Suggestion please for upgrade to Std PGB 5 String Bass PUP's?

[wazkelly]

Been playing a few different axes one after another and find the standard PUP's in the EX-5 sound OK but very low in volume and not as much punch as I would like.

Just wondering if anyone has upgraded their standard PBG 5 string Bass PUP's and if so what did you choose and what difference did they make?

Been looking at some Seymour Duncan SSB-5 5-string Passive Phase II Soapbars as they look like they might fit the holes and hopefully sound OK and improve out put levels.

Any feedback would be greatly appreciated.

[FredA]

I've got the same comment on my IB5 and wouldn't mind updating the pups too!
These Seymour Duncan look pretty cool and only 1-2mm smaller than the stock one based on specs... humm... interesting!

[wazkelly]

Saw some passive EMG & Bartolini's too that might do the job but they tend to be a bit more pricey. Reviews on Wilkinson's was quite poor and it would seem they are not much better than stock PBG's.

[kimball492]

Hey Wazkelly I have EMG 40hz on one of my basses not a big fan pretty dull and lifeless. Someone suggested putting the pre amp in, which I haven't done yet. I have some Bartolini II's on an Ibanez bass they sound amazing. and John Bensons Custom wound on a precision Bass,they sound fantastic too.
http://www.notreble.com/buzz/2010/11...ng-your-sound/


Just saw these on Facebook the best of both worlds John Benson Pickups with Bartollini preamp. These are a 6 string version.
https://www.facebook.com/johnandheat...889863622405:1

[dingobass]

Honestly SD's are $100 pickups with a $200 name on the covers..
Bartolini are great.
But for the money you could get two or three sets of Bensons wound to your specs and they will eat any name brand pups..
EMG HZ used to be awesome but they have gone off in recent years kinda forcing you to buy the pre amp in order to get any punch out of them.

[wazkelly]

Thanks DB & Kimball.

Must admit I was tempted by the SD's on the left for USD $125 and the EMG's for USD $109 each also appeared reasonable value. The Bartolini's are the priciest coming in at USD $175 each which works out around AUD $470 for a pair.....ouch!

Hopped on the John Benson website and sent an email asking what he could come up with. Will post his response to this thread in due course as I am most likely not the only one considering such upgrades.

[dingobass]

Be keen to see what JB can do for you.
Another great custom winder in the USA is Jerry Sentell. He makes some gnarly Bass pickups

[wazkelly]

Emailed John last night and below is his response....

Hello Waz Kelly,
Thank you for contacting me, I do sell that sized pickup in both wood or plastic cases depending on your build. The wood cases are something special for an earthy look which some builders really enjoy. The plastic is standard package at 4" x 1.5".

My tone is similar to an Ernie Ball Musicman tone in this pickup.This hand wound set uses 10 radial alnico magnets which give it a very full rich tone.

For the standard case, my price is $200 for the set and $260 for the wood cased version of this set.

PitBull is my Australian distributor, so I will contact them on how to proceed with this order if you are interested.

Thank you and please let me know if you have any questions.

Emailed back asking if he did 2 wire or 4 wire to allow for coil splitting and eagerly awaiting his reply.

[wokkaboy]

sounds good Waz those prices sound reasonable for hand wound pups

[wazkelly]

sounds good Waz those prices sound reasonable for hand wound pups

Beats the heck out of the EMG's at around USD $109 each plus postage. Bartolinis seem start at about USD $175 each but they make so many it tends to get confusing figuring which one does what?

There is a 2nd hand set of Bartolini 72M45C M4 (EMG 40) Size Deep Tone Dual Coil Bass Pickups on Ozzy eBay for AUD $150 plus local postage which works out about AUD $120 less than the JB's. Hmmm.....tempting as I have a couple of other moderately expensive upgrades planned on 2 other axes and only limited funds.

Basically I am staring down the cost of 2 kits across these upgrades but leaning more towards the JB's as I like the punchy mid rangy sound of that era MM and will have to shelve those other plans for just a bit longer.

If he can do 4 wire with coil split I'll go for it and wire up the same as the EX-1 by swapping one of the PUP volume controls for a typical 3 way switch and installing bourns push/pulls for the Vol & Tone pots. If only 2 wire, not a problem as that would save a few bucks through not having to buy the push/pulls and still sound OK.