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jazz pickups aligned vertically
- Thread starter kkaarrll
- Start date
Just do it!
Speculating on how it works out isn't going to yield the result. But, my guess is you're just trying to 'fix something that ain't broke', however, I'm curious as to what you figure out.
Please post you're findings.
Speculating on how it works out isn't going to yield the result. But, my guess is you're just trying to 'fix something that ain't broke', however, I'm curious as to what you figure out.
Please post you're findings.
no
I am just fairly creative and trying to learn, the thought came up----wanted to know
sledge hammer is always the right tool for the job
clearly you know nothing about hammer time
If you know what you're doing you can make it work. I mean if you are REALLY knowledgeable about pickup design, magets, coil design and such you know what the inherent issues are and can design to compensate.
To just throw a cobbled up pickup under there and see what happens is a crapshoot. Might sound ok, but not likely and really doubtful if it sounds fantastic.
However, many great discoveries were made with nothing more than extensive trial and error rather than any theoretical knowledge.
To just throw a cobbled up pickup under there and see what happens is a crapshoot. Might sound ok, but not likely and really doubtful if it sounds fantastic.
However, many great discoveries were made with nothing more than extensive trial and error rather than any theoretical knowledge.
In regards to using existing J-bass coils like this, I'm fairly certain that you'll find that they are too wide. Even if you take the bare coil assemblies out of the housings. I had that thought too, back about 12 years ago when I was first planning to experiment with the idea of this style of pickups. You're forgetting that the strings get closer together as you move away from the bridge. The coil assemblies on my pickup are 0.650" wide, and they barely fit with a tight clearance between them.
The main reason that I went with the individual coils is that this model bass uses a 4" radius fingerboard. That's radically round for an electric bass, and it would be tough to get any conventional single coil or split coil magnetic pickup to reach the strings. I decided to use individual coils, which are individually adjustable, to make sure that I could get good tight even sound from each string.
Because of the narrow width requirement, the coils needed to be tall and narrow, with the wire wound in very densely. If I had used tiny round coils, they wouldn't have enough wire on them to create enough signal level. They would need a whole pre-amp system, which I specifically didn't want to do. I like passive systems with powerful pickups. Making the coils as long ovals, along the length of the string, gave me enough wire to get the coil impedance where I wanted it. It also gave me space to put enough magnets in each coil to get the field strength power I wanted. There are three 1/4" x 3/4" A5 rod magnets in each of those coil assemblies. I'm working on an upgraded version of this pickup, for another model bass, which puts four of the 1/4" magnets in each coil.
Overall, this is a Hi-Fi style of pickup. Very wide frequency range top and bottom, very clear and articulate, and a nearly flat EQ curve. Most of that is because of the tall narrow tightly wound coils, which were a byproduct of the dimensional constraints. Having the sensing aperture narrow across the string doesn't seem to be a limiting factor at all. I've found the dynamics and definition to be higher than a conventional pickup. The long aperture along the string evens out the harmonics. It doesn't really matter where the nodes end up for the harmonics on particular notes. On my test mule, I played around with the position of the pickup and found that it wasn't fussy. An inch either way hardly made any difference.
It works. It's a good pickup design with many useful features. Why don't any manufacturers make pickups like this? Too expensive. It's 2-5 times the price of a conventional pickup. Most small builders don't want to get into making their own pickups. Too much trouble. For the aftermarket pickup companies, there isn't enough market to justify the development. If Seymour Duncan made a pickup like this, it would retail for $500. And it wouldn't bolt in to a Fender. Who would buy it? That's why I don't bother to try to sell my pickups directly. I develop and build them as a part and feature of my basses.
The main reason that I went with the individual coils is that this model bass uses a 4" radius fingerboard. That's radically round for an electric bass, and it would be tough to get any conventional single coil or split coil magnetic pickup to reach the strings. I decided to use individual coils, which are individually adjustable, to make sure that I could get good tight even sound from each string.
Because of the narrow width requirement, the coils needed to be tall and narrow, with the wire wound in very densely. If I had used tiny round coils, they wouldn't have enough wire on them to create enough signal level. They would need a whole pre-amp system, which I specifically didn't want to do. I like passive systems with powerful pickups. Making the coils as long ovals, along the length of the string, gave me enough wire to get the coil impedance where I wanted it. It also gave me space to put enough magnets in each coil to get the field strength power I wanted. There are three 1/4" x 3/4" A5 rod magnets in each of those coil assemblies. I'm working on an upgraded version of this pickup, for another model bass, which puts four of the 1/4" magnets in each coil.
Overall, this is a Hi-Fi style of pickup. Very wide frequency range top and bottom, very clear and articulate, and a nearly flat EQ curve. Most of that is because of the tall narrow tightly wound coils, which were a byproduct of the dimensional constraints. Having the sensing aperture narrow across the string doesn't seem to be a limiting factor at all. I've found the dynamics and definition to be higher than a conventional pickup. The long aperture along the string evens out the harmonics. It doesn't really matter where the nodes end up for the harmonics on particular notes. On my test mule, I played around with the position of the pickup and found that it wasn't fussy. An inch either way hardly made any difference.
It works. It's a good pickup design with many useful features. Why don't any manufacturers make pickups like this? Too expensive. It's 2-5 times the price of a conventional pickup. Most small builders don't want to get into making their own pickups. Too much trouble. For the aftermarket pickup companies, there isn't enough market to justify the development. If Seymour Duncan made a pickup like this, it would retail for $500. And it wouldn't bolt in to a Fender. Who would buy it? That's why I don't bother to try to sell my pickups directly. I develop and build them as a part and feature of my basses.
Similar things have been tried in the past. And it looks like fellow TBer Bruce Johnson is seriously pursuing it - and with some success.
But if you're curious, ignore the naysayers, and give it a go on your own.
You'll never know for sure until you've tried for yourself. And there's always a chance something might have gotten missed by everyone else who did similar experiments before you.
Love how many people are getting upset that the op wants to experiment
Ric5
Inactive
- Jan 29, 2008
- 29,772
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- I like 5, 8, 10, and 12 string basses
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the Hamer above looks like it uses four Mustang or Fender XII pickup coils. They were about that same shape and size, and had three magnets per coil. Mustang bass coils are a little narrower, and might be a good compromise. Bruce Johnson has a point about finding a balance in the coil size so it will work as intended.
I think you would end up with too much magnetic pull on the strings, giving you either a very dead thud, or an oscillating 'out of tune warble'. The solution to this would be set the pick up heights as low as you can get them, if you could get them low enough. You might also have to move them all the way to the bridge, where the tighter tension might help resist the effect.
Atlansia Breeze
OMG! Do those upper mono-coils slide? As in they're individually adjustable????
How cool is that?
