• TalkBass has been independent since 1998. Add your voice.
    Create a free account to reply to discussions, view embedded media, and browse with fewer display ads.
    Join free Log in
    Want zero display ads or expanded classifieds tools? Compare plans.

My SG Reissue lacks low end on Neck Pup! help! [+mp3]

#21
Sorry, I regret having said that I like the tone of the neck pickup.

I spent some time with a pickup builder specialist, and we found that this pickup has a weak low end punch that is most noticeable on the 4th string going below A. (we tested it in many basses)

There is no mod to overcome the problem, as it comes from the design itself.

I m already looking for a replacement.

Miguel
 
#23
Yes, thanks for your reply.

I know that options and I think I will go for the DiMarzio.

It says in their web that the tone of the model one is:

bass: 8
mids: 5
treble: 7

I need to have good treble output from that pickup (not for harmonics but for string percussive sound using flats),

Do you agree with the specs on their web? (I assume you have one installed in your bass...)

thanks

miguel
 
#25
alrighty so i got the d'addario 105 nickel wounds. im not really a fan of them, but thats another story. i'll be getting flats soon i think, these are too bright. anyone care to recommend a good set of flats with a 105 E?

i rerecorded the basstest: Invalid Link Removed
the d string has a natural chorusy sound when played open. it is demonstrated in the last bit of playing. i couldve eq'd it to bring it out more but i felt like leaving it natural.

so i guess i'll be looking into the model one as well.. there is a noticable improvement but it isnt large.
 
#26
#27
Hi again

I replaced the stock neck pickup with a custom made (musicman style) pickup. It sounds really really good. I mean it. big alnico magnet bars. 2 coils and 4 conductors. Now I have it wired in paralell. Very smooth highs and no more problem with the bottom end. E string sounds deep and punchy now.

I can post pictures tomorrow if you like.

I ve got a set of Thomastiks flats on this SG bass, and it is too soft to me. They are low tension. I ve been using them for many years on a vintage jazz with great results, but they don t seem to make a good job on the SG. I will go back to roundwounds and higher tensions. It makes more sense for such a small and comfortable bass.
 
#28
well, nobody asked for the pictures...

anyway, i post them, cause I m really happy with the sound of the custom made pickup for my SG bass and it looks cool. wired in paralell, it sounds superb alone, and it blends nicely with the minihumbucker. all in all, a win win situation upgrade.

the heads of the screws are sticked to the metal cover, for aesthetics...

if anybody ends up reading this threat because of poor sound with the stock neck pickup of the SG bass, please consider this option.

this guy (ardizzi) spent some time trying to get a good tone out of this pickup, undertanding perfectly what i wanted from it.
and he will be happy to build more if there s an interest. and you can take advantage of the exchange rate.

i dont know how the di marzio model one sounds, but this one is a cool option

send him an mail if you are interested...

Link Removed

i m just trying to promote a passionate guy :)
 

Attachments

  • 212.JPG
    212.JPG
    28.6 KB · Views: 48
  • 214.JPG
    214.JPG
    26 KB · Views: 43
#30
ohnoadrummer said:
hey all, first post here.

i got my gibson sg reissue bass (short scale @ 30") back in september and when i first tried to record (with a Radial JDI box) a low thumping sound with it i noticed that any note lower than an A on the E string lacks a real punch.

it's really only when i roll off a little of the bridge pickup and use the neck. otherwise the low end can sometimes be a little hot on the bridge when the neck is rolled off. i have the bridge pickup quite close to the strings, but i'm quite happy with how this pickup is set up.

anywho, to demonstrate what i'm experiencing i've uploaded an Invalid Link Removedof me playing a Fmaj7 to G7 arpeggio in 3 setups.

each setup is divided by a little muted slap

the first has the neck pickup rolled off to about 8. i use fingers placed on the bridge pickup.

second has both pickups on 10. fingers placed between bridge and neck pups.

third has the bridge pickup rolled off to 8 and fingers placed at neck pup. this one i also play a G5-F5-D5-C5 sorta type thing to demonstrate the volume discrepancy between the strings.

the last one is playing the same thing but on a 34" scale Yamaha BBN4 III with both pickups at 10.

i'm guessing the problem is either the strings (they're stock) or the fact that the neck pickup is kinda far from the strings. it's still really thumpy and niiice on the other strings though.

or.. :crying:.. its what i'll just have to live with for getting a short scale bass.

IMPORTANT - i know my playing is off at points. don't tell me. ALSO, the tone is at 0 for everything
Click to expand...

to me is everything OK
 
#31
I own a 60s Kalamazoo bass (EB-0 like bolt-on) as well as an old Gibson mudbucker added to my 53 Precision. Both basses have poor definition on the E string below the 5th fret. As if to make up for it, the thickness when playing on any string above the 7th fret is insane. The short scale of the Gibson doesn't help and the attack of the note gets rounded off...no wonder you can't make out the notes.

Using any of the other pickups on my P-bass (yeah, it's heavily modified) the E string sounds even up and down the neck...so it's really the pickup response. I think it's just too much fundamental (which is hard to hear that low) coupled with not much in upper harmonics.
 
#32
brianrost: what you say sounds good

it could be a combination of wood response of the instrument + pickup voicing + short scale.

Anyway, I feel that the fundamentals are the ones that drop in volume below the 5th fret on the 4th string.

and i agree with you, that the bass is really powerfull one octave higher.

so it is a matter of eq. if you raise the lows around 50 hz, you compensate that loss in the lower notes, and at the same time, you add deep sound to the higher octaves.

anyway, i don t fell the sg bass very comfortable anymore with its balance issues.... yes, lightweight, but you are kind of holding it all the time...

i will use it more in real situations and will decide if i keep it or not

regards
 

Latest posts

Top Bottom
Back