ReeV0 Posted July 12, 2022 Share Posted July 12, 2022 Hi all, I've been using an Ibanez SR500 for years but never been satisfied with the tone, especially the bridge pickup. I was wondering whether I should change the pickups or the preamp. I haven't altered the bass (or any bass) before now... It currently has the fake Bartolini Mk1's installed, and the stock preamp. I have found someone selling a Bartolini MK2-4R bridge pickup for £25 but can't find anything about it online. I emailed Bartolini and they thought it might have a bit of an impact, since the Mk1 is a split-coil and the Mk2 is a dual coil humbucker. However the Mk2 is 10mm shorter than the Mk1 so not sure how that would affect things... The other option is to leave the pickups but change the preamp. I like the look of the Aguilar OBP3TK, but not sure I'd have the technical know-how to install it. From the pictures it looks like there are only 3 knobs, but currently the bass has 5 (other two being volume and pickup blend). Does anyone know how straightforward it would be to install in the SR500? Any advice greatly appreciated! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cliff Edge Posted July 12, 2022 Share Posted July 12, 2022 I put Nordstrand Big Singles in my SR900. Straight swap for the Bart’s. The pre amp isn’t great but the bass now has a much better tone all round. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ReeV0 Posted July 12, 2022 Author Share Posted July 12, 2022 21 minutes ago, Cliff Edge said: I put Nordstrand Big Singles in my SR900. Straight swap for the Bart’s. The pre amp isn’t great but the bass now has a much better tone all round. Cool. They're about the same price as the Aguilar preamp... Not sure what to go for! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rayman Posted July 12, 2022 Share Posted July 12, 2022 Personally I always start with the Pre if I want to alter the tone. A great Pre can make average pickups sound good. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cliff Edge Posted July 12, 2022 Share Posted July 12, 2022 6 minutes ago, Rayman said: Personally I always start with the Pre if I want to alter the tone. A great Pre can make average pickups sound good. This is true but I got the Nordie’s cheap and it made a difference. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ReeV0 Posted July 12, 2022 Author Share Posted July 12, 2022 Hmm so just need to decide whether to upgrade the preamp or pickups. Can't really afford both as that's £400 and I might as well just buy a new bass Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Roger2611 Posted July 12, 2022 Share Posted July 12, 2022 Tough call, I upgraded a Spector Legend custom with Nordestrand big blades and a Glockenlang pre-amp, it totally transformed the bass, I put the same Glockenlang pre-amp into my Bass Collection SB801 as the original was dead, I kept the stock EMG's in the bass, way less of a transformation, so based off that rather unscientific experiment, the pickups appear to have more impact than the pre-amp! I have an ESP Horizon bass where the stock EMG electrics have been replaced with a full Bartolini set up and I absolutely hate it, it lacks any depth, any sparkle...to be honest it lacks everything, I seem to remember owning a Tune Woodbass many years ago which also had Bartolini pickups in, I was hugely underwhelmed with the sound of that as well. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rayman Posted July 12, 2022 Share Posted July 12, 2022 ESP Horizon, had one years ago…. Fabulous thing. Totally stock, it was immense, the band loved it too. Just my preference, in my experience, the Pre is the best place to start. One example, I put a Nordstrand into an OLP stingray….. not a massive improvement….. recently I stuck a Kiogon loom into a stock, cheap P bass with it’s original pickup….. and it sounded beautiful. Average pups can be greatly improved with a decent EQ…… but can an average EQ do the same to a decent pickup? Not sure. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
itu Posted July 12, 2022 Share Posted July 12, 2022 How about a pro setup and a new set of strings? Then you could feel the possibilities of the wood. An upgrade to new electronics, or even a bass would be more tangible. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bubinga5 Posted July 12, 2022 Share Posted July 12, 2022 I think pickups will change the sound of a bass more than a preamp. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
xgsjx Posted July 12, 2022 Share Posted July 12, 2022 From a previous thread, taking the player out of the equation, the majority of tone comes from the pickups, then your electrics, then strings. They can all make a huge difference. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PaulThePlug Posted July 12, 2022 Share Posted July 12, 2022 (edited) Have you tried the std Mk1 Barts Passive? Cheapest change... Wire straight to the jack as a quick try... pot values may be different from the usual for passive.... Edited July 12, 2022 by PaulThePlug Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ReeV0 Posted July 12, 2022 Author Share Posted July 12, 2022 The bass currently has the Bartolini (Cort) Mk1 pups. It's already had a good setup and have tried many different strings, but never liked the sound of the instrument. I don't suppose anyone could recommend one of these? Don't think I'd get on well with the Blade as I feel I'd be hitting it with the string and get that undesired 'tapping' sound https://nordstrandaudio.com/collections/4-string-soapbar-bass-pickups Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
christhammer666 Posted July 13, 2022 Share Posted July 13, 2022 defo go with the nords. i put some in my sr500 (in my avatar) sounded tons better Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ReeV0 Posted July 13, 2022 Author Share Posted July 13, 2022 31 minutes ago, christhammer666 said: defo go with the nords. i put some in my sr500 (in my avatar) sounded tons better Thanks, which Nords would you recommend? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stevie Posted July 13, 2022 Share Posted July 13, 2022 I was in the same position. the SR500 is really nice to play and very lightweight. But I wasn't too keen on the sound. I upgraded to a (used) Premium Ibanez bass with Nord Big Something pickups. It probably worked out cheaper than just buying the pickups and fitting them to the SR500. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mykesbass Posted July 13, 2022 Share Posted July 13, 2022 22 hours ago, Cliff Edge said: I put Nordstrand Big Singles in my SR900. Straight swap for the Bart’s. The pre amp isn’t great but the bass now has a much better tone all round. Heard a demo of one of the top end SRs that has big singles in and it sounded lovely. Sorry, never did find the clip a second time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hubrad Posted July 14, 2022 Share Posted July 14, 2022 My tupporth.. I got a Cort 5 string with those MK-1 pickups and possibly the same preamp. Sounded OK, but on the harsh side. I did alot of reading round on forum threads, and most folks were critical of the pre. As am experiment I bypassed the pre and got a significant improvement in tone just from the Barts, so cast around and here on BC found a second hand Aguilar OPB-3. Way better than before! Change or bypass the pre before changing the pickups is my vote. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Boodang Posted July 14, 2022 Share Posted July 14, 2022 Start at the source! Otherwise it's a bit like having a great turntable and putting a cheap cartridge on it. All my basses have custom pickups installed. I talk to the pup guy about what tone I'm after and he gets the pickup response as close to that as possible. After that, I'll choose a pre amp based on the sound once they're installed. Quite often they end up as passive but it depends on how versatile I want it to be. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robiredale Posted July 14, 2022 Share Posted July 14, 2022 I've got an SR 5 string, a 655 maybe? It's got the Nordstrand-licensed PJ pickups. I replaced the stock Ibby preamp with a Darkglass Tone Capsule - night and day difference. But then those pickups are decent to start with in my opinion. I have another SR bass, a 4 string with Nordstrand big singles and the stock Ibby preamp. Sounds good too, but out of the two, I prefer the bass with the upgraded pre. Totally appreciate what you say about the £ required to replace both. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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