Schecter Monstertone II

[thegummy]

The only Jazz I've ever had (and was actually my first bass) is a Schecter Diamond J which has Monstertone II pickups.

Has anyone had or played these and also had "normal" Fender Jazz pickups and could comment on if the Schecter ones sound like regular J pickups?

And do they sound more like that in full or tapped mode?

Reason I ask is purely because I want to know if I've experienced the authentic J sound as, if not, I would want to. Same as if I didn't have any J (or P or MM) I'd want to get one to experience that classic sound, I have often wondered if I am getting the typical J sound experience.

Cheers.

[krispn]

I had a monster tone p pick up from Schecter, the Michael Anthony sig version and it’s a super high output pick up with over sized (think SD quarter pounder type pole pieces). I wouldn’t have described the sound as ‘typical’ more of a ‘on steroids‘ type sound. The material the magnets were made from were different to ‘regular’ pick ups (ceramic 9?) and not AlNiCo 5 which is more common although not used exclusively. This combination of larger pole pieces and materials used all add to the very high output which isn’t that common in more vintage voiced pick ups which typically would have a lower output so then they wouldn’t be driving the preamp of an amp as hard and could offer a more nuanced or dynamic playing experience rather than a full on output assault. 
 

Think of it in terms of using a natural speaking voice with rises and falls in volume versus shouting 🙂

[thegummy]

Thanks for the reply mate.

Did your P version have a coil tap?

That lowers the output (not sure if it lowers it to vintage level but it does lower it significantly) but obviously doesn't change the pole piece size or magnet type so not sure how close it could get.

Did you happen to replace the pickup at any point? Just wondering if they are the same size as standard after market pickups.

Cheers.

[krispn]

I never set mine up with any switching but by coil tap do you mean series/parallel as this will reduce the output depending on which setting it’s on. Check out some You Tube videos on it for more info. 

The p pick up fitted in standard size ‘Fender’ cases and I bought it to fit into a bass as opposed to buying a Schecter bass which had it fitted as standard. 

Edited June 14, 2020 by krispn

[thegummy]

16 hours ago, krispn said:

I never set mine up with any switching but by coil tap do you mean series/parallel as this will reduce the output depending on which setting it’s on. Check out some You Tube videos on it for more info. 

The p pick up fitted in standard size ‘Fender’ cases and I bought it to fit into a bass as opposed to buying a Schecter bass which had it fitted as standard. 

The Diamond J model with the J style Monstertone pickups have a coil tap on the tone knob as standard so if you pull it up it removes some of the winds of wire from the circuit which makes it lower output. I guess the P version just doesn't have that feature.

Good to know that at least the P version conforms to the standard size of pickups. Hopefully a good indication mine does too, although I know that J pickups in general can vary a bit in sizing.

Thanks again!