Clean. Mid control pretty versatile.

I shouldn't be spend Sunday afternoon here but....

YUP! I've been rocking the J Retro standard on my old daily jazz for over a decade and only found that out after making this series hahaha. I have an upcoming pickup comparison featuring that bass and the j retro, and I made sure to have the bass 'all the way down' when testing so EQ is center.

Thanks Craig! Turns out the bass control is boost only! I had no idea (and I'd been rocking a J Retro standard on my daily driver jazz for like 8 years. Parted it out before I started the channel, but I have most of the parts!). Mistake on my part, bringing the bass down towards 'center' (really all the way down) definitely helped.

...losing sleep over the Lusithand

then you're not paying attention lol

Thank you Juan!

Indeed!

Hehehe, Wally is hardly my #1 favorite but definitely top 10 from my personal collection.

Thanks John! Turns out the bass control is boost only, totally missed that (especially considering I was rocking one of these preamps for like 8 years lmao).

P retro was discontinued sadly, otherwise I would

@@LowEndLobster Ahh, I see, bummer. Thanks for the reply :)

Thanks for the great and thoughtful comment! I agree, pickups matter a lot and it was definitely a choice to use these single coils off of a $369 bass instead of a nicer set. These definitely didn't jive as well with the J retro as others I've tested, but I do plan on doing a J retro build with better pickups (might revive my old J but with a twist!) Great comment!

@@LowEndLobster I mean, don't manufactures usually recommend a pairing? If they push you to their own pickups maybe then it makes sense to try aftermarket drop ins like if they want you to use a MM style, every major company makes an MM compatible as well as others that make split and quad coil ones that will (attempt) to go in the same routes. But maybe work with someone like Wilkinson who is alive and also who's parts lines cover a broad spectrum of replacements at some of the lowest price points vs quality you can find, they could help you electrically match a pickup to a given preamp. that's an example, maybe Kyle Kim wants to do a series on upgrading his own basses - maybe even do what Charvel would never (for that lovely San Dimas platform): provide a platform that is complete and ready to play without electronics pre-installed at a price point that everyone agrees makes sense. Maybe sell his own basses as piece kits for people (or spawn a "paint it yourself" line) that want to learn to put them together and solder (to start with) and you can select preamp upgrades from the Sire site to come with your kit or have a clear electrical interface presented to you so that you can easily match up different preamps that you want. After the parts get QC'd, put a set of platform parts in a box with a set of pickups and a preamp, and send it out at a (retail - 95% labor cost) price point and still make the 5% float in the "DIY/Enthusiast" transition. It was kind of a consensus that if Charvel would have left out the electronics and cut 200-300 USD off the retail they wouldn't have been able to keep them in stock anywhere. That puts them right against better quality parts companies. I bet if you demonstrated them and they were set right in price, this channel would move a couple thou units alone. ;-) You're a really good ambassador for a lot of stuff...I hope you've figured out what you're going to do when your channel hits the point where you're going to have to give up your day job or limit/cap your channel. It's going to arrive sooner than later.

@UCoAtznRw3yFbGNEkXfD4C8A correct. Sire pickups are pretty hot, and increasing the internal gain caused some clipping.

The Jack Cavity signature ;P

I forget. I think it was the shaped setting. This was a while ago lol

Hey John! Thank you. The tone knob works with both pickups individually or together, in both passive and active too. Hope that helps!

Hey John, I think what you might be referring to is the fact that when this preamp is in passive mode, the blend knob no longer works and instead you have a switch that selects either both pick-ups full or the bridge pickup soloed. When I had mine installed I had it wired to the pickups backwards so that when I’m in passive mode I can select either both pick ups full or the neck pickup only. Those are the tones I prefer. Only downside is that the blend knob is reversed when blending pickups in active mode but I’m fine with that.

@@zippermouth29 yes, that's exactly it. I know it's that way on the John East Fender Marcus version preamp, and that was one of the reasons I'd stopped considering it. I really wish they'd change that aspect!

I don't know how I missed that! I just reviewed the manual and you're right! I didn't realize as my Uni and MMSR are boost and cut. I'll add this to the description

And thank you btw!

@@LowEndLobster i also think it is the best feature of this preamp. I had alot of active preamps, but never used a cut a the bas. So boost only is perfect and the centre detent i perfect for a little boost, after that it goes insane. I think alot of People use this bas control the wrong way.

@@thijsroeterink I think you're right! I had a J retro in my daily driver jazz for almost a decade and had no clue. Thank you again!

@@LowEndLobster thx keep up the great vids! Enjoy them alot!

Yes

Thanks for your quick response, and all your videos are great. Keep doing them, you're helping guys like me.

I am not, these are the stock Sire V3 pickups being used. You can absolutely use noiseless pickups with the J retro. I will be doing a vid on this soon actually!

@@LowEndLobster awesome can’t wait to watch it!!! Love your videos, very informative and fun!

Thanks Dustin! I've tried them in the past, not a huge fan.