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Post by svart on Feb 20, 2015 10:49:58 GMT -6
So here's a dumb question..
I'm looking to get a studio bass guitar and I'd like to get a P-J bass of some sorts, you know, the ones with both P and J style pickups in one bass..
Anyway, I'm thinking of getting a cheap donor body(squire maybe) and upgrading the pickups and such..
However, my guitarist friend swears up and down that bass pickups aren't nearly as finicky as guitar pickups and that the stock pickups are going to be fine, even in a squire of some kind.
I tend to disagree and feel that even bass pickups matter, that much like guitars, 80% of the tone is from the pickup and not the body of a solid guitar/bass.
Anyone know or have an opinion?
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Post by Deleted on Feb 20, 2015 11:24:47 GMT -6
Well here's the thing, a lot of stock pickups on guitars are perfectly useable. A decent active on a bass pup is generally less intrusive than a passive (I prefer passives on guitars), sure of course there are better pickups as to how much it actually matters? Like everything else in audio is subjective.
I'd go by how they sound, if they sound bad or don't fit well when recording. Sure swap them.!
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Post by svart on Feb 20, 2015 12:04:26 GMT -6
Well here's the thing, a lot of stock pickups on guitars are perfectly useable. A decent active on a bass pup is generally less intrusive than a passive (I prefer passives on guitars), sure of course there are better pickups as to how much it actually matters? Like everything else in audio is subjective. I'd go by how they sound, if they sound bad or don't fit well when recording. Sure swap them.! Understood, however I suppose I'm looking for more personal experience I suppose. Maybe it would be better to ask "anyone think the stock pickups in a squire bass are good enough for studio recording?"
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Post by mulmany on Feb 20, 2015 12:05:50 GMT -6
I would start with a nice setup and replace all the pots/switches and tone cap. Depending on the quality of the donor, also look at upgrading the bridge. I would do all that before swapping out the pups.
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Post by Deleted on Feb 20, 2015 12:34:28 GMT -6
Well here's the thing, a lot of stock pickups on guitars are perfectly useable. A decent active on a bass pup is generally less intrusive than a passive (I prefer passives on guitars), sure of course there are better pickups as to how much it actually matters? Like everything else in audio is subjective. I'd go by how they sound, if they sound bad or don't fit well when recording. Sure swap them.! Understood, however I suppose I'm looking for more personal experience I suppose. Maybe it would be better to ask "anyone think the stock pickups in a squire bass are good enough for studio recording?" Yes they will be, I have an SX 5 string bass (had a fender before) with stock actives and it sounds great to me !. As mulmany says, one of the biggest issues tonality wise comes from a bad setup. I just got an Agile 8 string and it sounded horrible, after a fret level / truss rod adjustment / action change and pup level setup it sounds beautiful even with stock puppies. I will swap them out for Lace X bar's, but that's a personal thing I'm looking for a specific tone. Think of it like a pre-amp, most of them are perfectly fine for recording.. But if you want a specific flavour, you have to invest to get it.
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Post by mobeach on Feb 20, 2015 12:46:29 GMT -6
I think it makes a big difference, they either have their own signature tone or they're transparent which would give you the natural sound of your bass. I've found Seymour Duncan's to be chunky and punchy, Bartolini's to be warm and throaty, and EMG's to me have the most clarity with some growl. All that being said I prefer active EMG's for recording. But it also comes down to the genre, if it's jazz I'd go with the Barts every time.
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Post by svart on Feb 20, 2015 13:24:53 GMT -6
Interesting takes.
I primarily want a bass that musicians can play if theirs is forgotten, sounds bad or otherwise has a bad setup/intonation. (YES this occurs more than you can imagine...)
That being said, i want something that the average player might either own, or at least can play comfortably, which would be a P/J type setup.
I personally want the P/J pickups so I have a good range of tones to choose from in the studio. Mostly this will be played through an amp, and I personally prefer the passive sound.
I do have a 5 string Cort with active Bartolini's in it that some folks have played, but the neck is wide and thin and a lot of people have trouble playing it.
I don't really care if it's not the best looking or best feeling bass, but I would like it to have solid tone and hold up to studio usage.
Mostly I want something that I won't feel too bad if someone drops it and cracks the neck or something.
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Post by mobeach on Feb 20, 2015 13:52:55 GMT -6
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Post by mobeach on Feb 20, 2015 13:58:50 GMT -6
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Post by Deleted on Feb 20, 2015 14:08:15 GMT -6
I might actually get myself a decent 4'er (Yamaha / Schechter), 5 strings are great n' all but they tend to screw with your mixes.
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Post by jcoutu1 on Feb 20, 2015 14:17:53 GMT -6
My passive Japanese 66 reissue jazz sounds killer. Nice midrange jazz bass bite. Sounds tops. I imagine that other fender japan pickups would sound similar. This bass sounds ideal for rock stuff. My ADJV is active with Noiseless pickups. More versatile overall, but not as much bite/rock sound. I have a Squier P5, that is just ok to me. Feels medium and sounds medium.
For what you want, I would look for an 80's Fender Japan Jazz Bass Special.
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Post by mobeach on Feb 20, 2015 14:19:50 GMT -6
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Post by svart on Feb 22, 2015 10:51:10 GMT -6
I came across a 92 korean squire J bass for pretty cheap. I played it and it has good feel and sound. I'd still put P pickups in it also if i were to get it, and it would still be cheaper than a lot of other options.
I'm on the fence still though, but i think it'd be a good studio bass.
It had better playability than a MIM fender Pbass that i also tried out that cost almost double.
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Post by jcoutu1 on Feb 22, 2015 11:08:54 GMT -6
I came across a 92 korean squire J bass for pretty cheap. I played it and it has good feel and sound. I'd still put P pickups in it also if i were to get it, and it would still be cheaper than a lot of other options. I'm on the fence still though, but i think it'd be a good studio bass. It had better playability than a MIM fender Pbass that i also tried out that cost almost double. I'd rather stick with a Jazz OR a P. The J with the P in the neck doesn't really do a true J sound. It loses a bit of the bite.
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Post by mobeach on Feb 22, 2015 12:54:01 GMT -6
My P/J bass, 2nd from right really cuts through the mix, the Swamp Ash body with a Myrtlewood top definitely gives it a nice punchy but smooth tone. The Basslines are very hot too. A luthier in Sacramento built it to my specs.
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Post by svart on Feb 26, 2015 14:04:27 GMT -6
I've been looking at a number of basses the last few weeks. I still think I'm sticking with a fender type. I know there are better ones, but 90% of all the people that come to the studio have some type of fender/squire bass. I want them to be able to come play mine comfortably if for some reason they can't play theirs.
That being said, I still haven't found a reasonably priced fender that played as well as that korean squire. i think I'll just go pick it up and be done with it.
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Post by mobeach on Feb 26, 2015 16:02:04 GMT -6
I think the G&L's are much more versatile than Fenders. Same feel but more tonal options. I had a G&L L2500 with an active/passive switch. Music Man is another great one but they're pricey.
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Post by Deleted on Feb 27, 2015 22:50:41 GMT -6
The 2 basses i play regularly, one has EMG pickups, the other Bartolinis. Both active. It makes quite some difference in tone, and i would agree by the characteristics mobeach gave. For small money, the G&L are a good bet IMO. Fenderish, well built, good price/performance ratio at a good pricing, you hardly go wrong with that. Would prefer them to Squires. I heard many who tried, like them. Most underrated IMO is a good bridge to get the best out of the bass. Setup as good as you can, good action and fretworks does alot for the sound of the player, especially the less experienced ones coming into a studio. It might improve the performance alot if the playability of the studio bass is better than what the player is used to and he doesn't feel limited in any way. Probably more important for good recordings than the choice of the pickups if they are decent...
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Post by mobeach on Feb 28, 2015 8:10:59 GMT -6
I think the wood used for the body makes a big difference too. Poplar is used by some companies in some of their basses and they sound rather dull. I've come to like Swamp Ash or Maple.
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Post by jimwilliams on Feb 28, 2015 11:26:02 GMT -6
Any alnico 5 P-bass pickups wound to 6k ohms per coil will do. Even the cheapo imports, if they are built that way. $20 All Parts pickups sound fine. Overwind the coils and it's like adding a low pass filter with a lower bandwidth. That will create a barking bass sound.
I line the inside of the covers with copper foil to eliminate any buzz noise. A piece of black electric tape across the top of the pickups prevent buzz noises if the fingers touch the magnets. Line the cavity and under the pickguard with copper foil and ground all of it. Then the bass is silent.
I recommend adding a Fender "no-load" tone pot, that switches out the tone cap/pot when not needed, it helps retain top end clarity. Use Bourns conductive plastic 250k pots made for guitars, they are smooth, quiet and have less losses when turning them down. Get those from Mouser.
One other add on is a DPDT mini toggle switch between the volume/tone pots. I wire the pickups series/parallel. Series is the traditional P-bass sound. Parallel adds another sound, a more hi-fi "Alembic" sort of acoustic top end, very effective when needed.
If you want a mushy attack, use alder for the body. For a harder sound, more attack, use ash. I prefer rosewood fingerboards over maple unless the maple is finished in nitrocellulose laquer, rare in these days of poly finishes which will dull the tone.
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Post by fishnmusician on Feb 28, 2015 15:43:05 GMT -6
I found a MIM Pbass in a hock shop and put Fender re-issue pups in and a .1 Emerson PIO cap. Sounds incredible now. Now I'm gonna do what jimwilliams mentions on the pots and parallel switch.
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Post by Deleted on Feb 28, 2015 17:52:55 GMT -6
Today just looked up prices for the headless 4-string Hohner The Jack with EMG licensed PU and original Steinberger System (one of the first), i had in hands again today. They go for incredible low money. They were very affordable in the early nineties and now they might be not looking "modern" enough, but man, it is an excellent instrument, that i wouldn't hesitate to use on stage (every size) and in studio. In fact i did for years. Never had a problem with it. It sounds really good, massive but not too heavy maple body, maple neck thru, rosewood fingerboard. Simply good not only for the money. Sometimes, if i want this special warm, sometimes gnarly great sound, i leave my Bogart beast aside for recording (which is really an incredible bass worth every penny of it's high price)... Just saying...
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Post by mobeach on Feb 28, 2015 20:02:39 GMT -6
I sold my Steinberger M Series like an idiot.. at the time I didn't know only 200 of the Trans-Trems were made for the bass. I've been thinking about one of those Hohners.
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Post by svart on Mar 6, 2015 15:41:21 GMT -6
So I missed out on a couple nice basses the last few weeks but I got a call from an old coworker who wanted to give away his squire P bass. Not wanting to look a gift horse in the mouth I didn't ask anything about it but just accepted it.
Now, I'd still like to put a J pickup in it, so I'm going to have to route it out and all that.
I also have a line on a cheap Fender brand J bridge pickup that I might put in it. I'd still want to change out the P pickups to something other than squire though.
Should I find some used fenders or just go with duncans or something else?
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Post by mobeach on Mar 6, 2015 17:17:09 GMT -6
I hear the Highway One Fender P, or Jazz basses are very nice. If I were to hot rod a Squire I'd replace all the hardware and electronics.
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