NJ4 single coil jazz bass pickups are enormous, full-bodied, and loud – ideal for authentic jazz bass tone. Tone purists choose them.
The original set is well balanced from top to bottom and produces a classic bell-like jazz bass tone. Additionally, it is extremely quiet; though any true single coil design may generate noise and 60 cycle hum.
NJ4
The NJ4 bass guitar pickup set is a single coil jazz bass set designed for anyone in search of traditional jazz bass tones. This set boasts vintage style magnets and high output coils capable of producing powerful yet warm tones with smooth sounds, all wrapped using a hand winding pattern for optimal resonant peak reduction and reduced background noise levels.
These bass pickups utilize Alnico V magnets – an alloy of aluminum, nickel and cobalt that produces a full and rich tone with plenty of high end. Furthermore, their coil is protected from outside interference with wax-dipping to help limit outside interference that might alter their sound output; additionally this process affects overall tone as dipping it can alter overall sound characteristics as well.
An important consideration when purchasing a bass guitar pickup is whether it is passive or active. Passive pickups lack internal power sources and rely solely on electrical signals coming from the strings to be amplified by your instrument’s preamp. Active bass guitar pickups have their own built-in preamp for amplifying signals from your instrument through to its output jack and amplifier for amplification purposes.
Fender Jazz basses (j-basss) feature dual pickups to allow users to combine sounds captured by neck and bridge pickups for a customized sound.
A bass pickup can also be split into separate outputs to capture different frequencies from each string, creating unique sounds when playing and even producing a midi signal which can be used with software or synthesizers to control other devices.
Custom craftspeople offer some of the best bass guitar pickups. Their specialty lies in creating pickups with specific characteristics that may be cheaper or a better alternative than more costly options; often used alongside conventional pickups for creating more balanced sounds; Cliff Burton from Metallica famously used a Strat pickup on his Rickenbacker bass; while this may not be suitable for everyone, it should at least be considered when exploring your bass’s potential tones.