BruceBass3901 Posted June 28, 2016 Share Posted June 28, 2016 Hi everyone, I'm in the last stages of preparing for a P bass build and I am in need of a pickup. I have very little experience with P basses generally as I have normally favoured a Jazz or Stingray style, but I now find myself looking to fill the P shaped hole in my stable. I know that a lot of people will say that this is totally subjective, but I don't really have a starting point for this, so could do with the advice of the ever-mighty Basschat community!! The bass will feature an alder body with a maple Allparts neck (for those that are interested) and a single P bass pickup in the standard location. It will mainly be used in my Ska and 2 Tone covers band but will likely see a bit of everything, so a versatile pickup as opposed to a 'one trick pony' would suit me better. I have also yet to decide whether I want this bass to be passive or active. I will probably rout the body to allow for a preamp such as a John East P Retro to be mounted at a later date, so for the time being, consider this to be a bog standard passive P bass with a single volume and single tone control. Can somebody please point me in a good direction? Many thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grangur Posted June 28, 2016 Share Posted June 28, 2016 Hi BruceBass, Good luck with the build. What sort of sound do you enjoy? Do you like the Jamerson deeper tone or a more aggressive, Musicman type sound? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DanEly Posted June 28, 2016 Share Posted June 28, 2016 Lindy Fralin's are great!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lozz196 Posted June 28, 2016 Share Posted June 28, 2016 My fave Precision pickups are the Fender Custom Shop 62s that come in post 2012 Precisions as standard. I have them in all of my Precisions which are alder body/maple neck, and the sound is just great, real fat n chunky, but can be sharpened up without becoming too shrill. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BruceBass3901 Posted June 29, 2016 Author Share Posted June 29, 2016 [quote name='Grangur' timestamp='1467147482' post='3081551'] Hi BruceBass, Good luck with the build. What sort of sound do you enjoy? Do you like the Jamerson deeper tone or a more aggressive, Musicman type sound? [/quote] Thanks Grangur. I enjoy both, but do tend to lean towards a slightly more aggressive sound. I currently have a DiMarzio Model P left over from another build but I was concerned that it would be a little too agressive sounding (based on opinions of those that use it for rock/metal) for my ska band. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BruceBass3901 Posted June 29, 2016 Author Share Posted June 29, 2016 [quote name='Lozz196' timestamp='1467148686' post='3081562'] My fave Precision pickups are the Fender Custom Shop 62s that come in post 2012 Precisions as standard. I have them in all of my Precisions which are alder body/maple neck, and the sound is just great, real fat n chunky, but can be sharpened up without becoming too shrill. [/quote] Thanks Lozz, I'm hearing quite a few good things about this pickup. I may have to look into finding one! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grangur Posted June 29, 2016 Share Posted June 29, 2016 There is a lot of love here for the Seymour Duncan pups. SPB-3. Although the SPB-1 gives a more punchy sound. You might also like the hand-wound pups from Jess Lourierio. At 50 Euro a set they're a bargain. I've got a set. They're good. http://jlguitars.eu/shop/index.php?id_product=11&controller=product&id_lang=4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
No lust in Jazz Posted June 29, 2016 Share Posted June 29, 2016 I've just installed an Aguilar Hot P in a Fender P Bass, Ok so there are a lot of variables to factor in - but I like, I and I would do this again. [url="http://www.aguilaramp.com/products_pickups_AGPHOT.htm"]http://www.aguilaramp.com/products_pickups_AGPHOT.htm[/url] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chris_b Posted June 29, 2016 Share Posted June 29, 2016 For a Ska band? Bartolini, Duncan or Aguilar. I'd start with passive and see what sound you can develop. My passive P bass (with SD's) is the best sounding bass I've owned in years. A set of GHS flats would thump it up nicely. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PlungerModerno Posted June 29, 2016 Share Posted June 29, 2016 (edited) Try the DiMarzio Model P in the bass first. You may find it perfect! I'd strongly recommend trying a couple of different string types on the bass with each pickup you try (one or more). They interact differently with different sets - even different gauges of the same string model. I find some pickups, especially the higher output ones e.g. SPB-3 (aka Quater Pounder) cry for ultra bright flats or rounds - whereas lower output, more middy/punchy sounding pickups can do much more with a set of broken in flats IME/IMO of course. Try to find out what you like the sound of! Keep in mind strings aren't as easy to sell used at a significant portion of the new cost as pickups are. But if you have a Jazz Bass or another bass with fender scale & tuner layout - you can try the strings out on any/all of these with ease. Here's something fun to have a gander and a listen to! [url="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-6XQN0QLzNY"]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-6XQN0QLzNY[/url] Edited June 29, 2016 by PlungerModerno Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BruceBass3901 Posted July 3, 2016 Author Share Posted July 3, 2016 Thanks for the advice guys! I would love to get a proper vintage sounding pickup like the Aguilar P 60, the Fender Custom Shop '62 or something custom, but for now (having listened to a few demos and shootouts) I think I will try my luck with the DiMarzio Model P I already have. I'll also look into getting a set of flatwounds as I normally use Bass Centre Stadium Elite Stainless strings, which sound great but I would like to give the classic P Bass thump a go as well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PlungerModerno Posted July 3, 2016 Share Posted July 3, 2016 You can always try a different pickup, a preamp, a varitone, or a combination of the three - along with any number of different strings (e.g. half rounds, tapewounds, flats, etc) - and setups! Get to know it, and figure out what you'd like to change first (if anything!) and start from there! Oh and enjoy! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zombie1965 Posted July 3, 2016 Share Posted July 3, 2016 (edited) [font=helvetica, arial, sans-serif][color=#282828]DiMarzio Model P's are my absolute personal favorite (Identical to my Ibanez blazer pups), not sure they will be the strongest for ska though. Model P's just have a beautiful growl and musically cut through any mix really well. Stick with em, [/color][/font] Edited July 3, 2016 by Zombie1965 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BruceBass3901 Posted July 4, 2016 Author Share Posted July 4, 2016 I've got the DiMarzio Ultrajazz set in my Jazzbass which I just love and sound great in my ska band, so I sort of trust that the Model P will do the job. But PlungerModerno is totally right; I can change things around afterwards! Definitely going to ensure the body is able to accommodate the P Retro so that I can have a pretty versatile bass. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dan Dare Posted July 7, 2016 Share Posted July 7, 2016 Have a Kent Armstrong Hot P in my bitsa P bass. Slightly modern twist on a vintage sound and v. cheap to buy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Raggy Posted July 8, 2016 Share Posted July 8, 2016 Ive been through a fair few different pickups in my P basses that i use in my Ska band and all have been well up to the job, just got to remember to roll that tone control back a bit. P Retro's are awesome pieces of kit but I have found I'm favouring my passive sounds now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pete.young Posted July 9, 2016 Share Posted July 9, 2016 It's good news really: you'll get loads of advice from loads of people who all get a great sound out of the pickup they like, so whichever you chose, you can't lose! I'm very happy with Nordstrand, it's like fender but more of everything. Others find it a bit polite. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tom1946 Posted July 11, 2016 Share Posted July 11, 2016 FWIW the best P pickup I've ever used is the SD-SPB-2, very powerful and articulate. It's my main go to bass now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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