Grestch junior jet II pickup upgrade

[yucafrita]

Hello
Can anybody recommend a direct fit upgrade for the pickups in these bass guitars?
I like the bass, but the pickups are really noisy (and after the confirmation that they are humbuckers and not hum cancelling, not even when at full volume) so I would like to replace them with something better.

Any suggestions are welcome
Thanks!

 

[mrperkolator]

TV jones has some that will fit with some sanding of the pickup ring

 

[mrperkolator]

@Kev1955 has more info

 

[Kev1955]

Check out these links, ended up with TV Jones Thunderblades. Think there's a lot of useful info there, good luck

The OFFICIAL "Gretsch Bass Owners Club"
The OFFICIAL "Gretsch Bass Owners Club"
The OFFICIAL "Gretsch Bass Owners Club"
The OFFICIAL "Gretsch Bass Owners Club"
The OFFICIAL "Gretsch Bass Owners Club"
The OFFICIAL "Gretsch Bass Owners Club"
The OFFICIAL "Gretsch Bass Owners Club"
The OFFICIAL "Gretsch Bass Owners Club"
The OFFICIAL "Gretsch Bass Owners Club"
The OFFICIAL "Gretsch Bass Owners Club"
The OFFICIAL "Gretsch Bass Owners Club"
The OFFICIAL "Gretsch Bass Owners Club"
The OFFICIAL "Gretsch Bass Owners Club"

 

[Kev1955]

Hello
Can anybody recommend a direct fit upgrade for the pickups in these bass guitars?
I like the bass, but the pickups are really noisy (and after the confirmation that they are humbuckers and not hum cancelling, not even when at full volume) so I would like to replace them with something better.

Any suggestions are welcome
Thanks!

Some useful links
Grestch junior jet II pickup upgrade

 

[Kev1955]

Hello
Can anybody recommend a direct fit upgrade for the pickups in these bass guitars?
I like the bass, but the pickups are really noisy (and after the confirmation that they are humbuckers and not hum cancelling, not even when at full volume) so I would like to replace them with something better.

Any suggestions are welcome
Thanks!

Here’s mine with Thunderblades

 

[srayb]

Is it OK to replace just the stock BRIDGE pickup with a TV Jones? I like the stock neck pickup (pretty good 'P' sound), but find the bridge pickup a little nasally... I'm wondering if a pickup with greater frequency response (high as well as low) might really help. I'd also have to figure out which TV Jones would work best. I currently have my G2220 tuned ADGC (matches highest 4-strings of a 6-string bass) in order to be able to play chords anywhere on the neck. Sounds pretty good with both pickups, but would like to try to get a bit more top-end, and thought swapping just the bridge pickup would help, but not sure if mixing different pickups might cause any problems.

 

[Bookasan]

I Just replaced the original noisy two bridge pickups that were falsely advertised as humbuckers with Gretsch Black Filtertrons. What a huge difference! This bass sounds great now and no more hum. This bass sounded like @ss when I bought it new a month ago. I am sure having a bridge pickup installed at the neck position didn't help. The hum was coming from the cheap single coils that they originally stated were humbuckers. Gretsch has updated the specs on their site to say single coils, but most all retailers still show them as humbuckers. I didn't realize the Filtertrons I bought had the 3 screw mounting and a different size ring, so it took some slight modifications to fit the new pickups, but nothing too difficult. Next step is to change out the tone pot and cap so it doesn't act as a tone on and off switch anymore. I guess at $299 you get what you pay for, or at least almost what you pay for considering the pickup issues. An additional $150 and a couple hours worth of work makes this a decent bass.

 

[Old Garage-Bander]

Hello
Can anybody recommend a direct fit upgrade for the pickups in these bass guitars?
I like the bass, but the pickups are really noisy (and after the confirmation that they are humbuckers and not hum cancelling, not even when at full volume) so I would like to replace them with something better.

Any suggestions are welcome
Thanks!

I have one of these with stock pickups. Mine is pretty quiet. No objectionable hum or anything I consider problematic. Not all hum is attributable to the pickups.

I saw this you-tube the other day. I discounted it somewhat based on it being click-batey. "Fender lied". We didn't actually see him remove the pickup, nor did we see him dissect it. The chain of evidence is not intact. That's not to say he is wrong, just that he left the door open for doubt.

All I know for sure, is that mine is quiet.

 

[Bookasan]

I have one of these with stock pickups. Mine is pretty quiet. No objectionable hum or anything I consider problematic. Not all hum is attributable to the pickups.

I saw this you-tube the other day. I discounted it somewhat based on it being click-batey. "Fender lied". We didn't actually see him remove the pickup, nor did we see him dissect it. The chain of evidence is not intact. That's not to say he is wrong, just that he left the door open for doubt.

All I know for sure, is that mine is quiet.

I am suspecting some were probably made with the correct pickups and at some point they changed, possibly even without Gretsch/Fender's knowledge. I am pretty sure the pickups are sourced out on these inexpensive instruments.
Everything I read or heard about the pickup issues on this bass came after I noticed the loud hum and the very "midrangey" crappy sound it was putting out and decided to do a little reading of reviews.
What I do know as fact is mine was humming pretty bad and had two bridge pickups installed as can be seen in my photo. Changing the pickups fixed this regardless of what kind of pickups were in it originally. The hum is gone and changing to an actual neck pickup fixed the tone.
As for the "Fender Lied" thing? I am not saying it was intentional, but the specs on their website now say single coil, while many of the distributors still show them as humbuckers. The specs were corrected on their site. This bass now comes with single coils per Gretsch's own website. There are in fact several posts on this forum where they were shown taken out and dissected and where Fender had offered $100 in swag as compensation for this very issue.

 

[Old Garage-Bander]

I am suspecting some were probably made with the correct pickups and at some point they changed, possibly even without Gretsch/Fender's knowledge. I am pretty sure the pickups are sourced out on these inexpensive instruments.
Everything I read or heard about the pickup issues on this bass came after I noticed the loud hum and the very "midrangey" crappy sound it was putting out and decided to do a little reading of reviews.
What I do know as fact is mine was humming pretty bad and had two bridge pickups installed as can be seen in my photo. Changing the pickups fixed this regardless of what kind of pickups were in it originally. The hum is gone and changing to an actual neck pickup fixed the tone.
As for the "Fender Lied" thing? I am not saying it was intentional, but the specs on their website now say single coil, while many of the distributors still show them as humbuckers. The specs were corrected on their site. This bass now comes with single coils per Gretsch's own website. There are in fact several posts on this forum where they were shown taken out and dissected and where Fender had offered $100 in swag as compensation for this very issue.

That's probably the deal in a nutshell. Pickups got changed. What you describe is nothing like my experience. Guess I got lucky.

 

[ray_castro]

I was undeterred from buying a G2220 this year as a travel practice bass after LowEndLobster's video came out. Something I quickly learned after spending a lot of time at my local Guitar Center is that bass guitars of the same make and model can feel and sound significantly different. It's best to try before you buy, vs making a blind (deaf?) online order.

When I made the decision to get one, I tried all four they had at the local Guitar Center. I checked all of them for hum on two of the highest wattage + biggest driver combo amps in the store, with gain and volume maxed out.
Link Removed
They all had hum, but at different levels. One was a bit louder than the three, two were the same, and one was a bit less than those two. All three were worse when tested next to a dozen amps grouped together sharing a power distribution block, and less so with the biggest amp that was out on its own next to a column. All three switch positions had hum with no perceptible difference in the middle position with both pickups on. But overall, even fully cranked, it wasn’t bad. At practice volume levels, hum was barely audible.

There may or may not be a correlation with the fretboard material and tone, but there were two with darker fretboards which had a warmer tone than the other two with the lighter colored fretboards. But overall, each one had a different tone. I picked the one out of four that I liked most, which had the smoothest fret ends, the least amount of hum, and the best tone to my ears.

 

[duke of earl]

Hello
Can anybody recommend a direct fit upgrade for the pickups in these bass guitars?
I like the bass, but the pickups are really noisy (and after the confirmation that they are humbuckers and not hum cancelling, not even when at full volume) so I would like to replace them with something better.

Any suggestions are welcome
Thanks!

I have the Squire cabronita p bass with a fidelitron bass pickup which is advertised as a humbucker, have I been hoodwinked also , fidelitrons are gretsch designed pickups , No Bueno!

 

[Megan McDade]

Hello all! Saw this Gretsch bass hanging on the wall at Sam Ash and had to have it. Needed some up work, but as I have the skill, I bought it on the spot. Love this guitar. Not thrilled with the single coils though, cause I really wanna record with it. Not many affordable options out there, right? WRONG!

Buy the Hipshot Kickass 5, got it with free shipping on the Bay. Direct replacement part. Sounds great and nice sustain improvement too on a shortscale guitar. It has adjustable spacing. REALLY IMPORTANT cause next go and buy the Artec MVBC4 4 pole humbucking bass pup. Nice units are Alnico 5, also available in ceramic, but the 5's are really good. Got a pair for $35, I kid you not, also on the Bay. DROP IN REPLACEMENT, literally, you can use the rings that come with them. No messing with springs n' screws. But here is where the beauty of that bridge comes in. You will need to visually bring the E and G in just a hair, and the middle two strings just a touch.

This is now a KILLER shortscale 4 string Gretsch bass!!!

You're welcome.

 

[BQFS]

Hello all! Saw this Gretsch bass hanging on the wall at Sam Ash and had to have it. Needed some up work, but as I have the skill, I bought it on the spot. Love this guitar. Not thrilled with the single coils though, cause I really wanna record with it. Not many affordable options out there, right? WRONG!

Buy the Hipshot Kickass 5, got it with free shipping on the Bay. Direct replacement part. Sounds great and nice sustain improvement too on a shortscale guitar. It has adjustable spacing. REALLY IMPORTANT cause next go and buy the Artec MVBC4 4 pole humbucking bass pup. Nice units are Alnico 5, also available in ceramic, but the 5's are really good. Got a pair for $35, I kid you not, also on the Bay. DROP IN REPLACEMENT, literally, you can use the rings that come with them. No messing with springs n' screws. But here is where the beauty of that bridge comes in. You will need to visually bring the E and G in just a hair, and the middle two strings just a touch.

This is now a KILLER shortscale 4 string Gretsch bass!!!

You're welcome.

Having trouble locating the exact pickups you reference. I dislike the sound of ceramic magnets, so I would really like Alnico which I cannot find. Any chance you could send me a link to where you got yours? Pretty sure I can find the Kickass bridge on my own. lol. Thanks in advance - Bud

 

[Megan McDade]

Hi Bud! I'm sure these are sold other places, want to make sure everyone knows I in no way benefit monetarily from sharing this link. Sold out on eBay, but Amazon has them, go figure, lol

Artec MVBA4 Alnico 5 Bass Humbucker Pickups Neck Bridge Pickups Set for LP or EPI Style 4 String Electric Bass Guitar, Chrome
https://a.co/d/akeqrLJ

 

[BQFS]

Buy the Hipshot Kickass 5, got it with free shipping on the Bay. Direct replacement part. It has adjustable spacing. REALLY IMPORTANT cause next go and buy the Artec MVBC4 4 pole humbucking bass pup. Nice units are Alnico 5. But here is where the beauty of that bridge comes in. You will need to visually bring the E and G in just a hair, and the middle two strings just a touch..

Thank you very much for the excellent guidance. I just got the deal of a lifetime on a Junior Jet - $225 delivered! While waiting for it to arrive, I ventured onto eBay and bought the (supposedly) last set of Artec pickups you advised. Yep $35 with free delivery. I love Artec stuff. Very underrated. I use their preamps for upgrading inexpensive basses. For upscale upgrades, I use the DarkGlass Tone Capsule.

Once the bass arrives, I will rewire it like a passive JB, although my guess, based on past experience, is that an Artec preamp will work like a champ in this bass. I always prefer active to passive.

Now I need to see what bridge will fit. Not having the bass yet, I will probably measure then order. I've read that the standard Fender-style bridge will work, but may not be adjustable. I am not sure what you mean by Hipshot Kickass 5. You can't mean a 5 string bridge, and I am not able to find anything that matches your description.

Would you mind either providing a part number or a link? Thanks in advance plus thanks again for the guidance.

 

[Megan McDade]

Thanks for the correction! Yes, Hipshot Kickass 4. Here's an eBay link.

Hipshot 4 String KickAss Bass Bridge | eBay

Don't get the Fender Bridge. You need a bridge that allows slight string spacing adjustments, just to pull those outer strings in about a millimeter and a half or so. You won't get them right over the poll pieces, but you will be inside the magnetic fields enough you shouldn't notice dropout. Look at my pic to see how it looks. Schaller makes a bridge with adjustable spacing, but it costs an arm and a leg. I noticed too, that the higher mass of that Hipshot increased sustain noticeably. A good thing for a short scale bass. For the rewire I followed the pickup schematic. This is now a kickass shortscale. Let me know how yours comes out!

Megan

 

[JMerwin]

I Just replaced the original noisy two bridge pickups that were falsely advertised as humbuckers with Gretsch Black Filtertrons. /QUOTE]

Where did you thind the blacktop filtertrons for bass? I've done a good bit of Googling, but the hits seems to always land on the guitar version.

 

[Megan McDade]

I looked for those too. Couldn't find them anywhere, or any reference to them. I also own a Gretsch G2210, great guitar, that I replaced the blacktop broadtrons with a good set of filtertrons. Both 6 string pickups. The Artec were the only ones I could find, besides a few cheaper no name pieces of crap floating around Amazon. Was NOT puting those in my bass! Here's the interesting thing, the rings that the Artecs come mounted in are a PERFECT fit to the cutout on the pickguard... actually look exactly like the oem rings that come on those cheap single coils. Makes me suspect that those Artec, who we know makes oem pickups for other manufacturers, might have been the source for earlier versions of this Gretsch bass. Just a surmise. But the AlNico 5 version sounds great! And for more heavy hitting tastes, it also looks like it comes in ceramics. Good luck.