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My take on a custom "P-Bass"

#21
I reversed the P-Bass pickups on mine and I like how much more depth the D and G strings have now. They are standard P-Bass pickups though.

Of course, I added the humbucker at the bridge, and I use a blend pot to get a variety of tones between the two pickups. It is a passive bass, yet goes from a standard P-Bass sound to very bright and modern when I want it to.

The body is solid Ash, and the neck maple with an ebony fingerboard. I prefer ebony over all other fingerboards.

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#23
Aussiephoenix said:
I'm currently frankensteining one of those.

In my case, I went for a more traditional concept...the body is ash, maple neck, rosewood fretboard, and the thing that stands out is the pickups. reverse P and Musicman as close to their original positions as possible...

I cant wait to unleash the beast... should sound punchier than a... well... something. ;)
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That's gonna be a nice one, for sure. Kind reminds me of the Franken-P I bought from Jack Read:

IMG_3469.jpg
 
#26
tombowlus said:
That's a beauty! :)
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Thanks. It's my own design. It's a Warmoth neck, but I found a great piece of ash that had a really nice grain pattern.

With the blend pot, I can go with a full on, traditional P-Bass sound, or variations in between that and full humbucker. When I run it full on the humbucker, while not as punchy as a traditional Music Man, it has a very bright, punchy tone nonetheless. I typically leave the blend pot at the mid detent and just alter where I play, except for those tunes where I really want that definitive P-Bass tone. Occasionally I'll go with the humbucker by itself, but usually it's a blend of the two.

I deeply contoured the body to fit me perfectly and for perfect balance the top horn goes halfway between the way the 10th and 11th fret.

P-Bass tone, but with more variety if I want it.
 
#31
Am I to understand that you will have two discrete P pickups side by side? How will you fit them in the traditional position? I don't know, I guess I'm not getting what you're saying.
 
#32
Hey, Tommy! Funny you should post this now. (GMTA.) Having had a big year for amp rigs last year, I've turned to basses this year and have been considering the commissioning of a 4-string P-bass somewhat similar to the one you describe. I'm on that familiar but elusive quest for depth, warmth, clarity and balance as we've spoken about so often. I'm even thinking of trading or selling my beloved American Deluxe Precision ('96 4-string, still in near mint condition) as part of the re-tooling.

Your choice of mahogony and ebony is very interesting. The mahogony will provide the depth and warmth which the clarity and brightness of the ebony should balance very well. I'm more of a traditionalist, so I still like the alder/rosewood combination; but I'm anxious to hear you report on yours after you receive it.

I've also thought about a reverse-P pickup or a 1-1/2 coil setup similar to the one described by GlennW above, only I've thought about doing the 1-1/2 P-pup as EA-DG-EA (neck-to-bridge), with the additional "EA" coil mounted immediately adjacent to and on the bridge side of a traditional P-pickup. Unless I go with a reverse-P configuration of sort, I also think I'd like the "DG" coil wound somewhat hotter than normal. I assume you're talking about a passive-only bass, and I generally find passive P-basses somewhat lacking (comparatively) in D and G string response. I'd also add a Jazz pickup near the bridge. If it's possible with the right combination of stacked knobs and rotary switches, I'd like to wire it for the following controls: master volume, pickup blend, P-pup tone, J-pup tone, parallel/series selector and P-pup config selector.

I like a satin-finished maple neck with a dark Brazilian rosewood fretboard and vintage-sized (smaller) frets instead of the ubiquitous medium jumbos. Current P-neck geometry is fine with me, though an asymmetrical profile might be nice.

I also want a string-through-body option, traditional P-pup and bridge covers and a true thumb rest on the E-string side, between the pup cover and the base of the neck. I'm currently investigating BassMutes (http://www.bassmute.com/) as well. Do you know anything about them?

I don't mean to hijack your thread. It was just funny (though not really surprising) how you'd already done something similar to what I've been investigating and contemplating. So far, I've spoken preliminarily to a couple of luthiers about it and continue to ponder the options.

Tell us more about the bass you've ordered: neck details, controls (determined by final pup selction, obviously), finishes, etc. I assume you're not disclosing the maker yet, but when do you expect it to be ready?

Bluesy Soul :cool:
 
#35
I agree completely with using Mahogany for your "P" I've had some done that way in the past and they always have sounded great, I usually have the bodies chambered and then use a top. I've tried Mahogany/Mahogany, Mahogany/Myrtle and Mahogany/Maple. The all Mahogany had the deepest bottom but the Mahogany/Maple has the overall best balance.

As far as pickups go, I never really found a need for the reversed "P" setup but I can reccommend Lindy Fralin's "P" pickups which he will wind to order +/- whatever you need.

Also, I couldn't agree more on the choice of Ebony for the fretboard. I love it.

This is my Wilkins Mahogany/Maple P/J with an Ebony board and Lindy Fralins. It is my favorite bass.

George
 
#37
Bluesy Soul said:
I don't mean to hijack your thread. It was just funny (though not really surprising) how you'd already done something similar to what I've been investigating and contemplating.

No hijack! This is exactly the kind of feedback I was fishing for. You've got some great ideas as well, thanks for sharing them! :)

Tell us more about the bass you've ordered: neck details, controls (determined by final pup selction, obviously), finishes, etc. I assume you're not disclosing the maker yet, but when do you expect it to be ready?

Bluesy Soul :cool:
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This is going to be a Skjold, and it is in his current batch (I have three in this batch! :eek:), so it'll be done towards the end of this batch, as I kinda snuck it in near the end. I will most likely go with a 34" neck, using his Lion's Pride headstock. The body is a 'P-bass-inspired' design by Pete, that looks like the 'Precision' take on his Lion's Pride model. Controls will be volume, selector switch (for the different pickup configs) and passive tone. No preamp. Pickups will be Pete's standard C4 pickup, but with the custom coil wiring.

Tom.
 
#38
X Wolf said:
I agree completely with using Mahogany for your "P" I've had some done that way in the past and they always have sounded great, I usually have the bodies chambered and then use a top. I've tried Mahogany/Mahogany, Mahogany/Myrtle and Mahogany/Maple. The all Mahogany had the deepest bottom but the Mahogany/Maple has the overall best balance.

As far as pickups go, I never really found a need for the reversed "P" setup but I can reccommend Lindy Fralin's "P" pickups which he will wind to order +/- whatever you need.

Also, I couldn't agree more on the choice of Ebony for the fretboard. I love it.

This is my Wilkins Mahogany/Maple P/J with an Ebony board and Lindy Fralins. It is my favorite bass.

George
Click to expand...

I have been drooling over some mahogany bodied Wilkins P-basses for a while. Damn, you are not helping me!!! ;) :D :help:

Thanks for your input, George! :)

Tom.
 

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