Warwick thumb bridge pup closer to strings than neck pup?

[triggervision]

I've tried setting up my thumb myself after letting someone do it and them leaving me with a completely flat neck--no relief whatsoever. So, I set the relief to what the manual said and lowered the bridge leaving me with the amount of space the manual said should be between the e and g strings. So now I'm on the pup height. The bridge pup seems really close to the strings but not touching when I play. The neck pup seems close but it's not touching when I play/pop either. So, I don't want to kill my sustain or anything and was wondering if my setup could be wrong with my pups. The bridge is closer than the neck pup. That ok? Thanks


Deryc

If need be I could post some pics sometime tomorrow.

 

[Stroud]

the closer the string gets to the bridge, the less it is vibrating. this means the amplitude near the bridge is lower than the same pickup/height near the neck. because of this the bridge pickup is usually put nearer the pickup.

as fir the pickup that is really near the strings; if there is not distortion and your not banging the pickup with your strings...you should be fine

 

[Florin]

Hey Derryc,
Alex is right, the neck pickup must be lower than the bridge pickup to have the same output.
Your thumb probably has active pickups, it means you can set the pickups pretty close to the strings, even 2- 2,5 mm for bridge pickup.

 

[ThirdthumB]

Hey Derryc,
Alex is right, the neck pickup must be lower than the bridge pickup to have the same output.
Your thumb probably has active pickups, it means you can set the pickups pretty close to the strings, even 2- 2,5 mm for bridge pickup.

So does this mean that with a passive (open pole ?) pickup, the distance between the strings and the pickup must be larger ? Why is that ??

 

[triggervision]

Ok. I think I should be ok then. I play pretty hard but I'm not hearing an awful clanking noise against the pickup or distortion. Also, my bridge pickup is further then 2mm away I'm pretty sure so...Thanks for the help guys. I'm about to raise my bridge a smidge anyway. I've got a little more buzz than I would like. I'm starting to get better at this setup thing thanks to everyone!!!!!

Deryc.

 

[Florin]

Hey Derryc,
Alex is right, the neck pickup must be lower than the bridge pickup to have the same output.
Your thumb probably has active pickups, it means you can set the pickups pretty close to the strings, even 2- 2,5 mm for bridge pickup.

So does this mean that with a passive (open pole ?) pickup, the distance between the strings and the pickup must be larger ? Why is that ??

Passive pickups usually have stronger magnets.

 

[Stroud]

Hey Derryc,
Alex is right, the neck pickup must be lower than the bridge pickup to have the same output.
Your thumb probably has active pickups, it means you can set the pickups pretty close to the strings, even 2- 2,5 mm for bridge pickup.

So does this mean that with a passive (open pole ?) pickup, the distance between the strings and the pickup must be larger ? Why is that ??

Passive pickups usually have stronger magnets.

thats why they dont need a preamp. and that is also whey they make interference louder (active pickups with up little interference because they are quite weak and the preamp boosts this nicer singnal-making it both nice and loud).

 

[Florin]

Active pickups are similar to condenser microphones, if you like ;-)

 

[ThirdthumB]

Thanks Alex and Florian,

I knew that active pups have a little amp and require batteries, but I thought that was for "shaping" the sound only............It's clear now. :wink:
I'm more eager to experiment with passive pickups now. :twisted:

 

[welshtigerboy]

Although there are rules of thumb (no pun intended), this to me is a very personal thing. I like a quite smooth sound with just a hint of bite so personally, I prefer my bridge pickup to be lower than would be considered standard.

I only found this out though by trying different things, playing and seeing the effect it had on my sound and then deciding where I wanted to be sound wise.

Have a play, muck around and decide what YOU want to do.

 

[odominguez]

Hello there. We use an allen key to measure the pickup height at the factory. Every Warwick bass comes with two Allen keys, you can use the big one and put it over the pickup, then just hold the strings at the 24th fret and make both of your pickups match the height of the allen key. This means that when holding the string at the 24th fret, there should be just enough space between the pickup and the string to take the allen key out. When you do this with both pickups, you will also notice that your bridge pickup will be a little higher, but the output will be even.