NBD: John Entwistle Tribute P bass

[Bass4ThePublic]

Hello,

I recently put together a “1965-style” parts P out of MJT/Musikraft parts. I was going to put a SD Antiquity 2 in but I had an EMG GZR laying around so I went against the grain a little and put that in instead. I based it off of John Entwistle’s maple cap p bass as seen on the Rolling Stone’s Rock and Roll Circus, but opted for a tort guard instead. Thing thing cant weigh more than 7.5 pounds, I mean wow it’s very light.
Pics!

Obligatory maple cap pic

 

[Killing Floor]

Who?

 

[nonohmic]

 

[Tim Skaggs]

You won’t be sorry you used the EMG GZR pickup over the Seymour-Duncan Antiquity II. I recently made the swap from the SD A-II to the EMG GZR. It was a big change to the positive in my opinion. The main improvement was equal output from every string on any fret of the neck, along with a “thicker” tone of every note on the neck.

 

[Elk]

The SD Antiquity II is awful. The GZR is a much better pickup and it's closer in sound to The Ox, anyway!

 

[Bass4ThePublic]

I wouldn’t go as far to say the SD is awful. Compared to many 60’s and 70’s Fenders I’ve owned, I think out of all the aftermarket pickups the SD Antiquity 2 is the closest sounding to them. Especially my 63 P, the antiquity 2 gets REALLY close. I just wanted something a little different, and the EMG GZR gets me there.

 

[B-Mac]

Yeah

Right

If you say so

 

[60bass]

The SD Antiquity II is awful. The GZR is a much better pickup and it's closer in sound to The Ox, anyway!

As someone who owns both pickups. I'll put in my $.02.

The EMG is a great pickup. Easy to install and dead quiet. It's NOT a hot pickup and wasn't designed to be. In fact it was patterned after Bobby Vega's 60 precision bass. It's smooth and thick sounding VERY close to vintage pre-CBS Fender P's which is what Geezer used. So it gets the job done.

That said, IMO the Antiquity II is many things but "awful" isn't one of them. I also own a 1960 Precision which after many years of service the stock pickup shorted out. That was decades ago and I was on the road at the time. Nobody re-wound pickups back then so I just replaced the pickup. I installed the Duncan SPB-1 because the dealer had one in stock. It was OK but I always thought it lacked something compared to the stock pickup. Later after researching it I found out it's Duncan's answer to the 50's style P pickup so it's voiced accordingly. When the Antiquity series of pickups came out, I contacted Duncan to inquirer about the pickups. After learning how they were made and were faithful duplicates, I bought one of them. The sound of that pickup is almost the exact tone as the original stock pickup that was in my 60 Precision. I played that bass for years so I KNEW what it was supposed to sound like. With the Antiquity II it retained that 60's vintage voicing. That pickup is still in the bass and still sounds great. I won't change it ever.

Again, IMO nobody except the factory workers who wound the original factory pickups has seen the inside or "guts" of pickups than Seymour Duncan has. So he knows how to create the good stuff.