Well I actually didnt notice it much, till I got new strings and tried it out on DI.
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I’m not sure what “hot” means in this context, since I have a Ray4 I got curious and checked some YouTube videos where the pickups are replaced, certainly that Aguilar sounds better than the stocked one, I’d replace it if I could find one!
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Hot pretty much means that pickup sends much stronger signal than preamp can handle. Then sound starts distorting.
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So it would only be noticeable if the amp cannot handle it? Maybe that’s why I’ve never noticed distortion
I think the bass is excellent as is, specially at that price and for beginners…. But after listening to how it can sound, I’ll upgrade as soon as possible
I found an Aguilar DCB but not the Aguilar AG, how different are these?
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Not the amp, but rather the preamp, the one in the guitar. It can also be solved with compressor pedal. Also if you have light touch I doubt you will notice it
Regarding difference between those pickups I cant say.
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It’s more of a ‘bass to bass’ comparison thing.
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Its not that I refuse to play it, it is just that looking at one, gives me no motivation to find one and try it. I would happily demonstrate one at a shop or somebody’s house anytime.
For me, its more that, looking at it (before ever having heard it) I would have not considered it could do what it can, based on my bias on how things look that usually sound like what I like. And Vision is something that can play tricks on hearing easily, so I am very happy to have heard it played blind, with 4 other basses and having my ears really pick the top two sounding bases (In a video Julia did about a year ago or so), I really did pick the Hofner as tops of the 5 played. The only other basses I remember in the shootout was the Dan Electro and an Ibanez, possibly the Mikro, as it might have been SS bass shootout.
The Dan Electro LongHorn, and many Danelectro look kind of like something made in the 1950’s, for a twilight zone episode that was to take place in 1995. Like really cheesy B-movie, horror and sci-fi. I would walk into the Star Wars bar where they hired Han Solo in the first (or 4th ) Star Wars, and expect to see an alien playing the Danelectro Longhorn.
But, I have to admit, they sound pretty awesome too.
And Fat Mike of NOFX has pretty much only Danelectros now, and his tone has only gotten better over the years IMO. (To be clear, he does not play longhorn, just another Danelectro)
I can’t. But I like to hear it.
Only because I have never played a MIM Fender of any kind that I am aware of.
I have only played MIS (Somewhere) Squire’s, and not a lot of them. Thanks to starting bass just a few months prior to COVID and Lockdowns, it makes it hard to just go to a store and find a good selection, and be able to take the time you want to spend, going thru and playing things, to know more and more what you really like.
So there are many basses I have never even had a chance to play, many that interest me, and many that don’t, but I won’t rule most anything out, I will give anything a try, and see if it swoons me or not.
Be nice if the world goes back to the way it were.
This half in/ half out thing is bothersome. (not a debate about need for lockdown or protection from COVID, I agree with the needs for this, just saying, lockdown in / out / in / out / in / out, with some things full open, some half open and many in between 3/4 and 5/16th open.)
I miss the COVID lockdown when NOBODY was on the streets, or in the stores and on the highways (especially in Southern California Traffic), it was nice to go out and do things, and I never got sick, and wore mask when around others, and took precaution, and it was nice to do some of the things that lockdown allowed, like drive from down in Orange County to look at a bass that is 30 to 45 min away, and only takes 30 to 45 min to get there. (otherwise, in normal traffic, could be 90 min to 3 hrs one way.)
Now, we have the same traffic (almost 100%) as we normally do, but things still 1/2 lockdown, so going shopping at Guitar Center or Sam Ash, or up to LA to see the big stores, and be allowed inside to roam, not be watched by an assigned employee that wants to make sure you are shopping for one or two things, and test them quickly, then run you out of the store in a rush, weather you will buy to not.
Yeah, what I was trying to get across, was this was his 3rd GAME CHANGER edition to the world of Bass, IMO.
And did he bass the Jag or Mustang off of guitars? (thats a question, IDK)
I mean you could say the P - bass is a Strat Bass, but not many will make that comparison, based on how important the P bass is to modern bass world.
And for my question to be relevant back to the Jag and Mustang, we would need to look up whether the Stingray started as a Guitar or Bass?
Probably why SBMM has such great consistency among its import lines
AND
Why Fender / Squire have some inconsistencies???
Somebody said every SBMM goes back to the USA plant to get inspected.
Seems like a lot of guitar / basses to run back thru a plant operating at 100% making MIA instruments. I wonder if they have several places located inside other USA manufacturer’s / re-sellers where they have people authorized to do Factory Set-Ups in America, for every instrument sold. Especially thinking places like SweetWater that says they do a factory set up on every bass, or every bass over a certain amount (plus ability to PLEK)
It was when I bought my first Ray4, that I knew I could no longer use a 20W practice amp, and really need 75 and up. I think it was an Ibanez SR400 that first gave me trouble on the Orange Crush 20, when I boosted the EQ enough, it was the first 5 fret on E that all clipped.
When I first plugged in the SB4, I was getting some clipping with boosting.
At first, My thinking was that since I am getting a lot of used and cheaper basses, that I would need to start shielding everything and change some of my power strips and electrical inputs, in and around computer, amp, and bass, etc… things to minimize the electrical noise.
But after getting my first Ray4, and playing it on my bigger amps, then trying to play thru the Orange Crush, with bass boosts fully cut, thru my Orange Crush 20b, with gain in, all the way down to 1, I was getting clipping on every fret above the 9th on E
This is when I set out to get rid of my Orange Cruse 20B, and upgraded to eventually the SWR WorkingMan 10, and that thing is sweet, sounds great, was cheap, and I love everything about it, and clipping is gone on everything.
So, after going thru that, and learning more about the amp gain stages and clipping in general, and stingrays and active pre amps, and Hi-Z and impedance, and all that stuff in general, I, now, would have to wonder if it would even be possible to get clean sound from a Ray4 on a cheap 10w-20w amp? Even with everything cut? I couldn’t get any clean sounds on money notes on E at all.
I would almost have to think just the opposite of this, especially cheap guitar amps, or cheap bass amps that don’t have an Active Input. I really can’t understand why they would make the pick up so bad that you really eliminate the full use of the active pre-amp, unless you upgrade. I mean, I know the people making these decisions are smarter then me, but it still boggles my mind.
Or maybe there was something wrong with the Orange Crush I had? IDK, but I recall the same thing on a few 25w and under amps, on the same basses.
But after noticing it on the first couple basses, I was able to notice that I could re-create the problem with other basses, especially Active thru standard input.
Any Active Bass really, if you full boost treble and cut bass, and mid to full boost meds, you can create a HOT pick up effect
Are they both MM style Humbucker pick ups?
I know the DCB have been loved by Lobster and many other You Tubers, but I think they were all Soap Bar style hum bucker pick ups.
It probably sound great if it comes in the MM shape, and fits as a direct replacement.
There are lots of pick ups out there I would love to try, and Many that I already love, and many that are cheaper then Aguilar.
Kent Armstrong on Reverb cost about $52 plus shipping
Herrick Pick op from Herrick UK Online Website run from 79 or 89 lb / eu and up. I would love to try the NewBucker from Herrick which is pretty a direct replacement for the EBMM pick up with Neo poles (2018 EBMM upgraded)
To some of the crazier Herrick 8 coil pickups, if done with a cool Pre-amp, like DarkGlass Tone Capsule and others out there that have a lot of onboard options, including distortion and Q factor (filters).
Radio Tone for around $40Us plus shipping on Reverb.
Seymour Duncan make some MM pick ups around $99US that I would want to try out.
And there are others above the $100 price point I would like to try.
But
I am happy with my Aguilar, and don’t have any short term plans on making any project basses.
These are just things I have noticed and added to the list over the past 20 something months we have had Covid Lockdowns.
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I remember you posting that video. Do you still have the link? I’d like to revisit it.
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I don’t, but if I come across the YT video I will post it for you.
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Beat me
very easy to find, just YouTube - Search - Julia Shortscale blindfold - go
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Thanks. I didn’t know who the person is or the nature of the review, so I didn’t have much to use for a search.
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Oh different Julia, there’s another Julia that’s been kicking it with the sterling and MusicMan too.
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I only had my Hofner for a short time when I first saw this video, and now that I’ve had it for going on 8 months, I’m more pleased than ever with it. Julia just reinforced my decision. The small but mighty Hofner!
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Thanks for the recommendations
It seems like they should fit,
https://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/DCB-M4--aguilar-dcb-m4-4-string-m-style-pickup?utm_source=google&utm_medium=organicpla
It’s pricey, but it’s available unlike the other Aguilar, I was wondering how it sounds, I’ll try to see if I listen to someone using it on YouTube, and also some of the others that you mentioned, I’m not in a hurry and wouldn’t want to spend too much either like changing the preamp also, I’d rather leave it as is
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Yeah, with the Aguilar I have, I use with the stock Ray4 preamp.
The DCB stands for
• The DCB® pickups use dual ceramic bar magnets that provide a dynamic and responsive attack that works for all playing styles.
If that is the only difference, I am pretty sure it will sound great.
I mean, it could, I suppose, take away some of the MM Characteristics, but I doubt it.
Will you be doing the upgrade yourself. If so, and you are clean about it, you should be able to return them, if you clean the ends back up, but you should check the return policy and see if they take back pickups that have been installed for a test, but did not yield desired results.
That said, Aguilar has had stock problems on the MM style pick up in general, for over a year, and I am sure its an easy re-sell on Reverb or somewhere else.
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Awesome, this will give you an idea.
IIRC, Lobster used the other pickups on his first Ray4 Stingray upgrade bass.
This was his contest give away bass, where he let the WINNER pick the pick up and preamp he wanted in it.
I am only pointing this out because I think his other videos are done with the AG-4M pick up, and this was done because of the winner’s pick.
however, I know lobster LOVES those DCB’s and has put other styles in many other basses he has or has demo’s / upgraded.
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I dunno, in general I like my pickup poles exposed. It looks cool. But as far as performance are concerned, the sealed pickups has a lot more advantages. I’m also a big EMG fanboi, they do offer a whole lot of sealed pickups.
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