Replacement p'ups for a Mexican Jazz 5er

[Gamble]

I'm overhauling my Mexican Fender Jazz 5 string for my next studio visit and new pickups might well be on the cards.

Sorry if this is in the wrong forum or if I'm asking a very tired question, I had a quick go with the search facility, but I'm sure you can imagine how many threads have the words "Jazz" and "Pickup" in them on here!

Firstly, does anyone know what the standard pickups in my Mex J5 would be? I spoke to a guy who's going to be doing some other work on my bass and he said they might be the same spec as on the American made Fenders. If they are likely to be a decent quality, I may leave them in for now as I'm expecting the new bridge and frets to make a notable difference to my sound as it is.

If they are poop, what should I replace them with? Seymores, EMGs and MECs were suggested, and the choice between active and passive came up. Obviously active pickups would mean I'd have to have the body routed for the battery compartment which is going to add to the cost, but if it's the way to go then it's the way to go.

As far as sound goes, I keep the bass controls turned up (vol,vol,tone) and my preamp fairly flat. It's an Ampeg SVP Pro through an SWR 6X10 so it's pretty crisp but coloured by the valves. I don't slap in the band, but I keep a fairly slappy tone with plenty of gain so it's nice and bitey and cuts through the mix. I'm fairly happy with the sound my bass provides at the moment, but was thinking that there's probably room for improvement - even if it's just in component quality and not that noticable tonally.

So what I'm asking you guys is, what should I really be looking for and taking into consideration? Any suggestions are very welcome, as I'm a bit dense when it comes to pickups and what's actually avaliable! I'm hoping to find something that will drop straight into my bass without any extra work on the body.

Cheers guys!

[charic]

Quarter pounders if the jazz equivalent is anything like the p's. Amazing sound IME

[Merton]

MIM Jazzes have slightly longer pickups than MIA Jazzes. Weird, I know. I discovered this when trying to replace the PUs in my old MIM jazz. Think the only ones which fitted were Bartolini 57J's and they were next to impossible to pin down, had to buy them from Jack Read in the good ole US of A.

Course, they might have changed the spec since then (it was a late 1990s bass IIRC).

[peted]

I think you should get Seymour Duncan (Basslines) Quarter Pounders as their P pickup sounds great in my Precision.

[url="http://www.seymourduncan.com/products/basslines/progressive-1/quarterpound_fo/"]http://www.seymourduncan.com/products/bass...uarterpound_fo/[/url]


Neck pickup dimensions:


Bridget pickup dimensions:

[escholl]

i've got an SD in my bass as well (not a QP though), and can't recommend it highly enough, used right it cuts through the mix exactly where i need it...having said that, it does kinda depend on what your budget is.

i wouldn't worry about going active -- it's not worth it (IMO, IME, YMMV, etc)

finally, if you're happy with your tone and aren't sure how new pups could improve it sonically, i know it's tough to do but honestly don't spend the money...there is no point in upgrading your bass "for the sake of it", it won't add to the value or anything else.

[gary mac]

I recently installed a pair of Wizard pickups in my Squier Jazz.

The improvement was huge, once I had honed my soldering technique.

I know that a large number of users on this site rate the Wizards very highly. Think there is a link to the company somewhere on this site.

[Gamble]

I'll agree that upgrading for the sake of it is a bit daft, it's also just dawned on me that my road tax is due 2 days before the studio visit - which I still need to pay for! And the new bridge, and the fretwork, and the setup......
Like I said, I'm not even sure if the p'ups in there already are of any kind of standard so maybe waiting to see what difference the bridge makes first would be a plan, but I'm still really interested to know what's an option for me. Been reading up on SD's and it seems the Quarted Pounders have a bit of a mid-scoop in their output signal, I'm not sure it that would smooth out my sound a bit too much but I guess I could always boost the mids a bit on the amp.

[escholl]

where at all possible, it's always best to get the sound you want right from the start, and not have to sculpt it later...having said that, if you do have to sculpt it, it's always better to cut than boost.

if the QP gives a "tone chart" reading of 7/3/6 for bass, mids, and treble...that seems to be a pretty harsh mid-cut.

they do make a "five string stack" that's 7/5/7...and a 'five string passive single coil' that's 6/8/7 (probably too many mids and not enough bass there)

the 'five string stack' one might interest you though, i've got something similar in my bass and i've got plenty of mids if i want them. plus, this one has no pole pieces, so it gives your bass that clean stealthy look

and all that is assuming, of course, that you want to go with SD, and not Wizards or some other brand...

[Gamble]

I've been looking at the 5 Stack and the passive single in SD's "Pickup Sourcebook", it says the stick isn't a direct retrofit but the singlecoil might be, I'll need to check their website for dims.

I don't really know what else is out there as far as other brands go, that's kinda what I was hoping to find out about on here. And suggestions on where to startd brushing up?

[lee650]

Ive read lots of good things about the nordstrand nj,s, to that end ive just bought some and are currently being fitted to my jazz, ill let you know how i find them, they are a bit cheaper than the SD,S and are built like the old fender pickups with good quality materials etc, Bass direct do them. cheers- lee


I've been looking at the 5 Stack and the passive single in SD's "Pickup Sourcebook", it says the stick isn't a direct retrofit but the singlecoil might be, I'll need to check their website for dims.

I don't really know what else is out there as far as other brands go, that's kinda what I was hoping to find out about on here. And suggestions on where to startd brushing up?

[Gamble]

That'd be grand, cheers Lee! Had a bit of a read up on Nordstrands but I'm none the wiser on how they sound really so a bit of a review would be super helpful!
I gave Wizard pickups a call earlier today as I found a thread on here about them and everyone was nearly wetting themselves about how great they are, but unfortunately they're smaller than my standard Fender p'ups so I can't drop them straight in. They certainly sound like a bargain though incase anyone else is interested.

www.wizardpickups.co.uk