To pick up some pick-ups?

I've been debating if I should get some new pick ups recently. I'm looking to get some more tones out of my bass and what not. I'm not sure if I should get some bartolinis or save up and get a new amp.

The amp usually has the biggest effect on tone so investing in a new amp might be a good idea... It all depends on what you're using at the moment really... So, what gear are you using?

if u do decide to get new pickups then i suggest heading out to this place http://www.allparts.uk.com/
it seems to have everything u want

SuperMaximo93 wrote:... So, what gear are you using?

I've got an Orange Crush 35B amp ( the one in my profile pic ) , and if I was to get new pick ups I'd either put them in my Squire J Bass or my Tradition B-100

If anything I'd go passive. Much much simpler. I outfitted mine with SD Hotstacks back in 05 made a helluva difference.

"I had sex before I got here, so lets just enjoy the meal"
Thats the best pickup.


See what I did there?

Man. Im so good.

But anyways

My SR300's active pickups are fairly wonderful. I dont even think I want to go back to passive because of that.

But new amp. Definitely.

LulZ..

gonna check out that website ^^ lots really good XD

I reckon an amp upgrade would be the way to go, even though the Orange is a pretty decent amp I've heard

Rushfan30 wrote:

SuperMaximo93 wrote:... So, what gear are you using?

I've got an Orange Crush 35B amp ( the one in my profile pic ) , and if I was to get new pick ups I'd either put them in my Squire J Bass or my Tradition B-100

From what I've heard they're meant to be good amps, I'd take your bass to a local music store and jam on a few amps there. If you're happy with any by all means buy a new one but I'd want to go for the pups first just out of sheer personal curiosity

Also my Wick has passive pups and a preamp which gives you that passive sound but with an extra boost, by fiddling with the EQ I can get pretty much any sound I'm after.

Cool, thanks for the tips guys. I'm more than likely going to save up some more cash, and purchase a new amp. I'm thinking a higher end Orange,Ampeg, or maybe a gallien krueger. I'm definitely going to try them out though ( and others ), once again thanks for the advice!

Lots of variables here as mentioned your amplifier/effects etc will have an effect on the range of sound/tones but also the type and guage of your strings i.e roundwound strings lots of highs and midrange, flatwound thick melllow sound. Thinner strings dont give as much lows as thicker strings etc.

Also have you tried changing the height of your pickups? This can affect the sound. I would suggest that you try some of these first and decide on the sound or tone you are looking for.

I have read on forums of people spending lots of money on pickups only to put the original stock pickups back in. Some people change pickups because the new pickups have a brand name stamped on them ( pretty useles unless you are standing about 5cm away from the guitar.)

There are also many variables to look out for

1- will my ears be able tell the difference between different pickup types.
2- size of the replacement pickups is iimportant so measure your pickup cavities acccurately against the size of the new pickup - you dont want to have to widen the pickup cavities unless you are good at woodwork or its an inexpensive guitar.
3- the wiring may be different from my original pickups.
4- Different types of magnet, coil windings and wiring configrations give different results.

This could get very technical so i will stop here But you could take a look at THIS

Most passive pups are wired the same. A red wire and a black wire. It's when you get into actives that you start to worry about wiring symmetry.

Dropthelines585 wrote:Most passive pups are wired the same. A red wire and a black wire. It's when you get into actives that you start to worry about wiring symmetry.

Also dependant on whether they are single coil or dual coil, most dual coil pickups have 4 wires sometimes an extra screen wire. The coils are usually wired in series to give more outputs, mainly used on humbucker or soap bar type pickups.

DubHertz wrote:

Dropthelines585 wrote:Most passive pups are wired the same. A red wire and a black wire. It's when you get into actives that you start to worry about wiring symmetry.

Also dependant on whether they are single coil or dual coil, most dual coil pickups have 4 wires sometimes an extra screen wire. The coils are usually wired in series to give more outputs, mainly used on humbucker or soap bar type pickups.

I've never worked with those, so I learned something today.

This configuration allows guitar builders/modders to put in switches which allow for different wiring modes.

When both coils are wired in series you get a slighty lower output but a much thicker deeper sound. For example a p-bass has two separate pickup wired in series to make one pickup - deeper fatter sound

A jazz bass has two pickups wired in parallel giving a much brighter sound (great for slap and pop) but it is much louder

Parallel = less resistance across the coils = more output
Series = greater resistance = lower output

+1