- Thread starter tanasen
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MadMatt
Well-known member
I think the majority of the folks here like the sound pretty much the way it is. I would recommend leaving it the way it is and simply shop around for a bass with the sound you like. If you leave the SUB in original condition you will be able to sell it for more money than if you mess around with it.
bassmonkeee
Well-known member
This is not the best forum for asking about replacement pickups. Most people here don't think there is anything wrong with the sound to begin with. And, it's rude to use official bandwidth to talk about aftermarket parts.
Nevermind that you don't even begin to describe what you think is wrong in the first place. Try talkbass.com, or any of the other general purpose bass forums and you'll probably find lots of tinkerers who have experience with different aftermarket pickups. But, you're going to need to explain what you think is missing in the first place before anyone can recommend what to do differently.
Nevermind that you don't even begin to describe what you think is wrong in the first place. Try talkbass.com, or any of the other general purpose bass forums and you'll probably find lots of tinkerers who have experience with different aftermarket pickups. But, you're going to need to explain what you think is missing in the first place before anyone can recommend what to do differently.
Rano Bass
Well-known member
What is it that you dont like about the bass stock?
Is the bass active or passive?
If the stock pickup is working i dont see the point in changing it, really.
`
I think there's a bit much stomping goings on here.
It's OK to enjoy a MM product and yet to want to mod it.
Acoarst I agree this is not the best forum in which to ask,
as we do tend to hold that MM's are unbeatable as-is [or
is that "as-are" ?].
OTOH, the very first MM that refused to let me leave it
behind in the shop was hotrodded ... non EBMM EQ-pre
and PU. I still have it. And it's still a MM, modded but
still an SR4FL.
Rather than scouring the planet for a Cutlass II, I put
a Moses neck on an SL4HS, FL acoarst. Way scary ax. I
spoze it's not quite a Cutlass II. Maybe a Cutlass 1.5 ?
So whaz the message here, to the OP ? Go away and go
mod you a Fender cuz they're Born to Be Modded ? No.
If it's OK for MM to put graphite necks on their basses,
then it's OK for you or me to do the same, etc etc.
Pragmaticlly, it IS best to leave the SUB as-is and cash
it in. GC online regularly lists used SR's and SL's cheap.
These are hard times and prices are way down. It will
cost about $450 to upgrade from the SUB to a "proper"
MM, but no amount of money would really transform a
SUB to that degree. And I'm not knocking the SUB. It
has its own tone and a player friendly vibe, like when
your dog is happy to see you come home.
Reasons NOT to mod the SUB isn't that it's 'wrong' to
wanna change it, but simply that it's most likely gonna
resist change. The poplar body, as with mahogany, is a
major element of its personality [bass-ality?]. Which is
related to why I was able to sell my SUB with no regret.
I bagged me an SR30th which, with its mahogany body,
is essentially a 'Super SUB'. It even has a gloss finished
neck like a SUB ;-)
The SUB in question here is a Sterling SUB, which IIRC
is already a 3-band beastie, right ? Get you a torty PG
and some flats. You'll fall in luuuvvvvvvv.
I think there's a bit much stomping goings on here.
It's OK to enjoy a MM product and yet to want to mod it.
Acoarst I agree this is not the best forum in which to ask,
as we do tend to hold that MM's are unbeatable as-is [or
is that "as-are" ?].
OTOH, the very first MM that refused to let me leave it
behind in the shop was hotrodded ... non EBMM EQ-pre
and PU. I still have it. And it's still a MM, modded but
still an SR4FL.
Rather than scouring the planet for a Cutlass II, I put
a Moses neck on an SL4HS, FL acoarst. Way scary ax. I
spoze it's not quite a Cutlass II. Maybe a Cutlass 1.5 ?
So whaz the message here, to the OP ? Go away and go
mod you a Fender cuz they're Born to Be Modded ? No.
If it's OK for MM to put graphite necks on their basses,
then it's OK for you or me to do the same, etc etc.
Pragmaticlly, it IS best to leave the SUB as-is and cash
it in. GC online regularly lists used SR's and SL's cheap.
These are hard times and prices are way down. It will
cost about $450 to upgrade from the SUB to a "proper"
MM, but no amount of money would really transform a
SUB to that degree. And I'm not knocking the SUB. It
has its own tone and a player friendly vibe, like when
your dog is happy to see you come home.
Reasons NOT to mod the SUB isn't that it's 'wrong' to
wanna change it, but simply that it's most likely gonna
resist change. The poplar body, as with mahogany, is a
major element of its personality [bass-ality?]. Which is
related to why I was able to sell my SUB with no regret.
I bagged me an SR30th which, with its mahogany body,
is essentially a 'Super SUB'. It even has a gloss finished
neck like a SUB ;-)
The SUB in question here is a Sterling SUB, which IIRC
is already a 3-band beastie, right ? Get you a torty PG
and some flats. You'll fall in luuuvvvvvvv.
Last edited:
Thanks for your opinions guys.
@Golem Yes it has already a 3-band eq which gives much versatility. The thing is I thought I could get more "growl" and attack with a replacement pickup but everywhere I ask I get answers like yours "it IS best to leave the SUB as-is and cash
it in" ... but i love my bass so I couldn't give it away... I'll try the flats though.
@Golem Yes it has already a 3-band eq which gives much versatility. The thing is I thought I could get more "growl" and attack with a replacement pickup but everywhere I ask I get answers like yours "it IS best to leave the SUB as-is and cash
it in" ... but i love my bass so I couldn't give it away... I'll try the flats though.
bassmonkeee
Well-known member
Don't forget who pays the bills for this site.
He's more than welcome to want to switch the pickup out. But, Seymour Duncan and Bartolini have their own forums.
If you want more "growl," I don't know if you're going to find an aftermarket pickup to do that.
I would suggest trying different strings and EQ settings over something as drastic and expensive as a new pickup. And, FWIW, flats are not going to give you growl.
I see your point bassmonkey. I also discovered the nordtstrand pickups which are exactly the same as the pre ernie ball-mm pickups. What about these? I know that flat strings wont give growl but i havent tried them out. Maybe their sound work better than the slinky ones...
bassmonkeee
Well-known member
I'm a big fan of flats with Musicman basses. If you've never tried them, I can only say to give them a try. It's certainly a lot easier than swapping out pickups.
I have not tried the Nordstrand pickups. Carey makes nice stuff. But, really--you already have a real Musicman pickup in your SUB. Swapping it out for something designed to mimic a Musicman pickup won't really bring a lot of difference in the same bass. Aftermarket does not necessarily equal better when you are starting with a bass designed correctly to begin with. It's one thing to swap out cheap tuning pegs, preamp and pickup on a cheapy import bass. But, the SUBS are already built in the US with quality components.
I just think your money would be better spent trying different types of strings (nickel, stainless, flatwound, etc) to find what works for you than doing a pickup swap. But, whatever floats your boat is fine with me.
I have not tried the Nordstrand pickups. Carey makes nice stuff. But, really--you already have a real Musicman pickup in your SUB. Swapping it out for something designed to mimic a Musicman pickup won't really bring a lot of difference in the same bass. Aftermarket does not necessarily equal better when you are starting with a bass designed correctly to begin with. It's one thing to swap out cheap tuning pegs, preamp and pickup on a cheapy import bass. But, the SUBS are already built in the US with quality components.
I just think your money would be better spent trying different types of strings (nickel, stainless, flatwound, etc) to find what works for you than doing a pickup swap. But, whatever floats your boat is fine with me.
Ian Perge
Active member
As someone who "joined the family" purchasing a SUB Sterling more to have it in my Bass Toolbox for sessions & live work rather than a *true* liking of the tone, only to get sucked in by a variety of reasons to where I purchased a "Sister" SUB 5 for that iconic SR5 tone less than 2 weeks ago, I don't think using Poplar for the body wood (it's extremely close to Alder in terms of tone but doesn't look as good, and was actually used for "Upscale" non-translucent Stingrays & Sterlings in the late '80s to mid '90s before EBMM switched to primarily Ash (...or so I've heard) has any true effect on the tone of the bass, also the non-stamped bridge, textured finish, quote-"glossy"-unquote neck finish (both my SUBs openly mock the thickness of the poly on the necks of the vast majority of basses that take up GC's Wall Space 
or minimally different Preamp. Hand over Heart, I've preferred the tone of my SUB Sterling to a number of Single & Double Humbucker 'Rays and Sterlings I've played in a number of "Guitar-O-Marts" in various cities over a period of years. I'm sure setup, old strings, and every teen banging out Flea funk lines and Nu-Metal picked parts has something to do with that, but there's an indefinable quality my SUB Sterling has.
I'd agree that different strings and some EQ changes could bring pretty drastic results: I typically engage an Xotic RC 2-band EQ pedal when using mine that helps bring out the Undefinable in the Upper-Mids and High-End (and before that EQ changes on my Preamp, but I got tired of the "changing/resetting cycle" that brought). Strings as well: while Flats are about as appealing to me as the tone of a P-Bass, they work for both different players as well as for different tones. And these days with far more choices than Steels/Nickels/Flats (we've got Coated from various manufactures that each have their own tone IMO, construction differences like hex vs round cores & handwound vs machine, etc... , "alternate" metals used such as Titanium and others, balanced tension sets...) you could easily spend several hundred dollars on different sets of strings and just scratch the surface. But FWIW, I found my path to "Growl" is a quality set of medium Stainless Steel strings (.105s as I use my SUB Sterling for a good deal of Drop-D playing) in a Medium-Low setup using a pick with some flex (.60-.80mm: I used to use "Purple Rocks" but found that RH technique was easier with a pick that moved slightly) and anywhere from "just a tad" of Overdrive to a "Goodly Schmeer" of full-on Distortion - there are plenty of preamps & pedals that'll get you a quality sound, I vary between several pedals and my SWR Interstellar Overdrive preamp depending on the amount, if it's a "Rock Gig" and other factors. Good luck in your search...
or minimally different Preamp. Hand over Heart, I've preferred the tone of my SUB Sterling to a number of Single & Double Humbucker 'Rays and Sterlings I've played in a number of "Guitar-O-Marts" in various cities over a period of years. I'm sure setup, old strings, and every teen banging out Flea funk lines and Nu-Metal picked parts has something to do with that, but there's an indefinable quality my SUB Sterling has.I'd agree that different strings and some EQ changes could bring pretty drastic results: I typically engage an Xotic RC 2-band EQ pedal when using mine that helps bring out the Undefinable in the Upper-Mids and High-End (and before that EQ changes on my Preamp, but I got tired of the "changing/resetting cycle" that brought). Strings as well: while Flats are about as appealing to me as the tone of a P-Bass, they work for both different players as well as for different tones. And these days with far more choices than Steels/Nickels/Flats (we've got Coated from various manufactures that each have their own tone IMO, construction differences like hex vs round cores & handwound vs machine, etc... , "alternate" metals used such as Titanium and others, balanced tension sets...) you could easily spend several hundred dollars on different sets of strings and just scratch the surface. But FWIW, I found my path to "Growl" is a quality set of medium Stainless Steel strings (.105s as I use my SUB Sterling for a good deal of Drop-D playing) in a Medium-Low setup using a pick with some flex (.60-.80mm: I used to use "Purple Rocks" but found that RH technique was easier with a pick that moved slightly) and anywhere from "just a tad" of Overdrive to a "Goodly Schmeer" of full-on Distortion - there are plenty of preamps & pedals that'll get you a quality sound, I vary between several pedals and my SWR Interstellar Overdrive preamp depending on the amount, if it's a "Rock Gig" and other factors. Good luck in your search...
The Norstrand pickups are exact replicas of the authentic pre EB MM humbuckers. I' ve already contacted with Nordstrand and they told me that the MM4.2 suits perfectly. I'm already thinking about it.
Thanks for your help. I also use a Sansamp bass driver which helps me get a cleaner sound
. For strings I currently am on superslinkys. I think I used once stainless steel strings...
bassmonkeee
Well-known member
Hey, it's your money.
This is not going to win me any points on this forum...but so be it.
Nordstrand makes a great pickup but I don't think you are going to get more growl of it persay.
The Seymour Duncan preamp adds the most sizzle if you need it and they make one for single pickup models.
I have a couple if them one in my SR5 and one in a Ray35
oli@bass
Well-known member
Some basses growl. Some don't, regardless of electronics. Because, by and large, the growl's in the wood.
`
Re: More Growling, try tilting the PU such that the
coil nearest the bridge is much higher than the coil
nearest the neck. Go as far as the adjustment can
go. You still get plenty of neck coil in your mix but
favoring the bridge coil tends to enhance growl.
Re: More Growling, try tilting the PU such that the
coil nearest the bridge is much higher than the coil
nearest the neck. Go as far as the adjustment can
go. You still get plenty of neck coil in your mix but
favoring the bridge coil tends to enhance growl.
I thought so for many years, but eventually the pick's sound suits me better. Gives me a pure punk feeling and more attack.
adouglas
Well-known member
All this talk of where growl comes from is confusing the heck out of my dog.
