Guitar-bass pickups come in many varieties, each offering its own distinct tone and characteristics that make it ideal for certain genres or playing styles.
Bass pickup types typically consist of three magnet-driven types: single coil, split-coil (known as humbuckers), and piezo pickups. All use magnets to transform string vibration into sound.
J Pickup
A J pickup is one of the most common and versatile guitar-bass pickup types. It has been used to create iconic sounds across genres, from surf rock to Motown to country music. Notable players who have preferred this bass pickup type include James Jamerson (most Motown hits), Mike Dirnt from Green Day, Steve Harris from Iron Maiden and Nate Mendel from Foo Fighters.
J pickups are composed of single coils with an additional polepiece per string, giving players more control over each string’s tone than with a P bass pickup alone.
The sound of the J pickup can vary, but typically offers definition, versatility, brightness and aggression. This makes it an ideal choice for genres such as pop, blues, jazz, country music, contemporary music, world music bossa nova and Latin music.
J pickups are often ideal for guitarists who use a lot of grit and sustain. Furthermore, bassists in metal or hard rock genres will find these pickups to be an excellent choice.
For a vintage Jazz bass sound, Seymour Duncan Antiquity II pickups are your best bet. These pickups have slightly hotter temperatures than Fender Custom 60s reissue pickups and can recreate that iconic Jazz basses’ growl.
These pickups may be more expensive than reissue pickups, but they provide superior tone and an improved experience overall. These are ideal for those who appreciate vintage pickups but don’t want to invest thousands of dollars on them.
Lace Sensor Man O’ War is an excellent option for Jazz bassists seeking more growl and bite. These single-coils feature an epoxy seal and wax potting, which reduce noise and feedback while increasing output and clarity.
Lace Sensor stands out among other brands by offering an expansive selection of bass pickup sets that can be combined to create the ideal tone for your guitar. If you’re searching for a premium replacement pickup that adds serious power and clarity, Lace Sensor is your top choice.
P Pickup
The P Pickup is a popular option for bass players looking for an amplified, big-bellied tone with heavy low end. This versatile pickup can be used in virtually any genre of music from hard rock to jazz.
The 1951 Precision Bass by Fender introduced the first magnetic pickup for production bass instruments. This single-coil design featured four magnets (one per string) and exposed pole pieces wrapped in copper wire, which remains popular to this day; however there are variations on this basic concept.
One of the more intriguing variants is the Split P, a hybrid pickup featuring two coils wired together. This creates an effective split humbucking pickup, canceling out any buzzing or humming in the signal for cleaner sound without sacrificing tonal versatility.
Another option is the Dimarzio DP 127, which features two independent coils in each half of its pickup and functions more like a true humbucker than traditional P bass pickup. This results in hotter tones and improved EQ control compared to standard P’s, helping expand your instrument’s frequency range.
Seymour Duncan offers two choices for P bass pickups: SPB-1 and SPB-3. These pickups boast Alnico 5 magnets and Forbon flatwork construction with vacuum wax pots to provide noiseless performance.
If you need a vintage P pickup to replace the stock pickup on your bass or need to upgrade your setup, these are some of the top choices available. Plus, they’re great options for those who want to add some heat without breaking the bank.
For a classic hard-rock sound, EMG’s GZR-P is the perfect pick. Engineered in collaboration with legendary Black Sabbath bassist Geezer Butler, it captures the sounds of an original ’60s Precision Bass and requires no soldering for easy installation. With just the right controls, you’ll get deep, round lows, assertive mids, and sparkling highs from this pickup.
H Pickup
Pickups are essential elements of the sound of an electric guitar or bass. These electromagnets (a magnet and coil) create a particular tone. Many different pickups exist to achieve different tones; some more powerful than others and capable of overdriving amplifiers for more intense or dirty tones.
Humbuckers and single coils are two popular pickup types. Both have their advantages and drawbacks depending on what genre of music you play and how it’s played.
Humbuckers in the bridge position can produce a warm and full sound that’s ideal for distortion, but they also tend to have an annoying “bubbly” quality. On the other hand, using single coils in the neck position gives off brighter and crisper tones.
H Pickups are the most widely used type of pickup on basses today and can be found on instruments from brands like Gibson and Fender. In particular, they’re popular on Strat-type guitars since they eliminate hum from the mains while offering additional tone shaping options with two volume pots and two tone pots.
They can be ideal for blues music and other genres that call for a heavier sound, as well as heavy metal and hard rock music. While not ideal for clean or high gain tones, these pickups can still provide useful results when combined with the appropriate EQ settings.
H Pickups come in several variations, such as double humbuckers and soapbar pickups. Soapbar pickups feature a barshaped body usually made of steel or phosphor bronze which allows the bass sound louder and more consistent when playing certain strings.
The double humbucker pickup combination on electric guitars is one of the most sought-after pickup combinations, appearing on nearly all Gibson models. These pickups can be used for playing a wide range of musical genres from classic rock to modern metal and even jazz music.
Humbuckers are an effective solution for eliminating noise from mains sources and can be utilized in various ways, including single coil-sized humbuckers or coil-splitting. Furthermore, these pickups boast many control configurations such as coil-split, tap, series/parallel and even a tone knob which divides output between both humbuckers.
E Pickup
Pickups are electronic components that convert mechanical vibrations into an electrical signal that’s then amplified to create musical sounds. They’re commonly found on many stringed instruments like guitars and basses; in some cases, pickups may even be part of synthesizers or other electronic musical instruments.
Most electric pickups are constructed from magnets wound in wire, with the number of turns determining their output voltage. The spacing between polepieces also influences tone and response to acoustic inputs. Higher output pickups offer more overdrive for those seeking louder sound, while less-output options produce a cleaner, more neutral tone that’s easier to manipulate and adjust.
Some high-output pickups utilize powerful magnets that may lead to “string capture,” which dampens strings and reduces sustain. This can have an adverse effect on tone and intonation as well as chord or solo playing ability.
Another crucial factor that influences pickup’s tone is its design. Different designs exist and some work better for certain styles of music than others – these are known as “tendencies”. Knowing these details can help narrow down your options when selecting a pickup for your system.
Passive and active pickups are the two primary types: passive and active. Passive picks tend to be more prevalent, though they require battery power for preamp circuitry. These can range from simple transistors up to several operational amplifiers (op amps) configured as active filters, EQs or other sound shaping features.
Active pickups offer more versatility in tone and EQ than passive designs, especially humbuckers with their wide range of tones.
Other elements that can influence a pickup’s tone include its magnet layout and material. Thicker magnets produce warmer tones, while thinner, lighter materials produce brighter, more assertive sounds.
Many acoustic-electric and semi-acoustic guitars are equipped with piezoelectric pickups in place of magnetic pickups. These offer a distinct sound, as they do not pick up other magnetic fields such as mains hum or feedback from monitoring loops. Furthermore, hybrid guitars that combine both types of pickups allow players to choose their preferred sound effortlessly.