• TalkBass has been independent since 1998. Add your voice.
    Create a free account to reply to discussions, view embedded media, and browse with fewer display ads.
    Join free Log in
    Want zero display ads or expanded classifieds tools? Compare plans.

Show us your 3 pickup basses!

#1,062
Doner Designs said:
Nice! Who made the bridge? Cool design. How do you like the Bardens? Those are the only side by side J pickups on the market (I think) but are expensive so you don't see them very often. Also, which positions did you choose for the 5 way? My favorite position is usually bridge plus far neck.
Click to expand...
Larry built the bridge from a block of brass! He has his own fabrication shop. The jack plate and bridge were all fabricated from that block. The neck is an Allparts neck and the abalone blocks were actually cut from genuine sheets of imported abalone. The nut is actual ivory. Larry lives only a few minutes from Joe Bardens shop and he and the pickup builder custom made all three pickups just for the bass which were all neck size measurements. (and yes very expensive I might add) The shielding was all copper and the wiring was the high grade NASA wiring which he has several rolls of it. The positions are mixed as usual, the bridge pickup is all the way back then using the blend pots I can bring in the different pickups by using it and the switch using all 5 positions! It gives you multiple options for sure! All three kick in at the middle position and forward position is the neck pickup. The Bardens are pretty good pickups, but at first I wanted Delanos put in it and Larry suggested the Bardens! The pickup covers are actual flame maple cut from some of his stock woods he has and the rear cover plate is flame maple as well. But overall, this bass was very expensive and looking back, I won't do that extreme of a build again. I could have had a custom shop Fender jbass built for about $400 cheaper than I paid for this bass. But it is a beast tone wise, but a little on the heavy side. I hinted at selling it and the look from the wifey changed that mindset! LOL
 
#1,063
Doner Designs said:
By the way, I just learned that the things that look like worm trails are really something called medullary rays. You see them on some really high end basses (like Sadowsky).
Click to expand...
I can honestly say the folks at Warmoth did a great job in picking this body out and sending it to me. It is a standard 5 jbass, swamp ash but did not do the neck pocket cut out. Larry did the tobacco burst paint job as well with numerous coats of nitro gloss finish on it!
 
#1,064
Doner Designs said:
Nice! How do you like the Bardens? Those are the only side by side J pickups on the market (I think) but are expensive so you don't see them very often.
Click to expand...

Bartolini and Delano both make a side by side, narrow J type. But yeah, you almost never see them anymore, as the shape is unconventional. There's also the Lace Aluma-J.

I wish Delano would offer theirs in a typical J casing.

Delano JSBC 4 HE (4, 5, 6, and 7 string versions)


 
#1,065
Hi All,

New here. I'm considering a new build of my own. I'm looking at doing an acoustic electric bass, patterned after the Gibson ES 175, with three music man pickups. It'll be a 4 string bass. Anyone ever try anything like this. I'm still in the planning stage, and still working on a 5 string bass in my basement. What I'm planning is for the body to be about 3 1/2 inches deep, fully hollow, with F holes.
 
#1,066
Toptube said:
Bartolini and Delano both make a side by side, narrow J type. But yeah, you almost never see them anymore, as the shape is unconventional. There's also the Lace Aluma-J.

I wish Delano would offer theirs in a typical J casing.

Delano JSBC 4 HE (4, 5, 6, and 7 string versions)


Click to expand...

The Bartolini shape is conventional, isn't it? I can't get the Delano site to work today for some reason, pictures won't load.
 
#1,068
Just started a build thread for this one which came out of the box last night. Will give more details here when it's finished.

IMG_0342.JPG IMG_0345.JPG
 
Last edited:
  • Like
Reactions: cm3ohana
#1,072
kkaarrll said:
what would you call those pickup locations and why did you choose them, what are you going to put in there, and how to wire it?
Click to expand...

The neck pickup is in the standard J neck position. The bridge is in the standard 70's position which is roughly half an inch closer to the bridge compared to a standard J. The middle is offset by a similar amount in the other direction. In other words the two bridge pickups roughly straddle where a normal J bridge pickup would go. The slight difference makes a big difference in tone.

The pickups are Nordstrand split singles. The outer two pickups are the standard NJ4SV. The middle is an NJ4SE which has a slightly darker tone.

Other parts include Audere Pro Z preamp, Babicz bridge and Hipshot ultralight tuners.

As for wiring, the bridge pair will go to one side of the balancer pot and the neck will go to the other side. Probably will use a 3 way mini toggle to select between the two bridge pickups.
 
  • Like
Reactions: kkaarrll
#1,075
Flux Jetson said:
I think he said "push push", like what a Music Man Big Al uses. Push it down and it stays down, push it down again and it pops up all by itself, push it again and it locks down. I have used those on guitars I've built, they are EXCELLENT for on-the-fly operation .... much easier to use that push-pull type knob/buttons. You can kinda just smack on it and the button will operate, you don't have to be so precise or bother with getting your pick oriented ok to deal with grabbing the knob to pull it up. Just bounce your finger/thumb/palm/knuckle/erverwhat on top of the knob and the button will either lock down or pop up all by itself. Wonderful little gadgets!

IMGP8255.jpg


IMGP8256.jpg


IMGP5224.jpg


You can use a much wider selection of knobs with those as well, because they don't have to be something that you need to actually grab ahold of to pull them upwards, just smack 'em on the noggin' to operate the switch.
Click to expand...

I would like to see the bass this stuff is attached to.
 
#1,077
Doctor J said:
This is a parts bass I put together a few years ago but could never get the sounds I wanted out of it. One piece ash body, maple Mightymite neck. I've had DiMarrzios in there and some other Js with a variety of pres but nothing really worked for me. The pickup spacing is slightly wider than 70's Fender, so I struck upon the idea of sticking a P in the middle. I measured up and it was good to go. I was kind of thinking of refinishing after the butchery but I'm warming to the battered orange funk. All the pickups are EMGs and the pre is an EMG BTS unit. Controls are Vol-Blend-Bass-Treble - the neck J and P are going into a three way mini-toggle, just visible below the vol pot, and the output of that goes into the blend pot, so I can have all three pickups on independently or multiple combinations of all. This thing really plays very nicely, a lot better than the sum of the parts. Me like.

billy15.jpg
Click to expand...
can you diagram your electronics?
 
  • Like
Reactions: Doner Designs
#1,080
kkaarrll said:
can you diagram your electronics?
Click to expand...

There's not much to document, to be honest. It's basically the standard EMG BTS circuit Vol-Blend-Bass-Treble as seen here -> Invalid Link Removed

The bridge pickup is wired to the blend pot as per the diagram. The P and neck J are going into a standard three way mini switch, I used a dpdt one because I had one to hand, wired like this.

Threewayminiswitchschematic.jpg


The output of the switch goes to the other lugs on the blend pot.

The location of the switch is easier to see in this pic.

king_5.jpg


The range of tones available just using the neck J and P are plenty. Being able to blend the neck J in is the icing on the cake. The bridge J is in the 70's position, which is what made enough space to fit the P in the middle. I thought it would be better to be able to blend it in to taste rather than have it on the switch but, of course, it would be easy to change what goes to the switch and and what goes to the blend pot.
 
Last edited:
  • Like
Reactions: kkaarrll and Doner Designs

Latest posts

Top Bottom
Back