drop tops

[emjazz]

Looking forward to hearing some clips of the pickups!

 

[kittywithabanjo]

Great to see the progress of your work I stopped by your place to buy some tuners years ago

 

[Rodent]

Looking forward to hearing some clips of the pickups!

Here's a good reference - just before NAMM, I ordered a Squire Affinity PJ4 to use as a demo platform. Upon receipt it went directly to the studio to record reference tracks of what a stock Affinity PJ sounds like. I then swapped out the stock pickups for a Honey Badger PJ4 set, maintaining a single in the J position for better reference than it would have been to swap out the J for a split-coil (my personal preference) We went back to the studio and re-recorded, even keeping the original strings and set-up.

You can hear for yourself the A/B here:

This cheap bass was a great intro tool at NAMM, as most everybody knows what to expect from an Affinity PJ4. Most of those playing it said the bass sounded like a $2K P/J, but still played like *** and that they were sold on the pickups. That, of course, opened the door to talk about the other designs and let them play other instruments (some mine, several others from other builders who use HB pickups) and hear for themselves.

 

[emjazz]

How would you describe your dual coils? What sets them apart from other duals?

 

[Rodent]

How would you describe your dual coils? What sets them apart from other duals?

our first take on dual coils is still in R&D phase, but several split-coil designs are completed. here's a couple links to videos that Brady Muckelroy cut of him playing his basses with HB splits

J5 style splits:


Soapbar style splits:
(fretted)
(fretless)
(same fretless, Brady playing)

my winding goal continues to focus on building a solid bottom end with increased clarity in the upper mids. in bass building my focus is a great instrument that holds its' own without need for an active preamp. pickup building is the natural next step in more fully achieving my sonic ambitions. this said, all of the pickup designs I've cooked up work equally good when combined with an active preamp, ensuring that players who prefer and active preamp for tonal control aren't left without an invite to the party.

there's a load of great companies that provide vintage clones - I hear something different, and not being chained to a vintage offering allows me to explore new voicing possibilities without any artificially imposed limitations on what can and can't be considered.


I welcome feedback on what you hear in those videos.

 

[emjazz]

They sound really good. I'm not personally a fan of more pronounced high mids. I prefer more pronounced low mids. I completely understand the appeal for most music though. It does make sense. I do very much appreciate that you're not just making another pickup line based on a vintage sound.