P bass pickups

[Icey101]

yo

i bought a MIJ 90's P Bass and the stock pickups serious make me feel crook they have sort of frequency that iriritates the crap out of me....i have been reading the different pickup threads ....dimarzio v SD etc ...i really just want a bit more growl then the current fuzzy dead sound, or seriously do brand name pickups really make a difference for the money or is it just blullshyte hype?

 

[DavePlaysBass]

If on a budget and you want good old fashion P, get some Fender 62s.

 

[Marton]

Seymour Duncan SPB-1 are really cool and pretty cheap too.

 

[Icey101]

i was thinking maybe a P Bass really isnt designed for high output, due to the pup's being located in the centre of the body, its a MIJ 57 reissue and i am not sure if they use real fender pups in it

 

[Marton]

Most MIJ Fender basses are known for their great craftmanship, not electronics. Have you try messing with the pickup height ? If set too low, a P bass will have a lower output and a kinda boring sound, maybe you need to put them a little higher. P basses generally have more output than Jazz Basses, they're pretty high output for passive basses. Can you measure the distance between the poles and the strings for us ?

 

[Icey101]

yeh i might check that out and raise it up a bit, thanks

 

[darkstorm]

Both seymour duncan and dimarzio P pups are good upgrades with hotter then average output, great sound and reasonably low cost.

 

[NKBassman]

When's the last time you changed your strings?

For more growl, try a set of stainless steel roundwounds next time, that might be just what you need.

 

[Thunder Pulse]

i was thinking maybe a P Bass really isnt designed for high output, due to the pup's being located in the centre of the body

What?

 

[Batmensch]

As others have suggested, before you go spending money on new pickups, try adjusting the pickup height. I did that for my '78 P-bass, the previous owner had them adjusted flat (parallel to the pickguard) and low. I adjusted them to Fender specs, and the sound was noticeably improved and louder. A professional setup wouldn't hurt either.

 

[Batmensch]

i was thinking maybe a P Bass really isnt designed for high output, due to the pup's being located in the centre of the body, its a MIJ 57 reissue and i am not sure if they use real fender pups in it

Position of the pickup on the body has nothing to do with it's output.

 

[TheFantod]

I own three P-basses. One of them uses the Dimarzio 122's, and the other two use Fender 62's.

In MY experience, the Fender 62's are very "hot" pickups. I get a noticeable hum when not touching the strings in my RoadWorn, not so much in my AVRI. The Dimarzios are silent. (And yes, my 62's are installed correctly).

I daresay that the Dimarzios are more "growly" than the 62's, and the 62's are more "vintage" sounding.

Oh, and here's a good thread where you can listen to the difference between Dimarzios & 62's: http://www.talkbass.com/forum/f38/spb-3-vs-dp122-vs-62-original-410553/

 

[PaulNYC]

check out [Invalid or Expired Link Removed] by bill lawrence.

 

[Icey101]

this is a nice forum, thanks guys