Expensive vs cheap pickups?

[dbsfgyd1]

Pickups don’t all sound the same. But the differences are usually subtle. I don’t personally know many people who could tell the difference between a P and a J, let alone 2 structurally similar pickups. The lesson is if it sounds good to you it is good.

My thought on the on the OP was about pickups being different. And while my experience is yes, there can be Ab noticeable difference between them, the other electric components, IE capacitors, tone pots, and especially onboard preamps have a much more profound impact on the tone of a bass.

 

[scuzzy]

i'll go against the collective on this. the easiest way to get a big change from a bass is to change the pickups. it's not always a better or worse, but they certainly don't all sound the same just because they are made of the same stuff.

i went from a peavey fury stock pickup to an EMG GZR. The difference was minimal.

I went from Kent Armstrong lipstick pickups to Lace Sensor Man-o-war pickups, and the difference was huge.

 

[Laurent]

I think it's in the eye of the beholder. To me pickups are after strings what makes the most difference on the tone of an instruments. It's a way to improve and customize.
That being said would anybody hear the difference between pickups in a mix? Probably not. It matters to me but might not matter to everybody. You will have to feel or find your way through these questions. It's a matter of personal preference and taste.

 

[DJ Bebop]

I changed pick-ups in two SX P basses. One I put a Fender 62 CS P that wears flats, the other was a Dimarzio Model P that wears Rotosound Swing Bass.

It did make a difference in both but they still sounded like P basses like they did before. It was enough of a difference that I left them alone after that.

 

[marchone]

I don’t personally know many people who could tell the difference between a P and a J, let alone 2 structurally similar pickups.

My Precision and Jazz beg to differ with you.

 

[Killing Floor]

My Precision and Jazz beg to differ with you.

I do ok. Just stating I know a lot of musicians and only a few who would know blind.

 

[JimmyM]

Hi All,

I came across the above video on youtube...

What are your thoughts and experience in general with regards to the above video demonstrating cheaper vs expensive electronics?

Does changing stock pickups to aftermarket ones really make a huge difference if you use a lot of preamp and amp eq/drive?

Cheers,

Sometimes yes, sometimes no. I had to change the pickup in 2009 AmStd P because it sucked, but other than the pole pieces being too high, the two SX Ps I used to own had great pickups.

 

[marchone]

I do ok. Just stating I know a lot of musicians and only a few who would know blind.

All things being equal, on a recording one is softer while the other has more zing.

I agree that the difference between various models are small, at least till you get to Custom Shop pickups. Then there are legions of fans of Duncans, Fralins, Lollars, et al.

 

[JimmyM]

I do ok. Just stating I know a lot of musicians and only a few who would know blind.

That’s not important to me in any way. My opinion is the only one that counts.

 

[Zak TMD]

Maybe I'm weird, but my preference for many instruments is to change out the pups and pots as I've found most of the major manufacturers to use at best OK electronics. I don't run active basses though, so the majority of the signal originates in the pups. I swapped them in my current Aerodyne and it made a world of difference vs the cheapies they put in there in terms of signal quality and tone. Then there's the issue of matching outputs from disparate instruments, but that's a whole different thing. A lot of people I know have a Pup preference, and change them every time an instrument gets into their hands without their pref.

 

[BobKos]

All I know for sure is that the staggered polepieces on my expensive Nordsrands definitely channel positive ionic tone molecules from the north pole. That of course makes me sound like a great player even though I'm not. So for me yes - they're worth the price of admission. Their website offers scientific explanations for how all their different pickups work...

 

[Nev375]

Let me see. Fiber board material. AlNiCo 5 magnets. 42g copper wire. Wax. (Some other missing secret?)

different kinds and power of magnets, The number of windings, the method of winding and the final shape of the windings all make big differences.

Whether the end result is better is entirely subjective.

My favorite pickup I got used off eBay for $5 Lace Transensor.

My biggest dud (to my ears) cost me $80.: New Duncan Quarter Pounder.

 

[Doug4321]

Haven’t experimented much myself. But listening to YouTube switch-out comparisons, seems like they generally sound similar but maybe with an eq difference. Especially, hot pickups are louder and usually have a lot of bass output.

 

[Killing Floor]

That’s not important to me in any way. My opinion is the only one that counts.

I concur with @JimmyM now this can be considered settled.

 

[-Asdfgh-]

That’s not important to me in any way. My opinion is the only one that counts.

If you are recording or playing live, then that of the audience also counts for a great deal. Most would not know if you were playing a P or a J neck pickup in a mix for those P and J pickups which are close to the original specifications for each. Heck, even musicians debated whether various Rush tracks were a J or Rickenbacker and the guitar used on the Stairway To Heaven solo. If it sounds good and people like it then P versus J doesn't really matter. P versus J bridge people probably will notice, though.

 

[-Asdfgh-]

My thought on the on the OP was about pickups being different. And while my experience is yes, there can be Ab noticeable difference between them, the other electric components, IE capacitors, tone pots, and especially onboard preamps have a much more profound impact on the tone of a bass.

Capacitors won't make much difference, except value and tolerances. Pots ditto on value, although the audio taper on cheap pots may be less than ideal, and cheap ones can be scratchy. Dime the tone and neither capacitor or pots matter. Preamps... oh yes... there's a big source of difference, especially hisssss.

 

[bigtone23]

i'll go against the collective on this. the easiest way to get a big change from a bass is to change the pickups. it's not always a better or worse, but they certainly don't all sound the same just because they are made of the same stuff.

i went from a peavey fury stock pickup to an EMG GZR. The difference was minimal.

I went from Kent Armstrong lipstick pickups to Lace Sensor Man-o-war pickups, and the difference was huge.

Going from one style of pickup to another is a major change in tone. Hence the KA Lipstick to the Lace MOW.

Going from one inexpensive 12K A5 42AWG P bass pickup to a more expensive one is not night and day, like you experienced with the Fury and Geezer. This is point the OP has inquired about.

 

[cheapbasslovin]

i'll go against the collective on this. the easiest way to get a big change from a bass is to change the pickups. it's not always a better or worse, but they certainly don't all sound the same just because they are made of the same stuff.

i went from a peavey fury stock pickup to an EMG GZR. The difference was minimal.

I went from Kent Armstrong lipstick pickups to Lace Sensor Man-o-war pickups, and the difference was huge.

I've had similar experiences. Sometimes I'm not sure I did anything, but other times it was like I had a whole new instrument. The biggest change for me was also going to a Lace, but mine was an Alumitone.

 

[dbsfgyd1]

Capacitors won't make much difference, except value and tolerances. Pots ditto on value, although the audio taper on cheap pots may be less than ideal, and cheap ones can be scratchy. Dime the tone and neither capacitor or pots matter. Preamps... oh yes... there's a big source of difference, especially hisssss.

Capacitors won't make much difference, except value and tolerances. Pots ditto on value, although the audio taper on cheap pots may be less than ideal, and cheap ones can be scratchy. Dime the tone and neither capacitor or pots matter. Preamps... oh yes... there's a big source of difference, especially hisssss.

Thanks for the correction.

 

[REV]

A pickup is a bobbin some wire and a magnet (unless it's an EMG type pickup and then there's a preamp in there). That said, I've done a lot of playing around with different pickups, just for my own education. Just because a pickup costs a lot doesn't mean it will sound good and vice versa. I think a instrument with certain characteristics will require a pickup with certain characteristics to make a good sounding instrument. That's the goal right? to have a good sounding instrument. A bass that sounds dull when played acoustically might benefit from a brighter sounding pickup etc.