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Some New Found Love for the Mudbucker Pickup

Alex Xander

Alex Xander

Oct 10, 2005
1,471
5,316
Out in the the bush, Australia
#1
Forgive the quality of the recording, but I did some work on this bass recently and relocated a mudbucker to the Musicman sweet spot.

A-standard tuning (a tone below a low B) and a 39” scale. I’ve been playing this for a week or so and while I have other options on the bass than the mudbucker in series (the most potent and muddy of the sounds), I have found myself gravitating back to the mudbucker. Somewhat counterintuitively, it seems to give the low notes a degree of clarity. Next step is to string it F#BEA or and octave low EADG. I’m having too much fun for now, though.

Anyone else got some love for the mudbucker? I’d love to hear other basses with the pickup not so hard against the fretboard.

I have a gig on Saturday that is fairly low key, and I think the mudbucker will get a good run.

 
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#5
Alex Xander said:
Forgive the quality of the recording, but I did some work on this bass recently and relocated a mudbucker to the Musicman sweet spot.

A-standard tuning (a tone below a low B) and a 39” scale. I’ve been playing this for a week or so and while I have other options on the bass than the mudbucker in series (the most potent and muddy of the sounds), I have found myself gravitating back to the mudbucker. Somewhat counterintuitively, it seems to give the low notes a degree of clarity. Next step is to string it F#BEA or and octave low EADG. I’m having too much fun for now, though.

Anyone else got some love for the mudbucker? I’d love to hear other basses with the pickup not so hard against the fretboard.

I have a gig on Saturday that is fairly low key, and I think the mudbucker will get a good run.

Click to expand...

Wow, sounds fantastic! Congrats!
 
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#6
Alex Xander said:
Forgive the quality of the recording, but I did some work on this bass recently and relocated a mudbucker to the Musicman sweet spot.

A-standard tuning (a tone below a low B) and a 39” scale. I’ve been playing this for a week or so and while I have other options on the bass than the mudbucker in series (the most potent and muddy of the sounds), I have found myself gravitating back to the mudbucker. Somewhat counterintuitively, it seems to give the low notes a degree of clarity. Next step is to string it F#BEA or and octave low EADG. I’m having too much fun for now, though.

Anyone else got some love for the mudbucker? I’d love to hear other basses with the pickup not so hard against the fretboard.

I have a gig on Saturday that is fairly low key, and I think the mudbucker will get a good run.

Click to expand...

nice tone!

And to answer the original question, yes, I have love for the mudbucker :) I have a 2014 SG and it sounds great, not actually very muddy, and pairs nicely with the tbird mini pickup.
 
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#8
Alex Xander said:
Forgive the quality of the recording, but I did some work on this bass recently and relocated a mudbucker to the Musicman sweet spot.

A-standard tuning (a tone below a low B) and a 39” scale. I’ve been playing this for a week or so and while I have other options on the bass than the mudbucker in series (the most potent and muddy of the sounds), I have found myself gravitating back to the mudbucker. Somewhat counterintuitively, it seems to give the low notes a degree of clarity. Next step is to string it F#BEA or and octave low EADG. I’m having too much fun for now, though.

Anyone else got some love for the mudbucker? I’d love to hear other basses with the pickup not so hard against the fretboard.

I have a gig on Saturday that is fairly low key, and I think the mudbucker will get a good run.

Click to expand...


Great sound there and nice playing.

My experience with mud buckers were to 2 EB3s I owned in the 70’s. I can assure you that timbre was not to be found, even when using a 10 band graphic equalizer. All that was there was pure mud. So thick you could make pottery out of it. LOL!!

Awesome bass you have there too.
 
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#10
If that's your tone, go for it. I happen to like articulation, and that bass ain't got none of that. The world is a big place, and there's a place for that - just not in my herd.

I love the mixed wood, and the fretboard.
 
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#11
bholder said:
That is a very cool mid-late 70's sound there. Fat before "phat" hehe.
Click to expand...

From dictionary.com:

The first records of phat come from around 1960. It is an Americanism that comes from Black slang as a respelling of the word fat. The word fat can mean someone is rich (fat cat) or something is plentiful (a fat stack of dollar bills). Phat comes from Black slang and has been commonly used within the hip-hop community.
 
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#13
micguy said:
From dictionary.com:

The first records of phat come from around 1960. It is an Americanism that comes from Black slang as a respelling of the word fat. The word fat can mean someone is rich (fat cat) or something is plentiful (a fat stack of dollar bills). Phat comes from Black slang and has been commonly used within the hip-hop community.
Click to expand...
I didn't start hearing it until the 80s, really. Maybe a few late 70s. Seems to have come from California Eastward, from what I can tell?
 
#15
ThinCrappyTone2 said:
nice tone!

And to answer the original question, yes, I have love for the mudbucker :) I have a 2014 SG and it sounds great, not actually very muddy, and pairs nicely with the tbird mini pickup.
Click to expand...

Im close to certain that SG basses from that era don’t have a true mudbucker, but a more conventional humbucker. I was surprised when I took the cover of one I owned to find a very guitar like humbucker with a 3k DC resistance.

Matt Liebenau said:
Sounds great. I have a couple of basses with some version of the mudbucker crammed up by the neck but none in bridge position.

Is the amp on top behind you a JTM30?
Click to expand...


Well spotted, Matt! It is indeed.
Dbassmon said:
Nice bass, it resonates very nicely. The mudbucker is not my taste, even on an instrument as nice as yours.

If you like it, cool!
Click to expand...

micguy said:
If that's your tone, go for it. I happen to like articulation, and that bass ain't got none of that. The world is a big place, and there's a place for that - just not in my herd.

I love the mixed wood, and the fretboard.
Click to expand...

The mudbucker is a polarising pickup, for certain. There’s also a Dimarzio Model One in the bass that offer a much, much more conventional sound. Almost like a P bass. There’s just something about the mud I’m digging. Plus, as I build more basses, I really don’t want them all to sound the same. That might give the wife a legitimate reason to tell me to thin the herd!

ravelax said:
Very cool tone! Clear and deep, and a nice growl to it. I always wondered what a mudbucker in this position would sound like. Also, what's the wood in this bass?
Click to expand...

Thanks! The top wood is New Guinea ebony sapwood and heartwood (the black and tan) with epoxy resin between the pieces exposing the underlying rose mahogany.
 
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#16
Alex Xander said:
Im close to certain that SG basses from that era don’t have a true mudbucker, but a more conventional humbucker. I was surprised when I took the cover of one I owned to find a very guitar like humbucker with a 3k DVA resistance.




Well spotted, Matt! It is indeed.




The mudbucker is a polarising pickup, for certain. There’s also a Dimarzio Model One in the bass that offer a much, much more conventional sound. Almost like a P bass. There’s just something about the mud I’m digging. Plus, as I build more basses, I really don’t want them all to sound the same. That might give the wife a legitimate reason to tell me to thin the herd!



Thanks! The top wood is New Guinea ebony sapwood and heartwood (the black and tan) with epoxy resin between the pieces exposing the underlying rose mahogany.
Click to expand...


Nice. I’ve got a JTM30 also. My Blues Deluxe and several other amps would go away long before the JTM.
 
#18
Alex Xander said:
Im close to certain that SG basses from that era don’t have a true mudbucker, but a more conventional humbucker. I was surprised when I took the cover of one I owned to find a very guitar like humbucker with a 3k DVA resistance..
Click to expand...
I had always heard they were mushy, so when I got the 2014 I was pleasantly surprised by how very full-range it sounded. It being an entirely different animal makes sense!
 

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