Product Review

Wow, I really like these pickups. I'm able to get a wide palette of sounds from the combination of the single / dual coil selections.

In my installation, the position of the bridge position straddles the location between the jazz bridge position and the placement of the musicman pickup position. The single coil side of the pickup is placed closest to the bridge since this would approximate the traditional placement of the jazz pickup.

Conversely, the neck pickup placement is between the placement of a precision bass and the location of the jazz bass neck placement. The single coil side is closest to the neck to approximate the placement of the jazz pickup.

The single coil selection is actually a stacked setup which looks similar to EMG's custom replacement for the Telecaster bass. Theoretically, using the neck pickup alone in single coil would sound similar to the Telecaster sound, where dual coil (humbucking) gives a precision sound.

The bridge pickup in single mode with the neck in dual gives a P/J configuration.

I've never really played a musicman but the dual coil pickup is the one EMG lists for a replacement for one. So the bridge position in dual coil alone would sound similar to the musicman. This position does have a really good sound with slapping. The neck pickup in single coil added to it has a neat sound.

These pickups are quiet. Both pickups in single coil have a very clear and clean jazz bass tone. The humbuckers are deep with a lot of punch.

The downside is the difference in volume between single and dual coils. There is a modification that can be done to equilibrate the differences, but I don't want to lessen the punch of the humbuckers permanently.

I rarely use any on board equalization. I have a EMG BTC control installed for tone control. The system is powered by 18 volts which is suppose to increase headroom.

It's Fixed

Well I finally figured out what was wrong with the electronics. I took it apart again today and tested each pickup and corresponding potentiometer. Each one would work alone but not together. I had replaced the one I thought was bad, so I replaced the other one. I seems it was the one that was bad. It would work by itself but it would cause problems with the other one.

Anyway, it sounds even better now.

THE PROJECT

The project is a custom bass that uses two EMG 35TW pickups and an EMG BTC tone control.

THE PROBLEM

Little or no output from the bridge pickup. The bridge pickup only works if the neck pickup is turned on.

I have wired and re-wired it many time and thought that I had isolated it to one control pot. EMG sent me another control pot and the problem persists.

I am going to deconstruct the electrical system of this bass and trouble shoot each component along the way. I have done this many times over the past week and last night; more than twenty-four hours of my time.

TROUBLESHOOTING PART 1

With the bass completely put together, the function is as follows:

Neck pickup will function independently with the bridge pickup in off position. Switches between humbucker (down position) and single coil (up position) without problems, just the expected drop in voulume from humbucking to single coil.

No volume what so ever from the bridge pickup when the neck pickup is off. No difference noted between humbucking and single coil.

With the neck pick up slightly on and the bridge pick up turned up, there is sound from the bass. Leaving the neck control at the same position, the sound does varies when the bridge volume is turned up or down, and when the bridge pickup is switched between single and dual coil. This is more noticeable when the neck pick up is set for single coil.

Therefore; I wonder if there is a problem with the bridge pickup receiving current to power it's preamp.

BTC Controller has no effect on the above.

PART 2

Both Pickups will work in the neck position with the neck control pot. The last photo shows that the wiring clip is correct.

PART 3

Here are the EMG diagrams to wire the control pots.




Here is my actual wiring which is identical.

Here is the BTC controller showing the wiring harness inserted correctly.
Here I am checking the circuits again. I checked every circuit from the lug of the pickup to the corresponding lug of the push/pull switch of the volume pots . I also followed the red power connections from the battery terminal to the pickups and the BTC controller.