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One pickup or two?

#81
PlungerModerno said:
One pickup or two? How about 'Whatever gets a deeply satisfying and sufficently functional tone out of the bass'

That might be 7 pickups in surround sound with a wall of synthesizers or an acoustic bass with a mic.

Too many variables, no simple answer.

Why I've commented here though is to say: One pickup at a time seems to work best for me - I've found I lose a lot of mids if I introduce another pickup. I usually don't want that.

That said I prefer basses to have a couple of pickups - that way I needn't have a preamp on board and can still get a lot more than just volume and tone on a single 'pup. Gotta love neck pickups. :bassist:
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I agree, the phase cancellation often does not sound good to me, but like you I prefer to have multiple pickups to choose from, especially on a passive bass.
 
#82
One is the loneliest number. One of the most funkiest, grindiest, rawest funk bass sounds I'ver ever heard was from a guy (RIP) named Mark Adams. He played a Fender jazz that was modded to have 3 pickups. The more pickups the merrier as far as a bass goes IMO. Bootsy's space bass has multiple pickups. You only need one pickup, but I beleive the more you have the better it is. There are exceptions, like if you're trying to lock down certain sounds, like a fretless with one pickup in the right spot etc.
 
#83
phillybass101 said:
One is the loneliest number. One of the most funkiest, grindiest, rawest funk bass sounds I'ver ever heard was from a guy (RIP) named Mark Adams. He played a Fender jazz that was modded to have 3 pickups. The more pickups the merrier as far as a bass goes IMO. Bootsy's space bass has multiple pickups. You only need one pickup, but I beleive the more you have the better it is. There are exceptions, like if you're trying to lock down certain sounds, like a fretless with one pickup in the right spot etc.
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Amen to that - you can always use them one at a time!

Guitars generally have two or three but with basses its one or two. Such an unjust world we bassists suffer. ;)

You can always add pickups yourself, but on more expensive basses it can kill the value. I would kinda like to add a couple pickups or a preamp to my Mustang but won't for that reason.
 
#84
Doner Designs said:
I agree, the phase cancellation often does not sound good to me, but like you I prefer to have multiple pickups to choose from, especially on a passive bass.
Click to expand...

My Invalid Link Removed has two very distinct voices - both of which I like a lot - a compressed, burpy, middy bridge tone is possible - as is an open, deep and sweet neck pickup tone - All good, all passive, and for a more universal example one need look no further than a jazz bass config.
 
#86
I think for me one pickup in the right spot generally beats two. Often times two-pickup models miss the sweet spot, or make it difficult to find due to the pickup placement being somewhat of a compromise. With two pickups I always end up second guessing myself, wondering if a slightly different blend would give me a better sound. Whereas with something like a P bass or Stingray I'm usually happy with the single pickup. It helps me to focus on actually playing instead of worrying about gear minutia.

...also I think I've just stumbled upon the realization that I prefer separate volume controls over a blend knob on multi-pickup basses. Because then I can just say yup everything's at full volume, good to go. In my mind it's simpler than searching for a perfect blend. Obviously that's stupid, but it gives me a strange peace of mind that is based on something other than logic.
 
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#87
All my basses except for my big al have 2 pickups. The big al has 3. :) I've owned a handful of 1 pickup basses and always wind up selling them off, I think mostly due to what an earlier poster said, they often lacked the fullness I can dial in with the neck pickup. I also like the versatility, not so much for me wanting different sounds, but for the ability to tweak my tone for whatever room I'm playing in. Anyone who gigs often knows how different sound can be from room to room. A bass can sound completely awesome in one place, and then with the same exact settings on the amp and bass, turn to complete crap in the next room on another night. Surprised people don't discuss that much here. Hmm....
 
#88
Joe Nerve said:
I also like the versatility, not so much for me wanting different sounds, but for the ability to tweak my tone for whatever room I'm playing in. Anyone who gigs often knows how different sound can be from room to room. A bass can sound completely awesome in one place, and then with the same exact settings on the amp and bass, turn to complete crap in the next room on another night. Surprised people don't discuss that much here. Hmm....
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Ya, that's a great point. Most people see versatility as the instrument's ability to fit with different styles of music, but accommodating different sized rooms is probably a more important consideration.
 
#90
I prefer single pickup basses as I prefer the simplicity which kind of let's me explore more of what I can do. I'm still learning more and more and seeing what I can do with a single pickup is fun. However this is not to say I don't like having multiple pickups, when I get a chance to start buying a number of basses a P/J is certainly in the works as well as a 4HH or 5HH Stingray. But for now as I'm pretty low on funds for the foreseeable future and still developing as a player, I like my 4H SBMM Ray and hopefully soon a Squier Precision.
 
#91
One. No wait - two. Well actually three.

IMG_6824_zpscb59ff37.jpg
 
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#93
gebass6 said:
BREAKING NEWS!I have discovered a bass with a neck pickup AND bridge pickup sound that I just gotta have!The ESP LTD B1006.I was investigating this bass a while ago!Checking out it's bridge pickup sound.Nice and punchy middy "Jacoish" sound from the bridge.Good!I then checked out the neck pickup.BOOM!All beef and grind!Kinda like Billy Sheehan's tone!Now I have finally found a bass with two usable opposite pickup sounds!
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This is a big part of why I love my B-1005, great tone options that you simply couldn't get with just one pickup.
 
#94
IronLung1986 said:
Ya, that's a great point. Most people see versatility as the instrument's ability to fit with different styles of music, but accommodating different sized rooms is probably a more important consideration.
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Two (or more) pickups aren't going to be the difference between filling a room or not. That's about the amp.
 
#95
Like with horsepower, more is always better (IMO). :-)

My "Old 442" bass has 4 band preamp, 4 pickups (2 coils each) passive tone, dual volume, pickup switching, 3 position Z mode switch (an Audere thing), mute switch, battery switch and an onboard egg slicers (I guess that's what the strings are for).;)

IMG_7748_zps11b532a7.jpg


442HoodOpen_zps04b4ed68.jpg


IMG_7744_zpsa9d5c08a.jpg
 
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#97
I know i might be a bit late to the party but since so many people prefer a 1 pickup bass i think i have the perfect 1 its called a peavey T45 you tell me what other bass has a big ol humbucker with blades that can be a single coil and can go out of phase from the factory stock thing sounds like a early model gibson thunderbird where they only had the 1 pickup, and when in single coil i swear to god it reminds me of an early model telecaster bass (1957 precision bass) and when out of phase it reminds me of the bridge pickup of a epiphone EB3 if you can believe 1 pickup can do all that the peavey t45 is a monster. Heres a picture of what you can expect to find on the control cavity... it scared me at first
 

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#99
Michael Jewels said:
Attention Moderator: You might at first think that this belongs
in the Pickup section, but, as you read on I think you'll agree
that it's more of a guitar question rather than a technical pickup inquiry.

The question that I now put before all you Friends, Romans and countrymen of this forum: Do you prefer one pickup on a bass, or two, and Why? I'll give my opinion then you all can follow.

A few months ago, I read a tone tip in Bass Player Magazine
in which a few bass players/makers were asked about how many pickups a bass sounds best with, and it made me think
a bit.

I think a bass only needs one pickup to sound good. O.K. I
know two pickups gives more potential versatility, but after
buying an Epi Jack Casady, it changed my mind about the number of pickups a bass should have. With only one pickup
I think you concentrate more on your playing than on your tone. I know a Jazz Bass sounds great and versatile, but, think
about Musicman Stingrays; they sound fantastic, and if you
think back a few years, they offered a two pickup version
(the Sabre) but, as you all know, wasn't nearly as popular as the Stingray, why?

One pickup also makes for a less complicated instrument; less
wiring and switching. Some players and manufacturers also feel that one pickup gives somewhat more of a truer tone, as
there's less of a magnetic field to affect the strings' vibratons.

One more thing to add to the *one pickup* cause: If you play
acoustic bass guitar, or an upright, how many pickups do they have?

Just something I wanted to ask you all.

Mike J.

P.S. Whatever you view on pickups, let me give all of you some personal advise: If you're out at a bar, Don't try to
*Pickup* more than one woman per night; it doesn't end well.
Click to expand...
Sure, they have some nice basses with only one pickup, but...

Someone saw fit to put two pickups on the G&L L2000, so...

Other than that, I really like my backup bass, a Gamma Alpha and it's a P bass copy, therefore...
 
#100
I just went through a pretty big bass selloff, and the ones I kept are almost all single pickups. I have 2 G&L Sb-1s, 2 G&L L1000s, a G&L 1005, and a custom made 5 string fretless with L1000 style electronics. I think it's partly the simplicity of one pickup, plus I like the sound of a split coil or humbucker in the neck pickup position.
 

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