have Nordstrands in three of my basses now and, moving forward, that's all I'm going to use.

 

[dwizum]

I'm having trouble taking this thread seriously, but I do have a serious question. It seems that you saw a video and are asking for comments based on what you heard in the video. Have you played any basses with Bartolinis? How did you like them? Do you have any sort of firsthand experience?

What I'm trying to determine is what sort of answer you were you looking for, with your question of "Do Bartolinis sound this bad on a regular basis?"

Are you just looking for opinions? Because that'll clearly just get you a bunch of unqualified yes or no answers.

Do you think that a brand could survive this long (they were one of the first aftermarket pickup brands, after all) if all bass players agreed that they always sounded bad, on a regular basis? You might as well go to a sports car forum and ask, "Does Porsche make slow cars on a regular basis?" Sure - some people will love Porsches and some people will hate them. But what kind of question is that?

Sorry, I just don't get what you're after here.

 

[Mosstone]

I bought a set of Barts for a late '90s MIM Jazz Bass because they were the only pickup manufacturer who made a replacement set that would fit an MIM Jazz (the bridge and neck pickups were the same length on MIMs Jazz basses until around 2002).

I had to call Bartolini and order them directly from them, because I couldn't find a Bart dealer who had them in stock. Bartolini didn't even have any left themselves, and I had to wait six months while they manufactured another batch of them.

When I finally got them, I was underwhelmed to say the least. They sounded lifeless and dull. I've heard other people describe Bartolinis as sounding very "polite" and I think that's a good way of describing the ones that I had. They didn't sound "bad" per se, but they weren't what I would call an "upgrade". They sounded just as boring as the stock ceramic pickups.

 

[wraub]

I put genuine Barts in my MIJ Jazz bass, and it almost has that 60s Jazz bass "thing"... It's great for recording.

 

[alaskaleftybass]

I thought I liked the OEM Ibanez Barts until I bought an SR1200L with Nordy's. I don't know if that model is using 'real' Nordy's or house brand, but man the difference is night and day. I'm also puzzled because people say the SR500L preamp is substandard. BTW my SR300EL with PowerSpans kicks butt on the SR500L.

I'm torn about what to do with my SR500L. I like it but I want more out of it and I don't know if I want to spend that much buying Nordy's and a new pre. In fact, I don't know an inexpensive pre that would go with the Nordy's. So for now the SR500L gets a lot of downtime in my equipment room.

 

[Epitaph04]

I’ve owned bass guitars with MK1, BH2, 2 varieties of P4s, and theyre simply not for me. Alone they sound very smooth, and *organic* but I had issues with even output on all strings (I play a lot of 6 string) and I simply couldnt get it to work. Yes I adjusted pickup heights and my set ups in general. A lot. Bartolini’s simply dont work for me.

Unfortunate because Ive seen a lot of players get some great sounds out of them. Very smooth, dark, and rich and not overbearing, but oh well. Simply not for me.

 

[SteveC]

Nothing wrong with the bart pups or pre on my Roscoe’s.

 

[PotsdamBass8]

It’s all very subjective. Personally, I really liked Nordstrand pickups I’d had, but I would also roll the tone off a bit to get the high end out. Nords have a nice high mid presence that sits in the mix but also stands out a little bit. But if we’re talking the sound in that video between those two basses with no tweaks to EQ, I’m taking the barts. They have a more tame high end. Some people might want that.

If you’re planing on playing your bass through your TV, the Nords are better for you. I’m joking of course, but the thing is, a tv is only going to reproduce the higher frequencies, and sound pretty bad for the lows. Take any deeper bass sound, it won’t sound good on TV speakers. Something with brightness will come through much better.

 

[rojo412]

I would basically describe BARTOLINI the same way I'd describe EGGPLANT...

No matter how many times I've tried it, I'm not a fan.
Everything that it comes in, in my experience, is much better with a substitution of some sort.
There's no denying, it's popular and people like it, but I'm not one of those people.
You can talk to me until you're blue in the face about it, but in my many experiences with it, I DON'T LIKE IT. Don't try to convince me of it, you're wasting your time.
If you like it, GOOD FOR YOU! It's not my thing.

The unfortunate reality of multiple options out in the world is that there are people who like something that others don't. Hell, that's essentially how TB exists! Or really any message board, honestly. We aren't going to solve this in any way and convert anyone to something they don't like on a message board.

THAT said, I'm glad people like Bartolini. It makes it much easier to sell when I swap it out of a bass.
And when I'm enjoying said bass because it tickles my ear holes in all the right ways with the lack of Barts in it, I'm happy.
When the buyer of said Bart equipment gets their ear holes tickled, they are happy. And that makes me happy, too.

 

[ElMon]

I can't stand Bartolini Electronics or pickups ... the sound hitting me off my amp just distracts me with it's thin awfulness.

And yet I've heard numerous bass players live ... MTD/Ibanez/whatever ... who get a great sound out front with them.

The one exception is this 1997 MTD 535 I got, with an avadore body (no top) and wenge neck. That thing ... maybe due more to the woods than anything Bartolini-related, but who knows ... smokes.

 

[ElMon]

Nothing wrong with the bart pups or pre on my Roscoe’s.

Top of my list for brands-using-Barts that have sounded phenomenal on a club gig where I'm out in the audience, hearing another player get it done with no PA support.

 

[nilorius]

There are different people with different ears.

 

[RolandMHall]

Play a Roscoe with their custom spec Bartolinis and you will chanel your mind. I love the tone of my Century Standard.

 

[Dincrest]

And it's interesting how some instruments play with certain pickups better than others.

-I hated active MECs in a Warwick I used to own, but absolutely adored the passive Duncans I replaced them with. (I no longer have this one).

-When I bought my used LTD back in 2010, it had active EMGs and I was "anti-EMG" back then. With passive Duncans, it's one of the best sounding basses I've ever owned. I still have this one.

-I once had a Zon Mosaic Standard that came stock with passive Duncan soapbars (which I like), but some no-name preamp. My beloved Duncans sounded way too polite on that bass. Although in some of the YouTube videos of my old band, the bass sounded solid. (I no longer have this one).

-I once had a Guitar Factory 6-string with active EMGs. I thought I was "anti-EMG" and "hated the EMG sound," but that bass had the most volcanic tone. Even the pickiest recording engineers loved that bass and said, "Don't bring anything else. That one's all you need." There was no way I was replacing those electronics. (I sold that bass because it was a 12.5 pound behemoth. Were it two pounds lighter, it would have been a forever-bass.)

-I currently have a SB5000 that was modded by the previous owner with "real" Bartolinis and a J-Retro preamp. I love all the tones I get out of that bass; each and every tone is usable. However, the output isn't quite as hot as in other basses I've had (which often tended to have "too hot" output.) The J-Retro + Barts gives more than enough musical headroom for most any musical situation. I have no plans to gut this thing. I used to be in the "Barts are too polite" camp, but I dig my Barts here.
(Plus, though I'm primarily a Duncan fan, Duncan doesn't make a set that will fit my SB5000. DiMarzio does, though. But the Barts are cool. I'll keep 'em.)

And here's an MEC vs Bartolini video. Bartolini wins. Then again, most anything is better than MEC, in my opinion.

 

[jmlee]

The “stock” offshore MK1 Barts used in many basses (including some Ibanez instruments) are uninspiring; however, the US-made “Classic Bass” equivalents are brilliant. They’re punchy, articulate and sound terrific live and recorded off the stage. Why those MK1s are so widely used is puzzling—but don’t judge Bartolini’s pickup quality from that sort of sample.

 

[bass12]

I love the Barts in my MTDs and would never think of switching them (or the preamps) out.

 

[danbones]

the bart/MEC video was actually super helpful. i have a warwick with passive MEC jazz pickups, and i really love the punch and growl i get out of it. i know these aren’t the same pickups, but i really thought the bartolinis were deeper and more dynamic in a way i really liked. i’m entirely unbiased toward bartolinis, but i have a pretty good idea of what i want to hear out of my pickups, and so far, these ibanez barts sound like other pickups i’ve played and been unsatisfied with.

back to these specific ibanez basses, i personally like the sound of the 1505 with the nordstrands better. i wanna know if it makes sense to pony up for a 1505 or if it’s more practical to get a 1005 and swap the pickups out to taste, so i really appreciate all the input in this thread. y’all are great!

 

[JoeWPgh]

I've found Barts to be a great sounding "bedroom" pickup, but lacking in a live mix.

 

[JOME77]

All of the great sounding fretless basses that I’ve played have had Bart/Bart pre and p/u’s. That being said the Bart/Bart combo on a fretted bass can sometimes be a bit hit and miss. That combination on Roscoe’s, MTD’s and Zon’s have always been really good but I believe that’s because those 3 companies have special designed Bart pickups and/or preamps.
I especially love the sound of Bart soap bars (Roscoe Bart Quad-coils are my favorite) paired with a Nordstrand, Pope or East pre. They really open the sound up. The Bart/Bart combo on a bass can get quite dark sounding.

 

[jeffb28451]

Real Barts and John East pre elevated some of my earlier dealings with cheaper Ibbys.