"J" pickups discussion and comparisons.

[irishryno]

After and exhaustive two week dive in to the insanity that is pup replacement info, I have almost completely decided on a set of Di Marzio DP123's. Then I came across Lindy Fralin. Anyone have any info on these pups for a j? Prolly going with the Di's, but dont want to count everyone out. these are going a Geddy Lee so I dont mind paying a little to get the right tone.

 

[narud]

After and exhaustive two week dive in to the insanity that is pup replacement info, I have almost completely decided on a set of Di Marzio DP123's. Then I came across Lindy Fralin. Anyone have any info on these pups for a j? Prolly going with the Di's, but dont want to count everyone out. these are going a Geddy Lee so I dont mind paying a little to get the right tone.

do you have any idea what type of tone you want? you couldnt have picked two more different sounding types of pickups. one is a vintage style replacement and the other is humbucking which dont really sound j-like imo.

 

[manola]

you might want to go for a middle of the road pickup instead of something wit huge bottom.. it might get too huge.
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[Craig_S]

I skimmed through all these posts and didn't find a word about Sadowsky Jazz pickups (single coil or hum canceling).

I dropped a set of Sad (HC) in my ash Jazz and it has never sounded better. Now, before someone says "they're just Ultra Jazz pickups", no they are not. I have both. The Sads high end isn't as aggressive (read: percussive), and they aren't as scooped. I was told by Alex, at Sadowsky Guitars, the HCs are as close to a single coil sound as they could get them. I don't know what they have done to make them different, but they surely are different than the Ultras. I'd buy them again, without even thinking about it.

EDIT: I was just at BassPlayer.com and I found something really interesting. DiMarzio has a new set of Jazz pickups called Area J. When I looked up the wiring diagram, I found the pickup leads to be the exact same colors as the Sadowsky pickups--unlike the Ultra Jazz set. The model numbers are DP247 (Neck) and DP248 (Bridge). They have raised A and D pole pieces--just like the Sadowsky set--as well.

Check them out at the DiMarzio site. I'm sure these are the same as the Sadowky hum canceling Jazz set.

 

[TonyP-]

i picked up the 75 ri with the intention of gigging it hard rather than my 78 jazz. it just never sounded as bright as the 78 though. thats where the journey began. heres all the pickups that were in that bass
-stock
-fender samarium cobalt noiseless
-lindy fralin
-seymour duncan antiquity 1's
-dimarzio ultra jazz
-fender custom shop 60's
- fender original 60's
-seymour duncan antiquity 2's X2
-pickups from a 1980 fender jazz (this was the set that made me realize this bass was capable of sounding like the 78 and that it was a pickup issue and not the bass)
-semour duncan antiquity 2's with neck pickup i had unwound slightly by the duncan custom shop(the set currently installed in the bass)

Hey Joe

Question for you.
Home come you did not try Norstrand NJ4 ?(Or did I just miss that somewhere in this thread ...lol)

I have to say that installing a set of Big Singles in a Jazz a while back that I became a fan of Cary's pickups and reading this thread makes me want to build another Jazz.

 

[narud]

Hey Joe

Question for you.
Home come you did not try Norstrand NJ4 ?(Or did I just miss that somewhere in this thread ...lol)

I have to say that installing a set of Big Singles in a Jazz a while back that I became a fan of Cary's pickups and reading this thread makes me want to build another Jazz.

i had nj5's in my hotwire jazz and i figured if they were voiced at all the same then they wouldnt be what i was looking for. extremely warm and fat in the low mids with no extended highs. not exactly vintage. a great sound in its own right, but thats got to be something youre going for. those nj5's made a jretro sound like an evenly voiced, flat sounding pre. with any other pickups, the retro sounds super hyped.

 

[Dolflundgren]

In regards to the DiMarzio set, has anybody done an A/B comparison with the Dimarzio Ultra Jazz vs. the Dimarzio Model J?

I would be very interested in hearing opinions (as Dimarzio's are always very affordable and budget-consciousness is my middle name)

 

[wdinc01]

I've tried looking through this thread, but the word "five" is apparently too common for the search engine.

Anyway, I was wondering if someone could point me towards a good pair of J pick ups to put into my Deluxe Jazz V. I've got Fender Noiseless ones in there now, and I just feel like they aren't really cutting it.

I really like to sound of P-pick ups, but I don't want to drill into my body. They don't need to sound exactly like Ps. I'd just like something that was hotter (i.e. louder), and fatter sounding.

 

[eupharies]

Hey guys, i have a fender american jazz with the s1 switch, what pickups do you think would suit, both the jazz and precision variations.

I play mainly rock

 

[Ryan Mohr]

those nj5's made a jretro sound like an evenly voiced, flat sounding pre. with any other pickups, the retro sounds super hyped.

Meaning the deep bass and sizzly highs of the J-Retro made the mid-oriented NJ5s even?

 

[narud]

Meaning the deep bass and sizzly highs of the J-Retro made the mid-oriented NJ5s even?

after some time checking out the sad and aguilar pre's the retro is hyped but its not that much more hyped than some of the other pres.

heres some comparison
hotwire 70's jazz with nords and retro
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theres some serious boost going on there. i think i had the highs dimed on the pre which with other pickups would be ear slicing treble.

heres my 75 ri with duncans and the a/c pre
[Invalid or Expired Link Removed]
bass midway up and treble not quite midway up.

the duncans being airier up top work well with neutral'ish ac pre. i dont think a retro would work too well as it would get too scooped and hi fi. i tried the ac pre with middier pickups like the nords and thought it sounded like dog for my tastes.

 

[narud]

Meaning the deep bass and sizzly highs of the J-Retro made the mid-oriented NJ5s even?

i forgot, did you ever put the nords in your bass? if so, what was the verdict?

 

[d_buzz]

i had nj5's in my hotwire jazz and i figured if they were voiced at all the same then they wouldnt be what i was looking for. extremely warm and fat in the low mids with no extended highs. not exactly vintage. a great sound in its own right, but thats got to be something youre going for. those nj5's made a jretro sound like an evenly voiced, flat sounding pre. with any other pickups, the retro sounds super hyped.

I perfectly understand what you're talking about. I also had this situation before. Then, I realize that you need to have a pickup that has a broader frequency response than the instrument itself. So, that you can get both the extended highs a well as the extrememly warm and low mids. I solved this problem with Aero jb5 pickups. You should give this pickup a try. They the best customer service too.

Best of Luck!

 

[Ryan Mohr]

i forgot, did you ever put the nords in your bass? if so, what was the verdict?

I just put the NJ4s in my alder/RW Fender Classic '60s J bass, along with CTS pots, and Orange Drop cap, a Switchcraft jack, and fresh Sadowsky blue nickels. The tone is surprisingly bright, open, and clear. Whether it is the strings or the pickups, the bass has never been brighter. I'm not hearing super warm and fat with a low mid emphasis and burnished highs, which is what I was expecting. I might post some clips soon. Maybe I just need a darker set of strings.

 

[narud]

I just put the NJ4s in my alder/RW Fender Classic '60s J bass, along with CTS pots, and Orange Drop cap, a Switchcraft jack, and fresh Sadowsky blue nickels. The tone is surprisingly bright, open, and clear. Whether it is the strings or the pickups, the bass has never been brighter. I'm not hearing super warm and fat with a low mid emphasis and burnished highs, which is what I was expecting. I might post some clips soon. Maybe I just need a darker set of strings.

i wonder if the 5 string set sounds different than the 4 string set? the 5 string set i had was fatter and warmer than any other j bass pickup ive had. these aero 5 string pickups im using right now in the fernandes definitely are voiced the same way that the 4 string set is.

 

[TonyP-]

Smash,

Have you had a chance to do a review of the NJ4SV's yet? I'm really curious how they compare to the NJ4's. I can't seem to make up my mind between all 3 of Carey's offerings. You seem to recommend the SE's for an active setup, and that would sound good to me except that I have an Audere pre in my Jazz. In the mid-Z mode, it is really passive sounding when set flat. I have the two band version, and the bass and treble boosts aren't as extreme and colored sounding as most pre's. I really like it that way, but it seems it would work best with the NJ4's or SV's rather than the SE's.

By the way, have you had a chance to play with the Audere pre?

Hey Jason
What did you end up going with to use with the Audere?

I just did some trading with a friend and picked up an parts bass ash body with the Audere and SD for the pickups.

I'm not a big fan of SD's in general but these sound ok.

I was going thinking of Nordy for this bass as well but was curious what others where using with the with the Audrere.

I'm on the fence of just popping it out since I play flar %99 of the time and just going passive.

Thoughts?

Cheers
-B~

 

[narud]

Thoughts?

Cheers
-B~

let me know how much you want for the audere if you decide to sell it

 

[TonyP-]

let me know how much you want for the audere if you decide to sell it

Hi Joe
I will ping you first if I do .

 

[electracoyote]

Hey SMASH, I tried to PM you but your box is full. If this question has been asked, I apologize, I didn't have time to read through 19 pages of posts.

Thanks a million for all that information. As I am in the process of switching over from P Basses to J Basses, I can use all the help I can get. I have acquired several J's and I am purchasing and building several more. I am totally hooked!

I was curious about your playing style, so that I can put your comments into perspective. Several times you refer to "your tone" so these are obviously somewhat subjective reviews. Maybe you can tell me what "your tone" consists of, what styles you play, are you a pick, pop, or finger player, etc. I know that many slap n poppers (like me) prefer the EMG active series, and you sorta downgraded them. So any information you can provide about your preferred tone, music style, or playing style would be most helpful. Thanks again!

 

[Ryan Mohr]

i wonder if the 5 string set sounds different than the 4 string set? the 5 string set i had was fatter and warmer than any other j bass pickup ive had. these aero 5 string pickups im using right now in the fernandes definitely are voiced the same way that the 4 string set is.

I just checked the website and here are the descriptions:

nj5
single coil 5 string jazz-type bass pickups
Five string single coil pickups in the same style as the NJ4. Featuring Alnico V magnets and the same winding pattern as the four, these are very fat sounding with plenty of growl and bark. Includes closed black covers.

nj4
single coil 4 string jazz-type bass pickups
This is a vintage single coil J style pickup made with 60’s era correct Heavy Formvar wire and Alnico V magnets. In winding these pickups we use a simulated hand wound pattern that lowers the resonant peak of the pickup resulting in a pleasing yet present high end. These pickups have a very even and full sound with that snap and grind associated with the classic basses of that time. Includes black covers (exposed pole pieces).

So, it says they are the same but it says the NJ5s are very fat sounding. I might email Carey.

I have heard that those Aeros are very grindy and aggressive with a late '70s J bass type of sound, and then I have heard they are very wide, deep, and extended.