Ok so I'm pretty noobish but at least I've done some searches and tried to understand what I need via some research but... like I said I'm pretty noobish to the electronics so I humbly defer to my fellow TBers for some much needed insight! (p.s.- my noobishness isn't exclusive to electronics btw- just a warning!)
So my main bass is a Schecter Omen 5. I know it's a kinda crappy bass but I like the neck and the body. The electronics have always sounded weak to me- but now I'm noticing crackling sounds when I adjust the volume and tone knobs so I think now is a good time to upgrade the preamp.
Some background- I play mostly rock. I am not a gigging musician(maybe some day!). My bass has generic soapbar humbuckers if that matters and a 4 knob configuration and runs off of 1 9v. My sound- well I'm a finger player that prefers the bridge pickup sound both in terms of my blend knob and as my favored place to play. I like an aggressive punchy tone- I usually have my bass set flat though for adjustments on-the-fly & my amp set with some combination of bass and/or low mid boost depending on location. Everything else flat.
Ok so utilizing the sticky in this forum I have narrowed it down to 4 brands of Preamp that I believe might be what I'm looking for. I'm gonna try to post links but I'm not super computer savvy so bear with me if I mess this up hah!
In no particular order-
Glockenklang 3 Band Preamp - 2 Pickup/4 Knob
Volume(pp)* - Blend - Treble/Bass Stack - Mid
Glockenklang Preamps - Best Bass Gear
EMG BQC System - for EMG pickups only
Controls: Volume, Blend, Treble/Bass Stack, Stacked Mid Control
EMG BQC System
Aguilar OBP-3 Bass Preamp
2 Pickup, 4 knob
Vpp, Bl, Mpp, T/B stack
Invalid Link Removed
Bartolini NTMB - 3 Band Preamps (Treble, Mid and Bass, Boost and Cut)
4.6 A/P - 2 Pickup - 4 knob configuration
Controls:
- Volume (with Active/Passive push-pull)
- Blend
- Mid (push pull freq selector)
- Treble/Bass Stack.
Bartolini Preamp NTMB
Ok so the two most important factors for me are 1)whether the tones from these preamps match my description of my preferred sound and then 2)whether these preamps are compatible with my current pickups and are going to fit in my cavity and if it's a doable job for a complete noob like me with no soldering skills, hah!
I read something about the EMG only working with EMG pickups?? Is that true? I'm not sure I need new pickups but I'm not against swapping them too if it's worth it for this Pre and it gives me the sound I want. Anyways thats one strike against the EMG.
The Bart in the picture looks like it's attached to an orange board or something?? I'm kinda confused by this. It looks huge! Can you trim the board to fit the cavity? How does one install this thing? The other Preamps look small by comparison. Strike 1 against the Bart?
The Glock doesn't have either of the first 2 problems but the tonal description says,"Recommended for use in Rock, Jazz, Solo, Reggae applications. Tight low-end that is focused and warm." I'm a little scared of the part where it says Reggae & Warm. Anyone care to elaborate on the tone?
The Aggie looks great. I'm wondering if it will perform well on only 9v? Also the pictures and description don't mention if it comes with the associated pots or anything other then the preamp though so I just don't know what I need...
Any help at all would be greatly appreciated! Oh and thank you for your time if you read through my book of a post! Someday I'll have a nice bass like the rest of you guys.
So my main bass is a Schecter Omen 5. I know it's a kinda crappy bass but I like the neck and the body. The electronics have always sounded weak to me- but now I'm noticing crackling sounds when I adjust the volume and tone knobs so I think now is a good time to upgrade the preamp.
Some background- I play mostly rock. I am not a gigging musician(maybe some day!). My bass has generic soapbar humbuckers if that matters and a 4 knob configuration and runs off of 1 9v. My sound- well I'm a finger player that prefers the bridge pickup sound both in terms of my blend knob and as my favored place to play. I like an aggressive punchy tone- I usually have my bass set flat though for adjustments on-the-fly & my amp set with some combination of bass and/or low mid boost depending on location. Everything else flat.
Ok so utilizing the sticky in this forum I have narrowed it down to 4 brands of Preamp that I believe might be what I'm looking for. I'm gonna try to post links but I'm not super computer savvy so bear with me if I mess this up hah!
In no particular order-
Glockenklang 3 Band Preamp - 2 Pickup/4 Knob
Volume(pp)* - Blend - Treble/Bass Stack - Mid
Glockenklang Preamps - Best Bass Gear
EMG BQC System - for EMG pickups only
Controls: Volume, Blend, Treble/Bass Stack, Stacked Mid Control
EMG BQC System
Aguilar OBP-3 Bass Preamp
2 Pickup, 4 knob
Vpp, Bl, Mpp, T/B stack
Invalid Link Removed
Bartolini NTMB - 3 Band Preamps (Treble, Mid and Bass, Boost and Cut)
4.6 A/P - 2 Pickup - 4 knob configuration
Controls:
- Volume (with Active/Passive push-pull)
- Blend
- Mid (push pull freq selector)
- Treble/Bass Stack.
Bartolini Preamp NTMB
Ok so the two most important factors for me are 1)whether the tones from these preamps match my description of my preferred sound and then 2)whether these preamps are compatible with my current pickups and are going to fit in my cavity and if it's a doable job for a complete noob like me with no soldering skills, hah!
I read something about the EMG only working with EMG pickups?? Is that true? I'm not sure I need new pickups but I'm not against swapping them too if it's worth it for this Pre and it gives me the sound I want. Anyways thats one strike against the EMG.
The Bart in the picture looks like it's attached to an orange board or something?? I'm kinda confused by this. It looks huge! Can you trim the board to fit the cavity? How does one install this thing? The other Preamps look small by comparison. Strike 1 against the Bart?
The Glock doesn't have either of the first 2 problems but the tonal description says,"Recommended for use in Rock, Jazz, Solo, Reggae applications. Tight low-end that is focused and warm." I'm a little scared of the part where it says Reggae & Warm. Anyone care to elaborate on the tone?
The Aggie looks great. I'm wondering if it will perform well on only 9v? Also the pictures and description don't mention if it comes with the associated pots or anything other then the preamp though so I just don't know what I need...
Any help at all would be greatly appreciated! Oh and thank you for your time if you read through my book of a post! Someday I'll have a nice bass like the rest of you guys.
