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replacing active pickups with passive,

Discussion in 'Basses [BG]' started by fdeeptone, Jul 28, 2009.

  1. Jul 28, 2009 #1
    fdeeptone

    fdeeptone

    Mar 26, 2009
    Newark Ohio
    Hi everyone,
    Could use some suggestions on how to go about the repair on this G&l Bass, I bought it with alembic pickups already installed. My son pulled the shaft out of the volume pot
    and Alembic doesnt carry the 3 way setup any longer.
    I already own an alembic so i am wanting to go passive with this bass. not really sure what pickups I would need and
    if i need to purchase new volume and tone control pots.
    I am including a pic as I have yet to figure out what model this bass is as well. It is an 81 or 83 model I am guessing.
    It has the old style headstock if that helps.

    Thanks

    Mark
     

    Attached Files:

  2. Jul 29, 2009 #2
    fdeeptone

    fdeeptone

    Mar 26, 2009
    Newark Ohio
    Well I guess there is no opinion on this, I;ll just conyact alembic and get their upgraded
    2 way harness. apprarntly someone went to alot of trouble to modify this G&L and i can
    only guess it was at one rime an sp1 or 2 modified. No opinions?

    Thanks

    Mark
     
  3. Jul 29, 2009 #3
    mishicoco

    mishicoco

    Jul 25, 2009
    alembic basses are beautiful, unfortunately the only experience ive had with them is buying a set of alembic jazz pick-ups with all the bess and whistles.I do think it's a wise decision on your part to go passive although the active seymore duncan basslines pick-ups might be a good idea if you want the largest plethora of tonal options . I am a huge proponent of GOOD passive pick-ups, i think that they give just about any instrument a more oganic sound, more cut in the mix and much more punch than active pick-ups,imho. Alembic basses are very bright sounding basses but they are toney ,witch is good ,and the ebony fretboards can cause them to have a more brittle top end. As far as a best pick-up,well it's very subjective , but for a darker more vintage sound you might want to check out rio grande pick-ups , lollar pick-ups are also very nice .Ok now there are some new pick-ups out that i havent had the cash to buy yet ,but they do look very intriguing , there called Q-tuners they use neodymium magnets which are supposed to be the most powerful magnets on the planet that you can buy without a perscription . there are a couple of youtube vids you can check out if you want to hear them they arte simply the best pick-ups ive heard so far .check out the testimonials on the q-tuner website ,i would comare them to spiritual testimonies of people who have had a religious experience. As far as the size of them fitting in the already cut route cavities , i cant say although ive seen people make some pretty attractive pick-ups covers to fill in the gaps , and if the pick-ups are to big it's even better if you dont mind forking out a few bills to have your pick-up cavities rerouted (i know this sounds scary but ive been there so im not easily freaked out ,it's really not that big of a deal ) i know im running on so i'll stop ,oh by the way q-tuners are around 150 a peice so they are pricey but being able to hear windchimes when you blow on your strings is always nice ,show me an active pick-up that clear! rock on :bassist:
     
  4. Jul 29, 2009 #4
    fdeeptone

    fdeeptone

    Mar 26, 2009
    Newark Ohio
    Thanks for the reply!
    I would be interested in the passive pickups that you need a prescription to buy:p
    I just dropped the bass off with my local shop, Jon (the repair guy says he has repaired these shafts before on alembics and maybe he can repair for around 25 bucks.
    That will get me by till I can get an appointment with my bass doctor to get that prescription you were talking about filled. Ill check out the Q_tuners. I was also looking at the tri tone setup. Active/Passive setup i beleive were used on the L2000 G&L's.


    Thanks again for your Input,

    Mark