ONE Cover for Split-Coil Pickup?

[thebrig]

ONE Cover for Split-Coil Pickup?

 

Just wondering if there is such a thing?

 

Is there a cover that can house the complete split-coil pickup, so it ends up looking something like the third image?

 

 

 

 

Edited Friday at 19:42 by thebrig

[Doctor J]

Lots of them, I would guess, it's not an unusual thing. Billy Gould's Zon is a PJ setup with a single cover for the P. You could get one made out of wood fairly easily.

[thebrig]

22 minutes ago, Doctor J said:

Lots of them, I would guess, it's not an unusual thing. Billy Gould's Zon is a PJ setup with a single cover for the P. You could get one made out of wood fairly easily.

I've searched extensively for a cover but unable to find one.

 

Is this the Billy Gould's Zon you mentioned?

 

 

[Doctor J]

Yup.

[thebrig]

1 hour ago, Doctor J said:

Yup.

Tbh, I don't think a split-coil P pickup would fit under that cover, it looks like a regular soapbar size pickup.

[Doctor J]

Well, I'm just repeating what he said when the bass was released. He said it's a P pickup under the one cover, so...

[itu]

Older Ibanez, and EMG have P pickups in one cover. They look exactly like humbuckers. Some Ibanez units have visible polepieces.

[PaulThePlug]

If you dont want to profile the poles to match the fingerboard radius... maybe a 3D printer enthusiast may sort you out? 

[rwillett]

Might be possible to print it. It depends on how thick it can be and how you'd mount the cover back onto the bass. 

 

The cover itself is simply a cover, it's relatively easy but the corners need to be radiussed accurately. 

 

How it fits to the bass is the issue to me

[Merton]

The ACG PB pickup is exactly this

[thebrig]

13 hours ago, Doctor J said:

Well, I'm just repeating what he said when the bass was released. He said it's a P pickup under the one cover, so...

I'm actually after a cover that will enclose the original standard size split-coil P bass pickup you get in most P basses, I think that the split-coil in the Billy Gould's Zon is two smaller units that fit into a soapbar sized cover.

 

The size of the enclosure would need to be approximately 95mm x 55mm.

 

 

[borntohang]

Roswell do a P in a MM size case. EMG do P soapbars. 

 

If you just want a cover then I've not seen anything available as stock, but this would be a good opportunity to make friends with somebody with a 3D printer. It's a simple enough design to put together. If you don't know anybody you could try a makerspace. 

[Grooverjr]

4 hours ago, Merton said:

The ACG PB pickup is exactly this

Exactly that. And it sounds oh so sweet! 

[Grooverjr]

Someone mentioned Why Don't You? in another thread recently. In that spirit I think with a bit of time and effort you could make your own, certainly one that would stick rather than screw on. 

[Norris]

1. Buy a box of Maltesers

2. Eat Maltesers

3. Cut out the (black) bottom of the box

4. Dust off remaining chocolate

5. Run it through a paper laminator to make it shiny & sealed

6. Cut out rectangle to cover pickups plus an extra narrow flap all round to fold down

7. Score, fold flaps and stick corners

8. Use double sided tape to stick onto pickups

 

You're welcome 😂

[Dood]

I SO want this too. I want a split coil pickup in a radiused shell, encompassing the full width of a standard spilt-coil arrangement. The radius would match the radius of the neck by design and would totally do away with the need for a separate ramp in my case. Even Billy Sheehan used* epoxy and lots of sanding to create a ramped top to his split coil pickups, whereas I feel sure that a wide radiused ramp with the P coils encolded in it would be a great solution and, far more elegant.

 

*Yup, I am aware of the Dimarzio Relentless pickups, they do look smart. 

Edited Monday at 11:22 by Dood

[Dood]

- unpopular opinion: I've always thought that plain pickups on basses aren't that elegant. Beautiful bass tops with eye catching curves only to have a pair of plain black rectangles front and centre. But, that is what we have gotten used to seeing and that's what we are mostly stuck with.

 

I do like to see pickup covers that have been colour matched, or with matching wood shells for example. I even like to see pickups hidden in ramps, but then we have the same problem again where most ramps are big squares with no thought to the instrument aesthetic. Originally, I'd planned to completely encase the pickups on my Shuker basses with a (flip-paint) colour matched shell, not unlike the bonnet of a car, hiding away the innards but still looking like it belongs. Maybe the next one... 

 

Oh and don;t get me started on pickup tangs lol.. I like that EMG (and Dimarzio) offer split coil models with no tang offering a flat surface for those who like to perch their thumb on "top".

[Cato]

1 hour ago, Dood said:

- unpopular opinion: I've always thought that plain pickups on basses aren't that elegant. Beautiful bass tops with eye catching curves only to have a pair of plain black rectangles front and centre.

 

Wasn't the reason that Leo Fender originally put the ashtrays on the Precision because he thought the pickup was ugly and wanted to hide it?

 

I'm so used to seeing bass pickups that I don't think about it too much these days but I remember as a teenager, when I first became interested in basses and guitars, wondering why guitar pickups tend to be slimmer, rounded, more low profile affairs, sometimes even behind shiny chrome covers whilst many bass pickups are basically just huge plastic bricks with zero refinement.

Edited Monday at 12:34 by Cato

[neepheid]

Lace Aluma P?  Looks different to your regular split P, sounds bloody great AND no raised mounting lugs.

[tauzero]

39 minutes ago, Dood said:

- unpopular opinion: I've always thought that plain pickups on basses aren't that elegant. Beautiful bass tops with eye catching curves only to have a pair of plain black rectangles front and centre. But, that is what we have gotten used to seeing and that's what we are mostly stuck with.

 

Mass produced basses are bound to have that, as black goes with everything and it would knock prices up to do something different.

 

Luthier-built basses are a bit different in that they're not coming off a production line. However, how do you do the pickup? Commercially available soapbars are black rectangles, which have been encapsulated in resin. Options: put them in the bass as they are, put them inside little wooden coffins and put those in the bass, make your own pickups. Mostly it's the first option, Jaydee I think went with the second, not sure about the third - Enfield perhaps? Going with the first option means you're routing out standard sized holes, and somewhere down the line if someone wants to change pickups, they can. Not sure if putting a veneer cover on a pickup would look OK - maybe I'll try some <Blue Peter> sticky back plastic</BP> on one of mine.

[Dood]

9 minutes ago, tauzero said:

 

Mass produced basses are bound to have that, as black goes with everything and it would knock prices up to do something different.

 

Luthier-built basses are a bit different in that they're not coming off a production line. However, how do you do the pickup? Commercially available soapbars are black rectangles, which have been encapsulated in resin. Options: put them in the bass as they are, put them inside little wooden coffins and put those in the bass, make your own pickups. Mostly it's the first option, Jaydee I think went with the second, not sure about the third - Enfield perhaps? Going with the first option means you're routing out standard sized holes, and somewhere down the line if someone wants to change pickups, they can. Not sure if putting a veneer cover on a pickup would look OK - maybe I'll try some <Blue Peter> sticky back plastic</BP> on one of mine.

 

Yeah, don't get me wrong, I totally understand the "why" bit. I guess I have a "why must it be this way / how do we improve on this" mindset with pretty much everything. You should see the pile of product designs I've scribbed out on paper, never to see the light of day 🤣😂. 

[rwillett]

If you have a design, I can advise on what can be 3d printed and print them. However not everything designed can be easily 3d printed.

 

Also the tops may need to be lightly sanded and spray painted.

 

Rob

[Grooverjr]

Horses for courses, i can't stand colour matched pickups. Special mention to the wood ones. Hideous! But then it would be broing if we all thought the same, right.

But I do agree that nowadays we could have anything. If I could have a Peavey T40 pickup cover for all my basses I'd be in heaven!

[ead]

Alternative solution:  Buy black (or cream) basses?