Ibanez Mikro 5 string pickups

[WJK]

At a jam session last weekend, a buddy showed up with his Music Man bass in tow. When he plugged into my amp, he was WAY LOUDER than my bass had been. I mean, had to cut the amp down by about 2/3rds!
Are my pups that weak? I bet he had active pups, but still...

 

[Riff Ranger]

Technical point: stock Musicman pickups are still passive (i.e. not battery-powered); but even without boosting via the preamp (which makes the Musicman active), I would expect a significant jump in output relative to the stock single coils in a 5-string MiKro. And the preamp was probably providing a boost on top of that in this case. Your MiKro is probably just fine.

 

[WJK]

Since I posted this, I've discovered EVERY bass I've had the chance to compare (side by side) has louder pups than my Mikro! Now it's working on my mind. I'm considering buying new pups, but I don't really know what to consider. I don't want to spend more on pups than I have tied up in the bass ($125 used!), and I sure don't want to buy a cheap set & have them wind up about the same volume as what I have now. So, I've came here again for expert advice! Any recommendations? It goes unsaid that I'd prefer something that will fit without further routing.

 

[Riff Ranger]

Have you already tried adjusting your pickup height?

 

[WJK]

I have tried that, but the pickups made a racket when the strings hit them. I can only avoid this by keeping the pickups low enough.

 

[Stylee Mousse]

Fight the OCD. It doesn’t matter how loud a bass is as long as you like the tone.

turning up your amp is free, not like expending your car’s blinker fluid!