Ultra boutique P bass pickups

[NKBassman]

Frankenstein P-bass (MIA Am. Pro body + MIA Am. Std. J neck) fitted with the inherently growly Klein Epic ‘59 pickup (tone at 50%) and TI JF344 flatwound strings.
For your consideration and comments.

Rhodes, piano and a P-bass …

Great playing and great tone!

I have an Arcane 65 in a ‘73 P, and it is only one of three of my P-basses that still only have a single pickup, and I do like it for sure. Of my many other early ‘70’s P-Basses that I have installed a 2nd P-pickup at the bridge, I have one that has a Lollar regular at the neck and a Lollar high wind in the bridge, which is a cool mix, and I generally prefer the mid-scoop that have the two running together gives me, like a Jazz but different. I often blend out the bridge to get that classic P-Bass sound, and the Lollar in the neck/stock position sounds great, so that would be my choice.

I had a dual-P bass for a while and really liked it. At one point I had it outfitted with two Dimarzio Model Ps and that was just SO gnarly. It was cool for the band I was in at the time, but totally outrageous sounding. I think I swapped in some more "normal" P pickups after a while, but that bass is parted out and decommissioned now (though I still have the body).

 

[Laurent]

Just to pick your brains... Upon some messaging with Laurent few years ago, I settled on an Arcane '65 which I really love. The bass I installed that one is a parts bass with Warmoth wood (alder body, maple neck, Indian rosewood fingerboard) and TI flats which are almost 10 years old. When I use a Nordstrand mute, the bass sounds like the compressed double bass recordings from the '80s!

Now, I am about to finish putting together a second Precision with a Hosco three-piece swamp ash body (just finished Danish oiling it, sanded down to 800 grit), maple Warmoth neck with Indian rosewood fingerboard. This one will be strung with Fodera rounds. I already have an Antiquity II and Lollar regular wound sitting around.

So the question is simply "now that I have already an Arcane '65 on my alder body bass with flats, what should I install on the swamp ash body bass with rounds; Antiquity II or Lollar regular wound?"

I know I will hear a lot of "try both and see," but these days I am crazy busy so I will have to live for a while with whatever I install first.

Any input, comment, remarks would be appreciated! Cheers,

Alper

I would go with the Lollar because you have an edgy tone happening: swamp ash will be brighter than alder, the round will also be brighter than flats so I would be concerned that the Antiquity II might be too warm or laid back for this configuration. I would build on the bright rather than trying to balance it out. Lollar is a tad more aggressive and brighter than the Antiquity II. Not a criticism both are stellar pups. It's a different approach: SF Antiquity look to emulate a pickup from the 60's that has been subject to the test of time. Lollar tries to wind a pickup that is similar to what Fender would have wound in the 60's. It's my take on what these guys do anyways.

 

[Alper Yilmaz]

Thank for all the input, folks! Lollar it is then!

 

[J. Brooks]

Speaking of Lollar, I've been playing my Lollar equipped American Standard P bass from 2014 a lot lately. It was on loan to a friend and I just got it back. I forgot how great it sounds.

I'm curious to hear what you guys think about how Lollars compare to some of these other pickups?

Seems to me to have a little extra of everything than a stock pickup, kind of high output and especially great present highs. Or maybe I just lucked out and this P bass sounds particularly good, I think the American ones from around that time were nice.

 

[Laurent]

Lollar is a great pickup, one if the very best in my book.

 

[NKBassman]

Do you all have a specific string-to-pickup height that you aim for when setting up your instruments? I'm starting to wonder if the Antiquity II pickup in my Hwy 1 P bass is set too low.

 

[Bass4ThePublic]

Do you all have a specific string-to-pickup height that you aim for when setting up your instruments? I'm starting to wonder if the Antiquity II pickup in my Hwy 1 P bass is set too low.

6/64”-8/64” with the strings fretted at the last fret.

 

[Laurent]

Thank for all the input, folks! Lollar it is then!

Let us know how the new bass comes out! Best wishes with this new project.

 

[Laurent]

Do you all have a specific string-to-pickup height that you aim for when setting up your instruments? I'm starting to wonder if the Antiquity II pickup in my Hwy 1 P bass is set too low.

Straight from the Fender site:

PICKUPS
Setting pickups too high can cause a number of unusual occurrences. Depress strings at last fret. Using a 6" (150 mm) ruler, measure the distance from the bottom of the first and fourth strings to top of the pole piece. A good rule of thumb is that the distance should be greatest at the fourth-string neck pickup position and closest at the first-string bridge pickup position. Follow the measurement guidelines from the chart below as starting points. The distance will vary according to the amount of magnetic pull from the pickup.

Note: Larger string gauges need wider vibrational allowances. If you have a five-string bass or are using heavier-gauge strings, your measurements must be increased accordingly.

Bass Side Treble Side
Vintage style 8/64" (3.2 mm) 6/64" (2.4 mm)
Noiseless™ Series 8/64" (3.2 mm) 6/64" (2.4 mm)
Standard "J" or "P" 7/64" (2.8 mm) 5/64" (2 mm)
Special Design Humbuckers 7/64" (2.8 mm) 5/64" (2 mm)

 

[NKBassman]

Straight from the Fender site:

PICKUPS
Setting pickups too high can cause a number of unusual occurrences. Depress strings at last fret. Using a 6" (150 mm) ruler, measure the distance from the bottom of the first and fourth strings to top of the pole piece. A good rule of thumb is that the distance should be greatest at the fourth-string neck pickup position and closest at the first-string bridge pickup position. Follow the measurement guidelines from the chart below as starting points. The distance will vary according to the amount of magnetic pull from the pickup.

Note: Larger string gauges need wider vibrational allowances. If you have a five-string bass or are using heavier-gauge strings, your measurements must be increased accordingly.

Bass Side Treble Side
Vintage style 8/64" (3.2 mm) 6/64" (2.4 mm)
Noiseless™ Series 8/64" (3.2 mm) 6/64" (2.4 mm)
Standard "J" or "P" 7/64" (2.8 mm) 5/64" (2 mm)
Special Design Humbuckers 7/64" (2.8 mm) 5/64" (2 mm)

Thanks. Turns out I was a little low. Sounds great , set as close as I can fudge it with a 1/16” ruler. lol

 

[Alper Yilmaz]

Here is the result! Still need some fine tuning, but sounds and plays quite fine.

- 3-piece swamp ash Hosco body (I dry/wet sanded it to 1000-grit with five coats of Danish oil)
- Warmoth neck (maple/Indian rosewood)
- Lollar regular wounds
- Emerson pots and cap
- Hipshot HB-2's with drop D

The neck pocket is not as deep as a regular Fender, which I realized after the final assembly. So the pickup is not as close to the strings as the suggested Fender dimensions, yet I prefer this as long as I have strong enough signal.

 

[Alper Yilmaz]

Here is a quick update. After some adjusting the pickup height, some simple fretwork and intonation adjustment, I played the bass at a rehearsal yesterday through a Markbass Little Mark Tube 800 and a Markbass 8x10" cabinet (I do not know what the owner was thinking packing that monstrosity in a small room!). This thing is a killer! I cannot guess how the Antiquity II would respond, but the Lollar is so balanced, articulate and detailed. People loved it!

Frankly speaking, the bass sounds so good as is that I do not think I will ever try the Antiquity on it. Maybe in another project, or maybe up for sale...

Cheers,

Alper

 

[Laurent]

Nice bass, it looks straight out of the 70's! P Warmoth necks have a big tone because they are physically quite chunky.
I had one with an ebony fretboard and it was a handful!

It's the nice thing about a P bass, the simplicity allows building really nice instruments from parts.

Congrats on the new bass!

 

[Laurent]

For the last year I have been using a McNelly precision pickup. They first pop on my radar screen when the folks at Renegade Guitarworks posted about them. Renegade Guitarworks produces amazing bodies and I have enjoyed a one piece precision bass Honduran mahogany body from them for many years.
McNelly is a Canadian boutique pickup builder and judging by their current 10 week wait, they must be popular.

The McNelly split coild P bass pickup is a textbook example of a good vintage inspired pickup. McNelly describes them as noiseless, thunderous, round and endowed with solid mids. All true and right on the money. They impress because nothing sticks out, they are perfectly balanced and musical. They also have really nice growl in the low-mids and bass.

They don't offer anything radically different than an Arcane or a Lollar but the fact that they can easily hand with that group is exceptional. Long story short it's a beautiful sounding vintage style pickup (I would peg it around 62 to 64) and I highly recommend it.

 

[Funkdified]

For the last year I have been using a McNelly precision pickup. They first pop on my radar screen when the folks at Renegade guitarworks posted about them. Renegade Guitarworks produces amazing bodies and I have enjoyed a one piece precision bass Honduran mahogany body from them for many years.
McNelly is a Canadian boutique pickup builder and judging by their current 10 week wait, they must be popular.

The McNelly split coild P bass pickup is a textbook example of a good vintage inspired pickup. McNelly describes them as noiseless, thunderous, round and endowed with solid mids. All true and right on the money. They impress because nothing sticks out, they are perfectly balanced and musical. They also have really nice growl in the low-mids and bass.

They don't offer anything radically different than an Arcane or a Lollar but the fact that they can easily hand with that group is exceptional. Long story short it's a beautiful sounding vintage style pickup (I would peg it around 62 to 64) and I highly recommend it.

What are the specs on them?

 

[Laurent]

McNelly don’t give specs! They don't believe it a reliable indicator of a pickup tone.

 

[Laurent]

Here's the quote from their FAQ. I do not disagree with them and I like the beer analogy.

"Why don't you list the DCR of your pickups?

Judging a pickup by the DCR is a bit like judging a beer by its alcohol content. Sure, it tells you something, but it doesn't tell you much about the actual tone, the quality, or the output... And it fluctuates with the temperature! It can often be more misleading than helpful so we find it better to describe what you can realistically expect to hear. We can tell you this: Our pickups sound great and are made by people who really care about the details. Seriously."

 

[Funkdified]

Here's the quote from their FAQ. I do not disagree with them and I like the beer analogy.

"Why don't you list the DCR of your pickups?

Judging a pickup by the DCR is a bit like judging a beer by its alcohol content. Sure, it tells you something, but it doesn't tell you much about the actual tone, the quality, or the output... And it fluctuates with the temperature! It can often be more misleading than helpful so we find it better to describe what you can realistically expect to hear. We can tell you this: Our pickups sound great and are made by people who really care about the details. Seriously."

while I agree with this and your personal opinion carries weight with me. I can usually figure out what it’ll sound like by the sum of the pickup specs(magnet type, wire type, wire gauge, ohm/Hernies).
You and I spoke about this before I believe when I sent you the Arcane 65L, and you sent me the Lollar for testing. I know if a pickup is above say 11.5k it is not for me, 65L being the exception.

 

[Gianni "Orlandez" Orlati]

while I agree with this and your personal opinion carries weight with me. I can usually figure out what it’ll sound like by the sum of the pickup specs(magnet type, wire type, wire gauge, ohm/Hernies).
You and I spoke about this before I believe when I sent you the Arcane 65L, and you sent me the Lollar for testing. I know if a pickup is above say 11.5k it is not for me, 65L being the exception.

+1

The opposite in the case of a red wine .. below 13.5% vol. it is not for me ..

 

[Laurent]

while I agree with this and your personal opinion carries weight with me. I can usually figure out what it’ll sound like by the sum of the pickup specs(magnet type, wire type, wire gauge, ohm/Hernies).
You and I spoke about this before I believe when I sent you the Arcane 65L, and you sent me the Lollar for testing. I know if a pickup is above say 11.5k it is not for me, 65L being the exception.

Sure. No disagreement from me. The magnets are alnico 5. I suspect they are about 11K maybe 11.5K. In order to measure them, I would have to take them off but knowing them that's where I would put them. Right about a Lollar pickup regular wound. They are muscular but not overwound.