Nevermind... (Ping John Fertig!!!!!!!!!)

[SGD Lutherie]

The original RD Standard came out in 1977, it had stacked humbuckers in a Jazz Bass look with a narrow field for more prominrnt treble attack and it wanted to sound like an ash/maple JB which was a popular sound concept at the time. And in my humble opinion the standard sound is more timeless than the active Artist one. So Gibson have now cited the original rather than the by chance more popular, albeit less puristic Artist version. And again you guys complain that they are using narrow fild pickups etc ... Gibson obviously can't do anything right for you. I believe the pups they now use make perfect sense if you want to follow the original's vein.

You can now all go home and cuddle your 9 volt batteries ... ! - )

Are you sure they were stacks? They look kind of shallow for stacks, and the neck pickup was 6k, which is really low for a stack, since they have less output, so they tend to be over wound.

Narrow aperture is fine, but the originals were narrow soapbars, and not Jazz bass pickups. They were closer to mini humbuckers in size. This is just a cheap way out if you ask me.

[Dave W]

Gibson constantly bets against itself on basses and then acts surprised when the public agrees.

^ ^ ^
This.

[Barklessdog]

Are you sure they were stacks? They look kind of shallow for stacks, and the neck pickup was 6k, which is really low for a stack, since they have less output, so they tend to be over wound.

Narrow aperture is fine, but the originals were narrow soapbars, and not Jazz bass pickups. They were closer to mini humbuckers in size. This is just a cheap way out if you ask me.

I always thought the RD standard featured stacked Jazz style pickups?
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Vintage-Gibson-Parts-NOS-Black-RD-Style-Pickups-/260860887189?pt=Guitar_Accessories&hash=item3cbc854095#ht_2326wt_1141

Wonder if you could drop these in. $24.00 is a great dealz.

[Iome]

But arent those guitar pickups?

[SGD Lutherie]

I always thought the RD standard featured stacked Jazz style pickups?
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Vintage-Gibson-Parts-NOS-Black-RD-Style-Pickups-/260860887189?pt=Guitar_Accessories&hash=item3cbc854095#ht_2326wt_1141

Wonder if you could drop these in. $24.00 is a great dealz.

I'm not sure how that's a Jazz style pickup.  That would mean the Grabber G3 had three Jazz pickups. It didn't. It had three single coil pickups. That has nothing at all to do with a Jazz bass.

You could certainly drop those in, assuming they are the bass pickups.  You would need to make a new pickguard. Also, the RD Standard had a different neck and bridge pickup. The neck was 6k, while the bridge was 11k.

It looks like the bass pickup. It's 3" wide. I don't know how wide the bass version was. Here's the bass pickup.



If you know how wide the strings are over the pickup, you can get an idea. I'd guess this is wider than 3"*



[edit]* Flyguitars says the pickup was 80.4mm long, or 3.16", so that very well might be the bass pickup.

[Highlander]

You can now all go home and cuddle your 9 volt batteries ... ! - )

[work-in-progress] Mine's lost the battery... err... and the Moog... err... pretty much nothing but the wood at the mo...   [/work-in-progress]

... Although it would be cool to see what a modern electronic interpitation of the Artist might be going from the original concept.

Well John, there's you with the Kahler, and me with the lack of frets...

There's plenty of timber in these Ladies so all you'ld need was a compressor and an expander and a pre-amp and a few dozen switches and a router and...

[Barklessdog]

That would mean the Grabber G3 had three Jazz pickups. It didn't. It had three single coil pickups.

And I would agree with that. What is your definition of a Jazz pickup?

Certainly the G-3 had a very Fenderish sound.

Wiki-

"Jazz" pickups (referring to the original Fender Jazz Bass), also referred to as "J pickups", are wider eight-pole pickups that lie underneath all four strings. J pickups are typically single-coil designs, although there are a large number of humbucking designs. As with the halves of the P-pickups, the J-pickups are reverse-wound with reverse magnetic polarity. As a result they have hum canceling properties when used at the same volume, with hum cancellation decreasing when the pickups are used at unequal volume and altogether absent when each pickup is used individually. 'J' Style pickups tend to have a lower output and a thinner sound than 'P' Style pickups making it perfect for most rock music. Many bassists choose to combine a 'J' pickup at the bridge and a 'P' pickup at the neck, to be 'blended' together for a unique sound.

So by definition they need to have 8 poles, even though people sell Jazz pickups with blade magnets ?
But some so called Jazz pickups are stacked humbuckers right?

[Barklessdog]

There's plenty of timber in these Ladies so all you'ld need was a compressor and an expander and a pre-amp and a few dozen switches and a router and...

Today with micro components, they could probably make an RD Artist board the size of a match box.

[SGD Lutherie]

What is your definition of a Jazz pickup?

A Jazz bass pickup is the pickup in a Fender Jazz bass, and its various copies. It's between 3.492" and 3.625" long, .628" wide, .695" high. It has .780" tall magnets, with two per string. It's wound to around 8.6k to 9k. It has four mounting tabs and screws into the wood.

On the other hand, the RD had the Series 3 humbuckers, and measured 3.16" long, was 0.83" wide and 1.07" tall. So it's shorter, wider and taller than a Jazz bass. It's also wound very differently, at 6k and 11k.  It might have been based on the Bill Lawrence designed pickups used in the G3, but hum canceling.

Saying an RD humbucker is a Jazz pickup is like saying a Tele pickup is a Strat pickup. Or that a Fender Wide Range humbucker is a PAF.

They are both pickups, but only a Jazz pickup is a Jazz pickup, Clearly the RD did not have the pickups it has in this reissue.

Certainly the G-3 had a very Fenderish sound.

 

I guess. What's a Fender bass sound like? But it didn't have a pickup setup like a Fender. The Triumph bass could also sound like a Fender, as could the Grabber and Victory bass. So can a Rickenbacker. I think the point is none of them were as quirky as the EB series, or as bright as the T-Birds.

So by definition they need to have 8 poles ?
But some so called Jazz pickups are stacked humbuckers right?

All Jazz pickups have had 8 poles. It was part of Leo's patent.  There are hum canceling Jazz pickups, because time marches on, and people get hung up on details, so rather than putting a differently shaped pickup in a Jazz bass, companies have made exact size replacement's that don't hum. But that's because you have a hole to fill, and you want to sell a pickup!

I do it as well. Mine is shaped like a Jazz pickup, and fits into a Jazz bass, but that's where the similarity ends.

 

In the end, pickups are pickups. There are all kinds.

Gibson had designed a very modern and original bass with the RD series. But they can't be bothered to recreate the original pickups, so they just got an off the shelf part as a replacement. Like I said, imagine if they started doing that with the T-Birds. Just put them out with some Jazz or a P/J setup. Or how about a SG bass with P pickups? People would have a fit!

I say it's just Gibson being cheap. At the very least they could have had Duncan make a copy of the original. He also did the Ripper pickup, complete with the custom molded case.

[SGD Lutherie]

Today with micro components, they could probably make an RD Artist board the size of a match box.

They could. There are compressors on a chip now!  Look at one of those little Korg Pandora things. All kinds of effects you can out in your pocket.

I think he compressor always on the neck pickup, and the expander on the bridge pickup was gimmicky and dumb. I like compressors, but not on one pickup.

If Gibson wanted to do a modern active bass they could stick one of Duncan's preamps in it. Gibson never quiet got basses right though. I liked them, but they weren't as popular as Fender basses.

[Barklessdog]

A Jazz bass pickup is the pickup in a Fender Jazz bass, and its various copies. It's between 3.492" and 3.625" long, .628" wide, .695" high. It has .780" tall magnets, with two per string. It's wound to around 8.6k to 9k. It has four mounting tabs and screws into the wood.

On the other hand, the RD had the Series 3 humbuckers, and measured 3.16" long, was 0.83" wide and 1.07" tall. So it's shorter, wider and taller than a Jazz bass. It's also wound very differently, at 6k and 11k.  It might have been based on the Bill Lawrence designed pickups used in the G3, but hum canceling.

Saying an RD humbucker is a Jazz pickup is like saying a Tele pickup is a Strat pickup. Or that a Fender Wide Range humbucker is a PAF.

They are both pickups, but only a Jazz pickup is a Jazz pickup, Clearly the RD did not have the pickups it has in this reissue.
  

I guess. What's a Fender bass sound like? But it didn't have a pickup setup like a Fender. The Triumph bass could also sound like a Fender, as could the Grabber and Victory bass. So can a Rickenbacker. I think the point is none of them were as quirky as the EB series, or as bright as the T-Birds.

All Jazz pickups have had 8 poles. It was part of Leo's patent.  There are hum canceling Jazz pickups, because time marches on, and people get hung up on details, so rather than putting a differently shaped pickup in a Jazz bass, companies have made exact size replacement's that don't hum. But that's because you have a hole to fill, and you want to sell a pickup!

I do it as well. Mine is shaped like a Jazz pickup, and fits into a Jazz bass, but that's where the similarity ends.

 

In the end, pickups are pickups. There are all kinds.

Gibson had designed a very modern and original bass with the RD series. But they can't be bothered to recreate the original pickups, so they just got an off the shelf part as a replacement. Like I said, imagine if they started doing that with the T-Birds. Just put them out with some Jazz or a P/J setup. Or how about a SG bass with P pickups? People would have a fit!

I say it's just Gibson being cheap. At the very least they could have had Duncan make a copy of the original. He also did the Ripper pickup, complete with the custom molded case.

Thanks, but still is confusing to me with all the pickups on the market being marketed as Jazz pickups, but I guess really what they mean, as you pointed out, they will fit in a jazz bass, with somewhat a jazz bass sound.

[SGD Lutherie]

Thanks, but still is confusing to me with all the pickups on the market being marketed as Jazz pickups, but I guess really what they mean, as you pointed out, they will fit in a jazz bass, with somewhat a jazz bass sound.

Yep, they mean pickups that fit into a Jazz bass. And then of course you have more modern basses with P and J style pickups, often from Bartolini and EMG.

[gearHed289]

 

[Highlander]

I think he compressor always on the neck pickup, and the expander on the bridge pickup was gimmicky and dumb. I like compressors, but not on one pickup.

(off the top of my head) I think that was on the originals but they corrected that on the later models...?

Before my Moog went pear-shaped (and got trashed) I replaced the big clunky switches with minis and could use the features on both pups...

(ps... welcome to the funhouse, David...)

[SGD Lutherie]

(off the top of my head) I think that was on the originals but they corrected that on the later models...?

Before my Moog went pear-shaped (and got trashed) I replaced the big clunky switches with minis and could use the features on both pups...

(ps... welcome to the funhouse, David...)

I actually thought the big switches were kind of cool. But not on the Firebird X.