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"J" pickups discussion and comparisons - PART II

#421
FirewalZ said:
Posted in a separate thread but got no response....thought I would ask the "experts" here:
"I have a 1985/86 MIJ Jazz Bass....great bass and all original, but really looking at upgrading to Nordstrand NJ4's. Will i have any issues with the "fit"? Also, I only have jazz pickup experience with the stock 80's MIJ pickups, they sound fine but sort of dark, no balls, and can get lost in the mix sometimes....what can I expect from nj4's in comparison?"
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I ordered a set of NJ4's and measured the pickups in my Jazz and compared to the published specs
Bridge: I measured 3 11/16 (3.6875), NJ4's 3.725
Neck: I measured 3 9/16 (3.5625), NJ4's 3.600
They seem like they may be a bit big, i dont see a lot of extra space around the current pickups either? Anyone else drop these in an 80's Jazz, im assuming the MIJ's will be very consistent.
 
#425
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My NJ4's came in, a quick measure looks like they will fit my older MIJ jazz. How are these on the growly/snap scale? Stock pickups were fine, just somewhat dark/generic, not real clear in the mix. I won't be able to have them installed till next week.
 
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#428
bdplaid said:
I wonder if it's possible to get a Bernard Edwards/ LeFreak tone from a Jazz bass?
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I think I could be done if you strung the bass with half rounds and backed off the neck pick up a bit and had a preamp with the bass and mid boosted a bit , it might give an approximation of that tone. A fantastic tone I might add.....
 
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#429
winegamd said:
I have never done a direct comparison, but the vintage 64's seem to have a lot more low end and low mid punch. So far, they are my favorite jazz pickups, but I haven't tried Nordstrands.
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I really like the pure vintage 64's , as I tried them in a flea tribute Bass recently. The only issue I'm having is finding a set anywhere! Does anyone have any idea where one can procure a set of pure vintage 64' jazz bass pickups? I've been looking in all the usual places eBay, Reverb, Kijiji , and any other place that sells pickups that I can think of , but no one seems to have any of them....
 
#431
Pete Greaves said:
IMO Klein Epic 62 Jazz pickups, if you are OK with single coil hum.
Jazz and Precision Bass Replacement Pickups PBass JBass - Klein Electric Guitar Pickups
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I've been considering the Klein 62' Jazz pickups for my Highway 1 04' Jazz bass. The stock pickups in that bass are ridiculously bright. I have to turn the tone 3/4 of the way down just to get to the usable range of treble. Do you use the Klein? If so, how do they rate in your opinion? I'm looking for a really traditional J pickup sound, and a nice clean but fairly moderate high end response.
 
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#432
I'm seeing lots of posts here about Norstrand, Lollar, Fender pure vintage, and Klein. I wonder if those who are using said pickups can try and make some comparisons between the lot to help identify some tonal qualities and highlight the differences between them. This is the range of pickups that I am currently considering for replacements in my 04' Highway 1 JB which has ridiculously bright stock pickups.
 
#433
Pbassmanca said:
I'm seeing lots of posts here about Norstrand, Lollar, Fender pure vintage, and Klein. I wonder if those who are using said pickups can try and make some comparisons between the lot to help identify some tonal qualities and highlight the differences between them. This is the range of pickups that I am currently considering for replacements in my 04' Highway 1 JB which has ridiculously bright stock pickups.
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I can between some...

The Nordstrand NJs feel like the vintage-ish pickup with a tighter slightly tighter lower end and more complex mid range.

Dimarzio Model Js on the other hand have thicker lower mids pierod over the Nordstrand with a tamer high end.
 
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#434
TonyP- said:
I can between some...

The Nordstrand NJs feel like the vintage-ish pickup with a tighter slightly tighter lower end and more complex mid range.

Dimarzio Model Js on the other hand have thicker lower mids pierod over the Nordstrand with a tamer high end.
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I second that on the NJ4's, although Im comparing them to the stock pickups in my 1986 MIJ JAzz and an old set of barts. The NJ4's have tighter lows, a bit more snap and crisp.
 
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#435
FirewalZ said:
I second that on the NJ4's, although Im comparing them to the stock pickups in my 1986 MIJ JAzz and an old set of barts. The NJ4's have tighter lows, a bit more snap and crisp.
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I wonder how the NJ4's would compared to the fender pure vintage 64 J pickups? I was playing the Road Worn flea jazz bass that has the pure vintage pickups installed and I have to admit , I really like the sound of them. They're wound with heavy formvar wire and they have a nice top end but it's not too intrusive into the overall tone. They also have a lot of nice low end and low mid heft and a decent amount of growl. They're the kind of jazz bass pickups I feel that would sound really good in a band mix without being too forward.
 
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#437
BusyFingers said:
Those Nordies sound good! I think I'm back on my plan to create a shorty, torty, nordy jazzer.
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Yep, thats pretty much how they sound......what about a good set of strings that match well? I currently have an old set of Med-Lite Nickel Lo-Riders on my jazz thats just been fitted with NJ4's. I was thinking of getting a new set of the same, something to bring out the growl with a mid bump?
 
#438
Pbassmanca said:
I'm seeing lots of posts here about Norstrand, Lollar, Fender pure vintage, and Klein. I wonder if those who are using said pickups can try and make some comparisons between the lot to help identify some tonal qualities and highlight the differences between them. This is the range of pickups that I am currently considering for replacements in my 04' Highway 1 JB which has ridiculously bright stock pickups.
Click to expand...
I have the Nordstrand nj4sv pickups in my Fender custom shop jazz bass. I loved the stock pickups it came with ... that traditional J-Bass tone that we all know and love. The reason I turned to Nordstrand is because I couldn't take the hum and buzz. The Nordstrands sound exactly like the stock Fender pickups but are hum cancelling. A huge upgrade.
 
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#439

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