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Roger Waters tone **WHICH PICKUPS?**

M

miller_l

Jun 30, 2011
85
8
Medford, MA
#1
So I'm planning on doing a bass build to duplicate Waters' rig I don't have the $$ for his signature P, so I'm planning on using a Matt Freeman Squier (for the 70's vibe, black/maple combo) and just changing the pickups, and of course putting on some rs77's

My only issue is which pickups to use? The signature bass has the quarter pounders, but do those accurately get the chunky, punchy tone waters got in the Floyd days?? If not, which pickups best do that??

For reference: YouTube - ‪Pink Floyd Another Brick Wall Earls Court 1980 - HiFi Audio‬‏
 
#5
Now, do you mean the bass tone on the records, or on the live concert recordings? On the records, er, I mean, albums, (records - now I'm really dating myself. But then again, I've listened to this stuff since it was new, and my best friend growing up knows every single background voice in the entirety of Dark Side. And being an English major in college, he can also recite most of the Coleridge library from memory. But I digress...) Gilmore is actually the one who laid down a lot of the bass tracks. That said, You can't go wrong with simpler is better: P. As in P-Bass. As in Period. As much as Wright experimented with keys, organs, synths, etc., and as convoluted as Gilmore's setup was, and as lavish as their stage sets were, Mason usually kept it to a straightforward Ludwig set and Waters used the P. (all this post-Syd Barrett, of course).

There is no dark side of the moon, really. As a matter of fact, it's all dark....
 
#6
Yeah, the records. (don't worry, I'm over 50! And DCs are still recordings)

It's a standard P bass tone. I haven't played too many new P basses, but the last one I played was very bright, much brighter than my '74 was, even though they are brighter than most people think.

But even live, he was using the black stock P bass until his signature bass in 2010, from everything I have read.
 
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#10
I'm sorry (kinda new here...) but I'm not super familiar with either the antiquities or the fralins, which gives more of a punchy sound bc that's what I'm looking for, not something super warm and round, but then again nothing harsh and crazy
 
#13
fender has a vintage wrapped replacement pickup and sometimes they find NOS of some of the old stuff. Call fender and ask what the best way would be to achieve that tone. They're very helpful. But I hate to throw in the wrench, but here goes, so don't read any further or your premonition of the Water's tone will be crushed: 1971 p pups on a squier won't get you there either!~
 
#15
MetroBass said:
fender has a vintage wrapped replacement pickup and sometimes they find NOS of some of the old stuff. Call fender and ask what the best way would be to achieve that tone. They're very helpful. But I hate to throw in the wrench, but here goes, so don't read any further or your premonition of the Water's tone will be crushed: 1971 p pups on a squier won't get you there either!~
Click to expand...

hahaha don't worry, I'm fully aware that it won't be dead on tone (they're not even the same woods, his is alder, squiers basswood), but I'm just trying to get in the ballpark with a good pickup (very large ballpark of you ask me ;))
 
#18
Squiers are fine instruments. I'm in the camp that strings, pickup, and set up are 95% of a guitar's tone. The player is the other 105%. I'd just change your strings first, get a set up, and play with a pick. You might find that its close enough for your liking. I have no idea what amp you play, so you might wanna try it through some different ones too before you go spending even more money on a pickup.

I would contact Lindy Fralin here: Welcome to Lindy Fralin Pickups: Fralin Bass Pickups - the Finest Guitar Pickups Available Today!
They can make a pickup wound to X year's specs. At $140 they're a bit pricier than most of the competition. Most boutique P-bass pickups are around $120.

A lot of pickup manufacturers try to emulate the 60s style pickups. Thats the one everyone wants. They've got more warmth and bloom than the 70s pickups which are all thunk and attack if that makes sense. I've owned a handful of 70s Fenders and a smaller handful of 60s Fenders.

I still own my dad's 71 Fender Precision (black with a maple neck) that he bought new in 73. I upgraded the original pickup to a Nordstrand NP4 which is a much better pickup than the stock one IMO and IME. I also own a bass with a Lollar pickup as well. Its pretty cheap compared to most (I think $60 new) and hangs with the best of them.
 

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