Elan plus pickups

[chuck]

I have read elswhere in the forom that alembic does not spring mount pickups,however mine are. if this is wrong what do i need to do to correct? they tend to rock and I am afraid they could break.  any help here would appreciated .      chuck

[lbpesq]

Chuck:
 
As far as I know Alembic hasn't used spring mounts.  If they have on some instruments it's news to me.  The Alembic pickup mounting system is surprisingly simple and effective, in an almost elegant way.  Each pickup has 4 screw holes, one at each corner.  Two screws are insterted into the pickup rout WITHOUT the pickup in it, catacorner to each other.  The pickup is then dropped into the rout, resting above the two screws.  Two more screws are then inserted through the pickup in the corners that don't already have the screws beneath the pickup.  Thus the pickup sits in the guitar with two screws at opposite corners beneath the pickup (bottom screws) and two screws at the other two corners with the screwheads on top of the pickup (top screws).  To adjust, loosen the two top screws, adjust the two bottom screws to the desired pickup height (using a screwdriver narrow enough to fit through the pickup holes), and then tighten the top screws to lock it down.  Let me know if you have trouble following this and I'll post a picture (unless someone beats me to it - a distinct possibility around these parts).
 
Bill, the guitar one

[grateful]

The Further guitar has spring mounted pickups:  there are no holes with screws beneath them.
 

 
Mark

[adriaan]

I bet those screws are mounted into threaded inserts though!

[mica]

If you've got P pickups in the Elan, then the springs are normal. Sometimes the J pickups hare spring mounted as well, but usually only when paired with a P.  
 
When there are four mounting holes, we can use the springless system. When there is only 2, then the springs come out, and adriaan is correct, they are fed into threaded metal inserts.
 
(Message edited by mica on September 18, 2006)

[lbpesq]

Learning something new everyday!
 
Bill, tgo

[chuck]

thanks for the input everybody. when i purchased this bass 11 years ago it had foam inserts under the pickups which i removed as this did not look right.what purpose would these have served? by the way the pickups are PJ. when i adjust the pickups to recomended parameters the neck P pickups has a much lower volume than the bridge J pickup.then adjusting the neck pickup upward helps a little but still does not have a good balance.what im looking for is equal volume when the pan knob is turned hard left or hard right.am I expecting to much?--again thanks for advice.chuck

[effclef]

Chuck, everyone who has used Alembic P and J pickups say the Ps have HIGHER output than the J.  
 
Have you checked the electronics cavity? If so, there may be small trimpots (blue squares with a white screwdriver slot) which you can turn to balance the pickup output. Search the Forum for instructions...
 
I am sure it can be fixed!
 
EffClef

[mica]

When you have 2-hole mounted pickups, you need something springy - like foam or springs - underneath. We used to use springs, but now we use a captive nut, like is on the bridge height, under the pickups.  
 
Anyway, on to getting equal volume. Address this with the electronics, not the pickup height. Only adjust the height to change the character of the sound. Each pickup has its own gain control on the inside. See the FAQ for what to look for.  
 
Once you set the height to the sound you like, then go to the trimpot gain controls and balance the volumes. The gain controls have no influence on the tone.

[chuck]

Thanks Mica.im on it----chuck