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Modding an Already-Modded P Bass...


discreet

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Modding an Already-Modded P Bass...

You may or may not have seen my Modded HB PB-50 (Version 3) - if not, it's here. All well and good - I liked it a lot... the single-coil vibe is nice, but sometimes you really want that mid-forward, split-pickup dual-coil 57-type P sound as featured on every recording since the Bronze Age. Consequently, I started looking for a bog-standard 57-type P Bass. There are lots and lots and lots of them available for sale... THEN, I came across the concept of the dual-coil 51-type four-pole telebass-type pickup... with that in mind I bought this Jess Loureiro dual-coil 51-type pickup with a view to fitting a switch to give me the option of series (57-type dual) or parallel (51-type single) coil pickups, both with the fast attack you get from a one pole-piece-per-string setup... hopefully negating the need to buy another bass, cart two basses around with me and change them on stage for different songs...

JLSC2.jpg

LoureiroPickup.jpg

ToggleSwitch.jpg

I also fitted a new Fender American Deluxe bridge with part-threaded saddles. Stable, well-engineered... top load or through-body options... and way too expensive in the UK, which is why I imported one from the States. Even with import duty it was still cheaper than buying one here. :)

73Bridge.jpg

Many thanks to Mr Gary Mac, without whose help and assistance I'd be in hospital suffering from soldering iron burns and crying. Thanks, Gary. :)

Sound clips: Listen on good phones or decent monitors, etc. etc...

Dual Coil.mp3

Single Coil.mp3

Edited by discreet
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4 minutes ago, Rich said:

Did you consider a pull/push pot for the switching or do you just prefer toggles?

I did consider it, but wanted a visible sign that the bass had been modded, to give an air of mystery and wonder. :D

Edit - also I'm a bit banana-fingered and likely to bash a pull/push pot while playing. And I'm always pulling when I should be pushing, and vice-versa... :|

Edited by discreet
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10 minutes ago, Chiliwailer said:

They are great pickups pal, I had a split coil on my old CS 55 P Bass, it was awesome.

Thanks for the comment, Dan. Plugged the bass into my combo this morning and wound it up - The Loureiro is a quality bit of gear and no mistake. The previous Herrick pickup was a class act in itself, but as well as having the switching options, the Loureiro is a bigger-sounding, warmer pickup overall.

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6 minutes ago, yorks5stringer said:

Can you get mini-push-pulls as the control cavity on that model P Bass is quite tight?

You can certainly get them, but as I'd already had to be 'creative' about making space under the control plate for full-size CTS pots, I thought I may be pushing my luck. I knew there was just about enough space between them for a toggle switch.

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35 minutes ago, discreet said:

Thanks for the comment, Dan. Plugged the bass into my combo this morning and wound it up - The Loureiro is a quality bit of gear and no mistake. The previous Herrick pickup was a class act in itself, but as well as having the switching options, the Loureiro is a bigger-sounding, warmer pickup overall.

Argh, you’re not helping here with that description! I often miss having an old school P, especially with heavy flats. 

The Loureiro webpage is now safely bookmarked, this could be the beginning of something ;) 

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1 hour ago, discreet said:

Modding an Already-Modded P Bass...

You may or may not have seen my Modded HB PB-50 (Version 3) - if not, it's here. All well and good - I liked it a lot... the single-coil vibe is nice, but sometimes you really want that mid-forward, split-pickup dual-coil 57-type P sound as featured on every recording since the Bronze Age. Consequently, I started looking for a bog-standard 57-type P Bass. There are lots and lots and lots of them available for sale... THEN, I came across the concept of the dual-coil 51-type four-pole telebass-type pickup... with that in mind I bought this Jess Loureiro dual-coil 51-type pickup with a view to fitting a switch to give me the option of series (57-type dual) or parallel (51-type single) coil pickups, both with the fast attack you get from a one pole-piece-per-string setup... hopefully negating the need to buy another bass, cart two basses around with me and change them on stage for different songs...

 

 

I would love to hear the tonal options! (on Roundwounds .. I know... sorry lol) But I love the idea! I'm not expecting to hear much volume difference between the two as the coils are looking after different strings, but tonally I am intrigued! 

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12 minutes ago, dood said:

I would love to hear the tonal options! (on Roundwounds .. I know... sorry) But I love the idea! I'm not expecting to hear much volume difference between the two as the coils are looking after different strings, but tonally I am intrigued!

I don't have a bass strung with roundwounds Dan, unfortunately... but I've quickly cobbled together a couple of short recordings. You probably won't hear much difference on computer or phone speakers, but good phones or decent monitors should give some idea of what's happening. Like I said, when plugged into an amp the difference is night and day and the new pickup will definitely do the business at rehearsals and gigs.

The dual-coil is definitely more mid-forward, has a tighter bottom end and fit into the mix very easily. The single-coil is clear, has a pillowy bottom end and was a bit harder to slot into the mix. Either would work fine in a decent studio. I have bumped up the level of the bass to make it easier to hear, I wouldn't normally have it this far up in the mix. But the real advantage is going to be apparent when playing live. :)

Dual Coil.mp3

Single Coil.mp3

Edited by discreet
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43 minutes ago, Chiliwailer said:

Argh, you’re not helping here with that description! I often miss having an old school P, especially with heavy flats. The Loureiro webpage is now safely bookmarked, this could be the beginning of something ;) 

Well I hope so... I definitely wouldn't be happy if there wasn't a P strung with flats in the house! :)

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2 minutes ago, discreet said:

I don't have a bass strung with roundwounds Dan, unfortunately... but I've quickly cobbled together a couple of short recordings. You probably won't hear much difference on computer or phone speakers, but good phones or decent monitors should give some idea of what's happening. Like I said, when plugged into an amp the difference is night and day and the new pickup will definitely do the business at rehearsals and gigs.

The dual-coil is definitely more mid-forward, has a tighter bottom end and fit into the mix very easily. The single-coil is clear, has a pillowy bottom end and was a bit harder to slot into the mix. Either would work fine in a decent studio. I have bumped up the level of the bass to make it easier to hear, I wouldn't normally have it this far up in the mix. But the real advantage is going to be apparent when playing live. :)

Dual Coil.mp3

Single Coil.mp3

WOW! Thank you, perfect! - I've just been A/Bing both through big studio monitors and yes I can hear the differences.. Sounds great up LOUD! :) Thank you so much! Nice playing :) 

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3 minutes ago, dood said:

WOW! Thank you, perfect! - I've just been A/Bing both through big studio monitors and yes I can hear the differences.. Sounds great up LOUD! :) Thank you so much! Nice playing :) 

Excellent, you're welcome Dan. Thanks for the kind comments, though I'm still working on this one for tonight's rehearsal - not quite in the pocket yet. ;)

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20 minutes ago, CameronJ said:

Oooh yes, nice work. Really good mod idea! I’ve always been curious about owning a single coil precision but had a feeling I’d miss the split P vibe. This is food for thought.

It's interesting as I'd heard examples of the old S2 switch on past Precisions and felt that their pickup choice didn't seem to suit the function, whereas this sounds way better by comparison. I'd put it down to the qualities of this pickup. (The S2 is great on jazz basses). 

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33 minutes ago, CameronJ said:

Oooh yes, nice work. Really good mod idea! I’ve always been curious about owning a single coil precision but had a feeling I’d miss the split P vibe.

It seems to work really well, especially 'in your face' through an amp. I'm no top recording engineer or producer, I did the audio clips very quickly. :D There are a few other dual-coil 51-type options available, notably from Lindy Fralin:

https://www.fralinpickups.com/product/split-51-p-bass/

It is a lot more expensive that the Loureiro version, though. And the main selling point is noise reduction - the fact you can approximate the sound of a 57-type split-pickup seems to be totally ignored. As a split pup is essentially a humbucker yes, you're going to get less noise in theory, but I've had no problems in that area even with a single coil. My bass is quite heavily shielded with copper tape though and is just as quiet with a single coil or a dual coil.

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