Indeed - and if I need a neck pickup sound on a certain track, I'll just use the P Bass.
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"J" pickups discussion and comparisons - PART II
- Thread starter grygrx
- Start date
"just" use the P-bass... that's rich!
Pbassmanca
In the pocket n' thumpy. So woody, so greasy...
I haven't, but Mr Lull says lining the cavity is sufficient.
It was for this particular set-up.
I just bought a used Lakland BG with a Curtis Novak split coil.
Don't mean to derail the thread, but in a couple of weeks I will have a Lollar/Klein/Novak split coil comparison to post.
It was for this particular set-up.
I just bought a used Lakland BG with a Curtis Novak split coil.
Don't mean to derail the thread, but in a couple of weeks I will have a Lollar/Klein/Novak split coil comparison to post.
I have not, but if what i think you are suggesting, it may cause grounding issues. The foil-lined cavity must be grounded in order to eliminate buzz/hum, because it captures the spurious signal and routes it to ground. I don't want anything metal grounded like that so close to the pickups.
Pbassmanca
In the pocket n' thumpy. So woody, so greasy...
Nice! If you want , there's a lot of conversation about those pickups going on in the thread below, feel free to post there, (or wherever you like for that matter).
Ultra boutique P bass pickups
Yes! Agreed. I have a set of the PV64 J pups as well and I think they sound Fantasic, just as you described. At the moment they're in a build I have but the neck is going to be replaced soon and I know those pups will sound even better then
Fender now offers the Gen 4 noiseless pickups. Here is the link :
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Forget everything you might have experienced with the Gen 3, these are great.
Invalid Link Removed
Forget everything you might have experienced with the Gen 3, these are great.
I gigged last night with my 80's MIJ jazz that has recently had an NJ4 upgrade, signal chain was Jazz=>Diamond Compressor=>GK MB212-ii. It sounded great, fantastic classic Jazz tone with more snap, crystal clear yet full sounding. Im a fan now
Pbassmanca
In the pocket n' thumpy. So woody, so greasy...
Whenever you do the split coil comparison I would like to check it out. Which thread will you post it on?
Pbassmanca
In the pocket n' thumpy. So woody, so greasy...
What is your impression of the tonal profile and response of the Lollar J pickups? I've been considering between them and a set of Klein 62's but I can't find any really good Youtube clips or sound clips demonstrating the tonal profiles. Thanks.
The Lollars have a '60's vintage tone, but not as dark sounding as some others.
But i really can't give you a fair comparison as this is the only Jazz i've had for a while, and the bass came loaded with them.
They seem to be a bit hotter then what i'm used to, but i really like them.
Not sure i was any help here.
Pbassmanca
In the pocket n' thumpy. So woody, so greasy...
The reason I'm looking to replace the stock pickups in my 2004 Highway 1 jazz bass, is that they have such a massive amount of useless treble, that even with a .05 cap , I have to roll off about 3/4 of the tone control in order to get to the range where the treble is useful and not ridiculously overbearing. I've checked and all 3 pots are 250k with a single .05uf cap, so essentially the only variable is that the pickups are wound to have a lot of treble, much more so than most other Jazz basses I have ever played. I quite like the Fender Pure Vintage 64' Jazz Bass pickups in that they do not have an overbearing high end, but have a smooth treble response that is useful all the way up and down the spectrum. The only issue I've had is that I can't find a set of these pickups anywhere. I would like to get input and opinions on the other high-end vintage pickups to help me make my decision.
There a lots of choices out there, i'm not exactly an expert by any means, the Lollars are pretty even sounding, they don't favor highs over lows..............
Hey Pbassmanca-
I don't have any sound clips yet, but I have had a lot of gig / rehearsal time with some different boutique pickups and here is my take :
First off, I have been playing bass since I was a kid and I've never looked back. I'm not a techie kind or gear head, but I do know what I'm looking for, as far as copping a tone for a particular project goes. Lately, it's been either a vintage Fender P/J tone or that deep/pre-amped 5 string tone that I cover with an FBass.
I have a '68 P bass and a '66 J Bass - both alder / rosewood. I had Lollars in both, with the J Bass having the bridge pickup 10% overwound. I also have a Mike Lull V4 (passive J) and it had Fender Select pickups in it - which I really like. I replaced the FS pickups in the Lull with a set of Klein '62 J's and that bass just pops now. Absolutely wonderful pickups. The Lollars ended up sounding bland/boring to me, in comparison to the other two. They are indeed "balanced", but I just found them to be lacking in the "personality department", as it applies to pickups. They were great for my last recording project because the bass needed to be "felt", as opposed to being "punchy". One person's "dull" is another person's "warm". One person's "balanced" is another person's "flat". I do know that even with the treble all the way up, the Lollars weren't the least bit harsh or brittle. I couldn't get much "sizzle" with the Lollars - but that is what I wanted at the time.
Here is a link to the recording with the Lollar P in the '68. The last song (Still Gonna Want You) was recorded with an all original '75 P Bass. TI Flats on both.
Amp was either 400 + / Verellen Meatsmoke / or Thunderfunk 800. Berg HD212.
As far as the Klein's go, I think they are tremendous pickups, if you like a pickup that allows you a lot of space to shape the tone with your fingers. You can slap, finger funk, thumb pluck and they'll respond perfectly. On their site, they claim to have sent magnets from a '62 Jazz bass to a magnet manufacturer to have them analyzed and copied exactly, as far as magnet composition goes. Something like that. All I know is I liked their '62 J pickups so much that I put a Klein '62 split coil in the '68 P bass. The bass just seemed to come back to life. The tone felt "airy" again. It had so much more clarity than the Lollar, but the response was still really smooth. The tone wasn't "colored" or "affected" by the pickup wind, but it had it's own tone personality which seemed "sunnier" without being "sizzly". I am really excited to hear these pickups on our next album.
So here's where it gets interesting. I mentioned I took out the Fender Select J pickups out of the Lull, in favor of the Kleins. So then I took the Lollars out of the 66 J Bass and replaced them with the Fender Select pickups - WOW !! It's a totally different bass. I had Lindys in there prior to the Lollars and they were a bit too aggressive for me. But while the Lollars were good for that classic J thumpy kind of vibe, these Fender Selects feel like they have brought some life back to her. Sometimes I really like to dig in with my finger picking. And both of these pickups (Klein/FS) took it and responded without honking, but growling like a good J should. Now with the Lull and the 69 J, I feel like I have more room to express myself tonally, without fear of the dreaded ugly overdriven high end nastiness. I never feel like I am going to have a note honk/fart out from plucking it too hard. The response on both are superb.
SO - here's what a set of Fender Select J Pickups looks like on the bottom.
I have seen these numbers on a few Fender Select pickups posted by reputable TB'ers. The numbers match other Fender Selects I've seen on the web. But here's what's odd. Those ID #'s (this is from a trusted TB source) are also on the Am Std Jazz pickups as well. Are they the same pickups? Was there a slight tweak internally but Fender used the same casings? Who knows. It would be great if other TB'er who have Fender Select pickups would post photos of the pickup ID #'s on their undersides. The more info the better. But whether the Fender Select pickups are unique to those basses or not, I sure dig them. I actually had a local luthier tell me these pickups (with these numbers) were Fender's cheap pickups from the factory in Mexico. I personally have no idea, but I do know I like the way they sound - cheap or not.
What's interesting is the output on these both the Kleins and the Fender Select pickups are a bit lower than other brands. I like that because between my amps and my picking style I have plenty of output / headroom for a passive bass without a "hot" set of J/P pickups. I find that if the pickup is too hot, it restricts my playing freely, as well as my amp's voicing.
If you have any questions, feel free to ask. I'll do the best I can to answer.
Cheers!
RBJ
Last edited:
- Jun 30, 2010
- 49,591
- 221,980
- Disclosures
- musician/artist/owner - Gildaxe
Riddle me this Batman - the short-lived '85 Performer was considered to be the "Elite" Jazz bass back then. I don't know this for a fact, but judging from playing it - it seems to have hum-canceling pu's as buzz is not present adjusting the N & B pu volumes. Anyone have more details on these unique J pu's?
- Jun 30, 2010
- 49,591
- 221,980
- Disclosures
- musician/artist/owner - Gildaxe
It was the brain-child of original FCS head John Page - story goes he looked at the back of a Strat with it's deep body bevel and traced the outline of the flat area.
I know of what you speak. I'll say that I find the Fender CS 60's to also have that overbearing treble, and the new pickups on the Fender Am Pro have even more of it. Half off on the treble knob is a good starting point. Otherwise, I rather like Seymour Duncan J's across the board, but I seem to recall their vintage SJ-1's also had a good bit of high end.
I've never had them, but I have read that the N3 pickups are stack design, not split coil.
Let us know if that is not correct.
The discontinued Fender Super 55 pickups are split coil.
