P bass pickup suggestions

[NoiseNinja]

I was generalizing about P Pickups. The DiMarzio, if I am correct is ceramic magnet and not AlNiCo 5 like what about 90% of P pickups are made of.

There are P Pickups with AlNiCo 2, 3, 8 type magnets. Quarter inch magnets. Hot windings There are bar magnets. And other variations. But the #5 are most common and to me, they all sound about the same.

I was generalizing. I'm sorry.

Good luck on your quest.

The EMG Geezer Butler I had installed in my main bass previously to the Model P being a huge improvement over the stock P pickup, and the Model P that is currently installed much more to my personal preferences than the Geezer, all 3 being very different sounding P pickups.

The stock and the Model P utilizing ceramic pickups, the Geezer using Alnico 5.

You might be right that there won't be that much of a difference between most P pickups on the market, most probably being some variation of a classic vintage voiced P, but I would claim that there are still a quite fair amount of P pickups that all sound different to each other, which is why I don't think your notion really is valid.

It is not just down to magnet type and how they are wound either, strength of magnet, how many magnets used and how those are arranged too, type and gauge of wire they are wound with, as well as the nature of the poles used matters as well, all being factors that can make a quite essential difference in tone, all in all giving a lot of possible options for different tones from different pickups, even if having the same basic form factor, as in this case a P pickup, add to that something like the DiMarzio Split P, where each half essentially is a dual bladed full humbucker in their own regard, and the options becomes even more varied.

 

[Laurent]

"Thick and low, cream overs, not boomy..."

Most covers are removable and are standard so you should be good on that score. Cream cover may be purchased as an aftermarket.

When it comes to the thick, low not boomy part I would suggest SD Antiquity II or Aguilar AG-P60. That being said you could add about half of the pickups produced to this list. I would stay way from overwound pickups since some can be boomy namely Aguilar AG-P60 HOT and SD SPB-2.

Hope this helps; having a more pinpointed description of what you want might help.

 

[Killing Floor]

Too late to + for Fralin? Handmade, small business, highly trusted by pros but does no endorsements. Very customer focused. If you ask a question they will respond promptly. I just put a +5% in a P Bass and it slays. I am currently using Fralins in P, J and Tele. Totally recommend.

 

[Killing Floor]

Fralin in cream.

 

[Killing Floor]

 

[Lowbrow]

for what you've described you are seeking I think you should avoid DiMarzio Model P (too much boom) and try Fender Pure Vintage '63 (removable black covers).

 

[bassdude51]

The EMG Geezer Butler I had installed in my main bass previously to the Model P being a huge improvement over the stock P pickup, and the Model P that is currently installed much more to my personal preferences than the Geezer, all 3 being very different sounding P pickups.

The stock and the Model P utilizing ceramic pickups, the Geezer using Alnico 5.

You might be right that there won't be that much of a difference between most P pickups on the market, but I would claim that there are still a quite fair amount of P pickups that all sound different to each other, which is why I don't think your notion is valid.

It not just about magnet type and how they are wound either, strength of magnet, type and gauge of wire they are wound with and the nature of the poles used matters as well and all can make a quite essential difference, all in all giving a lot of possible options for different tones from different pickups, add to that something like the DiMarzio Split P, where each half is a dual bladed humbucker in their own regards, and the options becomes even more varied.

One more remark from me and I'll do no more.

At age 69 and a total bass collecting junkie. I have more P Basses that I can shake a stick at. And, they all have TI Flats which are my favorite string. One P is and has an original 1966 pickup. Several have the Fender Original P pickups. Several have the Fender Custom Shop '62. One has that cheap Gotoh pickup (which is my favorite), one has a set of Aero Type 1 pickups.

Well, the bottom line is that no 2 basses sound alike at least not in the 100% sense. So yeah, different pickups are gonna sound different. But once again generally, an AlNiCo 5 pole magnet vintage type P pickup is what it is.

The Geezer EMG was made to sound after his (forget the date) 70s P Bass. And with the way Fender was back then, no two 70s pickups were ever made alike.

Whatever, whatever.

If you've not tried already, I'd recommend trying different strings before experimenting with different pickups. Round wounds, nickel, stainless, pressure wounds, half rounds, flats, different gauges......the list is endless. Strings are the #1 factor for how a bass sounds.

Good luck on your sound quest. (Like Marty McFly's mom said in BTTF #2 to Biff........."I'm sorry. You were right and I was wrong.")

 

[sheltjo6]

Hey folks, as the title says, I'm in the market for some pbass pickups. I know there's a million and a half threads on this but they're all tailored towards specific tastes.
Down to the details. I currently have a set of fender original pickups (I've attached a pic to this post)
To me they seem to lack any real oomph and the mids sounds "boxy" if that makes sense. I like to keep my volume on full and tone at about 50-75%
What I need is thick and round. Punch is good but when I say punch I'm talking a punch from a big fist rather than a jab like punch. Not a fan of boomy lows.

I do have two requirements:
1. Passive
2. They must either come in cream colored or have removable covers so I can put cream covers on them

My personal go-to passive precision pickup is Aguilar's AG-4P 60. (Good overall round tone)
Another option would be a Fender Pure Vintage '63 Precision Pickup. (Thick mids)

Plenty of other options out there too.

 

[sonojono]

Depending on your bass is what it comes down to really. You have to experiment with pickups that you think will work with your P. I personally love Dimarzios as they give me punch in a vintage kind of way (not boomy at all) EMG GZR for that modern voicing.

Sounds like you’d have fun with the Dimarzio’s but I would suggest upgrading your tone pots to 500k that Dimarzios suggests when installing their pickups.

Here’s mine on an Ibanez Mezzo!

 

[707GK]

Ca you get more thick and round than a Fender Pure Vintage ‘63 pickup?

The PV63 has the low mid “punch” you want, while also having all the warm, roundness, but still definitive and harmonically rich. No harsh treble here, but not mud either. You may even play with the tone knob 100% open and find it nice for your style if you normally run at 70-80% tone.

 

[NortyFiner]

SPB-3 Quarter Pounders have a lot of bass with a very pronounced mid scoop. I don't think they're what you're looking for.

EMG GZRs have a solid midrange sound. Check out some clips of them. Or just go Youtube anything Black Sabbath has done in the last several years to hear them live in Geezer's hands.

 

[dylanjohnson]

I've been happy with a stock pickup from a late period mexican P (just before the player series started) set flat and very close to the body. Nice thick mids without boominess. I had a Fender original in my last P Bass and hated it. Not sure if it was the pickup or the bass, but it didn't work for me.

 

[dkelley]

Great suggestions here - the only thing I would keep in mind is that, while the pickup does affect the default EQ and tone dramatically, of course, and I concur you should change it if you're unhappy, I have experienced that instruments also have their own tone (dark, light, mid-forward, recessed mids) due to the combination of woods, design, etc. So your choice of pickup might be affected by what the instrument will make it sound like afterwards. For example, I own a guitar that's amazing, one of my favorites, but it has a certain tone in the mids that is unique and very dramatically evident in it's output through and amp and acoustically. No matter the pickups I put in it, they are still going to have to work with that midrange unique tone it has. They do, and pickups change it dramatically, but I can't, no matter what, change it from sounding like an entirely different instrument, since it's particular wood sound has a very strong personality.

So if your particular bass is rather mid-forward, it could be the pickup, or it could be the bass itself. Which could suggested that a more scooped pickup will remedy that particular issue.

My points are wildly general, of course, but I absolutely have found that a precision pickup that sounds like a huge incredible modern hifi thing in one bass, will sound like a tame, vintage, groovy RnB machine on another bass, with the strings being the same. I normally setup all my basses with the same type of strings until I learn what the instrument sounds like with that baseline (pardon the pun).

 

[Dave Campbell]

I was going to mention Aero picks, thanks for bringing that up. I have them in a Jazz Bass and they are phenominal, but have been curious about their P Bass pickups.

 

[JRT64]

I have a DiMarzio Model P in my SX P-Bass, and I love it. I have it strung up with Dunlop flats and the boom is there when I want it and I can roll it back when I don't.

 

[FrenchBassQC]

I bought a set of David Allen a few years back and they are the thickest and the most knock out punch I've ever played. The are very versatile and are very responsive to the type of playing you ask them to reproduce from your fingers... Now here is the issue, I am not sure he is still in business. I tried to reach them to buy another set but never got a reply and I saw on the Webternet that he might have closed his shop. So I bought a set of aguilar 4P-60 and I really like them so far.

 

[Benj-jammin]

I recommend the DiMarzio Model P :


Comes with cream colored covers as well, and think they are removable too:
View attachment 4196433

DiMarzio Model P® | DiMarzio

I just had some DP 126's put on my P-Bass Special - takes it all to another level - love the DiMarzio's!!

 

[Kipp Harrington]

Nobody has recommended EMG GZRs yet?

Huh. I must be on the wrong website.

I agree. But are GZRs covers removable? I have the GZRs (love them) but I never thought about taking a look to see if the covers were removable. I would love cream color covers also. Unfortunately they're not offered.

 

[fourstringburn]

Fender P bass original '62 pickups have plenty of low end throb. These are Alnico 5 magnets.

Cream pickup covers can be bought separately to be swapped out.

I've been going back and forth between the EMG Geezers and these but settled on the '62. The Geezers have good clear mids but I like the low end throb of the 62's. Also the 62's show a bit more output on a VU meter with the same settings.

Still a tough choice between these 2.

 

[fourstringburn]

Another thing to consider, hot wound pickups tend to compromise more highs and bumps lower mids that can lead to a darker tone.

A P-Bass already has a darker tone compared to a Jazz due to the P -Bass with humbuckers. A hotter wound pickups could emphasis this even more.

Just something to consider.