Members Charles Kim Posted October 26, 2019 Members Share Posted October 26, 2019 I have used YAMAHA TRBX 505 for years but decided recently to replace the original pickups to make it sound better. It says YGD designed H5 pickups are installed and my bass is 5 string active type guitar working with battery. Please refer to the features below and any kind recommendations are welcomed. Neck Pickup:H5 Alnico V Humbucker Bridge Pickup:H5 Alnico V Humbucker Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators daddymack Posted October 28, 2019 Moderators Share Posted October 28, 2019 'Better' is a pretty useless term. So first, what kind of music do you play? What kind of amp are you using? What are you looking for the new pickups to do for your sound that the existing ones don't? More bottom? More punchy midrange? Because you already have an active set, you will likely want to replace the originals with another active set, yes? There is also the cosmetics issue....you want the new ones to be a direct fit as there is no pickguard, which is going to present you with some challenges. Also, as I am sure you are aware, the 505 is a 'low to mid grade' instrument, new ones run about $550; a good set of active bass p-ups can run to almost half that....do you really want to invest up to $200 in that bass, knowing if you sell it, you won't get your money back? Frankly, if it were up to me, rather than dump money into that bass, sell it/trade it in and get one that sounds right to you.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Mr.Grumpy Posted October 29, 2019 Members Share Posted October 29, 2019 20 hours ago, daddymack said: Because you already have an active set, you will likely want to replace the originals with another active set, yes? It's almost a certainty that this bass - like almost all "active" basses - has passive pickups paired to an internal preamp. True active pickups are rather rare, the most common ones being EMGs. The problem with this bass is the pickups are Yamaha OEM (Original Equipment Manufacture) are may or may not be a standard size. Measure the outside dimensions (length and width) and see if any aftermarket pickups will "drop in" - otherwise you're looking at routing out the bass body to accommodate different pickups, and expensive and non-reversible procedure. My suggestion is to try a fresh set of strings and maybe consider upgrading your bass amp. If you insist on upgrading your pickups, I hear Nordstrand makes good ones., but I have no experience with them. Here's a place to shop for pickups! The underlined bit is a web link. PICKUPS at Best Bass Gear. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators daddymack Posted October 30, 2019 Moderators Share Posted October 30, 2019 well, he said 'active, so I was thinking he wanted 'true' active, like EMGs, which would run about $200, if they make a set that will fit. I, too, was curious about his amp. If he can find p-ups that sound better to him, why not? He has yet to define his goal so that we could assist further. I'm afraid, absent responses to the questions we have posed, there isn't much more to do here... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Charles Kim Posted October 31, 2019 Author Members Share Posted October 31, 2019 On 10/29/2019 at 4:34 AM, daddymack said: 'Better' is a pretty useless term. So first, what kind of music do you play? What kind of amp are you using? What are you looking for the new pickups to do for your sound that the existing ones don't? More bottom? More punchy midrange? Because you already have an active set, you will likely want to replace the originals with another active set, yes? There is also the cosmetics issue....you want the new ones to be a direct fit as there is no pickguard, which is going to present you with some challenges. Also, as I am sure you are aware, the 505 is a 'low to mid grade' instrument, new ones run about $550; a good set of active bass p-ups can run to almost half that....do you really want to invest up to $200 in that bass, knowing if you sell it, you won't get your money back? Frankly, if it were up to me, rather than dump money into that bass, sell it/trade it in and get one that sounds right to you.... Thank you for your kind advice. Of course, I would consider purchasing a new bass if I can not find any decent replacement for current pickups. Just like many other persons, I have enjoyed playing with my bass so far and am still like to play with this bass. All the other things fine to me, particularly its neck shape. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators daddymack Posted October 31, 2019 Moderators Share Posted October 31, 2019 so, back to the original question: why change the pickups? What don't they do for you that you want them to do? I realize they are the OEM models, and typically okay but not great. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Charles Kim Posted November 1, 2019 Author Members Share Posted November 1, 2019 In fact, I have two entry level basses and the other is Squier vintage modifier jazz bass (maple neck and 2 single-coil Duncan Designed pickups). Actually, I prefer clear and versatile sound of Squier but its neck sometimes crooks easily and needs to be adjusted so often. This Yamha trbx solved that neck problem and moreover gave me more comfortable fingering on it. Nowadays, however, I became to miss the sound of Squier again, haha. In short, I would like to get the sound of my Squier from Yamha Trbx by replacing the pick ups if possible. FYI, I attach the specs of TRBX 505 below, but it seems no further spec is provided for the pre amp. SPECS Construction Bolt-onBody MahoganyNeck Five-piece maple/mahoganyFingerboard RosewoodFingerboardradius 24"Frets 24Scale length 34"Neck width at nut 1.75"String spacing 18mmPickups 2 HHB5 alnico V humbuckersHardware Die-cast black nickelWeight 9.3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members DeepEnd Posted November 3, 2019 Members Share Posted November 3, 2019 If you like your Squier, you can buy a used 4 string Mexi Jazz Bass for $400 or so, another $50-100 for a 5 string. It will have similar sound and potentially better build quality. Check out the neck to make sure it doesn't have any unwanted issues. I play one occasionally and I haven't noticed anything negative but YMMV. Later if you decide to swap out the pickups you'll have more options since there are a ton of Jazz Basses out there. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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