Similarly, differences become apparent in recording. Common to both scenarios is that context is king.
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Ultra boutique P bass pickups
- Thread starter Laurent
- Start date
Similarly, differences become apparent in recording. Common to both scenarios is that context is king.
A whole 7 or 8, eh?Seriously, though, that is interesting. My experience so far is quite different.
With any given two across makes, models, and vintages, and irrespective of price, I have yet to hear two split coil P bass pickups that sound the same.
And if it's old Fender, then especially it's the luck of the draw: for example, two mid-1970s Precision pickups I have sound totally different; but two 1967 to 1969 Precision pickups I have sound very similar.
Yeah really, I can't remember if I've tested 7 or 8 or 12 different P pickups.
My favorite P pickup so far is the Aero Type 1 (very expensive!). I also like the Rio Grande Vintage P and of all the P pickups I've tried out, the Rio Grande has the best definition and clarity.
I have a real deal 1966 Fender P Bass, all original and it's pickup is very organic and "woody" sounding.
I'm embarrassed to say how many P Basses that I own. But my best sounding P bass is this one with the E/A and D/G coils reversed. It is a "build". The nickname is rightly so, "Reverso". The pickup is the S. Duncan SPB-1. The reversed coils are the way all P Basses should be. Reversed, the sound of E/A strings is tightened up and the sound of D/G strings is beefed up a bit. Giving a better balanced tone and sound.
Any given pickup is gonna sound different in every bass that it goes into. So, to say that X brand pickup is going to sound better than Y brand pickup is ignoring that every bass guitar resonates different and every bass guitar has it's own sound.
IMHO, I think that most of us are physiologically influenced by who made the pickup and how much it cost and we inadvertently judge the sound of our P Bass on those 2 factors.
The only true way to decide on a P pickup is by having one particular bass tested with multiple pickups with us listening and having our eyes blindfolded and not being told the brand or maker of the pickup..............while someone plays that one bass and we listen and decide which pickup sounds best. Not a likely scenario.
Anyway, choosing the best sounding P pickup is like the search for the Holy Grail. There is no end to it.
I recently read that Nordstrand has a computer controlled winder that can "scatter wind" every pickup identically. That's fantastic because a human hand scattered pickup is gonna be unique to any and all others and that means that each pickup one is gonna sound different.
Maybe we should just follow Frank Zappa's statement on one of his albums..............."Shut up and play your guitar (bass)!"
Ha! True.
But if I remember correctly, Zappa wasn't the one saying that; his musicians were saying it to him. I'm glad they did.
Great thread here. I'm a p bass guy and always interested in new/vintage-boutique everything so to speak. And I am no troll with regard to upgrades and see nothing wrong with spending a couple of hundred on a pickup if it gets you what you want, whether that's your desired tone or just knowing that you have a premium upgrade. But, back in '96 when I was visiting a musician friend on the west coast I went to the local GC to buy a used or cheap bass to use while I was there. I ended up getting a mexican standard P bass that I thought was tonally just as good as the USA ones, and we auditioned a bunch of new Mexican and used USA Ps that day. It was on sale ($279 with a gig bag and cable as I recall) and the feel and fretwork was surprisingly good, and it was quiet with no hum.
A few years later I acquired a cool old Telecaster neck that I ended up swapping onto the body of this bass and I thought about putting in a designer pickup and new controls/harness (because I somehow thought that this old neck "deserved" it?). But again, with the new-used neck and some flats, the original stock mexi pickup still sounded great, with good mids and just enough bass but not boomy. It really sounds quite similar to a stock original pickup '66 P bass that a friend owns. So in that light, it would seem that switching to a boutique pickup that's made to emulate the vintage tone isn't needed. To my ears I'm close enough to that sound as is.
So, ... really, what is it that makes a custom boutique or a USA made Fender better than a Mexican made or other 'stock' pickup? Are the magnets in the Mexi ones weaker or do the windings have worse insulation or less conductivity? Are the Mexican made pickups purposely made to sound different (worse?) than the USA Fender pickups? My mexi pickups aren't the hottest magnets and don't have an enhanced dynamic range. Nothing is hot-rodded or made deeper or grittier or punchier than normal. It's just nice even tone low to high. I cannot help but wonder if in a double-blind hearing test most of us could pick out the pricey custom pickups from the stock pickups that they are marketed to replace. I suspect that a good bit of this whole niche of pickup upgrades has as much to do with psychology as it does with sound.
But I am not shaming the idea of custom pickups and may end up with some Wilde P-46s soon, myself.
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A few years later I acquired a cool old Telecaster neck that I ended up swapping onto the body of this bass and I thought about putting in a designer pickup and new controls/harness (because I somehow thought that this old neck "deserved" it?). But again, with the new-used neck and some flats, the original stock mexi pickup still sounded great, with good mids and just enough bass but not boomy. It really sounds quite similar to a stock original pickup '66 P bass that a friend owns. So in that light, it would seem that switching to a boutique pickup that's made to emulate the vintage tone isn't needed. To my ears I'm close enough to that sound as is.
So, ... really, what is it that makes a custom boutique or a USA made Fender better than a Mexican made or other 'stock' pickup? Are the magnets in the Mexi ones weaker or do the windings have worse insulation or less conductivity? Are the Mexican made pickups purposely made to sound different (worse?) than the USA Fender pickups? My mexi pickups aren't the hottest magnets and don't have an enhanced dynamic range. Nothing is hot-rodded or made deeper or grittier or punchier than normal. It's just nice even tone low to high. I cannot help but wonder if in a double-blind hearing test most of us could pick out the pricey custom pickups from the stock pickups that they are marketed to replace. I suspect that a good bit of this whole niche of pickup upgrades has as much to do with psychology as it does with sound.
But I am not shaming the idea of custom pickups and may end up with some Wilde P-46s soon, myself.
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Pbassmanca
In the pocket n' thumpy. So woody, so greasy...
I agree wholeheartedly, it has been my experience that Precision Bass pickups probably along with all other types of pickups vary from piece to piece. There are so many factors and variables that play into how a bass pickup will sound. From the type of wire to the magnets, to how it is wound to the tension of the wind and so on and so forth, not to forget that putting the exact same pickup in a different instrument will produce a different sound than you are used to hearing from that pick up. You can get a good sense of this by listening to various clips on YouTube for example , of a wide range of precision bass pickups both repro' and original from 57', 58' and 59' to 62 and 63, as well as every other incarnation and model year. I think that at the end of the day, the only way to really find out what you like, is to buy a pickup and put it in your bass. You can get somewhat of an idea from sound clips but these are not necessarily an accurate representation of what the given pickup will sound like in your instrument. This is quickly becoming both an obsessive and expensive excercise for me!A whole 7 or 8, eh?
With any given two across makes, models, and vintages, and irrespective of price, I have yet to hear two split coil P bass pickups that sound the same.
And if it's old Fender, then especially it's the luck of the draw: for example, two mid-1970s Precision pickups I have sound totally different; but two 1967 to 1969 Precision pickups I have sound very similar.
Been there, for decades. It's endless. At some point you have to fire the engineers and pay the driver. For me, it's G&L. I'm done.I agree wholeheartedly, it has been my experience that Precision Bass pickups probably along with all other types of pickups vary from piece to piece. There are so many factors and variables that play into how a bass pickup will sound. From the type of wire to the magnets, to how it is wound to the tension of the wind and so on and so forth, not to forget that putting the exact same pickup in a different instrument will produce a different sound than you are used to hearing from that pick up. You can get a good sense of this by listening to various clips on YouTube for example , of a wide range of precision bass pickups both repro' and original from 57', 58' and 59' to 62 and 63, as well as every other incarnation and model year. I think that at the end of the day, the only way to really find out what you like, is to buy a pickup and put it in your bass. You can get somewhat of an idea from sound clips but these are not necessarily an accurate representation of what the given pickup will sound like in your instrument. This is quickly becoming both an obsessive and expensive excercise for me!
svtb15
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- Mar 22, 2004
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- I play it all. Whatever works for the gig. Q+
Pbassmanca
In the pocket n' thumpy. So woody, so greasy...
I agree wholeheartedly, it has been my experience that Precision Bass pickups probably along with all other types of pickups vary from piece to piece. There are so many factors and variables that play into how a bass pickup will sound. From the type of wire to the magnets, to how it is wound to the tension of the wind and so on and so forth, not to forget that putting the exact same pickup in a different instrument will produce a different sound than you are used to hearing from that pick up. You can get a good sense of this by listening to various clips on YouTube for example , of a wide range of precision bass pickups both repro' and original from 57', 58' and 59' to 62 and 63, as well as every other incarnation and model year. I think that at the end of the day, the only way to really find out what you like, is to buy a pickup and put it in your bass. You can get somewhat of an idea from sound clips but these are not necessarily an accurate representation of what the given pickup will sound like in your instrument. This is quickly becoming both an obsessive and expensive excercise for me!
I came to the same conclusion: you got to try the pickup in the bass your playing.
Sound bites are nice, but you won't know how a pickup affects your tone until you install it and play.
Tried out a Rio Grande Muy Grande pickup today. It has a big tone with a huge upper mid frequency response. It does not have the low end response the Lollar overwound has, but it does make up the uppermid frequency response the Lollar overwound lacks. I have not tried the it out in a live setting, but I believe the Rio Grande will work well in a loud stage volume environment.
Next precision pickup to test is a David Allen 1088, which should arrive later this week.
Still want to test the Arcane 65 experience just to hear it and determine if it produces the tone I'm seeking in a p bass pickup.
Next precision pickup to test is a David Allen 1088, which should arrive later this week.
Still want to test the Arcane 65 experience just to hear it and determine if it produces the tone I'm seeking in a p bass pickup.
Pbassmanca
In the pocket n' thumpy. So woody, so greasy...
Interesting. I'm interested to try the Lollar and especially the arcane 65' as well as the Arcane 57'. I might be mistaken but I believe @Snaxster may have reviewed the Arcane 65'?
You are correct. snaxster has reviewed the Arcane 65 and so has Laurent. Both have provided great reviews, but I need to hear it in my rig with my own ears.
I like Lollar pickups so far. Whatever Jason is doing, it works for me. I still would like to compare a regular wound Lollar with the overwound Lollar I currently own. I want to determine if the regular Lollar has more mids than the overwound Lollar.
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Pbassmanca
In the pocket n' thumpy. So woody, so greasy...
Did you know Lollar winds his stock P pickup with Poly wire? I emailed them a while back inquiring as to which wire they use and that's what they said. I assumed either plain enamel or heavy formvar. Interesting.
Hello Gents.
Yes and the 57 Experience P, too. Thanks for reminding me of that one:
Mini-review: Arcane Inc. 57 Experience split coil P (Precision) bass pickup
Thanks for your kind words. That's the key, I agree. Until you play it (your bass, rig, music), you possibly can say what it is, but not what it is to you.
Yes and the 57 Experience P, too. Thanks for reminding me of that one:
Mini-review: Arcane Inc. 57 Experience split coil P (Precision) bass pickup
Thanks for your kind words. That's the key, I agree. Until you play it (your bass, rig, music), you possibly can say what it is, but not what it is to you.
Pbassmanca
In the pocket n' thumpy. So woody, so greasy...
Anyone have any experience or thoughts regarding Single Coil Precision Bass pickups? I picked up a nice little 32" scale Squier VM Telebass and I'd like to go with a great sounding SC pickup as well as a traditional wiring harness. The direction I'm looking to go tonewise with this bass is 68' ish Telebass with flats. I'm after the Wilton Felder on Barry Whites' "Stone Gon" album sound. A smooth, deep velvety sound with a nice musical, woody, thump to every note....I've been listening to a lot of decent quality clips on Youtube of late 60's / early 70's telebasses and I'm struck by the raw power of the sound. Very bright and thumpy with a very in your face attack and sound. I'm not sure whether they were using 0.1 uf caps in the harnesses or .047uf at that time. As always I'm trying to consider all of the options, the usual suspects: Klein, Lollar, Fralin, Duncan, Bareknuckle etc. Not getting a lot of input from a couple of other threads. Any thoughts are much appreciated as always.....
Anyone have any experience or thoughts regarding Single Coil Precision Bass pickups? I picked up a nice little 32" scale Squier VM Telebass and I'd like to go with a great sounding SC pickup as well as a traditional wiring harness. The direction I'm looking to go tonewise with this bass is 68' ish Telebass with flats. I'm after the Wilton Felder on Barry Whites' "Stone Gon" album sound. A smooth, deep velvety sound with a nice musical, woody, thump to every note....I've been listening to a lot of decent quality clips on Youtube of late 60's / early 70's telebasses and I'm struck by the raw power of the sound. Very bright and thumpy with a very in your face attack and sound. I'm not sure whether they were using 0.1 uf caps in the harnesses or .047uf at that time. As always I'm trying to consider all of the options, the usual suspects: Klein, Lollar, Fralin, Duncan, Bareknuckle etc. Not getting a lot of input from a couple of other threads. Any thoughts are much appreciated as always.....
I have a '51 reissue (MIJ) with a Lollar pickup, .047 uF cap on the tone control, strung with flats. For what you're looking for, I think that combination would work great. The attack is crisp, but not harsh, but with a very smooth, "round" sound. It's very responsive to playing technique, perhaps more so than any of my other basses.
When I bought the bass, I almost loved the sound, but not quite -- the playability of the bass was what sold me on it. I first changed the strings, but that only got me part of the way. Next I pulled the pickup and pots, and re-wired it with the Lollar, and it's a real keeper now.
Pbassmanca
In the pocket n' thumpy. So woody, so greasy...
Pbassmanca
In the pocket n' thumpy. So woody, so greasy...
If memory serves, it was an orange drop. I bought a bunch of those a while back, and I've used them in a lot of instruments.
