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Lindy Fralin P vs Fender V-Mod?
- Thread starter Ögon
- Start date
I like them both. The Frailins are smooth and round while the Vmods are more punchy.
Definitely more Mids, not so much in the high territory. In a perfect world I’d have two p’s, one with each of these pups.
Interesting. Most important to me is: being heard in a mix and on stage. I have read that mids / low-mids / clarity in the mids are important for that. I mostly play with a piano/synth, drums/cajon and acoustic guitar. Although clear highs are nice when playing solo, smooth highs are ok too because they seem to standout more in a mix. It's not like my highs are going to be heard in the mix anyway, because there is too much competition haha.
What about the low mids and lows?
The V-mod sections are backwards. For some unknowable reason, on the V-mod pickup Fender put the Alnico II section under the E-A strings, producing mush; and the Alnico V section under the D-G strings, producing harshness. To get a true picture of how a V-mod pickup would compare to a Fralin, a player should swap the sections of the V-mod to get the Alnico II section under the D-G strings for better tone and the Alnico V section under the E-A strings for better definition.
The vmod pickup seems to sit well in the mix.. But more mids and a little bit more definition in the lows would be nice. Some times the E and A seem a bit boomy. Does swapping the coils give that? Its quite easy for me to do this mod.
The Fralins sit really well in the mix. There's a bump in the upper mids that helps that.
Thanks. I just swapped them. The volume of the E much better now and the overall sound is nicer.
Even when i set the pickup-height at the E 'side' really low, the volume of the E is louder then before.. Gonna play it for a few days to check if the sound really is what i was looking for.
Nice answer:
Fralins make magic happen.
I love Fender. I have a fair sized quiver of Fender basses. All of them came with Fender pickups. One by one I have replaced them all except for a 50 year-old case queen P. Fralins have worked out very well. Great tone. Get them overwound if you want a little heat. Ask yourself why you want to upgrade in the first place. If you don't love the pickups you have you're not going to love their aftermarket versions any more. Plus, pickups are a pretty non-destructive upgrade. You can always go back to Fender later if you want.
Fralins make magic happen.
I love Fender. I have a fair sized quiver of Fender basses. All of them came with Fender pickups. One by one I have replaced them all except for a 50 year-old case queen P. Fralins have worked out very well. Great tone. Get them overwound if you want a little heat. Ask yourself why you want to upgrade in the first place. If you don't love the pickups you have you're not going to love their aftermarket versions any more. Plus, pickups are a pretty non-destructive upgrade. You can always go back to Fender later if you want.
I ended up replacing the V-Mod with the Seymour Duncan SPB-1 and couldn’t be happier.
One thing that really turned me off to the V-Mods was that the two different magnet types seemed to have different dynamic abilities. The one on the EA string had a tendency to bottom out sooner than the one on the DG. So if I was digging in, the notes on the DG strings would respond but the EA strings didn’t get any louder. I replaced it with a Model P and really liked it.
I have no experience with the vMod...but just put Fralins in my 78 P and couldn't be happier with them.
Smooth_bass88
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- Oct 31, 2006
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Which Fralin are you comparing them to? Standard wind? overwound 5%? Overwound 10%? Underwound 5%?
May I suggest you check out the Fender Pure Vintage ‘58 pickup? It’s the one in the American Original series. It looks weird with those high A string pole pieces, but it is hands down the best sounding P pickup I’ve ever played on.
But also, I have a parts build with the +5 Fralin in it and it sings beautifully.
But also, I have a parts build with the +5 Fralin in it and it sings beautifully.
The V-Mods (IMHO) were way to polite. They didn’t give me any of the throay grind you expect from a P-Bass. Also, I found them to be very mid-scooped. The SPB-1 is sort of the lite version of the EMG Geezer, which for me is perfect. It can be aggressive sounding, it can be round/smooth and everything in between.
