Report on Revolution SOLO Bass Pickup from Bassmith (aka Richard Russo)
Ill try to be as complete as possible in describing my experiences. If youd prefer not to read through all this, just scroll down to Caveats and Conclusions.
The Pickup
The pickup is a transducer embedded (?) in a square of spruce, roughly ¾ inch on each side. The square is to be fitted snugly into the bridge wing nearest the E string. A wire about six inches long runs from the wooden square to an RCA jack, which in turn is fitted into a ¼ inch jack that can accommodate a patch cord. Included with the unit is a plastic bracket that, placed around the jack and threaded through the G string behind the tailpiece, will hold the jack firmly in place. This bracket configuration is identical to that used with the Realist.
Installation
The instructions say that since the wooden square is thicker than the gap in the bridge wing, a user can either widen the gap or reduce the thickness of the wooden square. The latter is by far the easier method. Using 200 grade sandpaper and a small wooden block, I carefully sanded the wooden squaresand, try the fit, sand a bit more, try the fitso that it fit quite snugly into the wing, R side up as suggested in the instructions. This part of the process was simple and took about 10 minutes. Because I also have the Realist installed, and its jack threaded through the G string, I attached the SOLO jack to the leather string that holds the quiver to the upper part of the tailpiece.
How Did it Sound?
This question begs another: compared to what? Because the Realist is installed on the bass (this is the only other pick-up with which Ive had experience) I was able to A/B the two pickups. I made the first comparison at home. The bass is a 60-year old carved Juzek strung with Obligatos. The bow is a Carbow with dark hair. The amp is a GK MB200.
1) With the GK set flat: all EQ knobs at zero, no compression or other tweaks.
SOLO: Sounds exactly like my bass, but louder. There appeared to be no sound coloration from the amp. In fact, I first thought the amp wasnt turned on. The bass sounded even in amplified tone across the strings. I continued to increase the volume (both gain and master) until I was sure the neighbors would soon pound at my door (they didnt). Again, my bass but now much louder. Most notably, the sound stayed compact and focused. The pizz sound was faithful, as was the arco, throughout the volume settings. No distortion, no coloration.
Realist: At the same GK settings and low volume, the Realist sounded like my bass. But the sound it produced wasnt quite as compact. Instead it seemed broader, a bit less focused, a bit darker. At the lower volume, pizz on the E and A strings intimated a slight boominess in the sound, and more so at the higher volume.
2) With the GK high and upper-mid still at zero, but lower-mid and bass at 12 noon, no compression or other tweaks.
SOLO: The SOLO performed fabulously. In pizz mode, despite the EQ skewed toward the lower end, the bottom was full, tight, phat, with lots of low-end depth and no boom at all. The amped sound was even across all four stringsno sudden changes in sound quality. Arco was just as even. It seemed apparent that while the amp EQ was adding color to the sound, the pickup itself was delivering to the amp a neutral sound, that is, the sound of my bass as the uncolored canvas on which to paint.
Realist: Pizz on the E and A strings was very boomy, as the edges of the sound began to bleed and lose focus. The G and D strings sounded dark, with some loss of definition at the edges of the sound. (N.B.: In fairness to the Realist, TBers have reported on numerous occasions that ones bass either loves or hates that pickup. There are many basses out there seem to that work very effectively with the Realist. This particular bass didnt. To my surprise, I hadnt realized the degree of sound coloration I was getting from the Realist on this bass until I played with the SOLO.)
3) With all GK EQ knobs at 12 noon, no compression or other tweaks
SOLO: Superb. With the EQ now boosted to 12 noon at the high and upper-mids as well as at the lower-mids and bass, I could hear the finger noise on the strings above the fat, focused bottom in pizz mode. Lively, with lots of presence, the added highs suggested the sound one might hear on a closely miked bass solo. The sound quality was again even across all strings. There was no distortion or hint of distortion. And when I backed off the upper-mids and the high EQ a bit, the balance was perfect for this bass.
Realist: At these EQ settings, the sound was very boomy in pizz mode and the string noise on the D and G was harsh, unpleasant to listen to.
4) At rehearsal yesterday: piano, drummer with sticks, and bass in small studio. Amp was a GK150E 112.
I used only the SOLO for the 90 minute jam, since I remembered what the Realist sounded like in that room with that group. With the drummer flailing away on cymbals with sticks, I had cranked up the gain and volume to ¾ level if not a bit more (a level I have not safely reached with the Realist). With the EQ set flat, there was no distortion, no color, no boom. Just the sound of my bass (for better or worse) and my own playing (for worse or better).
Caveats: The usual. An amped bass is an amped bass. These results for the SOLO are with this bass and these strings and these amps and these ears. Ditto for the Realist. YMMV.
Conclusions. My bass but louder or much louder, when EQ was kept flat. Thats both the good news (Hey, thats really my bass.) and the bad news (Hey, thats really me playing the bass. Cant blame the pick-up for intonation and other player-generated problems.). The SOLO doesnt appear to color the sound. Provides a more natural sound. Delivers sound that is focused, compact, distortion free. Delivers a signal that works well in high volumes at flat EQ. When EQed to increase bass and low mids at mid-level volume settings, SOLO handles very well the more bass-rich sound without distortion (e.g., boominess) or losing definition around the edges. In other words, it sounds like my base with color added. Increase the high and upper-mid EQ as well at mid-level volume settings and the SOLO adds a presence that is not harsh. Provides a clean canvas onto which one can introduce colors via EQ. Its a keeper!
