That post-punk P-bass sound...

[thisnameistaken]

I've been picking up bits of P bass and I'm starting to assemble them, but I'm a bit stuck when it comes to choosing a pickup.

I've decided the sound I want is that English post-punk sound. The sort of thing that Graham Maby, Bruce Thomas, Bruce Foxton, Andy Rourke etc. were doing.

What pickup do I want for that? Or will most P pickups do that? If so which ones do I avoid? Note that I am already avoiding actives.

[Dingus]

Those guys are favourite players of mine, too.

I think most mainstream Precision pickups will give you that sound, including stock Fender ones that sound perfectly good to me. If you want a decidedly aggressive -sounding P pickup then Di Marzio's are usually a good bet, or the Seymour Duncan Quarter Pounder. If you want to go a little off the beaten track then the Delano PMVC FE/M2 ( catchy name for a pickup) sounds great, as does the Hanson/Lakland Neopunch, both of which I can say sound very loud and chunky in a straight passive Precision Bass.

[iconic]

I wouldnt know what pick up to use but did any of these guys use a p? May help to identify the bass they used for the sound you want

I thought Rouke used a yamaha 'n fingers and foxton a rickenbacker/faker and pick?

[Beedster]

I think it's more about the amplification than the PUP to be honest. I've owned every P-PUP out there and the differences between all of them are tiny as compared to the differences between amps and cabs

C

[Lozz196]

Precision, play with a pick, and technique is the main thing. I can get a great Bruce Foxton sound by changing my technique with the pick, but my natural style gives a much bassier/warmer sound. It`s the way you attack the strings that will give "that" sound - coupled with afore-mentioned Precision that is.

[miles'tone]

I know that both Bruce Thomas and Andy Rourke used original pre-CBS Precisions to record with (yes A Rourke also used a Yamaha BB sometimes) so my vote goes to the Fender Original P pickup. Sounds amazing and won't break the bank. Class tone that will make you smile whatever style you're playing.

Edited December 7, 2013 by miles'tone

[hamfist]

The Wilkinson WBP (about £27 on ebay) is as good as anything out there IMO. And I'm very much looking for similar tones as the OP.

[discreet]

The pickup fitted to mid-70s P Basses. Or its modern equivalent, whatever that is.

[EssentialTension]

[quote name='Beedster' timestamp='1386376112' post='2299593']
I think it's more about the amplification than the PUP to be honest. I've owned every P-PUP out there and the differences between all of them are tiny as compared to the differences between amps and cabs

C
[/quote]
This is about correct. Pickup may make a difference but fingers/pick etc plus amp/cab and eq will make more difference.

[Beer of the Bass]

I'd agree that a lot of this sound is about the amplification. I'd guess that they're setting the amp quite bright but using old school cabs with no tweeter, so you end up with a big peak somewere around 2KHz before it starts rolling off, which is still bright but nothing like a "hi-fi" bass sound.
Also, I remember seeing an interview with Graham Maby where he mentioned using black nylon tapewounds, not for their mellower sound but because the reduced finger noise meant he could turn the treble knob all the way up on his Fender Bassman without the string squeaks. Having tried them myself, tapewounds with a pick and heftily boosted treble does get you quite close to his sound.

[discreet]

I also have a feeling that a maple neck may have something to do with it.

[thisnameistaken]

[quote name='Beer of the Bass' timestamp='1386413310' post='2299747']
I remember seeing an interview with Graham Maby where he mentioned using black nylon tapewounds, not for their mellower sound but because the reduced finger noise meant he could turn the treble knob all the way up on his Fender Bassman without the string squeaks. Having tried them myself, tapewounds with a pick and heftily boosted treble does get you quite close to his sound.[/quote]

Oh cool, cheers for that.

[quote name='discreet' timestamp='1386413647' post='2299752']
I also have a feeling that a maple neck may have something to do with it.
[/quote]

I don't think I've ever seen a P bass neck that wasn't maple so I should be alright there. I doubt the thin sliver of fingerboard is important so I'm sticking with the less-sticky rosewood option.

[borisbrain]

Bruce Thomas maintains a blog at www.brucethomas.co.uk and he seems quite happy to correspond with anyone who sends a comment. A while back I asked him about the signature tone he used for albums like This Year's Model, Armed Forces and Get Happy. This was his reply:
[color=#444444][font=minion-pro-1, minion-pro-2, Palatino, Georgia,]
My P bass had the pick ups rewound, wrongly as it happens but it turned out to be a happy accident and gave the bass a different sound in itself.[/font][/color][color=#444444][font=minion-pro-1, minion-pro-2, Palatino, Georgia,]
I never used Ampeg SVT equipement until later on — and only live. On the albums you referenced I used a Traynor monoblock head with a custom speaker rig containing 2×12″ speakers and 1×18″. obviously it was the 12″ speaker that was miked up — but I also mixed in the miked sound with a DI feed.[/font][/color][color=#444444][font=minion-pro-1, minion-pro-2, Palatino, Georgia,]
A vital part of the sound was a small Boss graphic EQ pedal which I used to roll out low bass and the honky mid tones (around 600 I think). The only other modification was a bit of compression.[/font][/color][color=#444444][font=minion-pro-1, minion-pro-2, Palatino, Georgia,]
Having said all of that, most of the punch you talk about comes from the way you pluck the strings. The only way to describe it is to say that if you try snapping your finger and thumb together to make that snapping sound, it’s a bit like that. Also important is releasing the string with your left hand, so you get a more staccato stabbing effect.[/font][/color][color=#444444][font=minion-pro-1, minion-pro-2, Palatino, Georgia,]
Try getting that kind of punchy sound just playing the bass acoustically without plugging it in to anything and you’re half way there. On some of the clips I put on youtube I turned the amp right down, so you might be able to hear what I mean.[/font][/color]

It's worth wading through the site for the occasional nuggets of wisdom, and some video of his playing. Pickup wise, I think that SPB1s would be the closest match to his custom-wound pickups. Or you could just get one of his signature P basses, made through the Bass Centre in London.

BB

[Lozz196]

That`s a really cool reply there from Bruce, thanks for posting that Boris.

[Dingus]

Bruce Thomas - what a player!

I know that in the early days Bruce used heavy gauge roundwounds and played very hard.

Edited December 7, 2013 by Dingus

[discreet]

[quote name='thisnameistaken' timestamp='1386420481' post='2299904']
I don't think I've ever seen a P bass neck that wasn't maple so I should be alright there. I doubt the thin sliver of fingerboard is important so I'm sticking with the less-sticky rosewood option.
[/quote]

Of course what I should have said is 'maple neck with maple fingerboard' or indeed 'one-piece maple neck'. The thin sliver of fingerboard may or may not be important but I do think a one-piece has a bearing on the 'tone' if you want to call it that, having had two basses with a one-piece maple neck.

Edited December 7, 2013 by discreet

[borisbrain]

[quote name='Lozz196' timestamp='1386435972' post='2300129']
That`s a really cool reply there from Bruce, thanks for posting that Boris.
[/quote]

Cheers Lozz. There's more on BT's tone if you delve into this interview he gave waaaay back...

http://www.elviscostellofans.com/phpBB3/viewtopic.php?t=8127

[Dingus]

[quote name='discreet' timestamp='1386436618' post='2300144']
Of course what I should have said is 'maple neck with maple fingerboard' or indeed 'one-piece maple neck'. The thin sliver of fingerboard may or may not be important but I do think a one-piece has a bearing on the 'tone' if you want to call it that, having had two basses with a one-piece maple neck.
[/quote]

I think a laquered maple fingerboard definitely does make a difference to the sound on a Fender, without a doubt , though I do think it's more the laquer you are hearing than the maple . .

[discreet]

[quote name='Dingus' timestamp='1386437731' post='2300158']
I think a laquered maple fingerboard definitely does make a difference to the sound on a Fender, without a doubt , though I do think it's more the laquer you are hearing than the maple . .
[/quote]

What, like Stradivarius violins..? It's possible I suppose, but both my one-piece maple necks have had most of the lacquer removed using the traditional Scotchbrite pad method, as recommended by Bill Turnbull. He keeps bees, you know.

Edit: Oh wait, you mean between the frets?

Edited December 7, 2013 by discreet

[Dingus]

[quote name='discreet' timestamp='1386437965' post='2300164']
What, like Stradivarius violins..? It's possible I suppose, but both my one-piece maple necks have had most of the lacquer removed using the traditional Scotchbrite pad method, as recommended by Bill Turnbull. He keeps bees, you know.

Edit: Oh wait, you mean between the frets?
[/quote]

Yes, the fingerboard.. . between the frets.


I like a laquered maple board , but a lot of basses nowadays have got an oil and wax finish on the maple and it's really noticable that the sound on those basses is much warmer and closer in sound to rosewood ect than from a laquered board.

[Prime_BASS]

Dimarzio model P that's it.

[Roger2611]

I have a Lindy Fralin 62? pick up in one P bass which sounds great for the Foxton sound, I have recently put a Seymour Duncan Quarter Pounder in the other precision which seems to offer a very different sound, it is a far more aggressive sounding pickup, it is very bright and lacks a bit of bottom end...it's as close as I have come to getting a Rickenbacker sound out of a Precision bass...which is weird as from memory the reason Foxton left the Rick basses was because they lacked the depth of a Precision.

Of the 2 basses I prefer the Lindy Fralin pickup sound but the Quarter Pounder also sounds excellent and is totally useable especially for the more modern Greenday, Blink 182 type sounds

[earhook]

Kent Armstrong hot alnicos deliver a punchy, P sound and wont break the bank. £45-ish on ebay.

[Conan]

[quote name='hamfist' timestamp='1386400401' post='2299655']
The Wilkinson WBP (about £27 on ebay) is as good as anything out there IMO. And I'm very much looking for similar tones as the OP.
[/quote]

GFS do a really good one too [url="http://www.guitarfetish.com/GFS-PB-Pro-PLUS-OVERWOUND-Alnico-P-Bass-style-VERY-hot_p_334.html"]http://www.guitarfet...-hot_p_334.html[/url] I had one in a Squier Affinity and (at the time) played in a band doing a lot of Stranglers, Jam, Costello and Clash stuff. To my ears it sounded pretty authentic

Edited December 10, 2013 by Conan

[Twigman]

[quote name='thisnameistaken' timestamp='1386420481' post='2299904']

I don't think I've ever seen a P bass neck that wasn't maple
[/quote]
never seen a status necked P?