Bass Pickups

[Trauma_Luna]

do anyone knows how does bass pick ups work ?

i know how work guitar pick ups, but what's difference ?

 

my bass has 3 pick ups like this one

im going to buy a new bass guitar soon and i want to know what kind of pick ups is better for me

thanks

[Thunderbroom]

do anyone knows how does bass pick ups work ? i know how work guitar pick ups, but what's difference ? my bass has 3 pick ups like this one im going to buy a new bass guitar soon and i want to know what kind of pick ups is better for me thanks

 

I'm pretty certain bass pickups work the same as guitar pickups.

 

In the picture, you actually have two pickups: The two on the left is actually on Precision (aka P) pickup and the long slender one is a Jazz (aka J).

 

P = Thump

J = Growl

[FebruaryStars]

The 3 pickups you are referring to are actually only 2, so to speak... The 2 closest to the neck are a fender p bass style hum bucking pickup just 2 coils wired for hum canceling... the bridge is a jazz style pickup which are traditionally single coil. As for the physics they're virtually the same as guitar pickups.

[claypoolfan]

EMG-35CS 4-String Extended Series Bass Pickups are a good choice. Find a nice used bass with these at both ends.

 

 

 

More info:

 

http://www.bassemporium.com/item.php?sku=EMG35CS

[X the Dead Pawn]

I have those. Yeah like FebruaryStars said there's only two.

Bass pick ups like the ones you have (With the metal studs) are passive.

They don't need a battery.

Bass pick ups that don't have those metal studs AKA "Poles" are called

active pick ups. Meaning they need a battery to function.

Actives are more troublsome for beginners like us. Too many knobs.

But, if you have some experince under your belt or a tech guy/gal you could get active.

 

But, all those Mo' Town bassists and Jaco all used passive. So by definition.

Passive= Phat, traditional sound

Active= Trebly Highs (Like a guitar) along with a phat punch. But, the minus is the need for all those knobs.

 

Hope I helped you out. I am still a beginner but, I did my homework.

PM me for anymore questions. I'm happy to help.

[bassman1956]

I have those. Yeah like FebruaryStars said there's only two. Bass pick ups like the ones you have (With the metal studs) are passive. They don't need a battery. Bass pick ups that don't have those metal studs AKA "Poles" are called active pick ups. Meaning they need a battery to function. Actives are more troublsome for beginners like us. Too many knobs. But, if you have some experince under your belt or a tech guy/gal you could get active. But, all those Mo' Town bassists and Jaco all used passive. So by definition. Passive= Phat, traditional sound Active= Trebly Highs (Like a guitar) along with a phat punch. But, the minus is the need for all those knobs. Hope I helped you out. I am still a beginner but, I did my homework. PM me for anymore questions. I'm happy to help.

 

 

Wrong.

 

Bass pickups with or without poles can be active or passive, either or.

 

If the pickups need a battery to function, they are active. If they don't, they are passive.

 

If there's a pre-amp, which requires a battery, it has active electronics. If it has only tone and volume controls which do not require a battery, it has passive electronics.

 

So either the pickups and/or the electronics can make a bass active. And passive pickups can be used with a, active preamp, making the bass active. This is the most popular form of active.

 

 

edit:

Sorry, didn't mean to be so harsh. Just wanted to stop the spread of mis-information.

[Jazz Ad]

I am still a beginner but, I did my homework.

More homework for you.

[Zebra]

Yeah like FebruaryStars said there's only two. But, all those Mo' Town bassists and Jaco all used passive.

 

Those may be the only true statements in that post.

[Kindness]

Those may be the only true statements in that post.

 

[bassred]

Active = trebly? guess I've been using mine wrong for the last 12 years, I've been using actives and my tone is nice and full, can sound traditional or modern........ back to the drawing board....

[claypoolfan]

Heres a shot of my SRX Ibanez. Notice the big ass nail heads (pole posts). It is an active bass and as you can see has only four knobs. One for bass, one for treble, one to vary the gain between pickups and one for volume. Pretty simple really. No big mystery and pretty easy to adjust. It has more nut than any passive bass I've played. Just depends on what type of music your into, really, concerning to what to choose, active or passive. And the tone is very crisp or thunderous if needed.

[X the Dead Pawn]

Hey, I'm still learning I'm just trying to help.

So I got it wrong. I got my WHOLE LIFE to get it right.

BTW thanks for the help Jazz AD.

 

Plus, I'm not really trying to spread misinformation.

And if I did I apologize, but, even though I didn't I look at it as learning from my mistakes. Cause you helped clear it up for me.

[Mytola]

 

Hey, I'm still learning I'm just trying to help. So I got it wrong. I got my WHOLE LIFE to get it right. BTW thanks for the help Jazz AD. Plus, I'm not really trying to spread misinformation. And if I did I apologize, but, even though I didn't I look at it as learning from my mistakes. Cause you helped clear it up for me.

 

 

Don't worry. I would think most of us got a lot of stuff wrong when we were beginners too. I used to believe myself that pickups with exposed pole pieces were passive, and those without were active. My main bass now has two pickups, both without exposed poles, but the bass is passive all the way.

[Kindness]

 

Hey, I'm still learning I'm just trying to help. So I got it wrong. I got my WHOLE LIFE to get it right. BTW thanks for the help Jazz AD. Plus, I'm not really trying to spread misinformation. And if I did I apologize, but, even though I didn't I look at it as learning from my mistakes. Cause you helped clear it up for me.

 

 

Don't take any of the kidding around as being a personal attack. What you just posted is as intelligent as anything I've seen written on the forum. There is no doubt you'll have it all figured out in no time.

 

I believe that any honest attempt at helping is a positive, because if you are right, it helps, and if you are wrong, people can learn from the discussion/information that follows.

[claypoolfan]

 

Hey, I'm still learning I'm just trying to help. So I got it wrong. I got my WHOLE LIFE to get it right. BTW thanks for the help Jazz AD. Plus, I'm not really trying to spread misinformation. And if I did I apologize, but, even though I didn't I look at it as learning from my mistakes. Cause you helped clear it up for me.

 

 

I still get stuff wrong and certainly didn't mean to sound crappy if I sounded that way. Learning from ones mistakes is part of life.

[claypoolfan]

Anyone know if that double coil pickup can be wired in parallel to be single coil? Kind of like rewiring speakers and dropping them for 4 ohms to 2 ohms. Same principle. I seem to remember one of the Southern rock bassists I roadied for years ago had said he wired his double coil like that. Anyone heard of this?

[baracuda2004]

 

Wrong. Bass pickups with or without poles can be active or passive, either or. If the pickups need a battery to function, they are active. If they don't, they are passive. If there's a pre-amp, which requires a battery, it has active electronics. If it has only tone and volume controls which do not require a battery, it has passive electronics. So either the pickups and/or the electronics can make a bass active. And passive pickups can be used with a, active preamp, making the bass active. This is the most popular form of active. edit: Sorry, didn't mean to be so harsh. Just wanted to stop the spread of mis-information.

 

 

+1

 

Listen to the man he knows his {censored}.

[X the Dead Pawn]

Well Thanks.