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Nordstrand Big Blades?

#61
5StringPocket said:
Beautiful bass and I like the reverse slant on that neck pickup. Does it help keep the B-string focused and the G-string fat? Please tell us more about this bass - woods, electronics, switching etc.
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Hi,
thank you very much!
First, hope talking about this I'm not infringing the CUP here on TB !

This is my #1 bass of my official new line of basses debuted at NAMM 2017.

Long story short, it is a realization of ~25 years of research/development/evolution for "my own instrument"..

www.facebook.com/minabassdesign
www.minabassdesign.com (under construction)

Okoume body with exotic top (cocobolo here), custom carbon fiber neck, custom Nordstrand electronics, custom Hipshot hardware. Big Blades humcan switchable parallel/series, custom N3b.
The layout is pretty intuitive:

master Volume, blend, treble, mid, bass
par/ser sw
mid freq sw
mute (on/off) sw

Yes, the idea of the slanted neck pup is to keep the lows tight and focused, at the same time retaining the fatness and sweetness on the top end
 
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#63
maurilio said:
Hi,
thank you very much!
First, hope talking about this I'm not infringing the CUP here on TB !

This is my #1 bass of my official new line of basses debuted at NAMM 2017.

Long story short, it is a realization of ~25 years of research/development/evolution for "my own instrument"..

www.facebook.com/minabassdesign
www.minabassdesign.com (under construction)
Click to expand...

That's awesome to hear Mo! Looks like you'll be doing some fantastic work!

Of course, now that you've revealed that you've got these humcanceling Big Blades in hand, what can you tell us about them in terms of output & tone? Inquiring minds, and all. ;)
 
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#64
Thank you! very exciting times!

Granted I didn't compare the BBSW vs the BB in the same bass, but the general impression is that the BBSW are a little smoother and less aggressive then the BB. Since they can be wired parallel and/or series, they have the typical dual coil behavior, being louder and thicker in series, but these BBSW even when wired in series they stay very focused and articulate (compared to a DC). This is because of the one single blade sensing/seeing the string vibration. To me this is the first time I use a "dual coil" pickup with parallel/series that I actually like the series mode!
Sound wise in parallel they are very clear with a crispy high end, a relatively warm low mid and very well defined deep lows, not very strong output. In series they are a little tighter with thicker overall sound, less top end and lows, but again not as extreme as a traditional DC... of course higher output.
Again, these are prototypes, we will need some more comparison in more traditional/classic built basses
 
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#66
I'm so excited for the sidewinders! Get those comparisons on YouTube! ; )

I have covered blade sidewinders from another maker, two versions. One uses ceramic magnets and the other, neodymium.

The ceramic version is quite low output. Really nice fizzy growl with a lot of natural high-mid content. Though lacking in low mid.
The Neo, however, had very good output and was particularly authorative in the low mid. The overall tone had a hint of modern flavor to it. Particularly as a bridge pickup.
 
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#67
In our Killer B basses, we now use Nordstrand pickups exclusively. On our Ronny Cates signature series bass, it will come with the Nordstrand Big Blades. I also have 2 of my personal basses being built, that will have the Big Blades in them. These pickups are fantastic! I can't wait to get my basses with them.
 
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#68
maurilio said:
Thank you! very exciting times!

Granted I didn't compare the BBSW vs the BB in the same bass, but the general impression is that the BBSW are a little smoother and less aggressive then the BB. Since they can be wired parallel and/or series, they have the typical dual coil behavior, being louder and thicker in series, but these BBSW even when wired in series they stay very focused and articulate (compared to a DC). This is because of the one single blade sensing/seeing the string vibration. To me this is the first time I use a "dual coil" pickup with parallel/series that I actually like the series mode!
Sound wise in parallel they are very clear with a crispy high end, a relatively warm low mid and very well defined deep lows, not very strong output. In series they are a little tighter with thicker overall sound, less top end and lows, but again not as extreme as a traditional DC... of course higher output.
Again, these are prototypes, we will need some more comparison in more traditional/classic built basses
Click to expand...
These sound very interesting to me!

I also notice that the blade/notches would indicate that is a "6-string" pickup on a 5 (I assume P4 shape routs) so the strings aren't necessarily lined up with the notches in the blade between them. I suspected this wouldn't be an issue but this likely confirms it? I ask because I have a Roscoe bass that uses this shape on a 5 string, and wondered if I had to custom order a set of BB (or BBSW) to get them to line up, but it may not be necessary.

Also, for the series parallel switch do you have a 4PDT to do both pickups on one toggle?
 
#69
Jeff Moote said:
...the strings aren't necessarily lined up with the notches in the blade between them. I suspected this wouldn't be an issue but this likely confirms it? I ask because I have a Roscoe bass that uses this shape on a 5 string, and wondered if I had to custom order a set of BB (or BBSW) to get them to line up, but it may not be necessary.
Click to expand...

These pickups work for any spacing and number of strings. The notches are there just for the integrity of the plastic shell, so you'd be just fine using the P4 shape on a 5 string.
 
#71
Jeff Moote said:
These sound very interesting to me!

I also notice that the blade/notches would indicate that is a "6-string" pickup on a 5 (I assume P4 shape routs) so the strings aren't necessarily lined up with the notches in the blade between them. I suspected this wouldn't be an issue but this likely confirms it? I ask because I have a Roscoe bass that uses this shape on a 5 string, and wondered if I had to custom order a set of BB (or BBSW) to get them to line up, but it may not be necessary.

Also, for the series parallel switch do you have a 4PDT to do both pickups on one toggle?
Click to expand...
You can always ask for a custom P4 BBSW5.....
 
#72
Hey all...sorry it took an extra day. Here's a quick clip of my bass (Ristola 6 string, mahogany chambered body, maple top/back, maple/bubinga neck, ebony fingerboard) with the new set of BigRig pickups. Bass line is just neck pickup with tone all the way up. The soloing is some bridge pickup mixed in with the tone slightly down. Pickups wired in series and passive (no preamp).

[Invalid or Expired Link Removed]



"Nordstrand Artist"
 
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#78
Thinking of putting two big blades passive in the Sadowsky modern arrangement i.e., one in the sweet spot and one in the 60s bridge position - to make a pure funk machine. Always thought the neck pickup of a jazz sounded dull, so not worried about losing that.

But wondering if two positioned that far towards the bridge will give too much bark still, or could I get a nice full thump??
 
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#79
4StringTheorist said:
I've never played any Big Singles, so I'm not sure. Might be something to email or TB message Carey or Mo about. The Blades have ceramic pickups rather than Alnico and the blade 'polepiece' is always under the string. Those two factors might argue for a more aggressive tone rather than less? It's hard to speculate since the coils are certainly not wound identically.

I can say that those clips are both me playing with a consistently light touch. The Big Blades get a LOT ruder/aggressive when you dig in.. in a way the DCBs didn't.

Not saying that both of them don't feature a good dynamic range: they're both excellent in that respect. But the Nordstands can definitely speak aggressively in a way that my clips doesn't show off, but that the 3 Big Blade clips from Nordstrand on YouTube demonstrate fairly accurately.
Click to expand...
what are dcb's? p
 

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