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Your Best Jazz Bass Pickup Set

N

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Feb 20, 2007
217
9
#1
Hi there,

Been wondering what are your experience in regards to replacement Jazz Bass pickup.
I had a couple of DiMarzio Ultra Jazz pickups but sound too trebly for me...too much 'Clank' also when playing with the pick (and the bass is setup great)

Been looking for the seymour duncan antiquities.. Heard some great reviews but I'm not a pickup expert

Can someone elp me out to get a beefier tone out of my jazz or which combination might work

best regards :)
 
#2
IME the UltraJazz is permanently "scooped", which is great when that's what you want. But I couldn't lose it, even when soloing one pickup.

IME the Antiquity II is much less bright, much more blunt. It had a certain thick, muscular quality that I've never quite experienced with any other pickup - I concur with SMASH's "medicine ball" comment. (I kept searching because I was looking for something a little brighter. But I still think about these from time to time...)

... speaking of SMASH, you should really check out the "sticky" thread at the top of this sub-forum. IMO, SMASH's reviews are excellent. You don't have to get through all 37 pages - even just the first few pages should give you some good ideas.
 
#3
the Dimarzio Model J is the more traditional sounding in their lineup. More mids with polite highs and tight lows. The Area J is something of a really fat version of the Model J.
 
#7
It's all so very subjective because it also involves synergy with your preamp(s), type of strings, pickup position, etc. Heck, even a different tone cap value on a passive setup will alter the character.

For your goals of reducing leading-edge clank I'd consider the Aguilar 60's wind or Nordstrand NJ4's.. Only downside is some audible hum when solo'ed. Or, how about just rolling back your treble tone when playing with a pick?
 
#9
acebase62 said:
According to Dimarzio, Area J is more vintage, Model J is darker.
Click to expand...
They're both "vintage" sounding to me. The Model J are for those who want a big thick bottom but without the pingy high end. The Area J is probably more in line with what some might expect in a Fender bass. The low end is tight and controlled, with an accentuated mid. The highs are very clear but not zingy or glassy. The Ultra J is more of the Marcus thing. Deep bottom without a big low mid, and zingy top. Burpy mids that are relaxed compared to the Area J for sure though. Dimarzio covers 3 tonal ranges very well with these pickups, and they're all hum cancelling. At around $100 a pair, these are a steal in the J-bass pickup world.
 
#10
I've replaced the pickups in all three of my Jazz basses, and my favorites are Lindy Fralin's Split-Jazz. They lose a little high end "air" and "sparkle" relative to single coils, and might be a little thicker in the lows, but they're close overall and sound amazing IMO. DiMarzio's Area J sound about the same, with a little less fatness in the lows, and are excellent as well. Not much practical difference between the two.

Purely for tone, however, the stock singles from my 2008 Jazz V might be the best. They are just fantastic, but I replaced them with Nordstrands to get rid of the hum. I might go back to the stockers, or try Bardens to go in a slightly different noiseless direction.
 
#11
It's probably just me but I am very satisfied with the stock PUP's on my 2010 MIM Jazz.
Granted this is my first Fender and first Jazz style bass but with the DR Fat beams on it
I like the tone options very much. It's pretty versatile to me.
Nice sounding bottom end when I want it and nice mids too.
Im still exploring the bass but am pretty satisfied.
Playing it through a Nitrobass/ TVX 412 amp stack.
Just my 2 pennies worth.
Jeff
 
#15
Eublet said:
They're both "vintage" sounding to me. The Model J are for those who want a big thick bottom but without the pingy high end. The Area J is probably more in line with what some might expect in a Fender bass. The low end is tight and controlled, with an accentuated mid. The highs are very clear but not zingy or glassy. The Ultra J is more of the Marcus thing. Deep bottom without a big low mid, and zingy top. Burpy mids that are relaxed compared to the Area J for sure though. Dimarzio covers 3 tonal ranges very well with these pickups, and they're all hum cancelling. At around $100 a pair, these are a steal in the J-bass pickup world.
Click to expand...

Having tried all 3 of these, I'd say that this is description is pretty accurate.

One reason I think DiMarzios are great is because they take us about 85% of the way at an unboutique price - we get an awful lot for our money. And they've given us 3 different sonic templates to do it with, depending on what sound you're looking for, or what your particular bass needs. (Mine needed the Area Js.)

You'll have to pay at least twice the price of the DiMarzios to get that other 15%.
 
#19
bassfart said:
So far for me, Nordsrtands NJ4 70's wound pickups are great, and so are Aguilars Jazz pickups in my Spector Coda bass.
Click to expand...


Im deciding between 70s or 60s winding with NJ4's

Could you tell mee the diffirence sound wise?

There's a 1975 Fender Jazz on YT with 60s winding NJ4's and that sounds pretty awesome, but I never heard 70s winding...

(My bass also has 70s specs and pickup spacing)
 

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