Members Rootdogg Posted February 21, 2008 Members Share Posted February 21, 2008 Hey guys. I am swapping out the neck and the battery box on my Ray next week. She is getting a little old and needs a facelift in a few areas. I was also considering swapping out the pickup for a new Nordstrand. Does anyone here have experience with the MM Nordy PU? I see they have the standard phantom coil pickup, and a quad coil. What's up with the quad coil pickup? MM5.3The MM5.3 is the 5 string version of the MM4.3 and also utilizes a dummy coil on the bottom to achieve a silent single coil mode. Like the other pickups in this series, the MM5.3 features Alnico V magnets and Heavy Forvar wire for an authentic early pre-Ernie Ball Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members scabby goiter Posted February 21, 2008 Members Share Posted February 21, 2008 I've heard Nordstrand is a great pickup but I've never had a chance to check them out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members guitargod0dmw Posted February 21, 2008 Members Share Posted February 21, 2008 Swapping out the neck? Why??? With what? First I'll say this. There is nothing wrong with MM electronics. If you like the sound, don't change anything...it will not be the same. Now...if I was going to swap out a pickup, it would be with a Nordy. The quad coil is basically what they use the in the HH Stingrays. There are more switching options...but it's not going to sound like a regular SR. Personally, I would use the MM5.2 (which you didn't mention) over them all...but I love the plain jane SR sound. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members L. Ron Hoover Posted February 21, 2008 Members Share Posted February 21, 2008 Tread very very carefully replacing MM pickups and electronics.... I replaced the pickup in my SR5 with the Basslines MM5. It was in there for about 15 minutes when I realized that I'd made a horrible mistake. I promptly took it out and put the original back in. The Basslines MM5 is a great pickup (I've used them in other applications) but it really changed the character of my SR5 for the worse (IMO) of course. That lovely Musicman "liquid" tone disappeared. Nordstrand makes great pickups as well, but I'd be concerned about the same thing happening.... Hard to know unless you try it. Of course, if you're not happy with the sound of your MM, there's not much to lose. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Rootdogg Posted February 21, 2008 Author Members Share Posted February 21, 2008 Swapping out the neck? Why??? With what?First I'll say this. There is nothing wrong with MM electronics. If you like the sound, don't change anything...it will not be the same.Now...if I was going to swap out a pickup, it would be with a Nordy. The quad coil is basically what they use the in the HH Stingrays. There are more switching options...but it's not going to sound like a regular SR. Personally, I would use the MM5.2 (which you didn't mention) over them all...but I love the plain jane SR sound. My neck is pretty much "green". It requires adjustment at least once a month. Sometimes, the neck completely flips out, especially when the weather changes. I have never had to give a neck as much attention as this one. It's rediculous. EB is sending me a new one through GC. The 5.2 doesn't have the noise cancelling phantom coil, correct? Isn't the 5.3 more true to the stock MM PU? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Rootdogg Posted February 21, 2008 Author Members Share Posted February 21, 2008 Tread very very carefully replacing MM pickups and electronics.... I replaced the pickup in my SR5 with the Basslines MM5. It was in there for about 15 minutes when I realized that I'd made a horrible mistake. I promptly took it out and put the original back in. The Basslines MM5 is a great pickup (I've used them in other applications) but it really changed the character of my SR5 for the worse (IMO) of course. That lovely Musicman "liquid" tone disappeared. Nordstrand makes great pickups as well, but I'd be concerned about the same thing happening.... Hard to know unless you try it. Of course, if you're not happy with the sound of your MM, there's not much to lose. I would agree. I am not a fan of the Basslines MM replacement. I have heard similar reviews about it. The disappearance of the "liquid" overtones you are speaking of. I am looking at the Nordy for aesthetics mostly. My original PU has some pretty deep oxidation on the pole pieces and lots of string rub on it. The Nordy looks like a very nice and true replication of early MM PUs. High quality as well. From the little I have gathered, the tone stays very much intact, with increased headroom throughout. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members guitargod0dmw Posted February 21, 2008 Members Share Posted February 21, 2008 The 5.2 doesn't have the noise cancelling phantom coil, correct? Isn't the 5.3 more true to the stock MM PU? The 5.2 is the regular MM pickup that is in any Stingray 4...the classic SR sound. The 5.3 is similar to what is in the Sterling (not that same magnets) and I think the SR5 as well. They're all humbuckers, so they'll be pretty quiet as long as your wiring & shielding are good. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Hi-Fi Posted February 23, 2008 Members Share Posted February 23, 2008 I put a Nordstram in my Stingray and it sounds fantastic. I re-wired it so that it would be passive (strictly my preference). To me, it sounds like a terrificly boomy and ballsy P-Bass, which is a tone I absolutely love. Despite it now being passive, it has fantastic mids. I really love the pickup. Back to your origninal question, I am not sure what quad coil is. Perhaps it has to do with the ability to wire the pickup in parallel and sequence? You will not go wrong with the pickup b/c it sounds fantastic. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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