P/J Single-Coil: Hum Cancelling?

[Kozmyk]

I have two Ibanez SRs with J-type pickups. The fretless has Strat type pickups mounted underneath the EMG-Js as hum cancellers. I didn't map out the wiring while I was in there. Didn't think of it at the time...

 

[HappyChillmore]

A PJ set with a single coil Jazz pickup will only hum cancel when the P pickup is soloed.

I'll explain it in laymans terms:

The coils of a P are RWRP so that the noise comes in on a + phase from one coil, and a - phase on the other. Combining equal + and - signals causes them to cancel each other out.
Now say you add the J pickup in...
Now you are adding in hum on a + phase, but there is no equal signal with a - phase to cancel that hum out.

Any time you have an odd number of coils going (1 for the solo J or 3 for the P and J together) the bass will not humcancel.

So is there no way to have him canceling PJ setup?! I’m losing my mind trying to figure this out. It makes it even harder (I think) that I have concentric/stacked vol/tone - vol/tone pots.. (squire Jaguar cv)

 

[BlueTalon]

So is there no way to have him canceling PJ setup?! I’m losing my mind trying to figure this out. It makes it even harder (I think) that I have concentric/stacked vol/tone - vol/tone pots.. (squire Jaguar cv)

Of course there is. You just need to get a hum canceling J pickup to go with your already hum-cancelling P pickup. Your control setup is irrelevant. Here are some examples of hum canceling J pickups, in no particular order. You are limited only by your budget.

DiMarzio
Seymour Duncan
Aguilar
Bartolini
Delano
Nordstrand

Most pickup makers offer more than just one version of their hum canceling pickups. Delano, for example, makes versions with standard pole pieces, as well as a version with extra large pole pieces and a version with no exposed pole pieces.

 

[HappyChillmore]

I was hoping to just get a PJ set that is him canceling, so I guess a set that includes a J pup that has some sort of split coil or humbucking design. I’ve been told the dimarzio dp126 PJ set will be humbucking and they’re 159 for a set which seems great. I found some Seymour Duncan quarter pound PJ pups but I am under the impression the J pup is a single coil and therefore not hum canceling at all.

 

[BlueTalon]

I was hoping to just get a PJ set that is him canceling, so I guess a set that includes a J pup that has some sort of split coil or humbucking design. I’ve been told the dimarzio dp126 PJ set will be humbucking and they’re 159 for a set which seems great. I found some Seymour Duncan quarter pound PJ pups but I am under the impression the J pup is a single coil and therefore not hum canceling at all.

Correct. The SD 1/4# J pickups are not hum canceling. The DiMarzio set is a great place to start IMO.

What kind of tone are you going after?

 

[HappyChillmore]

Cool thanks! I think I’m going to go for the dimarzios. Other potential choice is the emg geezer PJ ones, but mostly because I like the idea that they come with pots and everything is solderless. I feel like the Squier pots might not be so great so it would be nice to replace everything.
The sound… something mostly punchy with good treble with that fender tone. I’m a producer and want an old school sort of soul/funk/blues type sound. My other bass is a schecter 5 string with active emgs that I believe provides other kinds of “non-fender style” tones? Probably what I’ll record with when I want the bass to be less noticeable or less of a focal point on a track, and just some basic subtle clean supplemental bass. I’m a also a guitar player just sort of getting into bass in a way lol

 

[BlueTalon]

Cool thanks! I think I’m going to go for the dimarzios. Other potential choice is the emg geezer PJ ones, but mostly because I like the idea that they come with pots and everything is solderless. I feel like the Squier pots might not be so great so it would be nice to replace everything.
The sound… something mostly punchy with good treble with that fender tone. I’m a producer and want an old school sort of soul/funk/blues type sound. My other bass is a schecter 5 string with active emgs that I believe provides other kinds of “non-fender style” tones? Probably what I’ll record with when I want the bass to be less noticeable or less of a focal point on a track, and just some basic subtle clean supplemental bass. I’m a also a guitar player just sort of getting into bass in a way lol

In that case, you might prefer the DiMarzio Area J or Model J to the Ultra J, which is a more modern sound.

But if I may, let me suggest that your stated purpose of having the bass be "less noticeable or less of a focal point" might be a bit misguided. You want the best possible bass sound you can get in service of the music you are creating. You already know this, in that you are trying to get a bass sound that has no unwanted noise in the signal. I understand that you don't want the bass tone to distract from the vocals and lead instruments, but that doesn't necessarily mean you want the bass tone to be dull or understated.