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tone monster

fnkyhd

fnkyhd

Jun 12, 2025
71
49
#1
just put an SEB2-APA+ in my Ibanez and the difference is huge. the stock preamp in this thing was attenuating the signal so much i had to crank it which amplified noise. now finally i have a bass that i like to play and the tone doesn't suck! top front knob is blend, next to it is active/passive and volume. bottom are active bass/treble and passive tone (i know they make a 5 pot version but i had this in another bass and just wanted to try it). wow these pickups actually sound really nice on passive and the hissing noise that has plagued me for years is almost gone! not sure what to do with these extra holes. maybe i can install a clip to hold accessories like the piece of exercise mat foam i use as a string mute or my spider capo :)
as per my other post i just capped off the "tap" wires from the pickups

20260822_124554.webp
 
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#2
fnkyhd said:
just put an SEB2-APA+ in my Ibanez and the difference is huge. the stock preamp in this thing was attenuating the signal so much i had to crank it which amplified noise. now finally i have a bass that i like to play and the tone doesn't suck! top front knob is blend, next to it is active/passive and volume. bottom are active bass/treble and passive tone (i know they make a 5 pot version but i had this in another bass and just wanted to try it). wow these pickups actually sound really nice on passive and the hissing noise that has plagued me for years is almost gone! not sure what to do with these extra holes. maybe i can install a clip to hold accessories like the piece of exercise mat foam i use as a string mute or my spider capo :)
as per my other post i just capped off the "tap" wires from the pickups

View attachment 7563192
Click to expand...
Series/parallel for each pickup in the spare holes?
 
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#7
fnkyhd said:
they have lots of options, i just had this one in another bass and wanted to try it. actually i need 5 pots and one toggle switch. it would be cool to have the toggle for active/passive mode
Click to expand...

I have noticed that the listings on eBay have such a wide variety of options. Seems like this one fits your needs. 5 pots, 3 band EQ with a balance, passive tone and a A/P toggle switch.


1787503937946.webp
 
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#10
JC BASS 91 said:
I have noticed that the listings on eBay have such a wide variety of options. Seems like this one fits your needs. 5 pots, 3 band EQ with a balance, passive tone and a A/P toggle switch.

Click to expand...
yeah that's the one i saw. $120 plus shipping. i got the other one for a different bass i am (was) working on and just swapped it over to try it. now i think i should get this one but that's my coffee money
 
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#13
fnkyhd said:
yeah me too but it's $10 a bag on sale. i need to switch to Folgers!
Click to expand...

Folger's Black Silk is the go to for my wife and I. We love the dark roasts. We buy the large 40.3oz containers of it at Sam's Wholesale for about $20 a container, and that seems to last us quite a while. I usually make 9 cups on weekdays and 11 cups, or the full pot of 12 cups, on weekends.
 
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#14
JC BASS 91 said:
Folger's Black Silk is the go to for my wife and I. We love the dark roasts. We buy the large 40.3oz containers of it at Sam's Wholesale for about $20 a container, and that seems to last us quite a while. I usually make 9 cups on weekdays and 11 cups, or the full pot of 12 cups, on weekends.
Click to expand...
9 cups for you or split between two? Even then that's a lot of coffee. I'd never sleep.

More off topic: once I was in a new band. First gig. No one else had ever played a gig. They were all nervous and they were surprised that I had three coffees right before to get energised.
 
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#15
-Asdfgh- said:
9 cups for you or split between two? Even then that's a lot of coffee. I'd never sleep.

More off topic: once I was in a new band. First gig. No one else had ever played a gig. They were all nervous and they were surprised that I had three coffees right before to get energised.
Click to expand...

We have a Mr. Coffee coffee maker. A full pot of coffee is marked in 2 cup increments. Most modern coffee mugs will hold 2 cups. The 9 cups split between my wife and myself to fill two 24 ounce coffee mugs. So, the pot split between the two of us on weekends isn't as much as you might think. LOL
 
#16
-Asdfgh- said:
SEB2-ABPA+

Click to expand...
I have this unit in a Projekt build of mine, only I added a second battery terminal and replaced the blend pot with their dual-volume pot for independent pickup volume control. It works very well with the Bartolini B-Axis pickups. Two things of note;
  1. The preamp is powerful enough that to match active and passive volumes, I had to turn the trim pot all the way down.
  2. The tone control only works in passive mode. This allows me to dial in two, distinct settings and use the master volume pot to switch between them at will.
HkfCcZ2.jpeg


To my ears, I prefer the active setting. The treble EQ control does the same job as the passive tone control, but when you roll off those higher frequencies, it retains a touch more clarity and is less muddy.
 
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#17
JC BASS 91 said:
I have noticed that the listings on eBay have such a wide variety of options. Seems like this one fits your needs. 5 pots, 3 band EQ with a balance, passive tone and a A/P toggle switch.


View attachment 7563621
Click to expand...
Huh! I didn't know about the new SPB preamps until now! :eyebrow:

Apparently, one could set both active and passive volumes separately, then use the toggle to switch between the two. Interesting! 🤔
 
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