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The Official MTD USA Thread

#13,281
BassJuju said:
I think those are cool… I wouldn’t change them either.

I do have a question about the bass. I have a 535-25 that I love in so many ways. It had the Barts in the typical location. So, how would you say, or others, this pickup position changes or augments the bass?

Still trying to get my head around some of the different configurations. Some are clear, others not so much.
Click to expand...

For me, The Super is it. I tried a 535 years ago at Bass San Diego and I was impressed with the sound and feel, it didn't make me go out and sell my Carvin Icon 5. The Icon 5 could get very close to the 535 but it took a lot of fussing around with the active controls and amp controls.

I wanted something different and after watching quite a bit of Lobsters videos on the stock and Modded Super 5's, I put my order in for the Super 5. Ever since I got it I have been trying to play around with all the tone and switch settings (Lots of different tones). The Super gives me that "Something Different" as I didn't want another J or P on steroids. So the Super gives me that different sound that I'm really digging. Btw, I prefer the stock pickups.

Personally, even though the MTD 535 is a great bass I'm not willing to spend that type of money to get it new. Maybe one day a good deal on a used 535 will come up. If not, I will not lose sleep over it and I'm happy with what I already have.

It all comes down to what the player likes and don't in a bass. I have seen plenty of reviews on the Super 5 and most of them positive.
 
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#13,282
Drummerboy2 said:
For me, The Super is it. I tried a 535 years ago at Bass San Diego and I was impressed with the sound and feel, it didn't make me go out and sell my Carvin Icon 5. The Icon 5 could get very close to the 535 but it took a lot of fussing around with the active controls and amp controls.

I wanted something different and after watching quite a bit of Lobsters videos on the stock and Modded Super 5's, I put my order in for the Super 5. Ever since I got it I have been trying to play around with all the tone and switch settings (Lots of different tones). The Super gives me that "Something Different" as I didn't want another J or P on steroids. So the Super gives me that different sound that I'm really digging. Btw, I prefer the stock pickups.

Personally, even though the MTD 535 is a great bass I'm not willing to spend that type of money to get it new. Maybe one day a good deal on a used 535 will come up. If not, I will not lose sleep over it and I'm happy with what I already have.

It all comes down to what the player likes and don't in a bass. I have seen plenty of reviews on the Super 5 and most of them positive.
Click to expand...
Did you get a USA Super 5 or upgraded Kingston?
 
#13,283
Think I might pick up a Kingston Super 5. Who here has modded the coil selection to give you the two pickups' inner coils in single mode? If the two outers are humcanceling together in single then the inners have to be, too. IME that's probably peak StingRay territory.
 
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#13,284
Combinator said:
Think I might pick up a Kingston Super 5. Who here has modded the coil selection to give you the two pickups' inner coils in single mode? If the two outers are humcanceling together in single then the inners have to be, too. IME that's probably peak StingRay territory.
Click to expand...
I considered this but IMO a big part of the magic in the SRs is the preamp. Even with pickup placement I don't think the Super 5 would be a directt replacement. Awfully close though
 
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#13,285
Nuage420 said:
Did you get a USA Super 5 or upgraded Kingston?
Click to expand...

I just got the stock Kingston Super 5 as I had planned to have it upgraded with the US Super 5 upgrade package but after I received it and started playing it I was very satisfied with how it played and sound. The Super sounded really nice in my setup so no need to go any further for me.
 
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#13,286
Drummerboy2 said:
I just got the stock Kingston Super 5 as I had planned to have it upgraded with the US Super 5 upgrade package but after I received it and started playing it I was very satisfied with how it played and sound. The Super sounded really nice in my setup so no need to go any further for me.
Click to expand...
Yea I had that then upgraded... well changed is a better way to put it. The stock Kingston Super is very rowdy.
 
#13,287
BassJuju said:
I think those are cool… I wouldn’t change them either.

I do have a question about the bass. I have a 535-25 that I love in so many ways. It had the Barts in the typical location. So, how would you say, or others, this pickup position changes or augments the bass?

Still trying to get my head around some of the different configurations. Some are clear, others not so much.
Click to expand...
The USA Super pickups are narrower and more bunched toward the bridge.

It's very different from a 535. Like a Stingray meets a Thumb. Absolutely worth having both.

T1.jpg

utn9mlq417ru6ditsxwk__54879.1623340484.jpg
 
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#13,288
MMiller28 said:
The USA Super pickups are narrower and more bunched toward the bridge.

It's very different from a 535. Like a Stingray meets a Thumb. Absolutely worth having both.

T1.jpg

utn9mlq417ru6ditsxwk__54879.1623340484.jpg
Click to expand...
Hmmm, that's a deceptive picture. The barts and the Kingston stock pickups are the same dimensions. I never noticed the spacing difference from neck to top of neck pickup until just now. There does seem to be a difference from the bridge too.

Just realized the super pups they sent me to upgrade the Kingston had the ears and it seems none of the USA Supers do
20220301_075132.jpg
 
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#13,289
Nuage420 said:
Hmmm, that's a deceptive picture. The barts and the Kingston stock pickups are the same dimensions. I never noticed the spacing difference from neck to top of neck pickup until just now. There does seem to be a difference from the bridge too.

Just realized the super pups they sent me to upgrade the Kingston had the ears and it seems none of the USA Supers do
View attachment 4690807
Click to expand...
The bodies might be different sizes, which would affect everything about the pics, lol.

Either way, the USA seems to have them further from the neck.
 
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#13,291
Combinator said:
Think I might pick up a Kingston Super 5. Who here has modded the coil selection to give you the two pickups' inner coils in single mode? If the two outers are humcanceling together in single then the inners have to be, too. IME that's probably peak StingRay territory.
Click to expand...
I've suggested this change to so many people lol. That does put the coils in the proper MusicMan placement, but (like already stated) you'll probably want either a Bartolini NTBT or non-Bartolini pre to really go after that classic stingray sound.
 
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#13,294
This may not be as immediately gratifying to the group as a real time playthrough or instrument glamor shots as it's an AI-driven trance-y visual kind of thing, and it's probably a small subset of fans of music like NIN, Squarepusher, Primus, etc might dig, but...

One of the interesting things for me here is that everything you hear on this track aside from my vocals and drum programming was made with a bass. And not just a bass, but all with my Nightfall 635; either effected and pitched up to sound like guitar, just effected, or converted from bass to MIDI to program synths. Most of the album is like that. This song and its video just premiered today - it's the single off a new album that releases one month from today:


 
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