Your Opinion on these Pickups Matters

[DaveParker39]

I humbly apologize to you all. It was indeed the Groovz Bluetooth earbuds that were the problem. I pulled out my hardwired stage monitor earbuds, and the bass in the video sounds great. It sounds almost like I was playing it myself, except that his talent level is on a whole other level from mine!

I'm glad you figured it out! If that video had been truly bad tone then I would have had to reevaluate my whole bass philosophy

 

[Nedmundo]

I'd probably start with the Aquilars for hum-canceling. Then, if you're happy with the tone, you're done, and you don't have to worry about single coil hum. If you're not happy with it, then you can try the Duncans.

 

[FrenchBassQC]

Aguilar, voilà!

 

[jglunt]

Thanks to all who have commented thus far. At this point, lots of love for the Aguilars and not much for the Seymour Duncans, so the Aguilars it is! Here is one more question: Does anyone know if the stubby coils inside each Aguilar pickup are wired in parallel or series? I ran across a wiring diagram for the inner workings of these pickups a few days ago that detailed that, but I'll be darned if I can find it now. Ain't that the way it always goes?

 

[jglunt]

I'm glad you figured it out! If that video had been truly bad tone then I would have had to reevaluate my whole bass philosophy

BTW, I dig the reference to Dave Parker 39. He's the second greatest right fielder the Pirates ever had, second only to Roberto Clemente, who I saw play many times both at Forbes Field and Three Rivers Stadium. Being second to Roberto Clemente is a good thing. He might've been the greatest right fielder in the history of baseball.

 

[jastacey]

I have a Jazz bass, and I loaded it with the "fender custom shop 62 " pickups, I usually run them with the neck at about 80% and the bridge at 20-25%< hum is really not an issue in a band setting, and they sound very good in a band mix, if judging them alone with just in the bedroom/living room, some folks will say there so so, so I would give a nod to the Seymour Duncans, just my experience

 

[jglunt]

I followed the majority lead and installed the Aguilar set. Great advice, All Y'all. They sound great. Thanks to one and all!

 

[sean_on_bass]

I appreciate you sending this video, but I'm sorry, these sound like mud to me. No real articulation or definition, just rumble. Is this really how these pickups sound or is it a bad recording?

Probably both sound and playing. He is heavily muting some of those notes and choking them a tad. I've found most bass gear reviews to be totally useless when it comes to judging the sound. Can't trust em.

 

[sunbeast]

I beg to differ. I had a Squier VM 4 with duncan design alnico V’s stock. Its sounded killer outta the box. the hardware upgrades weren’t required as they were a better quality than the later stuff. I never buy Fenders as they’re just not my thing, but a single lower cost squier with the right upgrades is always handy in the stable….once sorted.

But the paranormal is notorious for these whisper quiet pickups. They belong right in the trash.

Those Duncan-designed Squier J pickups were really nice, they punched way above the weight of the pickups typically found in instruments like that (and much nicer than the pickups Squier replaced them with when the DDs went away, heck nicer for my ears than most Fender J pickups I've tried). I've actually replaced some boutique J pickups (Fralin and Nordstrand single coils) with DD sets and preferred the DDs. I've accumulated a few sets though I end up selling them in cheap project basses like a dummy, they are harder to find these days than they once were! (I still have one set or maybe two and won't sell them again). From my memory, the DD Duncans were very similar to the Duncan SJB-1 pickups like the OP has- just a made overseas take on it.

 

[pb9717]

Those Duncan-designed Squier J pickups were really nice, they punched way above the weight of the pickups typically found in instruments like that (and much nicer than the pickups Squier replaced them with when the DDs went away, heck nicer for my ears than most Fender J pickups I've tried). I've actually replaced some boutique J pickups (Fralin and Nordstrand single coils) with DD sets and preferred the DDs. I've accumulated a few sets though I end up selling them in cheap project basses like a dummy, they are harder to find these days than they once were! (I still have one set or maybe two and won't sell them again). From my memory, the DD Duncans were very similar to the Duncan SJB-1 pickups like the OP has- just a made overseas take on it.

Yea, I’ve installed them in many mexican jazz, a Bacchus, my last paranormal. They fly under the radar, but if you know, you know.

 

[sunbeast]

I personally really like the Duncan SJB-1s, though it has been over a decade since I had a set. IMO they are just a great all-around "traditional" type J pickup with the output you'd expect from an old J pickup (ie- not very high output, but not weak either). They are good for presence and cut, grind and growl; but roll the tone down and they can thicken up too. If you want a generally thicker tone then the Aguilars might be more up your alley. Personally I prefer a more open tone that I can sculpt down rather than one the starts darker- its much harder to get clarity/brightness from a darker pickup than the opposite, but its a matter of taste of what your baseline ideal is. Obviously if less noise and increased output is important then the Aguilars are probably where to start! Of course you should just try them both since you already have them.

 

[sunbeast]

Yea, I’ve installed them in many mexican jazz, a Bacchus, my last paranormal. They fly under the radar, but if you know, you know.
View attachment 7491058

Used to be able to buy sets of them for $20 on Ebay when people would "upgrade" them. Unfortunately those days are long gone!

 

[LoveThatBass]

I beg to differ. I had a Squier VM 4 with duncan design alnico V’s stock. Its sounded killer outta the box. the hardware upgrades weren’t required as they were a better quality than the later stuff. I never buy Fenders as they’re just not my thing, but a single lower cost squier with the right upgrades is always handy in the stable….once sorted.

But the paranormal is notorious for these whisper quiet pickups. They belong right in the trash.

I understand. I was basing my experiences with the ones Had owned in the past. They were not of VM variety. I did here one 2000 Used Squier a guy was considering buying at GC. I told him I loved the tone of that bass. Better than some Fenders I have owned.

 

[jglunt]

Yea, I’ve installed them in many mexican jazz, a Bacchus, my last paranormal. They fly under the radar, but if you know, you know.
View attachment 7491058

I'm curious about the neck on the Paranormal 54 Jazz Bass that you pictured. Did the bass come with those abalone fret markers or did you change the originals out? I ask because in late 2020, I had G&L build me a new neck for my G&L USA SB-2, and they put abalone fret markers in it as a surprise. I really like the subtle difference those make in the appearance of a bass.

 

[pb9717]

I'm curious about the neck on the Paranormal 54 Jazz Bass that you pictured. Did the bass come with those abalone fret markers or did you change the originals out? I ask because in late 2020, I had G&L build me a new neck for my G&L USA SB-2, and they put abalone fret markers in it as a surprise. I really like the subtle difference those make in the appearance of a bass.

Stickers. Amazon.

 

[sikamikanico]

Thanks to all who have commented thus far. At this point, lots of love for the Aguilars and not much for the Seymour Duncans, so the Aguilars it is! Here is one more question: Does anyone know if the stubby coils inside each Aguilar pickup are wired in parallel or series? I ran across a wiring diagram for the inner workings of these pickups a few days ago that detailed that, but I'll be darned if I can find it now. Ain't that the way it always goes?

I'd bet it's series, it's the most standard for split Js. Aguilar also tends to hardwire their humbuckers in series.

 

[Gianni "Orlandez" Orlati]

I appreciate you sending this video, but I'm sorry, these sound like mud to me. No real articulation or definition, just rumble. Is this really how these pickups sound or is it a bad recording?

In my opinion they sound quite similar to a very good single coil set but they are noiseless.
You can check the official Aguilar’s video here:

 

[Bass4LifeRS]

Never needed a jazz bass in my arsenal, so can't help you. Good luck.

That is interesting, because I have a great jazz, but always seem to gig the Precision in stead. Sorry for off topic.