EMG-TW pickups, like them or not.

[Vakmere]

I just bought a Spector Euro LX5. Thought it had the DC's but came to me with the TW's. Apparently Spector is using these now instead of the DC's on the Euros and some other models. I find the sound of the TW darker in color without the zing of the old DC. Dont care for the slap sound it gets either. The single coil mode on this bass is only a reduction in output not tone and is only useful if you want to play at a lower volume being the tone pump tends to be loud. How do you feel about them? Jury is still out for me on these pick ups.

Of note, Spector has discontinued the DC line on the Euro's.

 

[steve_rolfeca]

The TW's are based on the CS, which uses ceramic magnets and a steel bar to get a fatter, more "vintage" tone.

The CS and TW were offered in response to some users' complaints about the DC series being too snappy in the treble.

If you want that DC grind, you're definitely going to want to swap out the TW's.

 

[Getaway Driver]

John Paul Jones uses the TW's, explains the vintage aim.

 

[Vakmere]

John Paul Jones uses the TW's, explains the vintage aim.

What bass does he use them on?

 

[Getaway Driver]

What bass does he use them on?

whatever bass is in this video...



EMG lists him as an endorsing artist on their site, noting the 35TW. With a little digging, it looks like his 4-string Manson bass. I'm sure it pops up on some of the others, like the 8-string for example, since the TW has blade magnets.

 

[FunkMetalBass]

I like the TWs, and I've heard that there's a simple mod you can do to level out the volume difference between the single-coil and dual-coil modes. I haven't been able to find anything on the mod itself, though.

I didn't know at the time that they were the TWs and thought they were just the CSs, so I didn't get to try them in the single-coil mode. Maybe if you switch them around (to put the single coil on the other side, closer/farther from the bridge) it'll be more defined?

I think one of the issues also might be the Spector TonePump preamp. I'm really not a fan of it and would swap it out for an OBP-3.

 

[bunny10]

I put them in my bass as a way to get a bunch of different sounds. In the single coil mode they sound like a very old school round sounding J set. In the dual coil they have a very ballsy sound, similar to either a very fat P or a dual Music Man. If I put bridge in dual coil and neck in single coil I get a very Lakland sound. If I put bridge in dual coil and turn off neck I get a Music Man sound.

I also use the BQC Control for tone ( it is the bass, treble and mid controls ). With this eq I can pretty much eq the pickups to sound very close to any J, P, or Music Man set that I have.

All in all I love the sounds and the versatility I get with these pickups. Spector is using the same setup in their Garry Tallent signature bass ( The Shorty ).

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[dean owens]

i have a 40dc in the neck and a 40tw in the bridge. at first i wasn't sure either. now i really like it. i do wish the volume differences weren't as drastic though. although i do sometimes use it to my advantage. sometimes i'll go SC to keep from messing with my volume pot.

on a side note, i wish they would make a 40twdc pup. i like having the dc in there, but it'd be nice to either go jazz or two humbuckers or a mixup.

also, i've been over to the emg board. the pres has posted on there that they make (or have made) a 40twR (R for reverse so the single coil is closer to the neck than the bridge) pup for the neck position so you could get a truer jazz tone. might be something worth tracking down.

 

[levis76]

I put them in my bass as a way to get a bunch of different sounds. In the single coil mode they sound like a very old school round sounding J set. In the dual coil they have a very ballsy sound, similar to either a very fat P or a dual Music Man. If I put bridge in dual coil and neck in single coil I get a very Lakland sound. If I put bridge in dual coil and turn off neck I get a Music Man sound.

I also use the BQC Control for tone ( it is the bass, treble and mid controls ). With this eq I can pretty much eq the pickups to sound very close to any J, P, or Music Man set that I have.

All in all I love the sounds and the versatility I get with these pickups. Spector is using the same setup in their Garry Tallent signature bass ( The Shorty ).

[Invalid or Expired Link Removed]

The BQC definitely helps with the versatility. I hear the tonepumps aren't all that great. To the OP, maybe look into getting a BQC preamp?

 

[FunkMetalBass]

i have a 40dc in the neck and a 40tw in the bridge. at first i wasn't sure either. now i really like it. i do wish the volume differences weren't as drastic though. although i do sometimes use it to my advantage. sometimes i'll go SC to keep from messing with my volume pot.

on a side note, i wish they would make a 40twdc pup. i like having the dc in there, but it'd be nice to either go jazz or two humbuckers or a mixup.

also, i've been over to the emg board. the pres has posted on there that they make (or have made) a 40twR (R for reverse so the single coil is closer to the neck than the bridge) pup for the neck position so you could get a truer jazz tone. might be something worth tracking down.

If you have any sort of foam below the pickups, I imagine that you could just rotate it around and still have room in the cavity for the quick-connect cable.

That's how I planned to lay it out, anyway.
I'll shoot Rick an email and see what he thinks.

I'm considering a 45TW(R) in the bridge and a 45P in the neck. Any thoughts on that one?

 

[steve_rolfeca]

That's pretty much the setup I just started running.

I swapped out the 40CS in the neck position of my bass for a 40P5 a couple of days ago, and I'm (tentatively) lovin' it. I say tentatively only because I never trust a new tone until it's proven on stage. I'll have more to report early next week...

I've tried a bunch of combinations, starting with a CS at the neck and a DC at the bridge. That was too scooped and clanky. I tried a 40J at the bridge with a PA-2 booster to even the levels, and still no love. Ditto for the CS/CS combo.

I'm speaking as a fingerstyle player, so YMMV. But when I've had a pair of DC's and CS's together, the built-in "Music Man" EQ on those pickups seems to cause problems for blending, like having a Music Man bass with two preamps in series.

All I got out of that pairing was a big ol' smiley face EQ, with all the mids sucked out. As I dialed in the bridge pickup, the mids would get further and further away, while the top end "zing" got even stronger. Not the growly "Jaco tone" I had been looking for at all...

Whether or not you like the P5 tone solo'd, is a matter of taste. But the mid-heavy P-bass tone it delivers seems to really complement a bridge position humbucker. In this setup, as I bring in more of the CS at the bridge, it just adds character and punch to the foundation tone provided by the P5.

Growl for days- pretty cool so far...

 

[steve_rolfeca]

Yep. Still liking the P5 in the neck w/a CS in the bridge.

A lot.

I got great pick sounds on the weekend, by blending in some CS to recover the low end lost by using a pick. And the top end spike on the CS emphasized the grind and fret noise just right.

I also got a nice, Music Man-ish fingerstyle tone by blending in the right amount of CS with the P5.

I couldn't use either of those settings when I had a pair of CS's, or a pair of DC's- too scooped. But the P5 really delivers the mids to make them work in combination.

 

[FunkMetalBass]

That's good news. I still need to email rick about the reverse TW, but it sounds like that's exactly the tone I'm looking for.

 

[Vakmere]

The BQC system may be the way to go but not worth the expense. The phrase "they dont make em the way they used to" applies here in my case.

 

[Emergancy Exit]

try running your bass in 18volt that will add alot of balls to your sound and is REALLY simple can find all the things you need to do it at radio shack

 

[SimplemanBB450]

Any chance the 35TW can be used as a stand-alone pick-up in a new build? I'm on the search for a nice single p/u to be used in my current build without breaking the bank but getting good quality, versitile sound. Aside from the 35TW, any other suggestions (not intentionally hacking the thread..)?

 

[FunkMetalBass]

Of course it can. Any pickup can suffice as a stand-alone pickup. My jazz bass has a single jazz pickup in the bridge spot.

Your most versatile sound will come from a pickup that has coil switching options, so an EMG TW should do a decent job. In my experience, if you're only going to have one pickup, spend good money on it and save the hassle later. A Invalid Link Removed or a Invalid Link Removed are probably the most versatile pickups. Couple either of them with a great preamp and you'll have a tone beast.

 

[braddigan]

I'm strongly considering upgrading the EMG HZs in my Schecter Riot to these 35TWs...My question is, would I need to change my preamp as well to accomadate having 2 35TWs? The Riot has bass, treble, volume, and balance controls (BTS I believe?) - is it possible to turn two of them into push/pull pots without changing anything? I'm a complete newbie to p/u modding, so if I'm not making any sense please let me know. I'll be having this done professionally, but I figure I should still know what needs to be done to get 2 35TWs in.

thanks for the help.

 

[NicJimBass]

I'm strongly considering upgrading the EMG HZs in my Schecter Riot to these 35TWs...My question is, would I need to change my preamp as well to accomadate having 2 35TWs? The Riot has bass, treble, volume, and balance controls (BTS I believe?) - is it possible to turn two of them into push/pull pots without changing anything? I'm a complete newbie to p/u modding, so if I'm not making any sense please let me know. I'll be having this done professionally, but I figure I should still know what needs to be done to get 2 35TWs in.

thanks for the help.

There are 2 ways to go about what you are looking for-

1. You could swap the volume and blend pots for 2 push/pull volume pots. If there is a blend p/p pot, that would be an option as well.

2. You could leave the preamp as-is, and add 2 DPDT switches for coil tapping.

If a pro is doing it, they'll probably know what can and can't be done, but those are 2 options I know will work. I went the route of 2 switches for a project bass I have- each one controls series/parallel, and they come in handy sometimes. just be aware that there is a volume difference between the 2 settings you will have.

 

[PaulMacCnj]

My 2006 Spector Euro5LX came with the EMG DC pups and TonePump preamp. After about 2 years, I changed the preamp to the EMG BQC System. That made a great difference in the control over the tone. Because of the loud treble of the DC pups, I thought about swapping them out, too. Ahh, but this week I tried GHS Boomers strings for the first time and I've finally tamed that shrill treble! Now, I'm getting a nice heavy bass and midrange sound with lots of growl. The DCs can stay!