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[quote name='Wil' post='1261155' date='Jun 8 2011, 01:24 PM']Adjusting the truss rod is considerably less hassle than changing the bridge, and it's free, so I'd really advise you try that first [/quote] Bad advice. You should have the right hardware to begin with, not try to bend delicate bits of your guitar to cater for the wrong hardware. Do it right in the first place or risk damaging your guitar.

I have this exact bridge on my P-bass! It's a cheap ebay special, I think a copy of a Schaller bridge. The bridge is nice and solid and chunky, but the saddles are HUGE and fat. I had exactly the same problem too on my outside strings. I took two of the old saddles off the fender bridge it was replacing, and they fitted onto the new bridge fine, now no problem. (I don't mind that the saddles don't match, it's an old 1980's very bashed and worn Fender, and I like the tatty look) So: Buy a standard fitting fender replacement bridge - it should fit no probs, or get some old fender bridge saddles, they will fit too. Don't do any body routing or f*** with your truss rod until you have tried this! See attched photo.

[quote name='henry norton' post='1261041' date='Jun 8 2011, 12:07 PM']Looks a monster setup. A 250k will do although I think 500k is more normal for humbuckers, especially powerful ones stuck right at the neck end. A 250 should work though. So far as losing treble, plenty of guitars and basses have 4 or more pots so I can't see it being a problem, especially considering how dark the quarter pounder and Model 1 are - you won't have that much treble in the first place! I'm looking for a Fender Tele pickup to complement my PJ setup and will probably wire it the same way. I'm looking forward to seeing the finished bass, maybe you could post some sound samples once it's all sorted?[/quote] Sure, I'll be more than glad to, I was going to post some pics when it's done anyway, probably be a couple of weeks as I couldn't find a 250k/250k concentric pot anywhere, so had to backorder one from Allparts. I went and ordered a 250k pot for the Model one volume, but I was wondering if it needed a 500k to brighten it up. I guess I'll have to wait and see what it sounds like when I do it, can always swap it out for a 500. I'll PM you when I post them, would you like me to post my original "donor" wiring diagrams?

Also, does anyone know if I would be better off using a 500k pot for the model one humbucker than the 250k one i have suggested, and do I have too many pots? will this cause treble bleed?

Thanks KiOgon! Actually not as much head-scratching as you'd think because it's essentially a copy-and-paste job, and then i just drew it out neatly on a new schematic. It's a fun project really (if possibly a bit too expensive for the missus), If it doesn't work, then well I have learned something. Some people reckon 3 pickups on a bass is a waste of time, but Stu Hamm and Billy sheehan use similar setups (albeit with totally different wiring), so I live in hope.

Hi, A few months ago I posted some questions about mw project "EPJ" bass. This is an ash P-bass body and Jazz neck with a DiMarzio "Model One" (for Gibson EB series) at the neck, a Seymour Duncan "Basslines" Quarter pounder split P-bass pickup in the middle, and a DiMarzio Ultra Jazz at the bridge position. The idea was to have a blendable tone based on the position and type of each pickup, i.e. thick bass from the Model One, punch and growl from the P-bass and clarity from the Jazz. I chose the pickups with the help of some the chaps here (mainly Outshined), and had originally intended to use a V/T, V/T, V/T electrical setup, a bit like a '62 Jazz, but with an extra pickup. In the end I decided that this was not a good idea as multiple tone controls have a habit of interfering with each other, and I did not want the whole bass to be only wired in series like a Jazz (I mostly play in a hard rock band at present, although I do some funky stuff too, so I need flexibility and power). And I could not work out a decent way to have series/parallel switiching on all three pickups. In the end, I decided the best thing to do would be go for a VVVT setup instead, with the neck "Model One" wired permanently in series, and the P/J middle and bridge pickups switchable between series and parallel. I put a polarity switch on the Model One so that it can be switched between series and parallel inseide the humbucker to give a brighter, woodier tone at the neck if needed. Finally, I have put in a single tone control, and a master volume on a stacked pot. I'll admit that I'm no expert when it comes to bass wiring, and i have done a lot of research to try and understand what i am doing. The attached diagram is based on a number of different wiring looms, and has been designed from a modular basis and them put together to make what i need. Trouble is, I have no idea whether there are reasons that these "modules" might not work well together, so I need some xpert eyes cast over my diagram. For the record, the series/parallel polarity switch for the Model one came from DiMarzios installatuion instructions, but I added it to a push/pull pot instead of the supplied toggle switch. The P/J part below that was made from a Seymour Duncan Jazz bass with series/parallel switching diagram from their website, with slightly altered wiring for the DiMarzio Ultra Jazz at the bridge. The master tone and volume came from a a VVVT diagram I scrounged off the web where all of the pickups were in series, and used 5 pots, so i stole that part and used a stacked pot for both to save space. The bass is nearly finished, the pickup cavities have been milled and the hardware is on, I just need to do this wiring and apply a finish, any help and advise, no matter how frank, is much appreciated as i am a complete noob to this. Thanks!

[url="http://www.stringsdirect.co.uk/products/597-legacy_4_string_nickel_bass_strings_40_100_45_105_"]http://www.stringsdirect.co.uk/products/59..._40_100_45_105_[/url]

I didn't really believe it, but my guitarist (who is an amazing shredder) was going through lots of strings so he found Legacy strings and swears by their tone and cheapness. I bought some (3 sets for the price of 1 set of Rotosounds) and could not really tell any difference except they don't have the silk whipping on the end. They stay in tune, plenty of punch and have stayed bright so far, also I have 2 more sets to put on so I'll have 3-times the brightness for the price of 1 set. can't recommend these too much. I know you get what you pay for, seems if that is the case, the likes of Rotosound have been ripping us off. I know this sounds like an advert, but it isn't! No affliation. I thought it might be helpful to some of you who play a lot and have to change strings often.

Get a practice drumkit and use a practice amp, or get down the rehearsal studio!

bass in the vid looks very les Claypool. He's certainly an OK jazz/funky slapper. Handy if he should need to do any 70's cop series style incidental music

[url="http://www.songsterr.com"]http://www.songsterr.com[/url] Has tab for bass, drums and even those 6-stringed fiddly guitar thingies, but also plays the tab in midi for you live from the website, and has a mixer to adjust the volume of each instrument in the mix. [url="http://www.guitarbackingtrack.com/"]http://www.guitarbackingtrack.com/[/url] Backing tracks with either the guitar or the guitar and bass removed, so you can play along. Great for learning arrangements/making sure your line works before you hit the rehearsal studio! Both of these have just about any song you can think of if you use the search field. Any others? If we can get a load, maybe we can make a list and have it made a sticky?

In Brighton, usually 1 x 45 minute set as there is generally more than one band on the bill. Out and about around Kent and Sussex, 2 x 45 minute sets.

I have a gig on saturday evening at the "Thunder Rally" outdoor festival with my band "Hammerhead" along with Saxon, Preying Mantis (and probably) Skid Row, amongst various other bands. Last year audience was 10,000 people, this year we expect many more. The festival is in aid of Afgan Heroes. There are lots of really great bands playing some amazing music. It's all rock and metal and it's a real "musicians gig" (Organiser Andy is playing there himself with his band "Hot for teacher"). It should be a really great weekend, so if you happen to be there and see my band, come along and introduce yourself after as a Basschat member and I'll buy you a pint (or give you a tinny from my bag). [url="http://www.facebook.com/#!/event.php?eid=190158950996299"]http://www.facebook.com/#!/event.php?eid=190158950996299[/url] [url="http://www.hammerhead-band.com"]http://www.hammerhead-band.com[/url] 17TH TO 19TH JUNE. BATH AND WEST SHOWGROUND SHEPTON MALLET.

My current project has a Dimarzio "Model One" at the neck position for a dark Gibsony sound, a Seymour Duncan Quarter Pounder split P in the middle and a Dimarzio Ultra J at the neck. (Pickups chosen for me by Basschat forum members!) I fitted a Babicz full contact hardware bridge to improve resonance too. You can have lots of fun with wiring configurations too, check out these options: Parallel/series switching (Series is more ballsy I think) Coil tapped humbucker (my Model One is coiltapped) Switched or infinite panning/independent volume controls a'la jazz (can cause problem with independent tone controls though, which is one of the reasons why Les Pauls have a pickup switch and (most) Jazz basses only have one tone). Home made Varitone! In its most basic form, a switch that changes the capacitor used across the tone pot for lots of different sounds. Phase switchine (is pretty useless) Just some ideas for ya!

You'd need to get them electroplated or powder coated. I'd recommend going to your local custom or British motorcycle emporium, both of which will be able to arrange this for you. Powder coating is by far the best way BTW, as black chrome and anodising have a tendency to scratch.

I just bought mine from W D Guitars from their online shop. It's an unfinished Jazz neck for my P/J project. It cost £99.00 and it's a gorgeous bit of wood and standard Fender neck pocket size. I have an idea that C H Guitars stuff might follow their own standard size, so you have to buy their body etc or get everything re-machined. I'd check!

Hi Robert, welcome, this is a great site, you should get a lot out of it, Don't be shy to ask!

[quote name='KiOgon' post='1084378' date='Jan 10 2011, 03:47 PM']Answer = 216mm on my Frank Bello sig, P/J configuration.[/quote] Thanks very much for your help! Sounds similar to my Aria, So I'll go with your measurement. : D

Ok, thanks guys. New question then: Can anybody tell me using the distance from the 20th fret centre to the centre of the pickup, what is (in their opinion) the best position for a jazz bridge pickup on a PJ configuration? I'm using the Jazz pickup at the neck to dial in a bit of top-end to my P-bass tone, not necessarily to replicate a classic jazz sound. The crappy Aria Aerodyne PJ copy thing that I use to learn songs at concert pitch (I gig detuned), has it at 8 1/2", does this sound about right? If you have a real PJ or a nice sounding Jazz, I'd love to hear from you!

Hi there, I'm building an E-P-J at the moment (precision body, EB (model one) pickup at the neck, Precision split pickup at the standard position and Jazz pickup on the bridge position). I'm going to rout the cavity for the Jazz bridge pickup next, but I'm not sure of the optimal position for the pickup. Could anybody tell me where I can find out, or measure their Jazz or PJ tell me where i should put it? I'm not using a standard Fender bridge, but I am using standard Fender mounting holes, so I guess a measurement from the centre of the bridge screws to the longditudinal centre of the pickup would be good, or distance from the precision pickup might work if you have a PJ. Thanks!

Would be hard to comment on Allparts "own brand" as I doubt many people have knowingly heard them. I do know that when I buy pickups, I'm mostly interested in their sound, not their looks, so I'll only go for reviewed and well known pickups. It also depends of course on what sort of sound you are looking for. Dimarzio still make "Model one" mudbucker neck pickups if you want a vintage gibson "dark" sound, and they have updated these with revised string spacing for the "Willpower" neck pickups. Kent Armstrong and Seymour Duncan both make a soapbar pickup that wouldn't look out of place on your guitar (a lot of the RD's I have seen have covered pole-pieces anyway). Here's a picture of the RD standard pickup. [url="http://www.flyguitars.com/gibson/bass/parts/pickup/"]http://www.flyguitars.com/gibson/bass/parts/pickup/[/url] and the Kent Armstrong soapbar to compare: [url="http://www.wdmusic.com/kent_armstrong_bass_pickups.html"]http://www.wdmusic.com/kent_armstrong_bass_pickups.html[/url] Note also the similarity in shape of the covered pole-piece Kent Armstrong Musicman pickup with the Gibsom RD Artist pickup. If a budget vintage look is important though, I can't think of anything better than the ones you have found. As to the sound, you'd have to suck it and see. If they sound disappointing, you could always get them rewound: [url="http://www.wizardpickups.co.uk/content.asp?cpage=Repairs"]http://www.wizardpickups.co.uk/content.asp?cpage=Repairs[/url] If price really is a huge issue, then maybe just get the ones you chose for now and start saving.....

[quote name='obbm' post='1075390' date='Jan 2 2011, 03:40 PM']In the words of Captain Mannering "I wondered when you would spot that". Yes pick-up output (audio) is AC so your diodes will provide nice half-wave rectification. Fuzzy. [/quote] Thanks obbm! Saved me some soldering and head scratching. Next time a "Now listen here men!" would be appreciated rather than a "Stupid boy!". I'm here loking for advice from you chaps, don't want my fumblings with a soldering iron to become an amusing sideshow for electronics geeks. Any thoughts on decoupling the tone circuits? I'll reitterate: I want to wire three pickups in parallel, each a P-bass style Volume and tone circuit on a stacked pot, each connected directly to the output jack (or a master volume pot). The pickups will not be switched, volume and control will be operated in a similar way to a '62 Jazz bass, although the wiring is parallel, not series and there will be 3 pickups instead of two. I really don't want to use resistors on the output of each vol/tone circuit to uncouple the tone controls, as this will seriously attenuate the signal. If anyone else can spot any major daftness in my plan, I'd really appreciate the advice before I go ahead an try and do it, which I surely will soon.

Just thought, presumably the output from the pickups will be alternating as the strings pass in and out of the magnetic field of their pole pieces, meaning that I can't use a diode in the circuit. Is this right?

[quote name='Fat Rich' post='1073486' date='Dec 31 2010, 10:02 AM']Whenever I've "upgraded" bass bridges I've always been disappointed, I've used all kinds of bridge and while they're more adjustable and less rattly than the stock Fender items they make very little change to the tone. Maybe a little more sustain but also a little less of that classic Fender tone, recently I've gone back to stock Fender bridges and I prefer the sound on everything except my Marcus Miller jazz. On the other hand my Status S2 came with monorail bridges pieces and sounded a bit floaty so I swapped them for a single piece ABM bridge and it focussed the sound and gave it much more punch which suits that bass much better. That's the one time changing a bridge has made a big difference to the sound. But as has been said before, the audience isn't going to notice the difference so maybe it's all a bit pointless![/quote] Considering some of the terribly fancy basses listed by users on here, a lot of it IS pointless isn't it? I have had Warwicks, G&L's, custom luthier made 5 strings, Guilds, Tokai's, Haymans etc etc, none of them sounded better than my cheapo rusty dented 1980's Japanese Fender E series. Warwick would have made a nice bit of furniture, but not the best sounding instrument i ever owned. To be honest, as i got older, I found that much of the tone was in my fingers and a damn good amplifier. Should I just put a rusty old Squier bridge on my new home made pride and joy just because the audience won't care? I gig in an Eb tuning so I have to have a concert pitch bass to learn songs with. I use an old plywood Aria ProII with about 2 winds on each of the cheapo mass produced pickups for this. Still sounds like a rock monster through my SVT though, and plays like a Warwick after much truss and bridge tweakage.

[quote name='Muzz' post='1073496' date='Dec 31 2010, 10:10 AM']+1 for the Schaller 3D; for two 'solid' reasons (other than hard-to-define-am-I-imagining-it? things like tone and sustain) - I like the lateral adjustment available, plus if you're a player who, like me, rests the heel of their hand on the bridge, it's a smoothly-contoured and therefore comfy profile.[/quote] Good call on the Schaller, looks nice, might go on my new build after all, I'll check them out. While we are on the subject, anyone used those hugely expensive individual string hipshot through bridges?