Hi Rog!
Let me give it a try!
This is gonna be a real looooooo-ooong Paul The Bad One Story (LOL).
Let's go back to the ancient Greeks where a dude Archimedes discovered that a sound is put together by harmonics. For a stringed instrument you can easily find them. You can hear them by dividing the string in equally lengths ( dividing in 2 - 3 - 4 - etc...). We -well skilled bass-players (HA)- discover them by playing the flageolets for instance above the 12th fret. It's where the note of the string -say A- sounds again an octave higher -A again.
(Note: there is 1 instrument that has NO harmonics at all: the hobo. It's why the big classical orchestra's tune on an 440 hz A given by ...the Hobo).
Now we know where they are above the neck and use them -if skilled enough- in our playing. We also know that not every string sounds evenly good in those harmonics on all places. So not every spot is even sweet.
You have to know that those same spots are also and the OTHER side of the 32th position, I mean above the body of the bass.
Guitar-builders place the PU UNDER those by physical law (see the Archimedes-dude) determinated places.
Now Alembic has PU who capture a WIDE range of sounds, the have a large aperture. I think you can conclude that for those PU the place is less critical than let's say a very narrow J-bass style PU.
HOWEVER: if you see the design of the original Excel bass, you'll see the use of 1 FAT-boy PU (the one with the largest tone aperture) and although that wide aperture the Alembicians placed it on the sweet spot. This spot is the place where the harmonics of the strings above sound the most uncoloured the most even for all the strings.
Bringing the PU more to the bridge makes it more agressive or let's say very typical. I think the Music-man Stingray thanks lots of its popularity to the giant PU and ...the place more to the bridge. (The Musicman Sabre had 2 PU but was never that popular).
Alembic did the same in some custom jobs you can find in the custom of the month or if you peek around in the Factory to Customer department (those guys are a little shy but most of the time they don't throw you out LOL).
I even saw some basses here were the 2 PU were moved more to the bridge. (It's a trick also played by Warwick, Roscoe, Lakland etc ...etc... . )
However: most of the time this operation is done for place-for-slapping-technique reasons. Didi you know that Mr. slap-Stanley Clarke has his PU bumped AGAINST the NECK. I don't want to make this thread borderless but in my opinion: slapping is a mkore agressive technique than plucking. By shifting the PU to the bridge there will be MORE agression in the tone. My advice would be: alter your slapping technique and keep the PU in place. I mean: don't change the place of the PU for practical reasons but for tonal reasons
So conclusive (at least ...LOL)
... PU are BEST under the by physical law determined spots. Those places where the harmonics wrap best the sound of the string. Tone has to do with those Harmonics they literally wrapping the core ousnd of the string. Changing the place of a PU is changing the package of the sound from your string.
2 PU give you a hell of a choice in tonal mixes but in the classic set-up of 2 PU neither of the 2 is under the ideal sounding Sweet Spot on a guitar.
1 PU sounds best (neutral) under the Sweet Spot (see the place of the Excel fatboy).
My 2 cents (who are merely 20$ now LOL)
Paul the bad one (who definitely talks too much)
(Message edited by palembic on June 06, 2003)
(Message edited by palembic on June 10, 2003)
