LordAvon Posted October 12, 2007 Share Posted October 12, 2007 All, Ok, got my first DIY bass, all good. It's assembled (pics are somewhere around here). It's a J bass (two standard J pickups) and I've received my Seymour Duncan STKJ2 Hot stack (WOW! what a sound) and my SPB2 Hotpickups. So two questions, 1) Which way round to position the P pickups? the most common configuration seems to have the D+G pickup nearer the bridge, but I've been reseraching and many people seem to think the E+A pickup should be nearer he bridge. Anyone any opinions and why? 2) I've never used a router before, I assume I'll need to clamp down my bass body, mark the position of the P pickup holes, and take my time and make sure I don't go too deep. I plan on using the existing J pickup hole as the starting point for both halves of the P pickup holes, so I shouldn't need to pre-drill any corners or start points. I'm going to buy myself a router (slightly more than renting, but I've had enough fun with this project that I"m going to build a second so It'll come in handy in future), any advice on what ttype of bit I need? Oh, I've also made my own pick guard for the P pickup which currently has no holes for pickups as I'll wait until the P's are in place before doing that. I've also got enough plastic left to do another two if I'm not happy. Any/all advice very much welcomed. Paul Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
7string Posted October 13, 2007 Share Posted October 13, 2007 I can only give a view on question 1, having no experience of power tools (geez, I can hardly hammer a nail into a wall). Personally, I like to have the D&G (hey, the designer pair of strings) pole pieces nearer to the neck. I think that it takes a little wooliness out of the E&A, with those being nearer the bridge. Also, when I play with my fingers I use the pickup to rest my thumb and as I move around, I just find it more comfortable going down and left rather than the other way around. Hope this helps !! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LordAvon Posted October 13, 2007 Author Share Posted October 13, 2007 Thanks, This was pretty much the opinion I was coming too. Now I need to make some holes in my bass, now it get's scary! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LordAvon Posted October 15, 2007 Author Share Posted October 15, 2007 Well, It's completed. How does it sound? [b][size=5]Awesome[/size][/b] Those Seymour Duncan pickups are worth *EVERY* single penny. For those of you interested in a bit more detail you can read my blog post on it, but be warned, it's not for the feint of heart. The are graphic pictures of a bass being hacked with a chisel and drill! [url="http://blog.vacoloco.net/?p=60"]Custom Bass Blog[/url] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mybass Posted October 16, 2007 Share Posted October 16, 2007 Careful with that router! Always clamp the wood securely to a solid worktop. Wear eye protection and shoes that don't slip. Some routers have a devastating high pitch motor so you may want ear plugs. Wearing noise reduction headphones AND eye protectors will steam up your goggles so be careful of that too. Practice on some waste wood first to see how the router works and always cut a little depth at a time. The router will "pull" along ways to one side when cutting so test for this. A 1/2" router machine cuts easier and quicker but a 1/4" router is good for finer work. I used a 1/4" for profiling body and neck blanks but it takes too long. String sound will be "tighter" nearer the bridge side of pickups and more "bassy" towards neck side. Hence some people liking a P bass pickup for D and G towards the bridge for a slightly tighter / treble sound. Just try playing the string near on the bridge and the same string then around the neck. Quite a lot of difference there and the pickup placement will show that difference. [quote name='LordAvon' post='73499' date='Oct 12 2007, 06:02 PM']All, Ok, got my first DIY bass, all good. It's assembled (pics are somewhere around here). It's a J bass (two standard J pickups) and I've received my Seymour Duncan STKJ2 Hot stack (WOW! what a sound) and my SPB2 Hotpickups. So two questions, 1) Which way round to position the P pickups? the most common configuration seems to have the D+G pickup nearer the bridge, but I've been reseraching and many people seem to think the E+A pickup should be nearer he bridge. Anyone any opinions and why? 2) I've never used a router before, I assume I'll need to clamp down my bass body, mark the position of the P pickup holes, and take my time and make sure I don't go too deep. I plan on using the existing J pickup hole as the starting point for both halves of the P pickup holes, so I shouldn't need to pre-drill any corners or start points. I'm going to buy myself a router (slightly more than renting, but I've had enough fun with this project that I"m going to build a second so It'll come in handy in future), any advice on what ttype of bit I need? Oh, I've also made my own pick guard for the P pickup which currently has no holes for pickups as I'll wait until the P's are in place before doing that. I've also got enough plastic left to do another two if I'm not happy. Any/all advice very much welcomed. Paul[/quote] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
7string Posted October 16, 2007 Share Posted October 16, 2007 I like the idea of the pickguard, in case anything went horribly wrong !! Good job !! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bass_ferret Posted October 16, 2007 Share Posted October 16, 2007 My GB P bass has a big rout so I can have the P pup either way round or replace with a darkstar or MM type if I want. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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