HH or HS?

[Doctor J]

I've a rather tasty Godlyke Disciple 5 which I has a Nordstrand mm5.2 and a nj5 installed, both fine pickups in their own right. The problem I have is that they just don't seem to work well together, the single coil nj5 just sounds too bright in relation to the mm. Even though I've a coil tap on the mm, I just can't find a spot where I can switch from one to the other without having to tweak the EQ. I was thinking of going for a HH setup and install another mm5.2 instead of the J. Any HH owners have any opinions on this, is the H in the neck position just too much? Should I just change the single coil J for a humbucking model?

[Kiwi]

There will always be a degree of tonal variation between neck and bridge pickups. I don't really trust MM/J combinations, there's too much variance in the pickup design. Having said that, I'll grudgingly admit that the Barts in Laklands seem to be nicely balanced (although still a little woolly sounding).

[JTUK]

[quote name='Crazykiwi' post='945664' date='Sep 4 2010, 08:09 PM']There will always be a degree of tonal variation between neck and bridge pickups. I don't really trust MM/J combinations, there's too much variance in the pickup design. Having said that, I'll grudgingly admit that the Barts in Laklands seem to be nicely balanced (although still a little woolly sounding).[/quote]

IMO, this is a typical sound of a Lakland Fender clone and a few others ..as in wolly sounding. You don't have much chance it you run them flat and I can't think why they haven't livened it up with a pre amp.
I also am not sure on the woods they use... too much emphasis on weight rather than beef...is my thinking. Plus the unlaquered necks don't work for me.
I don't know why it should be but all the above basses I have heard recently could be described as weak and wooly, IME

Edited September 4, 2010 by JTUK

[allihts]

My bass is active with HS pickup configuration, the single coil has so much more high-end than the humbucker I can't really switch between them in a set without changing the EQ on my amp. EQ'd right though both can sound fantastic for different tones, keyword - versitality

[Doctor J]

Versatility is fine, but if they don't work together without tweaks, something's got to change. Just wondering if it's worth going with a humbucking J or taking the plunge and routing out and putting another MM in there.

[Kiwi]

[quote name='JTUK' post='945666' date='Sep 4 2010, 07:14 PM']IMO, this is a typical sound of a Lakland Fender clone and a few others ..as in wolly sounding. You don't have much chance it you run them flat and I can't think why they haven't livened it up with a pre amp.
I also am not sure on the woods they use... too much emphasis on weight rather than beef...is my thinking. Plus the unlaquered necks don't work for me.
I don't know why it should be but all the above basses I have heard recently could be described as weak and wooly, IME[/quote]
I think the wood in Laklands is superb - very consistent and growly from what I've been able to tell. Its barts I generally don't get along with but they do sound good in a Modulus Quantum through an SWR head...

[Chris2112]

Aren't the Barts in Modulus basses specially made for Modulus? In the same way that the Zon pickups are? Irrespective of this, I think the bass is best just left "as is". Surely the humbucker should be enough to get by on? I just think that by modifying the bass you could be shooting yourself in the foot and doing away with a good studio bass.

[Kiwi]

[quote name='Chris2112' post='945861' date='Sep 5 2010, 06:26 AM']Aren't the Barts in Modulus basses specially made for Modulus? In the same way that the Zon pickups are? Irrespective of this, I think the bass is best just left "as is". Surely the humbucker should be enough to get by on? I just think that by modifying the bass you could be shooting yourself in the foot and doing away with a good studio bass.[/quote]
Hmm I'm not sure they are. Otherwise I'd expect the Barts and EMGs to sound more similar than they do. Barts do tend to sound better with aggressive sounding basses - they sort of soften the sharp bits. They don't sound too hot on the Modulus VJ from what I've heard, owner complain of not being able to hear the bass on stage because the mid scoop is too much. The Villex system is the favoured alternative, but I digress...

...I tried the Ernie Ball/MM SR5 HS and was extremely disappointed because the output was all over the place with the coil settings. Would have made playing live a nightmare. After buggering about with my own bass, I've reached the conclusion that its possible to switch coils easily but only if any humbuckers are in parallel mode because the voltage variations between parallel and series still result in output differences. If you like the sound of a bass with humbuckers wired in series you'll probably need a compressor or separate gain setting if planning to use parallel or single coil settings in the same gig.

[JTUK]

[quote name='Crazykiwi' post='945819' date='Sep 5 2010, 02:59 AM']I think the wood in Laklands is superb - very consistent and growly from what I've been able to tell. Its barts I generally don't get along with but they do sound good in a Modulus Quantum through an SWR head...[/quote]


Interesting..I would suggest that some metro Sadowsky's sound like Lakland DJ/JO variants....can't recall if these had VTC, tho.
I think the overall feel of them is good, I would just liven up the EQ..and probably run/make them active or go through
a Tone Hammer or some such. Do not like the unlaquered necks though. Almost every bass I can recall hearing like this sounded flabby and wooly. Looks horrible to me as well...just unfinished.

Can't reall help with the specific problem of the OP...but I would suggest it is an absolute must that when switching between pups, you don't have to go back to the amps.. This is a basic balance in EQ issue.

I do agree that you may have to shape the amp for a degree of compromise though.
When I switch bewteen both pups and bridge only, I have to make sure the amp EQ works with that pup as well as it does when I run both. Rooms often make a big difference here as well.

[MoonBassAlpha]

Couldn't you just add a small cap across the single to make it a tad less bright? or a cap with a preset pot that you could hide away in the cavity somewhere, set it up how you like it and then forget?

[ikay]

Hmm, I think your best bet is to buy one of these and forget all that two pickup nonsense...!
[attachment=58232:P1000557.jpg]

[Doctor J]

Funny you should say that, I actually sold one of those a while after getting the Godlyke, nice bass but the Godlyke's a lot better IMO.