Bartolini vs Nordstrand

[funkyspuke]

hello,

opinions would be greatly appreciated on the following.

which pickups would be better with an Aguilar OBP-1 or 3? I would have assumed Nordstrands, however the people at Modulus think different ...

Here's the feedback from Modulus on the questions you asked:

'I must admit that we haven’t had much experience with the Nordstrand J pickups coupled to any active preamps. We have done one bass that used Nordstrands in conjunction with an Aguilar OBP-1, and it seemed to work out quite well. If someone is looking for extra punch & headroom, then steering them to an active bass is definitely the right direction. For the record, I personally favor the Bartolini J pickups for use with any active system because they combine so well with preamps to create the complete tone: the pickups produce an even tone with tons of hearty low end, the graphite provides the high-end sparkle, and the active preamp adds the extra punch to allow all of those sounds to find their place in the tonal spectrum.'

this was a reply from the chap who makes basses for professionals.

however from what I have read elsewhere the Nordstrands will offer a much brighter vintage sound?

I want the umph and power that comes from an Aguilar preamp but with that vintage sound!? so what will either pickup offer and which would be better?

thanks

Edited October 2, 2010 by funkyspuke

[Ou7shined]

I absolutely recommend Fralins if you are using an OBP-3.

I'm not a fan of Barts so would choose Nordys if you put a gun to my head.

[bubinga5]

i would say Nordies but a semi graphite neck may be a bad combo for the super clear Nordies....if i did,i would go for the SE's...vintage but very quiet...not as vintage as the single coils though...lets face it, Nordstrand pickups with an Aguilar preamp are gonna sound incredible...all depends on the bass

also like Ou7shined said Lindy's are awsome pickups

this is the mine field that is pickup preamp bass combination...impossible to say without playing....there ar loads of Modulus owners on TB...ask them...its the only way to wittle down a final pickup

Edited October 2, 2010 by bubinga5

[Machines]

I have NJ4's in my MIM Jazz. Admittedly it's passive - but it does have that old school vibe to the sound (especially with some old strings on it), I love it.

I don't think i've played any basses with Barts that have wowed me so - my biased view is the Nordstrands, would be interested to see how they reacted to some active EQing.

[funkyspuke]

hey, thanks for the opinions so far .. helping me lots to make (eventual) best decision.

lets assume it's a wooden neck & fingerboard for this discussion

Edited October 2, 2010 by funkyspuke

[JTUK]

Who will know until you fire them up?

I get a very nice vintage thing with Barts IMO, and they work well with a John East as well.
I think the core tones has as much to do with this as anything else, tho

I like the the fact that Barts don't seem to go all out for a powerful pickup so you hear the
combinations and character of the bass well, IMV so you don't need loads of winds which add output
to the detriment of nuance..I prefer this, IME.
The pre will add all the gain you need anyway..IMO.

This is not to say Nords will not work well only that I have more time of Barts.

[molan]

Only experience I have on a direct comparison was in a lovely Roscoe SKB I had. It came as standard with, supposedly custom wound, Barts but the previous owner had bought some Nords & gave them to me with the bass.

I swapped them over and really didn't like the Nords at all. To my ears they sounded very sterile & seemed to rob the bass of the nice 'organic' sound it had.

The Barts seemed to really bring out some character from the bass & worked well without any on-board pre-amp adjustments but also responded well to the pre as well. The Nords seemed to over emphasise everything too much for me.

Could just be that the Barts had been well matched by Roscoe of course.

I have a '78 J with Lollar pickups - they sound rally 'active' in a passive bass

[tino]

[quote name='molan' post='975415' date='Oct 2 2010, 09:04 PM']Only experience I have on a direct comparison was in a lovely Roscoe SKB I had. It came as standard with, supposedly custom wound, Barts but the previous owner had bought some Nords & gave them to me with the bass.

I swapped them over and really didn't like the Nords at all. To my ears they sounded very sterile & seemed to rob the bass of the nice 'organic' sound it had.

The Barts seemed to really bring out some character from the bass & worked well without any on-board pre-amp adjustments but also responded well to the pre as well. The Nords seemed to over emphasise everything too much for me.

Could just be that the Barts had been well matched by Roscoe of course.

I have a '78 J with Lollar pickups - they sound rally 'active' in a passive bass [/quote]
Im of the same opinion ...the Nordies will sound extremely bright when pre amped they come into their own as passive...I have nothing with Barts so I cannot comment.
the lollars I am a fan of with both bass & my teles an extremely versatile pup..

However the best sounding p/a pickups that I ever had and I wish I had not let them go were made By Evans in australia and were fitted to a Fernandes P Project Jazz which came off Gumtree....an amazing neck superb tuning system with a great preamp also made in house by Fernandes....but the most uncomfortable body ever,just could not get on with it unless sat,then greed got the better of me .....I want them back just the pups and PA..
So if you ever see a set of Evans Jazz pups please let me know..

Good Luck whatever way you go

[Chris2112]

I'd favour the Barts. I've never been overly impressed with Nordstrands in the limited time I've had them. They give brightness and punch, but sounds a little bit brittle. Whereas Bartolini pickups have usually impressed me (their humbuckers are the best aftermarket units I've heard). They tend to let the bass speak but always add their own colour, giving the midrange prominence and depth. This makes for a pickup that is very useable in a live band situation but also sounds great in a sparse mix where the bass is prominent and audible!

Contrary to the popular belief, they're not just subtle, dark sounding pickups. You can get some great bright tones out of them, with loads of oomph so it's a useable sound. IIRC the Bartolini pickups used by Zon and Modulus are custom wound for each manufacturer, these really are the jewels in Bartolini's crown IMO.

[funkyspuke]

wow ... some really great points made in favour of both pulling me this way and that

[Chris2112]

If only you could have the bridge pickup as a Bart and the neck as a Nordy!

[funkyspuke]

haha .. but I don't see why modulus wouldn't be able to do that! it's a custom bass

[Chris2112]

Pickups probably have secret coils built in that turn up the suck when you mix them up!

[niceguyhomer]

Not a fan of Nordstrand pickups at all, I replaced the Nordy DCs in my Shuker with some custom made Wizards costing half the price and they totally transformed the instrument.

[Musicman20]

Interesting to hear actual user reviews on these pickups. Most people assume Nordstrand are the pinnacle, which clearly they are not.

[tino]

[quote name='Musicman20' post='975705' date='Oct 3 2010, 08:51 AM']Interesting to hear actual user reviews on these pickups. Most people assume Nordstrand are the pinnacle, which clearly they are not.[/quote]
Poor results may well be obtained when pulling out stock pups and replacing with Nordies and thinking thats that!
Wiring,switching and pots & caps may well require modification to get the best performance,its a bit like putting a V8 5 litre in to a nissan Micra....sure sounds pretty stood still but let it rip and the gearbox is kaputt!!
Nordies are at the top of the game for passive if fitted correctly to a well set up instrument,if your going to put them into an £80 Chinese faker ...DONT BOTHER

[funkyspuke]

so from what I am hearing so far, would the Barts be better for an active set up?

[Ou7shined]

[quote name='funkyspuke' post='975674' date='Oct 3 2010, 07:43 AM']wow ... some really great points made in favour of both pulling me this way and that [/quote]
Have you ever heard a bad word against Fralins though?

[niceguyhomer]

+1 for Lindy Fralins

[pantherairsoft]

I have Barts in my Roscoe fretless. They suit the fretless tone perfectly. Very dark and warm, with huge response in the mid's. There is not of 'sparkle' on the top, but then I rarely need it on the fretless. I've never used a fretless with such great tone and so I have to give some serious respect to the Bart's.

I have not heard a fretted bass with Bart's, or at least not tried it myself, but I have heard the word 'Dark' used to describe the tone much like I did above. I would consider the EBS pre'Bright', so Bart's being 'Dark' would be better described and smooth, round and warm.

Shep

[JTUK]

[quote name='funkyspuke' post='975759' date='Oct 3 2010, 10:03 AM']so from what I am hearing so far, would the Barts be better for an active set up?[/quote]

I have Barts with a Shack and that doesn't do it for me but I am pretty certain the pre is the 'spoiler' relatively there.
The pre has a switchable 3 band EQ and you can pick many many combinations..but if yiou get this wrong, you can go round in circles sound-wise.

Most other pres..and I like this option far better, have a sweepable mid which is far easier to control and mess around with sounds..it is all at your finger tips. I can get the Shack to work but I have to be very careful about which mid I boost..and have to have the back off every time.
If you have it set up well, it is fine..but I prefer East, for simplicity.

I have Barts with a Retro and it is very very good, IMO. The bass sounds pretty decent passive so the Pre really gives it a kick..but here is the thing, IMV.
You need a bass to sound decent passively to have any chance of the pups working even better. If the core sounds aren't good, then all you are doing is trying to rescue something.

I always found KA very good at discussing what pups produce what typical sounds. I also know at that time he was winding pups for just about everyone else. Smith, Fender customs, Barts etc etc and it was by 'trialing' a few of these winds that I formed the opinion that I prefer a pickup that produces the sounds of the bass rather than have many more winds produce power and obscure it, IMV.

If your bass is well put together then a good pup will enhance it, IMV and the choice of pre will do so even more. If it isn't you maginfy the poorer sounds. IMO

Just my 2p.

[funkyspuke]

my worry is that people describe Barts as dark, warm and rounded sounding ... where as I love the crunch and top end that you get from Sadowskys own pickups. but then my modulus flea has Barts and they sounded awesome

[Ou7shined]

[quote name='JTUK' post='975860' date='Oct 3 2010, 11:52 AM']I have Barts with a Shack and that doesn't do it for me but I am pretty certain the pre is the 'spoiler' relatively there....[/quote]
I had Barts in my Schack powered bass too.
Dark is how I described Barts too.... heavy but not wallowy (with a hint of new cut grass and damp stocking warming in front of a peat fire ). There was tons of top end with the Schack/Barts but it seemed too sizzley and almost fake - there was something in the upper, upper mids missing. I've got genuine signed Bill Lawrences in there now in I'm chuffed at the even range they cover, allowing the pre to do the rest.

It really seems important to match the pre with the pups.

For me OBP-3 (18v) and Fralins are astounding together. There's a massive girth to the sound. I remember one gig playing with that combination (I still have the bass but don't gig it as I never got around to finishing it properly - it's on my to-do list once I get everyone else's basses out the way ) where everything was going right for a change and my awesome tone made me feel on top of the world and spurred me on to play a blinder.

Edited October 3, 2010 by Ou7shined

[pantherairsoft]

If you want top end bite then the EBS inboard is the way! I love it.

[JTUK]

Have a play with this...to get an idea of typical sounds from basses and then you have a kind of reference which you can refer to when checking out pup makers.

[url="http://www.basstasters.com/basses/"]http://www.basstasters.com/basses/[/url]

I think it is a decent place to start from...