@Laurent - I meant to ask you. How would you compare the Antiquity II (60's version) and the Arcane 65 Experience? I've had the latter, but am curious about the Antiquity II.
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Ultra boutique P bass pickups
- Thread starter Laurent
- Start date
The Antiquity II is a fabulous pickup. I bought it twice over the years! They really capture the laid back, aged character of a vintage pickup. They are big and super warm sounding.
The Arcane capture the vintage vibe too but they have more highs, they are more harmonically complex and they are a prettier sounding pickup to my ears. The Antiquity II sounds like a 60's pickup today as opposed to the Arcane sounds like a 60's pickup the year it was wound. It might boil down to the fact that Arcane's pickup are wound by one guy, one at a time compared with Seymour Duncan which is a large operation.
Large in this case does not mean bad by any means but at least to my ears, the Arcane deliver something extra and something a little more special. At least to me. This might be subjective too. If you love 60's sounding pickups, the SD Antiquity II is easily top 5 in my book and worth trying.
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I havent re-read this thread but has anyone actually installed an actual 60s or 70s Fender P pickup in one of their basses? Ive heard a LOT more stock 60s & 70s Fender P basses in my 64 years than anything other than say a Dimarzio model P.
Im referring to actually playing one in a setting or listening to recordings but many, many times in blues clubs since the 80s.
I'll be honest i like the early to mid 50s P basses as well!
Wow. I think you nailed it with that description. How about the Antiquity II against the 65L? Would that be a slightly closer comparison or not really?
....I just ordered a DiMarzio DP127 Split P pickup.I have never tried one, but was curious after seeing one in a Jerzy Drozd "P Bass" awhile back. It was stock. The Bass was badass and if I'd of had the clams at that time it would have been in my hands.
I just saw a Low-end Lobster video where he put a Fender parts Bass together with this pickup. It sounds very good on his kinda straight into an amp showcase.
Those who use it seem to really like it. High output..8/5/6 profile according to DiMarzio. I think that there is a group of users who sound like "wiring mysteries", cheap import pots or "I've never played Bass before and have no idea what to expect from an extended range pickup" that any Fender (and certainly mid-60's P pickup is not) with a mid bump and A5 magnets is going to sound like?
I'm taking out the Delano PMVC 4 FE/M2 and check it!
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Thanks for the kind words.
The 65L is a slightly overwound version of the Arcane Experience 65. It's a bit more bassy and punchy than Antiquity II. To my ears the Arcane 65L is in the same ballpark than the Kloppmann.
We tend to think than more is better but I believe it's misleading for pickups, it's more about balance than having more of something.
Punch and harmonic complexity also play a role. In general overwound pickups such as the Lollar P hot, the SD SPB-2 or Aguilar AG-4P hot did not work as well to my ears. They were just too over the top.
In this cases, whatever Arcane did with the 65L worked well. It's a variation on the theme of the Experience 65.
Good question! I've never bought a vintage pickup simply because, at least in the case of actual pickups from the 1960's, they are really expensive. I've seen pickup north of $600 and then there is the question of authenticity. I have played a good number of 60's and 70's basses, and I am generally not impressed. I suspect that basses available for sale from that era might not be the very best. The best are probably kept by pro musicians and collectors.
I've become a big fan of the 70s P pickups in the past several years. (and basses - contrary to decades-long perceptions)
About 6 years ago, I picked up a '74 fretless P at Guitar Center - supposedly all original.
I was just about to check out while the tech was checking it over when all the sudden he says pickups aren't original - that it looked like a Duncan based on the bobbin.
Long story short; I ended up with the bass at a great price a few days later.
Months later I picked up a '74 pickup off ebay, but never got around to installing it.
I had tried a few other pickups in that bass, including an SPD-1 I had, and an AntiquityII, but that particular "Duncan" pickup that was in it sounded really good.
Fast forward to a few years ago, I picked up a mij P here that supposedly had a '74 pu in it.
I opened it up, and same thing - (what I thought was an aftermarket) black bobbin pickup!
But by then I was more familiar with Duncans, and it didn't really look like one.
That's when I did some research and learned about the infamous Fender black bobbin PUs that appeared in '73 / '74 - and I now had 2 of them!
Just last weekend, I installed that (grey bobbin) PU from ebay into another P - and it's the best fit yet - and that bass has had a few other "nice" pickups in it - including the Olinto PU it replaced!
It's just a matter of finding the right fit for a particular bass.
Even more so in the past few years; early 60s will list at $1,000. 70s were $200-$300 a few years ago, but you'd be lucky to get them at that price now.
There's so many good options - and so much good info in this thread, I'd probably just consider a vintage PU for restoration purposes.
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Interesting! It would be good to know what the mystery Duncan is....resistance measurements?
I am curious how much actual Fender P pickups varied thru the years; resistance reading mainly...Are there links to actual Fender P pickup comparisons thru the years?
I agree fitting the pickup to the bass is the key, so from that standpoint the wide range of choices these days is a plus.
Sorry if it wasn't obvious in all that - it turned out to be a '74 black bobbin pickup!
Here's a start I have in my "watched threads"
https://www.talkbass.com/threads/is-this-a-pre-cbs-precision-pickup.1222997/
https://www.talkbass.com/threads/did-fender-change-their-p-pickups-between-62-and-77.944918/
https://www.talkbass.com/threads/73-74-fender-black-bobbin-pickups.1056212/
Oh my bad, i was starting to doze off, coffee time! Thanks for the links as well, should be interesting to read.
What did you think of the Olinto pickup?
I played an Olinto bass the first year they came out in a store in Southern Cal.
Has anyone tried the Bare Knuckle 65 split-coil?
Click on the URL below and scroll down to the sound samples.
If this pickup actually sounds like the demo, I'd it in a heartbeat.
P Bass - '65 Split Coil P p-bass
Click on the URL below and scroll down to the sound samples.
If this pickup actually sounds like the demo, I'd it in a heartbeat.
P Bass - '65 Split Coil P p-bass
Disclaimer;
@Laurent - I've come to appreciate that you have a knack (or gift) for putting the nuances of a pickup into words like no one else! I wish I shared that ability.
I bought the Olinto for a mid 60s P, which, that bass (by it's own nature) seems to have an ever-so- slightly pronounced mid voice.
I originally had an SPB-1 in that bass - which worked well, especially in a live setting.
I then tried the custom shop '62, thinking the mid-scoop might fit better, but it over-compensated for the mids.
As soon as I tried the Antiquity II, I knew it was the right fit (for me.)
But I had been researching the Olinto, and when I inquired with someone that had one, and he offered it to me. Knowing they're not easy to come by, I didn't want to pass it up, and used it for quite a while in that bass.
Out of those other pickups, the Olinto was most in the ballpark of the SPB-1, a good vintage "reference" pickup itself, - but the Olinto is more complex in the mids and overall character. Not as much "air" on top as the Ant II.
A very good match - if not the best - for that bass, but I just missed the Antiquity II for what I wanted, especially with my string choice for that bass, flats - but more towards old school (currently TIs) vs. Cobalt flats that I usually gravitate towards. (I constantly see comparisons of those strings, but I find them nothing alike)
so I ended up putting the Olinto in another bass - a Squier - the cic Fiesta Red, which has been the more "finicky" Ps to find a pickup for. I just swapped it out of that bass - briefly with a SPD-4 for a week, but wasn't happy with the string choice (9250s), and decided to try La'Bellas, and suddenly remembered I had that '74 pickup sitting unused.... That '74 PU with La'bella DTFs is the best fit yet for that bass.
So the Olinto is currently on my workbench, waiting for me to get some free time to decide my next move...
fewer options now that I'm content after "rolling" P pickups the past 3 -4 years and have found the right fit for most.
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sometimes choice can cloud your objectives.
Since I have joined this thread and binged on the net about p pickups, the spb1 is consistently classed as the “standard” or “reference” to the vintage style and tone. Many stating this should be the starting point of your pick-up journey.
For you to state the olinto is in the ballpark of the spb1 shows me how refined the spb1 is.
Vintage style P bass pickups arent rocket science in design, its the small overall variations in each brand that add up.
Duncan SPB1 and Dimarzio model P (not a vintage P bass type) are out there in big numbers for decades as well as all of the modern Fender offerings....being mindful that Fender P bass pickups varied a bit in design but also resistance readings thru the 60s on, its sort of a crap shoot.
P bass players have it easy really, P basses are rather simple creatures.... you swap out a pair of pickups (unless the early P pickup) and the difference is immediate!
I have a set of spb1 I got off tb and had them installed on my mjt bass that has a maple neck and TI flats. it sound "clanky with a touch of grind." I switched strings to an old pair of la bellas and the clankiness has gone down a lot but I still hear it a bit. i play through an ampeg and fender tube amps.
in comparison, my jazz neck pup is warm and wooly. this spb1 is brighter and not as dark.
Aside from wood choices, playing styles, etc., do spb1s have a clankiness to them? i want more warm and wooly like my jazz.
i can't compare apples to oranges as I am comparing two different basses and pups. I just don't like what I am hearing with the seymores very much.
in comparison, my jazz neck pup is warm and wooly. this spb1 is brighter and not as dark.
Aside from wood choices, playing styles, etc., do spb1s have a clankiness to them? i want more warm and wooly like my jazz.
i can't compare apples to oranges as I am comparing two different basses and pups. I just don't like what I am hearing with the seymores very much.
I have a David Allen 1088 P-Bass pickup coming. I’m looking forward to trying it out as I’ve read a number of really positive reviews about it. It supposed to be a mid-60s type of pickup. I will be interested in seeing how it compares to the Arcane 65 Experience I had.
