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Nordstrand Big Break pickups?

sikamikanico

sikamikanico

Mar 17, 2004
4,112
4,078
#1
I just noticed some Ibbys now have Nordstrand "Big Break" pickups. I don't see anything on Nordstrand's website, but Ibanez says: "Nordstrand™ "Big Break" pickups cram a meaty split coil into a soapbar-style pickup, producing a full-bodied, powerful, aggressive tonal texture, while still retaining the clarity that's characteristic of single coil tone with noiseless performance."

Anyone know anything about this? Is this just a slightly offset Big Split, or a new pickup? Can't tell... In theory, spacing the coils a bit further would allow for a slightly wider coil aperture, a bit more like a P bass would have (but not quite as wide as a P). Of course, there may be other changes under the hood as well...

But they sound a lot like Big Splits to me:
 
#2
sikamikanico said:
I just noticed some Ibbys now have Nordstrand "Big Break" pickups. I don't see anything on Nordstrand's website, but Ibanez says: "Nordstrand™ "Big Break" pickups cram a meaty split coil into a soapbar-style pickup, producing a full-bodied, powerful, aggressive tonal texture, while still retaining the clarity that's characteristic of single coil tone with noiseless performance."

Anyone know anything about this? Is this just a slightly offset Big Split, or a new pickup? Can't tell... In theory, spacing the coils a bit further would allow for a slightly wider coil aperture, a bit more like a P bass would have (but not quite as wide as a P). Of course, there may be other changes under the hood as well...

But they sound a lot like Big Splits to me:
Click to expand...

It might be a pickup designed for the models specifically. I know they did that for some sr600 models.
 
#3
IMHO they're just catering to the golden-ear crowd, the folks who think they can hear a difference in a 2.5mm offset.
Here's what the Big-Split looks like under the cover, it IS a p-bass pickup, just w/o the offset:

Nordstrand_Pickups_BigSplitMan4__nocover_2000x.jpg


In a way, they're already offset, by virtue of the angle of the coils.

TBH when I solo the neck pickup & roll back the treble-cut a little, it sounds like a p-bass to me:
MPF2004

MPF2004

new strap day
 
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#4
Killed_by_Death said:
IMHO they're just catering to the golden-ear crowd, the folks who think they can hear a difference in a 2.5mm offset.
Click to expand...

Yeah, that's what I was wondering... or maybe a marketing trick, to distinguish themselves from other companies using Nordstrand pickups, like ESP. Maybe the "Big Break" is an Ibanez exclusive deal? :)

Killed_by_Death said:
In a way, they're already offset, by virtue of the angle of the coils.

TBH when I solo the neck pickup & roll back the treble-cut a little, it sounds like a p-bass to me
Click to expand...

Yeah, I agree, Big Split is the most P-bass pickup in a soapbar I have heard so far. I think it helps to have those angled poles, which creates a bigger magnetic aperture. But Big Splits still have a relatively tall and narrow coil structure. This is probably because you can only squeeze so much wire on an in-line split coil (and probably because they were not trying to develop a fancy P pickup, but a "J on steorids" sound).

You can see it at this angle well:
big%20split%205%20a.jpg


But if you space the coils a little bit more (neck-to-bridge wise), you also create a larger gap between the coils, allowing you to wind the two halves/coils more like a P bass. Something more like the NP4A pickup:
Nordstrand-NP4a-4-String-Bass-Pickup-coil-1024x-wm_1200x.jpg


At least that's where my mind went...

Perhaps @maurilio might have insider knowledge?
 
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#7
The Expendable Clay said:
View attachment 4116587
check out the portion for the D and G strings. This part shows 3 pole pieces per string. That's pretty interesting.
Click to expand...

Yeah, great observation! I wonder if this is to thicken D and G string sound, since that coil only captures 2 strings (vs. the other coil capturing 3 strings). Folks have had similar discussions on how to balance the sound of a split coil on a 5-string bass. This may be another way?

But they use the same "break" on their four string version, so I don't know??
upload_2021-1-5_12-58-59.png
 
#8
sikamikanico said:
Yeah, great observation! I wonder if this is to thicken D and G string sound, since that coil only captures 2 strings (vs. the other coil capturing 3 strings). Folks have had similar discussions on how to balance the sound of a split coil on a 5-string bass. This may be another way?

But they use the same "break" on their four string version, so I don't know??
View attachment 4116722
Click to expand...
We need the Nordstrand man himself to chime in.
 
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#10
The Expendable Clay said:
View attachment 4116587
check out the portion for the D and G strings. This part shows 3 pole pieces per string. That's pretty interesting.
Click to expand...

3/2 inline split pickups don't completely cancel hum - there are more pole pieces in one sode than the other. Pole pieces, being ferromagnetic, "invite electromagnetic fields into the coil" - in the case of a 3/2 split pickup, that happens more on one side than the other. Another way of thinking of it is that the hum generated in each coil is proportional to the number of pole pieces in the coil, and when you combine different amounts of hum they don't cancel. A 4 string bass has 2 sets of pole pieces on one side, 2 on the other - 2 minus 2 is zero (no hum). On a 5 string pickup, 3 minus 2 is...not zero.

Adding more pole pieces to the "short" side helps balance that out - the "extra" pole pieces on this pickup are there in large part to reduce hum. If you look inside some 5 string pickups (the Dingwall design that Nordstrand makes, for example, and some P style pickups, there are 6 pole pieces - one of which isn't magnetized (and may be hidden); that 6th pole piece is there to balance hum.
 
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#13
Killed_by_Death said:
IMHO they're just catering to the golden-ear crowd, the folks who think they can hear a difference in a 2.5mm offset.
Here's what the Big-Split looks like under the cover, it IS a p-bass pickup, just w/o the offset:

View attachment 4115873

In a way, they're already offset, by virtue of the angle of the coils.

TBH when I solo the neck pickup & roll back the treble-cut a little, it sounds like a p-bass to me:
MPF2004

MPF2004

new strap day
Click to expand...
 
#14
Connect-4 was really really popular in the outdoor bars in the Land of Smiles, at one time.

sikamikanico said:
Big Split is the most P-bass pickup in a soapbar I have heard so far. I think it helps to have those angled poles, which creates a bigger magnetic aperture. But Big Splits still have a relatively tall and narrow coil structure.
Click to expand...
This is probably why I need to roll the treble-cut back to make it sound like a p-bass. I'd much rather have that extra 'grit' on top when I want it, however.
The Big-Split can sound like a p-bass, but a regular fat-coil, offset P-style pickup can't sound like a Big-Single. The Big-Split comes very close to the Big-Single sound, in a humbucker.
 
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#16
I just saw these while looking over the new Ibanez basses for 2021, and curious about these pickups too. I really like the Big Singles more aggressive sound on my Premium, and was wondering how the Big Break pickups sound in comparison. Also wanted to know if the EQ is the same as on the Premiums.
 
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#17
Sorry I haven't read all the posts here, but it dawned on me today that Ibanez is finally phasing out the mediocre "Bartolini" MK-1's for licensed Nordstrand pickups. They started with the licensed versions of the offset P and Big Single in their SR 604/605 line of P/J basses and now we're seeing Nordy's in their mid-level basses. I looked and Nordstrand isn't advertising a Big Break or SB-4 (the Nordy's on the new Jackson made Ibanez SR copies) on their website, so these for sure are licensed Nordstrand pickups.

I think it is genius that Carey Nordstrand isn't just licensing one pickup like the "Bartolini" MK-1 which was all the same 5-string size pickup, regardless of whether it was going to be in a 4-string or 5-string bass. These slightly different models which look similar and probably sound similar to actual Nordy's don't give the pickups the generic feel that everything that has Bart MK-1's in it has.

2919924521_jac_ins_frt_01_rr-png.png

upload_2021-6-7_9-2-21-png.png
 
#18
fourstringbliss said:
Sorry I haven't read all the posts here, but it dawned on me today that Ibanez is finally phasing out the mediocre "Bartolini" MK-1's for licensed Nordstrand pickups. They started with the licensed versions of the offset P and Big Single in their SR 604/605 line of P/J basses and now we're seeing Nordy's in their mid-level basses. I looked and Nordstrand isn't advertising a Big Break or SB-4 (the Nordy's on the new Jackson made Ibanez SR copies) on their website, so these for sure are licensed Nordstrand pickups.

I think it is genius that Carey Nordstrand isn't just licensing one pickup like the "Bartolini" MK-1 which was all the same 5-string size pickup, regardless of whether it was going to be in a 4-string or 5-string bass. These slightly different models which look similar and probably sound similar to actual Nordy's don't give the pickups the generic feel that everything that has Bart MK-1's in it has.

View attachment 4294452
View attachment 4294453
Click to expand...
I bet both are licensed. that's why they aren't on the Nordy website.
 
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