mcnach Posted July 7, 2012 Share Posted July 7, 2012 I'm looking for a set of pickups for my red Squier Jazz. I currently have a set of some alnico Gotoh pickups that are not bad sounding at all. But I find them a bit lacking in output, and with the nylon tapewound strings I use on this bass I am aiming for that dark midrange grunt on the bridge pickup... which these get close to, but not quite, they sound too "vintagey". It's just a cheap bass but I am liking it more and more. I gigged with it last night and it's definitely not going to be the last... so I'm looking for a way to improve a bit what I have here. Looking at the Wizard pickups, which get great reviews here, I noticed the "Hammers" have a description that seems fitting... anybody has tried them? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gary mac Posted July 7, 2012 Share Posted July 7, 2012 Not actually tried the Hammers but my daughter had the 84's in her jazz and I had 64's in mine. They were a worthwhile upgrade over the stock pups. Andy at Wizard is very approachable, helpful and willing to chat through your requirements. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
doomed Posted July 7, 2012 Share Posted July 7, 2012 I have a pair in my old Tokai jazz, they made a huge difference to it, I will get round to getting a set to go in my vm jazz sometime too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ead Posted July 7, 2012 Share Posted July 7, 2012 +1 for the 84s, I have them on my fretless Jazz. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gust0o Posted July 7, 2012 Share Posted July 7, 2012 [quote name='gary mac' timestamp='1341666886' post='1722496'] Andy at Wizard is very approachable, helpful and willing to chat through your requirements. [/quote] He's a total dude Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mcnach Posted July 8, 2012 Author Share Posted July 8, 2012 Hmmm, I emailed Andy, and he replied that he doesn't think his pickups work very well with nylon tapewounds... But didn't say in what way they don't work well. So I'm left with whether to just try for myself (Hammers or 84s?) or go for tried and tested Basslines... decisions. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
redstriper Posted July 8, 2012 Share Posted July 8, 2012 (edited) I emailed Andy to ask which Jazz pick ups he recommended for reggae and he said none of his were suitable because they are too articulate. I bought a Wizard 84 neck pick up anyway and was quite disappointed. Some people rave about them, so it must be subjective, but I wasn't impressed. Changing pick ups is risky and potentially expensive - good luck Edit: I like the Duncan designed pups in my Squier VM and I love the Farida ones in their basic Jazz bass. Edited July 8, 2012 by redstriper 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Conan Posted July 9, 2012 Share Posted July 9, 2012 (edited) My cheap J copy sounds great with Hammers in. Crisp and crunchy, but still sounding full and rich. Tone is very subjective and difficult to describe in words, but I'm happy! The original pickups certainly weren't short on output - in fact they were very hot indeed and rather microphonic! I didn't replace them to get a boost in signal, but just to make things more balanced and "musical". I bought the Hammers second-hand on here for £60 - which is a good price - but even brand new they are reasonably priced. To the OP: Next time I'm up in Edinburgh (about three weeks time) I'll bring the bass and you can have a try. Edited July 9, 2012 by Conan Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mcnach Posted July 9, 2012 Author Share Posted July 9, 2012 [quote name='Conan' timestamp='1341828700' post='1724562'] My cheap J copy sounds great with Hammers in. Crisp and crunchy, but still sounding full and rich. Tone is very subjective and difficult to describe in words, but I'm happy! The original pickups certainly weren't short on output - in fact they were very hot indeed and rather microphonic! I didn't replace them to get a boost in signal, but just to make things more balanced and "musical". I bought the Hammers second-hand on here for £60 - which is a good price - but even brand new they are reasonably priced. To the OP: Next time I'm up in Edinburgh (about three weeks time) I'll bring the bass and you can have a try. [/quote] Nice one, I'd definitely be interested if you are around with your bass I have however just ordered a set of Seymour Duncan SJB-2. Never tried those, but seem high output and midrange rich... and look like normal Jazz pickups (which is a plus too... not a big fan of the big polepiece look of the SJB-3 or the hexagonal polepieces in DiMarzio Model J)... we will see. I had a last minute offer for a gig last night, and I played the red Jazz for 2h. Love it, but I am looking forward having a bit more "ooomph" there on the midrange. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Conan Posted July 10, 2012 Share Posted July 10, 2012 (edited) I haven't tried their J pickups, but if they are as good as their Ps you might want to have a look here... [url="http://www.guitarfetish.com/GFS-JB-Pro-Jazz-Bass-Style-Alnico-Pickups_p_318.html"]http://www.guitarfet...kups_p_318.html[/url] Edited July 10, 2012 by Conan Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mcnach Posted July 10, 2012 Author Share Posted July 10, 2012 [quote name='Conan' timestamp='1341906949' post='1725784'] I haven't tried their J pickups, but if they are as good as their Ps you might want to have a look here... [url="http://www.guitarfetish.com/GFS-JB-Pro-Jazz-Bass-Style-Alnico-Pickups_p_318.html"]http://www.guitarfet...kups_p_318.html[/url] [/quote] I tried their Stingray style pickups a couple of years ago, and I was not very impressed by that, so I haven't gone back to GFS. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Conan Posted July 10, 2012 Share Posted July 10, 2012 [quote name='mcnach' timestamp='1341907608' post='1725799'] I tried their Stingray style pickups a couple of years ago, and I was not very impressed by that, so I haven't gone back to GFS. [/quote] Really? Interesting.... in what way were you underwhelmed? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mcnach Posted July 10, 2012 Author Share Posted July 10, 2012 [quote name='Conan' timestamp='1341913990' post='1725935'] Really? Interesting.... in what way were you underwhelmed? [/quote] it's hard to explain in words. They seemed "polite". They were not horrible, but they sounded "polite". I bought a Seymour Duncan SMB4A after that one, and it was like day and night, nice "thump", lots of body, nice midrange without being overpowering... But each pickup is different, so you can't judge all GFS by a single model (either good or bad). However I have not yet been disappointed by a SD pickup, either in guitars or bass. Hence my choice now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Conan Posted July 11, 2012 Share Posted July 11, 2012 [quote name='mcnach' timestamp='1341941575' post='1726694'] it's hard to explain in words. They seemed "polite". They were not horrible, but they sounded "polite". I bought a Seymour Duncan SMB4A after that one, and it was like day and night, nice "thump", lots of body, nice midrange without being overpowering... [/quote] I know exactly what you mean by "polite". Funny though, the GFS P pickup I put in my Squier Affinity P was anything but polite!! Maybe there is an inconsistency across their range. This is not necessarily a bad thing, as it would be dull if all their pickups sounded similar. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ant Posted July 11, 2012 Share Posted July 11, 2012 ive got hammers in my shuker bass, totally amazing, awesome gnarly midrange growl and beef, very articulate as well. ive got a series/parallel switch and they sound awesome in series Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mcnach Posted July 11, 2012 Author Share Posted July 11, 2012 [quote name='Ant' timestamp='1342032145' post='1728525'] ive got hammers in my shuker bass, totally amazing, awesome gnarly midrange growl and beef, very articulate as well. ive got a series/parallel switch and they sound awesome in series [/quote] That's more or less what I expected... from the description, but Andy totally put me off buying them (shrug). Ever used tapewounds on that bass? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mcnach Posted July 12, 2012 Author Share Posted July 12, 2012 Well, the Seymour Duncan SJB-2 pickups arrived today... and as soon as I got home, I installed them. First impressions are very positive. I don't know how the Hammers would have been "unsuitable" but these do the trick. The bridge pickup is great. Very nice tone. It's powerful, full bodied... since this is what I use most of the time, I think I did well. The neck pickup I'm not as keen on. It is good, absolutely, but a bit on the dark side. Both pickups on also lose a bit of the "traditional" Jazz sound, compared to the Gotoh I had previously on this bass. It still sounds good, but not as good as I thought they'd be when I listened to the bridge pickup alone: that one is just right. Well I have to try it in a band context now, but it seems good. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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