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Fender V-Mod P bass pickups

#41
I've got a Precision Pro V and without a doubt the B and E strings do not have the punch the other strings do.

I didn't think much of it for a while, but I recently picked up my old Peavey Fury that has a SBP-1 and the difference is night and day.

On the Pro V, moving the pickup closer (than I normally would) helps alleviate the issue, but I'd rather solve the problem by having pickups with matching magnets across the board.

There don't seem to be many options though. So far I've found the Nordstrand NP5F and Seymour Duncan SPB-3 (which I know is a pretty hotly contested pickup...)
 
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#42
jimmerk said:
I'm curious if most players would agree that a pickup change would fix this on the professional precision? I'm trying to decide if I should move on to a Lakland P and send this back. There aren't any other factors about the bass that would indicate a weakness.
Click to expand...

I felt the same way about two American Pro Jazz basses I had. One was bought brand new and returned, the other was a screaming deal used, and ended up selling it for more than I paid for it. Changed the strings on both basses to see if there was any change, and strung through the bridge both times, not the body.

I thought maybe on the first bass it was just the nature of the beast, as some basses have punch, others are a little more bland and tame, especially with the E string, but experienced the same thing with the second bass. Neither bass wow'd me enough to keep them and change the pickups to see if it was the pickups or the bass. Bought an older MIM Classic 70's Jazz and that thing has the stock pickups and the low E punches hard. That's the one I kept!
 
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#43
This thread actually helped me out a bunch... I got an American Pro Jazz in a trade a couple weeks ago, and immediately fell in love with the way it played and - for the most part - sounded. I was, however, having some issues with output balance and a slightly thinner, weaker sound on the A and E. After reading through this, I adjusted the strings in their saddles to centre them between the poles, and holy S**T. WORLD of difference.

I'm playing plugged straight into Ableton (no preamp, just right through my interface) as I type - the response is perfectly balanced (I'm watching the input meter) and the bass just sings. This could be confirmation bias, but I'm not sure I've heard a better sounding Jazz bass. V-Mods are legit - but apparently a bit setup sensitive.
 
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#44
I found that strings were very important on my pro P5.
I am using an exposed core B and string thru bridge; the other strings are thru body.
They are Warwick stainless steel 130-40.
Lighter than I’d normally use, but they woke the bass up.
The recordings I’ve heard from gigs were absolutely perfect P heaven IMO
 
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#45
jimmerk said:
I'm curious if most players would agree that a pickup change would fix this on the professional precision? I'm trying to decide if I should move on to a Lakland P and send this back. There aren't any other factors about the bass that would indicate a weakness.
Click to expand...
doubt pup change would help (unless you have a weak e pole)
changing that dead/(possibly defective) E string may help! p
 
#48
Just an update. I've since bought a Yamaha BB434 (Passive PJ) -- the 2017 redesign. The neck pickup in this $400 Yamaha is fantastic. Vintage feeling thump and throaty growl. I was looking for something a bit more aggressive and gritty, which the Broad Bass delivers. This BB surprised me! The Fender American Pro Precision always felt like it was sucking the life out of my E-string.
 
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#49
jimmerk said:
Just an update. I've since bought a Yamaha BB434 (Passive PJ) -- the 2017 redesign. The neck pickup in this $400 Yamaha is fantastic. Vintage feeling thump and throaty growl. I was looking for something a bit more aggressive and gritty, which the Broad Bass delivers. This BB surprised me! The Fender American Pro Precision always felt like it was sucking the life out of my E-string.
Click to expand...
The BB are very good at this in my opinion :thumbsup:
 
#50
I know this is a bit of a old post but I can report my experience in trying to replace this pickup with a Aguilar vintage 60s.
The 60s sounds great but it is too soft for me. I think the V-mod is more modern and defined especially on the high register. It also brings up more mid range and harsh so it only depends what you are looking for.

The E-string issue is mostly due to set up, I had a similar thing but I looked for the sweet spot vertically and horizontally. Took me 1 minute and it sounds killer

at the end I am putting the v-mod back and if anyone wants my aguilars they are for sale
 
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#52
loSbabbaro said:
I know this is a bit of a old post but I can report my experience in trying to replace this pickup with a Aguilar vintage 60s.
The 60s sounds great but it is too soft for me. I think the V-mod is more modern and defined especially on the high register. It also brings up more mid range and harsh so it only depends what you are looking for.

The E-string issue is mostly due to set up, I had a similar thing but I looked for the sweet spot vertically and horizontally. Took me 1 minute and it sounds killer

at the end I am putting the v-mod back and if anyone wants my aguilars they are for sale
Click to expand...

... pieno di Sbabbari qui oh ... ;):laugh:
 
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#53
I have Fender AM professional precision 5 with the v-mod, too and thought about changing the pickups. The V-Mod sounds good, but the E and B strings are a bit weaker than the rest. The pickup is not that loud, too and a bit on the weaker side. I haven't found a good replacement pickup for it.

I made a comparision video between my Mex 50s p-bass with the Seymour Duncan SPB-1 in it. You can hear that the SPB-1 is louder.

 
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#55
Hey guys, glad to see some posts in this thread again! So I recently had the pleasure of picking up an American Professional with a rosewood fretboard at my local music store, and I was pleasantly surprised again by The V mod pickups. My opinion on them has shifted back and forth every time I have tried them however this time I really thought the tone had a great vintage vibe to it. To me they have a very soft top , dare I say almost too soft , but that's okay as one can always dial up more treble from the amp, and to me I actually prefer less treble from the pickups and more focus on the mid-range and low-end. You know I actually think the V mod are nice sounding precision bass pickup with a very classic sound. Now if I can just find 2,000 Canadian dollars I can go pick up that American professional and take it home...:D
 
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#56
I see posts about the Fender American professional series Precision and I am scratching my head because mine absolutely kicks ass. I do my own setups. Low action, strung through body and even with flatwounds this bass sounds like a vintage Fender on steroids. Not sure why some feel the E string seems weak compared to the others. I suppose the string and pickup hights need tweaking on some to find that sweet spot because my bass is awesome. The passive pickup P has as much balls as my active pickups Lakland. Guess I'm lucky.
 
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#57
loSbabbaro said:
I know this is a bit of a old post but I can report my experience in trying to replace this pickup with a Aguilar vintage 60s.
The 60s sounds great but it is too soft for me. I think the V-mod is more modern and defined especially on the high register. It also brings up more mid range and harsh so it only depends what you are looking for.

The E-string issue is mostly due to set up, I had a similar thing but I looked for the sweet spot vertically and horizontally. Took me 1 minute and it sounds killer

at the end I am putting the v-mod back and if anyone wants my aguilars they are for sale
Click to expand...
is this a 5 string aggie p pupset for sale?
 

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