Pup phase cancellation questions.

[roadraider]

I'm posting these questions b/c I'm hoping somebody here has already tried this idea, and it worked out for them w/o big phase cancellation problems between the pick ups.

I'm customizing a P-Bass copy and moving it's D&G coil in front of it's E&A coil, to effectively make a "Reverse P" configuration up front. (The center point of the two coils will then be somewhat close to where Leo's '51 single P pup was.)

I'm also one of those rare guys that prefers my bridge pick up further away from the bridge, and placed around the area where Rickenbacker places their rear pick up. Of course doing all that will put the neck and bridge pups close together and create phase cancellation issues, or so I've been told many times over the years. (One of my buddies just turns his volume pots down ever so slightly, and the cancellation subsides.)

This brings me to my questions/scenario: I'm not using passive pick ups, or 250k or 500k pots.
I'm installing EMG's active "PA" precision coils, with alnico magnets up front.......and one of their active, dual coiled, "35" soapbar alnico humbuckers in the rear position. They'll all be close together on the body, positioned pretty close to it's middle area.

Does the fact that both pick ups having small circuit boards in them (and/or using 25k pots) cancel out any and all phase cancellation problems, or will their increased gain make it even worse?
I'm also gonna run the whole system on 18 volts, and with a simple volume & tone control. (No additional EQ.)

Thanks in advanced for any and all info anyone can provide.

 

[ctmullins]

Because the pickups are sensing the strings in different places, there will be a bit of cancellation in the mid frequencies. This is unavoidable when combining two pickups. The closer together the pickups are, the higher in frequency the cancellation will be.

The fact that you’re using two buffered pickups means that you won’t suffer from “insertion loss”, which is the interaction between two passive pickups that can also contribute to that “scooped” two-pickup sound.

I think you’ll be fine. I just wired up a bass with three active EMG soapbars, and while the tone changes with two pickups selected, there is no real loss of volume.