• TalkBass has been independent since 1998. Add your voice.
    Create a free account to reply to discussions, view embedded media, and browse with fewer display ads.
    Join free Log in
    Want zero display ads or expanded classifieds tools? Compare plans.

Hey, Pbass freaks!

#65
Guys Its clear that both have maple necks... the rosewood fretboard is softer and darker (sounding) because it is not coated with polyurethane. Just like different mwah from a coated fretless vs a non coated fretless.

IMO of course.

EDIT: BTW I dont believe the caps and pots play a role (IMO agin).
 
#68
H2okie said:
You beat me to it ... when I read your 1st post I was thinking about pick-up height ... I try to get the same/similar tone out of multiple T-40's ... I've ended up with something I like and yes I understand it's not a Pbass ... but I found the most significant change besides strings/set-up/eq was the pick up height ... holy crap did that change the sound! ... I have multiple T-40's and have experimented with them trying to get the same tone from bass to bass with the same tone/volume/pickup settings (so I could use them as back-ups interchangeably). Aside from the obvious common strings type and age ... it was the pick-up height I had to tweak to get each bass pretty close to each other in both tone and output. I have multiple combinations of necks (Maple and rosewood) ... and painted versus natural finish bodies ... but as much as I try and try to blame tone on the frett board material ... I cannot "hear" the difference (amplified). I can feel it ... but I don't think I could hear the differences in the woods in the necks ... I think my T-40's are all made of the same swamp ash for the bodies even if they are painted / natural / or different production years.
Click to expand...
I have a T-40 love it .. Do you know approx where the pickups should be
 
#70
For pickups, I've gone from stock Fender, to DiMarzio, to Fralin, to Curtis Novak, to Aggie before settling on the EMG GZR.
The GZR absolutely SMOKED AG4P-60, which was pretty hard to beat.

Vintage voiced - but great Fender vintage P pickup sound is a sound that many younger (and some older) bassists don't expect: it's much more mid-mid-forward with a distinct clang around 1.65k, and a solid but very tight bottom. Almost no 'woof.' Many imagine vintage Fender as the Motown sound, but that is the result of tone knob rolloff and EQ. People simply wanted bass to sound more akin to upright in those days, and took steps to make it so. But that is the beauty of the P: It gives you everything you need, and the EQ can bring out a wide spectrum of available frequencies - as opposed to, say, a mudbucker, which will never have any decent treble no matter how you turn the knobs of slide the sliders.

But, long story short, the GZR is the best after-market P pickup made and would benefit any bass regardless of neck/body/fretboard wood combinations.
 
#71
I'm a big fan of it. It sits very well in the mix and to me is as close as I have heard to a vintage Fender pickup. Its not deep and smooth like you would expect but grindy with strong output. The motown sound had more to do with the mute under the bridge cover and the outboard gear used(and the ridiculously awesome players of course!).
 
  • Like
Reactions: Lowbrow
#72
Third Stone From the Sun said:
I have a T-40 love it .. Do you know approx where the pickups should be
Click to expand...
No I don't. But I'll measure mine. If u want a reference. My neck and bridge are different. And from bass to bass they are different yet sound similar. I find the pick-ups are really hot for passive so I like low action. When I set low action the pickups are too high/hot. So I lower them. There is a slight slant. But I honestly fussed with it for quite some time and I now have 2 t40s that sound pretty much the same. I love mine. I have some really pricey basses. But I'll never give up my t40. By far my favorite bass! I used my 1st bass as a reference 'cuz it was the tone I liked. Then I fussed with the other ones till I got output to roughly match. Basically played Sesame Street "which one of these things is not like the other" until I got the others close to the 1st one. So I wouldn't say mine are "right". But I'll measure sometime this weekend and post a reply
 
  • Like
Reactions: Third Stone From the Sun
#73
H2okie said:
No I don't. But I'll measure mine. If u want a reference. My neck and bridge are different. And from bass to bass they are different yet sound similar. I find the pick-ups are really hot for passive so I like low action. When I set low action the pickups are too high/hot. So I lower them. There is a slight slant. But I honestly fussed with it for quite some time and I now have 2 t40s that sound pretty much the same. I love mine. I have some really pricey basses. But I'll never give up my t40. By far my favorite bass! I used my 1st bass as a reference 'cuz it was the tone I liked. Then I fussed with the other ones till I got output to roughly match. Basically played Sesame Street "which one of these things is not like the other" until I got the others close to the 1st one. So I wouldn't say mine are "right". But I'll measure sometime this weekend and post a reply
Click to expand...
On the neck pick up from top of g string to chrome cover o.22". From top of e string to chrome cover 0.27". Bridge g string 0.15". E strin 0.22"
 
#77
My bass sounds JUST EXACTLY like that 77. It has a ash body, maple neck and 1983 USA pickups, which I believe is the last year of the "70's wind". I a alder/ ash body alone will make a small difference. A rosewood/maple neck makes a small difference. Pickups I bit more. But I don't think you will ever get there with rosewood and alder. Close with one or the other, but never THAT sound.
 

Latest posts

Top Bottom
Back