Reasonably priced pickups for DB?

[Marc S]

Just spotted this pickup system on ebay
I've not seen them before

I have a pickup I'm perfectly happy with on my own DB
But I recall when I was looking around for one, that it was a potential minefield
There are several cheap pickups out there,
and a good many expensive ones too

The sound produced by each of these is of course, very different
and different players will prefer different pickups and sounds
What one likes, another may dislike etc

But I just wondered whether anyone on here has tried this pickup system?
Looks reasonably priced, and the blurb says it produces a "microphone like sound"
.... whatever that means....

Just thought I'd ask your thoughts, and maybe bring this to the attention of someone looking for a pickup
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/SCHATTEN-RB1-A-ACTIVE-ACOUSTIC-UPRIGHT-DOUBLE-BASS-PICKUP-PREAMPLIFIER-/371149102201?pt=UK_Musical_Instruments_Sting_Instruments&hash=item566a35dc79

[iiipopes]

Schatten are good pickups. That said, I have never had good luck with wing pickups. Too prone to being dislodged. I prefer the Fishman Full Circle that is integrated into the bridge height adjuster.

Edited September 25, 2014 by iiipopes

[randythoades]

I have this pickup and it is ok. Not great though. Quite aggressive lower mids which I like in rockabilly but a bit hollow in the upper mids. I mix mine 50/50 with the Fishman BP100 as I prefer the higher registers from the Fishman.
Also seems better to me if put into the bass wing slot from fingerboard side rather than from below. Feeds back quite a lot still and is prone to knocking out of position in case, so I am going magnetic pickup route and then blend in a quarter of the Schatten to keep a bit of the finger noise etc.

[Marc S]

Thanks for those replies folks
Does it have a "microphone like" sound, as they claim though?

[randythoades]

Hi Marc, Partly, is the short answer. It doesn't have the depth that a microphone offers. It is good at conveying the general feel of the bass but lacks the warmth I would say. It does imply the overall hollowness of the bass but not the rich bottom end. If you boost the bottom end on the eq much then it is easy to get too boomy and you lose some of the clarity on the top. As said in previous post, I blend mine with the Fishman BP100 piezo pickup. I use about 50/50 with the fishman, the Schatten providing a slightly boosted bottom end and the fishman the top end clarity. I can get a more rounded sound in that way. If I had to choose just one to use it would be the Schatten straight into PA though as it sounds better on it's own in the mix than the fishman (into Plat pro).
I am experimenting with blending a mag pickup with schatten but not rehearsed with this yet so not sure how it fits in the mix.

[Beer of the Bass]

I don't think a bridge wing pickup can ever sound like a microphone, as a lot of the character of the sound is down to the position the pickup is in. It can be an interesting experiment to take a stick-on contact pickup and listen to it in different positions, as certain spots invariably have certain qualities that you can recognise from other pickups fitted in that position.
A decent bridge wing pickup can still sound good and be useful though...

[Marc S]

My first DB pickup was a second-hand K & K Pickup, with 4 sensors
I must say, that pickup did seem to give some "acoustic feel" to the sound
Maybe because there were 4 sensors? Or some other reason?

Perhaps I should not have sold that one on, and tried some experiments,
using it together with one of these Schatten pickups...... ah well
Just because you have a sound you are happy with - it doesn't mean you shouldn't experiment further

Cheers again guys

[randythoades]

I did some messing around yesterday blending the pickups. I have a Kent Armstrong magnetic pickup, a Fishman BP100 and the Schatten RB1a. I left all EQ flat and ran everything through my Mackie mixer which has an instrument pre amp switch rather than use either the K+K or Fishman Plat Pro, and into my GK MB200 into 2x12 ashdown cab. I recorded it on my Zoom H2 so I could listen back on it so if anyone knows how to upload audio I can post it for wider listening.
My conclusions were:
Mag pickup alone - loud and proud but very bass guitar like but with enough DB flavour to make it different, probably more about playing technique. No finger noise.
Schatten alone - Quite a good acoustic sound but very mid orientated to my ears. Lots of finger noise
Fishman BP100 alone - Again, a better acoustic sound but not very many mids, a bit boomy on bass and then some sharp trebles.
Mixing mag pickup with either piezo 50/50, piezo still takes over with lots of finger noise.
Mixing mag pickup with piezo 70/30 gives rich and smooth bass from mag with a smaller amount of finger noise and treble which sounds perfect to me.

However, I asked my son and his friend which they preferred and they both chose the mag only and said all the others were really scratchy, so maybe the listening public don't care about the subtleties!

[bassace]

And remember, what you hear on stage is not necessarily what the audience gets. So a lot of the scratchy trebles could be lost out there.

[alexpea]

I bought one of [url="http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/J-tone-Black-Double-Bass-Pick-up-/191134096791?pt=UK_Musical_Instruments_Sting_Instruments&hash=item2c807add97"]these[/url] recently as a backup and I can't honestly tell the difference between it and my K&K Bass Max. Sounds great on my Ply Beater Bass

[gypsyjazzer]

I have used Schatten pickups on both my DB & 'Gypsy' style guitars. Good pickups. Bear in mind that every instrument is built differently & every make of string is different-and everyone hears different things. Finding the right combination can be a long journey---------------
and above all it is the player.

[Marc S]

[quote name='alexpea' timestamp='1412873905' post='2572902']
I bought one of [url="http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/J-tone-Black-Double-Bass-Pick-up-/191134096791?pt=UK_Musical_Instruments_Sting_Instruments&hash=item2c807add97"]these[/url] recently as a backup and I can't honestly tell the difference between it and my K&K Bass Max. Sounds great on my Ply Beater Bass
[/quote]

Thanks for letting us know about this
I've seen these J-tone pickups about, on ebay
They really are cheap, and maybe worth a try
.... and some experimentation?

[alexpea]

Yea Marc great value pickups. I did a comparison at a gig and found the bass Max had a slightly bassier sound whereas the J tone picked up a lot for finger noise. Would probably have just needed to EQ them differently.

[Marc S]

[quote name='alexpea' timestamp='1413569020' post='2579751']
Yea Marc great value pickups. I did a comparison at a gig and found the bass Max had a slightly bassier sound whereas the J tone picked up a lot for finger noise. Would probably have just needed to EQ them differently.
[/quote]

All good info again alexpea
Cheers

The guy who bought my Boosey & Hawkes was looking for a pickup too
.... so might be worth taking a punt on one of those bassmax ones....

[Martin34]

There is a company in the Netherlands called Rebel Pickups. They sell a pickup made of piezo foil that sits under the bridge foot. This pickup sounds great. Very similar in appearance to the Gage Realist, though made with a strip of foil, instead of discs, which pick up all the vibration going through the entire bridge foot. I have this pickup on both my basses. The pizz and Arco sound great. There may be some acoustic sound missing, due to the nature of the pickup, but I find it allows all the frequencies of the bass to cut through. I still manage to get plenty of growl and some gut like sounds cutting through. They sell for about £20 if you want to build it yourself, or about £60 if you buy it ready made. I made both of mine; not that difficult, just a bit of soldering. I would strongly recommend this pickup, and at £20 it's a bargain.

[Telebass]

That looks interesting!