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What pickup configuration/tone do you find most useful?
- Thread starter FatOwlBass
- Start date
Of the tree you have listed I would go with the Jazz config. IMO it's just more versatile. You have the classic Jazz with both PU's. You can cop a P vibe by soloing the neck PU, and a Ray-ish vibe soloing the bridge PU.
That said, my preferred configuration is two soaps. My #1 has Bartolini P2's and my #2 has Nordstrand Zen Blades.
That said, my preferred configuration is two soaps. My #1 has Bartolini P2's and my #2 has Nordstrand Zen Blades.
Since my #1 (a Dingwall NG3) has three pickups and gets close enough to any of these for rock and roll, they get my vote.
But to stay on topic, I've usually gone for two pickup basses and favor both blended 50/50. A single P bass pickup is a universe of its own though (that's why I also still own a Fender P with flats...)
But to stay on topic, I've usually gone for two pickup basses and favor both blended 50/50. A single P bass pickup is a universe of its own though (that's why I also still own a Fender P with flats...)
Versatilitiy isn't needed if your one pickup sounds great. I'd say versatility often is a crutch. You think you need it, but you don't, and it just makes you indecisive.
I'm a "2 soaps with coil switching" kinda guy.
I have been playing my 6 string with a single pickup in a lot lately and finding it sits well in the mix and works for many different types of music. It has the humbucker in the P bass position. It does have a 3 band preamp but I don't tweak it much.
I Play Active Spector Euros....However, I solo the P Pickups and don't use the active boost or cut. Never need anything more.
To me…. The StingRay gives the best of a PBass and a Jazz. It just works for me.
When considering their most common configurations: MusicMan.
IME, Jazz basses always need a little help to be heard in a mix. The single coil hum also works against them in noisy settings.
Precisions work great but require a bit more… ahem… precision and nuance from the player to get the most from them.
MusicMan basses, to me, blend the best aspects of both the Jazz and Precision while also doing their own thing. They have a punch like a Precision and a clarity like a Jazz, and they can growl or grind like the best of either. They don’t hum, and the onboard preamp gives you easy to access, tone shaping capabilities on the fly. It really was the natural evolution of Leo’s designs, IMO.
IME, Jazz basses always need a little help to be heard in a mix. The single coil hum also works against them in noisy settings.
Precisions work great but require a bit more… ahem… precision and nuance from the player to get the most from them.
MusicMan basses, to me, blend the best aspects of both the Jazz and Precision while also doing their own thing. They have a punch like a Precision and a clarity like a Jazz, and they can growl or grind like the best of either. They don’t hum, and the onboard preamp gives you easy to access, tone shaping capabilities on the fly. It really was the natural evolution of Leo’s designs, IMO.
that might be true if "your one pickup" can sound like two pickups with various amounts of blending. i haven't found that to be the case, but i wouldn't rule out the possibility...
i think experienced players can 'get by' with one competent pickup and simple controls, but i wouldn't call versatility "a crutch" when a skilled player has a preference for more than one "great" pickup. i.e., "versatility" can be a preferred configuration.
i assume you're speaking for yourself. i'm pretty sure there are lots of players who use two (or more) pickups decisively.
and i'd bet that some can confuse themselves with one pickup and a knob. 
PJ configurations specifically, or more generally, two pickups: a neck pickup and a bridge pickup. those two pickups are better than one --- for me --- it's a preference.
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I love the jazz configuration, I usually pull back on the neck pickup slightly and the tone nob pulled back slightly as well
That’s how I ran my passive jazz. Helps the mids pop more.
I only care about versatility of application. One sound that works anywhere. Versatility of features is distracting to me. I don't like having more than one pickup because I can never stop deciding what the blend should be. I prefer to have as few knobs as possible and preferably no switches. I like to change the sound with my hands instead, and if I can't get every sound I want that way, the bass won't last.
I have several basses with the PJ setup that get me where I want to be for several tonal characteristics . I also prefer a DBL P over 2 Jazz for better tonal spectrum.
I think your list needs P/J and 2x soapbars to really get a sense of what people use. There's a lot of people who don't play any of those 3.
- Apr 18, 2008
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- Disclosures
- I'm highly opinionated and extremely self-assured
That’s an incredibly limited poll. I can’t vote.
When I play with my band, my precision bass allows me to play everything and always sits in the mix with ease.
I have use the “versatility “ of my Jazz set up less and less over the years. I prefer something “ set and forget” that adapts to changes in my technique over many knob / switch driven options.
But I don’t believe that factor is exclusively the domain of one type of pickup
But I don’t believe that factor is exclusively the domain of one type of pickup
