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Modifying a squire p bass. Recommended hardware/pick ups


ken_white
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Hello,

I still got my first bass which is a squire p bass. so i thought i'd give it a new lease of life.

I want to it more for sentimental reasons.

so has anyone else done anything like this, whats some decent pick ups to use? any recommeneded hardware or keep the original?

what can i do to generally inprove it?

any suggestions welcome...

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Depends which Squier model. I tend to start with the tuners and pups. Depends on your budget of course and what type of sound you prefer.

You will get loads of recommendations for pups. Wizards are well thought of around here and not too expensive. Or you could go with Fender of course.


Before you spend too much time and money, it might be worth setting it up properly and making sure that the neck is good and that the truss rod functions correctly.

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[quote name='gary mac' timestamp='1345572465' post='1779025']
Depends which Squier model. I tend to start with the tuners and pups. Depends on your budget of course and what type of sound you prefer.

You will get loads of recommendations for pups. Wizards are well thought of around here and not too expensive. Or you could go with Fender of course.


Before you spend too much time and money, it might be worth setting it up properly and making sure that the neck is good and that the truss rod functions correctly.
[/quote]


Well to be honest i have never felt the need to adjust the truss rod as it has always played quite nicely, never had any fret buzz and the action has always been quite nice. I did buy it second hand from my old lead guitarist who never played it much! I've not looked into how old it is or where it was made all i know is it's possibly about 10 years old. The only thing i changed was the pick guard.

My chain of thought is that squire is budget fender so the sound could be improved on, i'm not in any rush to do it so i'll buy the bits as and when i see a good deal.
My band plays classic rock covers so stones, hendrix with some muse in the mix. so i'm not really after a dark tone just a nice warm tone.

I had a look at the wizards pups their very reasonably priced so could be worth giving them a try. Also thinking bridge and tuners at the same time and some new rotosounds.
The one thing that does make me wonder is how much difference a rewire and new pots would make..

Anyway, i think i'm waffling now as i'm tired and its 1:15 lol

Thanks for the tips!

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Changing the pups is a good move and a worthwhile upgrade.

Tuners are worth changing if the existing ones don't do the job.

I can't abide those little closed back tuners that are on some of the Squier range. If your bass has those, then you will need to enlarge the holes through the head stock, if you want to fit standard ones.

I have swapped out the wiring and pots on the Squier projects that I've done, not so much because I expect an improvement in sound but more because I'm not keen on the flimsy wiring and little pots.

If you want to take the easy route, then a fellow bass chatter, Kiogon produces a superb little kit that you can drop straight in, with no soldering needed. Decent pots, input socket and good quality cable.

The Squier bridge, I think does the job as well as a Fender bridge, so probably only worth changing if you don't like the look or it's faulty.


Good luck with it and enjoy

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Yup, I'd start with the pickups. Wizards are held in hight regard on here, but I've never had any so couldn't say. I've used Seymour Duncan Quarter pounder on a P that was great, and also a GFS set were brilliant - staggering that they're not bigger on this side of the pond.

http://www.guitarfetish.com/GFS-PB-Pro-P-Bass-style-pickups-Sweet-Alnico-Vintage-Tone_p_333.html

I also tried one of their Alnico Super mega ultra hot thingies, and it was everything they said it would be. Superb.

Edited by paul_5
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Changing pickups will have the most dramatic effect on the sound, probably for the better from stock Squier. I would wholeheartedly recommend Wizard, I replaced the pickups in my Squier VM with Wizards and it sounded awesome! It depends what you want though, power and brightness or vintage warmth... different ones do different things.

Changing the wiring will have less of an effect, to be honest if the volume and tone controls work theres not much point in fixing. Some people will try and sell you on the idea of a really old oil filled capacitor for that vintage vibe - honestly it doesn't do that much. More expensive pots will last longer and feel smoother, but if its not broke... i would spend the money on the pickups! The best thing you could do is make sure the whole thing is properly screened to get rid of interference.

Changing hardware will have a small effect on the playing, and a little bit on the sound. Change to a high mass bridge for more sustain and a more solid feel to the strings. Change the tuners if you have issues with them, but not that important if they work OK.

Changing the nut will also improve the tone and sustain of open strings (and may make fretted notes a it easier if its done properly). This should be combined with a professional set-up and a new set of strings :)

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I like fiddling with basses and the single biggest improvement in terms of bang for buck was fitting a J. East preamp - P-retro in your case. My P-retro has been in 3 different basses now, plus another in a 2 pup bass, and each time fitting one has opened up a whole word of sound that had previously been locked away somewhere. Even with stock cheapish pickups the difference it made was huge.

Currently have a Westone Thunder Jet bass with Seymour Duncan SPB-3 and the P-retro and it sounds huge. I also fitted to it a Gotoh-a-like high mass bridge similar to this one [url="http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Guitar-Gear-4-String-Bass-Bridge-Thick-Block-Various-Colours-/130747239962?pt=UK_Guitar_Accessories&var=&hash=item1e71248e1a"]http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Guitar-Gear-4-String-Bass-Bridge-Thick-Block-Various-Colours-/130747239962?pt=UK_Guitar_Accessories&var=&hash=item1e71248e1a[/url] as I find the stock BBOT uncomfortable - does the job as well as a 'proper' Gotoh 201 I have on another bass even if the build quality is not so good.

Advantage of replacing the wiring loom with a KiOgon one, apart from the cheap price and quality, is they come with a terminal block fitted for the pup wires, so changing them is a 10 minute job. I aim to trial of as many different types as I can in an attempt to get 'that' perfect tone.

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Thank you for all the advice, certainly given things to think about!
I took the neck off to try and find out the date etc. it said made in china and the date on the neck said 10th dec 1997. So i think i'll try and find out some more from the serial no at the same time.

Thanks everyone!!

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Just fitted a Wizard thumper and it's satisfyingly deep and heavy.

Also have a Precision with roundwounds and a SD Quarter Pounder, this gives the 'other' Precision sound; dirty, clanky, macho, rocky.

There's always someone here wanting to buy Thumpers and SDs, so if you don't like them you should be able to sell them and not lose too much.

Good luck!

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