Your modding videos are useful and addicting in a way, they are simple, fun, well edited and very well explained, also they are encouraging because these modding videos are usually done on cheap instruments so you motivate me to try some mods on my basses
Right on! Thanks for watching and for the encouragement! Modding can be really fun (and at times, frustrating!). I mentioned in another reply that I have swapped out just about every part, including screws, on some of my main basses, in search of the perfect bass. Some mods are high yield, some make things worse. So it can be a money-pit! My mod philosophy is usually geared towards something simple that will help me on a gig or in the studio. So you'll notice that I do not go for a forest of knobs or switches. Too many options on a gig (for me) is a recipe for disaster! I hope you have lots of fun modding!
The quarter pounders really added depth and dynamic range. I would imagine the p'ups were as much $ as the bass itself. Good stuff Jonathan, cheers from Utah
Thanks for your viewership! Much appreciated! The recording doesn't quite do justice to how much more low end is added with these Duncans. Re price, I bought these separately as a P and a J and they were approx ~$130 CDN each. So yeah, it's getting close to the price of the Mikro itself, unforunately. I'm going to feature a more affordable PJ set in an upcoming episode.
I appreciate and admire your courage to tinker on all these basses, Jonathan! I couldn't do that in my life. The only time I would gtrab a screwdriver is to adjust action and intonation. Replacing any hardware on a bass? Never! Despite my disappointing experience with the 2023 model of the Mikro (pickups/controls), this baby is still on my bucket list. Looking forward for your next episode.
Thanks so much for watching! I am a bit of an eternal tinkerer! Maybe to a fault. But thankfully, I'm not an active bass/preamp guy, so it saves me from going down that rabbit hole!!
I just installed these in my Mikro bass. I purchased & was about to install the EMGs until I saw Jonathan’s video on them & I didn’t like the way the sounded so I sent those back and purchased these QPs and they’re a keeper. The installation was super simple. I used my stock pots. The. J-pickup dropped right in. Just like many others have reported, the J is not as strong as the P but it’s OK. It’s only used to blend in. I had to use extra foam than what was included to make sure the P-pickups were level.
Thanks for the demo! The stock pickups on my favorite Mikro are absolutely perfect. Perfect synergy with the resonance of this particular instrument (I've owned 4 Mikro basses). I've got quarter pounders on one of my nice partscaster J basses, which are perfect for that instrument.
Right on! The stock pickups are surprisingly good at this price point. A bit on the noisy side. The quarter pounds are voiced differently. Not necessarily ‘better’. Really just depends on how your fingers interact with the strings and what your ears like to hear. Thanks for watching!
I've developed a taste for playing my jazz bass with the bridge pickup at a higher volume than the middle one and this quarter pound bridge pickup sounds really really good to me, maybe I long for a little more bass on my bridge pickup?
Thanks for watching! 100% Bridge, 80-90% neck on a Jazz bass is a great sound! Better articulation, the mids come back. Indeed the quarter pound J bridge pickup sounds like someone turned up the bass EQ. Also worth noting that on the Mikro, the bridge pickup appears to be slightly closer to the neck / further away from the bridge (proportionally) compared to a jazz bass. So that would also warm things up a little.
Always liked the Seymour Duncan quarter pounders. I Just purchased a Schecter Banshee short scale bass. They say that the pickups are supposed to be close to the quarter pounders and I must say they do sound pretty good. Really don’t know if I want to change them to the quarter pounders or not kind of sitting on the edge right now thanks for the comparison today.
Good comparison, Jonathan. I've tried to like the Mikro. I even bought one at Guitar Center and kept it for most of the 45-day return window, but I didn't like the feel or tone. Better pickups might have made a difference, but there's that pesky cost-benefit ratio. Still like my P Mini.
Right on! Thanks for sharing your experiences. The shape of the Mikro body is quite different from the Mini, so how it fits onto one's body may play a role in whether it's right for them. The Quarter Pounds are not really expensive as pickups these days go, but the PJ set is almost as much as the bass, so I'd say that one should really enjoy the shape and neck on the instrument before modding it. Thanks for watching!
I really love that Ibanez Mikro Bass, it's a well balanced instrument and very funny to play. Is Marcus Miller with you in the picture hanged in the wall behind you?
You have the eyes of an eagle! Yes, that was Marcus and I circa 2005. He came to the Toronto area for a small clinic and I got to experience his tone and groove 20 ft away. Was outstanding to witness. Just him and a drummer! Thanks for watching!
The best mod is to put guitar strings on it, tune it CGDA like a cello and make a cellotar. I chose a Mikro because of its cost and the fact that the Mikro is closest to the scale of a real cello. You do have to put the guitar strings through bass string ball-ends to keep the strings in the bridge, though. I used .074, .052, .032 and .017 gauge. I don't like .017, but I tried .020 for the A string and it snapped by the time I got to G#.
Holy crap! Huge difference! I was going to buy the Geezer Butler PJ pickups but if you say the pots are good enough, that means I can keep the same volume/tone knobs. Also, I would like to see if a new bridge and nut would help. Jonathan, do the Duncans claim to be noiseless like the EMG pickups?
Thanks for watching! I have a set of EMG geezers ready to install in the Mikro. Episode coming soon! The stock pots are ok, but they are certainly not high end pots. Re Noise. The Duncans are quite a bit less noisy than the stock pickups, but the bridge J is still a single coil, so it will still give you ground hum. And because it is an unopposed single coil, it'll hum even if you have the P on. We will find out whether the EMG J bridge p/u is truly noiseless. They are advertised to be 2 split coils, so it very well might be noiseless!!
@@jonathanwong458music Woo hoo! 🙌 super excited for the next one and I’m holding off on purchasing anything until I see the comparison of the EMGs. Thanks
@@jonathanwong458music This is actually a good review of the Dimarzio PJ pickups. The J is noise cancelling. ua-cam.com/video/c8YEVUVLZfA/v-deo.htmlsi=X0COFgYcgdd2LnUN
Thanks for the link! I have a set of Dimarzio DP306 (the new sixties set) on order for the series! Back ordered though….not sure when they’ll get here…
Thanks for watching! For sure, you don’t need pricey pickups to sound good. The stock pickups are a bit on the noisy side, but for stock pickups on a $289 CDN bass, they’re pretty good!
Talk about timing... I was looking for more info on the Mikro. I'm thinking about getting a 5 string and have it strung with a high C. i still need to to a test drive, though. I'm not 100% sold on the 28.5" scale
Thanks for watching! For many years, my only bass was a Cort/Ibanez 5 string tuned E to C. Was great for Bach solos! I have been trying to get a Mikro5 for the channel. The shorter scale would likely yield a warmer and less pingy C string (32 gauge). Could potentially make for a great high C shredder. In general, I am a 30" scale guy these days. I find the 28.6" a bit tight, fingering wise (for me). Fits in a guitar bag though, so it'll be easier to fly with and throw in the van.
@@jonathanwong458music I know there are 30"short scales around but they are either too expensive (Serek, Kiesel and even Ibanez) or have bad QC (TMB35). I would love if Ernie Ball came up with a 30" Sterling 5, or if Ibanez made a budget EHB1505s
TBFair, the bridge pickup is further away from the bridge, so will reduce that "quacky" bridge sound. Were the 1/4lb pickups more expensive than the bass?
Re bridge p/u position. Indeed, I made that same observation in my initial review and on an earlier comment- I like that the bridge J is a bit further away from the bridge. Warms it up a bit. Less nasal. I bought the quarter pounds as a separate P and J, cause that’s just how it happened. They were $130ish CDN each. Almost as much as the Mikro itself! Thanks for watching!
You said these were Active Pickups? Do you know how they compare to the passive SD Quarter Ponder PJ's. Lots of people just refer to the name and don't differentiate between the Passive and Active. I bought a Passive set for a full new build I am doing and I am still unsure of the sound due to listing to several and not knowing the full set up for comparison. I think I caught you saying Active a couple times.
I mod my TRBX 174 with the SD QP3 too, and play this with flats..very nice sounding bass now 😍..but perhaps a try the DiMarzio Relentless PJ 🙄..Great review.. Thank very much!!
Is it worth it for an average beginner bassist to buy such an instrument specifically for modification? I really like the size and shape of this bass, but by default it sounds a bit plastic. Are there similar small basses for a reasonable price?
Maybe have a look at the Kala Solid Body. It is a little bit longer, 23" scale length. Price around 330 Euro (Thomann has a recent special anniversary offer for 299). Sweetwater lists them with $349 price tag. There are some demos on YT.
Thanks for watching and for asking! Despite what my youtube videos tend to suggest, for a beginner bassist, I would actually suggest to work on tone production by improving technique. Most of the tone is truly from your fingers and how your hand interacts with the strings. We know this to be true as you can put the same bass in the hands of 5 different people and it will subtly sound 5 different ways! But most bassists, myself included, tend to always seek what we don't have and tones unavailable to us on a particular instrument. I've swapped out just about every single part, including screws, on many of my main instruments! I've found a recipe that works for me and it's sort of a money pit-type hobby. And it's fun! But to truly and honestly answer your question - no, you do not need fancy expensive pickups to sound good. You need good technique.
"Let's find oot" I hear Winterpeg...I mean, Winnipeg in that accent. Love your channel - thorough and comprehensive. You can get adhesive-backed copper foil sheets online to fill the control cavity with, minimizing the poor paint-shielding, plus they looks cool. The Quarter Pounders were a bit meh, lackluster.
Hahaha. Frost overnight a few days ago. Indeed, I used copper tape on the Bronco I had. It’s great for corners and doesn’t stink like shielding paint does. Thanks for watching!! Appreciate the encouragement!
Your modding videos are useful and addicting in a way, they are simple, fun, well edited and very well explained, also they are encouraging because these modding videos are usually done on cheap instruments so you motivate me to try some mods on my basses
Right on! Thanks for watching and for the encouragement!
Modding can be really fun (and at times, frustrating!). I mentioned in another reply that I have swapped out just about every part, including screws, on some of my main basses, in search of the perfect bass. Some mods are high yield, some make things worse. So it can be a money-pit!
My mod philosophy is usually geared towards something simple that will help me on a gig or in the studio. So you'll notice that I do not go for a forest of knobs or switches. Too many options on a gig (for me) is a recipe for disaster!
I hope you have lots of fun modding!
The quarter pounders really added depth and dynamic range. I would imagine the p'ups were as much $ as the bass itself. Good stuff Jonathan, cheers from Utah
Thanks for your viewership! Much appreciated!
The recording doesn't quite do justice to how much more low end is added with these Duncans.
Re price, I bought these separately as a P and a J and they were approx ~$130 CDN each. So yeah, it's getting close to the price of the Mikro itself, unforunately. I'm going to feature a more affordable PJ set in an upcoming episode.
I appreciate and admire your courage to tinker on all these basses, Jonathan! I couldn't do that in my life. The only time I would gtrab a screwdriver is to adjust action and intonation. Replacing any hardware on a bass? Never!
Despite my disappointing experience with the 2023 model of the Mikro (pickups/controls), this baby is still on my bucket list.
Looking forward for your next episode.
Thanks so much for watching! I am a bit of an eternal tinkerer! Maybe to a fault. But thankfully, I'm not an active bass/preamp guy, so it saves me from going down that rabbit hole!!
I just installed these in my Mikro bass. I purchased & was about to install the EMGs until I saw Jonathan’s video on them & I didn’t like the way the sounded so I sent those back and purchased these QPs and they’re a keeper. The installation was super simple. I used my stock pots. The. J-pickup dropped right in. Just like many others have reported, the J is not as strong as the P but it’s OK. It’s only used to blend in. I had to use extra foam than what was included to make sure the P-pickups were level.
Right on! I'm so glad you found something you like!
Thanks for sharing your experience with the community!
@ Heck yea! 🤩
Love these videos please keep it up. Also maybe consider tutorials?
Thanks for watching! What sort of tutorials did you have in mind? I’m considering a bass build series!
Thanks for the demo! The stock pickups on my favorite Mikro are absolutely perfect. Perfect synergy with the resonance of this particular instrument (I've owned 4 Mikro basses). I've got quarter pounders on one of my nice partscaster J basses, which are perfect for that instrument.
Right on! The stock pickups are surprisingly good at this price point. A bit on the noisy side. The quarter pounds are voiced differently. Not necessarily ‘better’. Really just depends on how your fingers interact with the strings and what your ears like to hear.
Thanks for watching!
super infos. danke
Thank you so much for watching!
I've developed a taste for playing my jazz bass with the bridge pickup at a higher volume than the middle one and this quarter pound bridge pickup sounds really really good to me, maybe I long for a little more bass on my bridge pickup?
Thanks for watching!
100% Bridge, 80-90% neck on a Jazz bass is a great sound! Better articulation, the mids come back. Indeed the quarter pound J bridge pickup sounds like someone turned up the bass EQ. Also worth noting that on the Mikro, the bridge pickup appears to be slightly closer to the neck / further away from the bridge (proportionally) compared to a jazz bass. So that would also warm things up a little.
Always liked the Seymour Duncan quarter pounders. I Just purchased a Schecter Banshee short scale bass. They say that the pickups are supposed to be close to the quarter pounders and I must say they do sound pretty good. Really don’t know if I want to change them to the quarter pounders or not kind of sitting on the edge right now thanks for the comparison today.
Thanks for watching! I've been wanting to check out the Banshee.
Good comparison, Jonathan. I've tried to like the Mikro. I even bought one at Guitar Center and kept it for most of the 45-day return window, but I didn't like the feel or tone. Better pickups might have made a difference, but there's that pesky cost-benefit ratio. Still like my P Mini.
Right on! Thanks for sharing your experiences. The shape of the Mikro body is quite different from the Mini, so how it fits onto one's body may play a role in whether it's right for them.
The Quarter Pounds are not really expensive as pickups these days go, but the PJ set is almost as much as the bass, so I'd say that one should really enjoy the shape and neck on the instrument before modding it.
Thanks for watching!
I really love that Ibanez Mikro Bass, it's a well balanced instrument and very funny to play. Is Marcus Miller with you in the picture hanged in the wall behind you?
You have the eyes of an eagle! Yes, that was Marcus and I circa 2005. He came to the Toronto area for a small clinic and I got to experience his tone and groove 20 ft away. Was outstanding to witness. Just him and a drummer!
Thanks for watching!
The best mod is to put guitar strings on it, tune it CGDA like a cello and make a cellotar. I chose a Mikro because of its cost and the fact that the Mikro is closest to the scale of a real cello. You do have to put the guitar strings through bass string ball-ends to keep the strings in the bridge, though. I used .074, .052, .032 and .017 gauge. I don't like .017, but I tried .020 for the A string and it snapped by the time I got to G#.
That's a cool mod! A long time ago I experimented with piccolo bass strings that came stock with bass bass ends.
Thanks for watching!
Holy crap! Huge difference! I was going to buy the Geezer Butler PJ pickups but if you say the pots are good enough, that means I can keep the same volume/tone knobs. Also, I would like to see if a new bridge and nut would help. Jonathan, do the Duncans claim to be noiseless like the EMG pickups?
Thanks for watching! I have a set of EMG geezers ready to install in the Mikro. Episode coming soon!
The stock pots are ok, but they are certainly not high end pots.
Re Noise. The Duncans are quite a bit less noisy than the stock pickups, but the bridge J is still a single coil, so it will still give you ground hum. And because it is an unopposed single coil, it'll hum even if you have the P on. We will find out whether the EMG J bridge p/u is truly noiseless. They are advertised to be 2 split coils, so it very well might be noiseless!!
@@jonathanwong458music Woo hoo! 🙌 super excited for the next one and I’m holding off on purchasing anything until I see the comparison of the EMGs. Thanks
Might be a few weeks, time permitting. But the EMGs are in a box, ready to go!!
@@jonathanwong458music This is actually a good review of the Dimarzio PJ pickups. The J is noise cancelling. ua-cam.com/video/c8YEVUVLZfA/v-deo.htmlsi=X0COFgYcgdd2LnUN
Thanks for the link! I have a set of Dimarzio DP306 (the new sixties set) on order for the series! Back ordered though….not sure when they’ll get here…
I put some Alan Entwhistle pickups in mine, great sound and a lot cheaper. The originals aren't too bad.
Thanks for watching! For sure, you don’t need pricey pickups to sound good. The stock pickups are a bit on the noisy side, but for stock pickups on a $289 CDN bass, they’re pretty good!
Talk about timing... I was looking for more info on the Mikro. I'm thinking about getting a 5 string and have it strung with a high C. i still need to to a test drive, though. I'm not 100% sold on the 28.5" scale
Thanks for watching!
For many years, my only bass was a Cort/Ibanez 5 string tuned E to C. Was great for Bach solos! I have been trying to get a Mikro5 for the channel. The shorter scale would likely yield a warmer and less pingy C string (32 gauge). Could potentially make for a great high C shredder. In general, I am a 30" scale guy these days. I find the 28.6" a bit tight, fingering wise (for me). Fits in a guitar bag though, so it'll be easier to fly with and throw in the van.
@@jonathanwong458music I know there are 30"short scales around but they are either too expensive (Serek, Kiesel and even Ibanez) or have bad QC (TMB35). I would love if Ernie Ball came up with a 30" Sterling 5, or if Ibanez made a budget EHB1505s
A sterling 5 short would be awesome. Ibanez too. Great suggestions! The market for shorties is slowly picking up. Maybe in 5 years. One dreams!
TBFair, the bridge pickup is further away from the bridge, so will reduce that "quacky" bridge sound. Were the 1/4lb pickups more expensive than the bass?
Re bridge p/u position. Indeed, I made that same observation in my initial review and on an earlier comment- I like that the bridge J is a bit further away from the bridge. Warms it up a bit. Less nasal.
I bought the quarter pounds as a separate P and J, cause that’s just how it happened. They were $130ish CDN each. Almost as much as the Mikro itself!
Thanks for watching!
You said these were Active Pickups? Do you know how they compare to the passive SD Quarter Ponder PJ's. Lots of people just refer to the name and don't differentiate between the Passive and Active. I bought a Passive set for a full new build I am doing and I am still unsure of the sound due to listing to several and not knowing the full set up for comparison. I think I caught you saying Active a couple times.
No, these are fully passive. If you look at the cavity photos, no batteries! Sorry for the confusion, but these are not active.
Thanks for watching!
@@jonathanwong458music Cool. Thanks for the quick reply!
I mod my TRBX 174 with the SD QP3 too, and play this with flats..very nice sounding bass now 😍..but perhaps a try the DiMarzio Relentless PJ 🙄..Great review.. Thank very much!!
Thanks for watching! New dimarzios are on the way! Backordered unfortunately. Stay tuned!
Is it worth it for an average beginner bassist to buy such an instrument specifically for modification? I really like the size and shape of this bass, but by default it sounds a bit plastic. Are there similar small basses for a reasonable price?
Maybe have a look at the Kala Solid Body. It is a little bit longer, 23" scale length. Price around 330 Euro (Thomann has a recent special anniversary offer for 299). Sweetwater lists them with $349 price tag.
There are some demos on YT.
Thanks for watching and for asking! Despite what my youtube videos tend to suggest, for a beginner bassist, I would actually suggest to work on tone production by improving technique. Most of the tone is truly from your fingers and how your hand interacts with the strings. We know this to be true as you can put the same bass in the hands of 5 different people and it will subtly sound 5 different ways!
But most bassists, myself included, tend to always seek what we don't have and tones unavailable to us on a particular instrument. I've swapped out just about every single part, including screws, on many of my main instruments! I've found a recipe that works for me and it's sort of a money pit-type hobby. And it's fun!
But to truly and honestly answer your question - no, you do not need fancy expensive pickups to sound good. You need good technique.
"Let's find oot" I hear Winterpeg...I mean, Winnipeg in that accent. Love your channel - thorough and comprehensive. You can get adhesive-backed copper foil sheets online to fill the control cavity with, minimizing the poor paint-shielding, plus they looks cool. The Quarter Pounders were a bit meh, lackluster.
Hahaha. Frost overnight a few days ago.
Indeed, I used copper tape on the Bronco I had. It’s great for corners and doesn’t stink like shielding paint does.
Thanks for watching!! Appreciate the encouragement!