Pickup Experiment

[EcoMatt]

Not sure if this is the right place for this but, I’m experimenting with different pickups on my 4-string Bubinga 1997 corvette (which i was going to sell but cant, its just too nice a bass) and currently it has active EMG’s with just V/V/T pots.

With EMG’s it has a beautiful rich tone, perfect for slap and grinding rock riffs and it shines through on recordings and live performances. However I’m finding it very 'Hi-fi' sounding which is not a bad thing, its just incredibly bright sounding all the time and the tone pot makes small difference.

My next experiment involves a Dimarzio model J set and some way to harness their ability to switch from series to parallel without drilling 2 new holes in the bass for the toggle switches. This setup is quite similar to the $$ so these following questions kinda relate:

- I know the Dimarzio model J pickups are passive humbuckers but is active circuitry required for series/parallel switching?

- Can series/parallel be toggled with a push/pull pot?

- Is it possible to have a push/pull volume pot for each pickup, which allows individual pickup switching to series/parallel? For example I could have the neck pickup in parallel and the bridge pickup in series.

I know I should post this in a Dimarzio Forum but I cant find one and I’ve already sent an email to the Dimarzio tech support, however its been a few days and was wondering if anyone on here on the Warwick board had any insight?

Cheers.

 

[naetog]

I put a DiMarzio set in my old Ibanez, with series parallel switches for both pickups individually. It was a passive set up. I actually drilled holes in the bass since it was of no great value, and put in two mini switches. Check out for a wiring diagram. A push/pull pots is like a mini switch. As long as you can solder and follow directions you should be fine.

 

[Heike]

- I know the Dimarzio model J pickups are passive humbuckers

They indeed are humbucking, but this is achieved by a side-by-side design which makes them sound clearer than your average garden variety of stacked humbucker. Tech stuff you also find on the DiM website, btw.

but is active circuitry required for series/parallel switching?

No.

- Can series/parallel be toggled with a push/pull pot?

Yes.

- Is it possible to have a push/pull volume pot for each pickup, which allows individual pickup switching to series/parallel? For example I could have the neck pickup in parallel and the bridge pickup in series.

Yes.

 

[EcoMatt]

Wow thankyou Naetog and Heike for your help!