Got an old pre-EB Pup to put in my HH; will it fit?

[t-dub]

In my quest to have the ultimate Ray, I found a pre-EB style pup to put in the place of the bridge humbucker.
What I'm wonder is if the standard ray pickup cover will fit where the newer style HH bucker is currently located.
The HH humbuckers have a piece of plastic that covers the slot between the two pickup screw mounts, and the standard Ray pickup doesn't connect the two pickup screw mounts.

Example:


vs



Basically, I am not bothered about a small gap in the pickguard if it fits, and would probably just get someone to make a custom pickguard if the pickup stays. The best outcome would be if I can take the cover off the current HH and put the pre-EB style one in the case but I'm not sure if that's possible?

Any experiences with this would be welcome!

 

[73jbass]

What are you expecting to gain? If it ain't broke don't try to fix it.

 

[t-dub]

What are you expecting to gain? If it ain't broke don't try to fix it.

It's hard to get the Louis Johnson sound out of the newer pups and 3 EQ, that's for sure. I've got no problem with the 'don't mess with it' vibe around here, I'm just trying to get the authentic SR older sound from the newer SR bass. So, would it fit?

 

[rutgart]

Hey T-Dub, Grab yourself a Classic SR4 and keep your SR4 HH in one piece.

My 2 cents

 

[t-dub]

Hey T-Dub, Grab yourself a Classic SR4 and keep your SR4 HH in one piece.

My 2 cents

Certainly keen on it, just waiting for my Jazz to sell for that one...does it nail that old school tone?

 

[Aussie Mark]

Certainly keen on it, just waiting for my Jazz to sell for that one...does it nail that old school tone?

Well yeah - it's the same 2 band EQ preamp.

 

[drTStingray]

It's hard to get the Louis Johnson sound out of the newer pups and 3 EQ, that's for sure. I've got no problem with the 'don't mess with it' vibe around here, I'm just trying to get the authentic SR older sound from the newer SR bass. So, would it fit?

Firstly where'd you get the white pick up covers from - I want some of those

Secondly, with your SR4HH set with the bridge humbucker pick up only selected (selector switch at position closest to the bridge) and your 3 band EQ set with the bass boosted, the treble boosted and the mid range cut - all by about 10 - 20 %, you should get a classic Stingray sound. However, to get the Louis sound you would also need to play like him - he hits the bass somewhat aggressively from what I've seen in videos!

Bear in mind he played a number of MM basses including a Sabre - you can get the Sabre sound using the selector switch in the middle setting (both pick ups selected in humbucker mode) and this will give you the coolest mid scooped slap sound imaginable!

I wouldn't bother to mod your bass as changing the pick up will simply lower the value of the bass and probably won't change it much. The 2 band EQ is totally different in its effect from the 3 band - the 3 band gives you more versatility.

If you really want a 2 band Ray you could look out for a used regular one (they can still be ordered new), or better still from a price point of view, get a used sub 4 string active - this has the 2 band EQ and a slab body (it's poplar) - these are said to give a great sound for a very low price - in fact there's a current thread discussing one available for $300.

 

[bdgotoh]

That older pickup will fit but it only has two output wires, the stock HH pickups have 3 output wires. So it's not going to just drop in, it'll take considerable effort to get it to work with the HH switch.