Pickup recommendations for Tacoma Thunderbass 5 String?

[Kevan Campbell]

Hey y'all! I recently picked up a Tacoma Thunderchief Fretless 5 String, and unfortunately the low B string has a significantly lower output than the other four strings. My local luthier (who repaired a split in the top when I got the bass in) said that it could be due to the undersaddle pickup on these basses barely extending to the low B under the saddle AND to the tapered-core design of the Labella Tapewound Black strings currently on it.

Would anyone out there in TB-Land be able to recommend a good undersaddle pickup that will pick up a low B? I'm planning on looking around for different ABG strings to test first but would like to have some ideas for pickup replacement should it come to that.

 

[guy n. cognito]

Wouldn't it make sense to replace the strings first to see if that eliminates the problem before trying to replace the pickup???

 

[Mrmatt1972]

I'd be willing to bet that a k&k system would work great.

 

[Kevan Campbell]

Wouldn't it make sense to replace the strings first to see if that eliminates the problem before trying to replace the pickup???

Yes it would, that's why I'm going to take that route first. However I'd like to have a secondary option to exercise in the event that switching from a taperwound low B to a non-tapewound low B doesn't work out.

 

[SpruceApple]

I'd be willing to bet that a k&k system would work great.

Any feedback concerns?

 

[walterw]

Any feedback concerns?

it's gonna be more feedback-sensitive than the under-saddle, but i bet it could sound really good with the right EQ, a bit more "natural", maybe even copping a pinch of upright tone.

to me undersaddle pickups on bass guitars sound almost too "big", with vast lows and scratchy extended highs; more like a harsh piano than an upright bass.

that said, the OP's fix is to just get his stock pickup's voicing right, maybe with a new saddle.

 

[matthewbrown]

I opted for a K&K pickup system for my Michael Kelly Club Deluxe 5-string. Sounds far superior now, and I already liked the bass a lot. $150 well spent.