Squier Bronco bass mods Ep.16: 250k vs. 500k volume pots vs. no pots at all!

Рет қаралды 2,383

Күн бұрын

In this unsponsored video, I will compare 250k with 500k volume pots in this Squier Sonic Series Bronco short scale bass. Will it make a sonic difference? Is the sonic difference better?
Historically, 250k volume pots were paired with single coil guitar pickups whereas 500k volume pots were paired with humbuckers. However, we are not necessarily bound by these rules and we can pair different pickups with different pot values in hopes of achieving our tonal goals. The higher the pot value, the less highs are being lost to ground. In other words, the higher the pot value, the brighter the sound.
The pickup in this demonstration will be the Lace Sensor Blue, as featured in Ep.15. I decided on using this pickup over the others as it seemed to be the most clear, with better clarity in the highs. As such, as we are comparing degrees of brightness, it seemed to be a good choice.
In this comparison, the first pass will be with a CTS 250k volume pot (stock tone pot at 100%). The second pass will be with a CTS 500k volume pot (stock tone pot at 100%). Both of these pots are audio taper. The third pass will be with the pickup wired straight to the output jack, bypassing all of the pots altogether.
To maximize the brightness coming out of the bass, I have re-strung the bass with brand new D'Addario XL nickel roundwounds (short scale) just before recording. So these strings are as fresh and bright as they can possibly be.
The bass was recorded direct through a Line6 Pod Go with my usual GK800RB model settings. Level matched, but no EQ or compression was added in post.
*To best appreciate the sonic differences, headphones or quality speakers are highly recommended.
00:00 Intro
00:27 Background
02:03 Comparison setup
02:54 Pot value tolerance and new strings
04:04 Track comparison
06:08 Track no drums
08:04 Assessment
jonathanwong.bandcamp.com

Пікірлер: 59

@MrAaroncissell 28 күн бұрын

Thanks after 4 months of searching for this exact type of video and finally poof here is one that showed exactly what I wanted to know

@jonathanwong458music 28 күн бұрын

Glad it was helpful! Thanks for watching!

@AndreaAustoni 4 ай бұрын

Very cool to hear the difference, it is significant. Thanks!

@jonathanwong458music 4 ай бұрын

Thank you for watching and commenting!

@MonserratFoster 2 ай бұрын

These videos are super useful for beginners to modding like me. Thank you for making them, I'll check your other videos and you've gained a subscriber as well.

@jonathanwong458music 2 ай бұрын

Thanks so much for the support! Appreciate your viewership! Hope you have lots of fun modding your instrument!

@mccypr 3 ай бұрын

Thanks for the Bronco mod videos! 🙂😎

@jonathanwong458music 3 ай бұрын

Thanks for watching!

@AllAboutBasses 3 ай бұрын

Great series - I'm learning a lot from them. Subscribing

@jonathanwong458music 3 ай бұрын

Thanks so much for watching! A few more planned to come!

@esequielalvarez9420 4 ай бұрын

Great video. 👍 great info

@jonathanwong458music 4 ай бұрын

Thanks so much for watching and for the encouragement!

@scottm7720 4 ай бұрын

Nice, great video.

@jonathanwong458music 4 ай бұрын

Thanks so much for watching and for the encouragement!

@Kunibert_Knatter 4 ай бұрын

Very interesting! I did not know that so many changes on an instrument are possible to modify the sound. For sure, I am not that experimental, but I highly appriciate your work, to do it for me! 8-) thx

@jonathanwong458music 4 ай бұрын

Thanks for watching! Every component on the instrument contributes and subtracts from the overall sound and tone. Nut material, weight of the tuners, thickness of the paint...etc.....and the dreaded tone wood argument! The better question to ask is = how much of a difference does it make? Like the tone wood debate.....yes it matters....but by how much? And more importantly, do you care? Best bang for your buck, in terms of hearing a more dramatic sonic difference, is strings and pickups. All the other stuff matters to varying smaller degrees (to really nerdy people like me!), but the changes are much more subtle, and in the context of playing in an ensemble, may not always matter. What I know for sure....the audience doesn't care what pots you have in there. They just want to hear good music!

@Kunibert_Knatter 4 ай бұрын

@@jonathanwong458music You are absolutely to the point! The result counts. As long as we and -much more important - the audience is happy. Oh, and yes, nerdy you are! 😀

@jonathanwong458music 4 ай бұрын

haha. I am content and at peace with my nerdy-ness!

@StevenDoyleLuke 4 ай бұрын

Good info . . .

@jonathanwong458music 4 ай бұрын

Thanks, as always, for watching and commenting!

@dohenyaudio7353 2 ай бұрын

Thank you!

@jonathanwong458music 2 ай бұрын

Thanks for watching!

@mattjackson8133 4 ай бұрын

I just got a Squire Sonic P but with each of these Bronco videos you do I get more tempted D:

@jonathanwong458music 4 ай бұрын

There's a lot of potential in the sonic P too! Squier has come such a long way in the past decade in terms of producing affordable gig-gable instruments. A good setup, however, is key. Thanks for watching!

@gilpi552 2 ай бұрын

Another great video. I have to agree 100% with you, I love tinkering with basses and guitars and I find that bypassing both pots, opens up the sound, not always for the best. I wonder how it would sound removing the tone pot and just using the volume pot and working the volume and amp alone to get the desired tone? Personally, what I like about the P bass is that "creamy" darker sound and bypassing the pots, though it opened up the sound, I'm not sure is what I would like. Thank you for posting this!

@jonathanwong458music 2 ай бұрын

Thanks so much for watching! Yeah! That 'creamy' P bass sound and a lot of my desired tones are pretty Fender bass inspired. So I've stuck with 250k pots and 47 caps, even on my custom instruments. Bright and 'zingy' is not really my sound. Lots of options if you are willing to use outboard (or amp) tone shaping devices - sky's the limit! Personally, I like things to be as simple as possible, especially for live work. So over the years, I've stripped everything down, including on-board preamps and batteries. 80% of the time I don't even use a bass amp! Less for the FOH to get angry with!

@gabedestellano Ай бұрын

I have 500k (vol is b, tone is a) pots with an orange drop cap and a mini humbucker in my bronco, it sounds incredible.

@jonathanwong458music Ай бұрын

Mini humbucker! Nice! Thanks for watching!

@sync1216 4 ай бұрын

Very interesting video! And the explanation at the beginning, especialy the examples of the manufactors usual choices, helped me understand whats realy going on. Quick check on my daily bass, it got the 250k poti, which I love. That being said, in this comparison I preffered the 500k, sounded more open to me. The direct wiring, was unexpected. I could be fooling myself, but I think what realy came through on that example, was the poplar body(on the higher frets). Would be interesting to see such a wiring example on an ash, alder or mahagoni instrument. If only I had the skills...😅 anyways, this serries is grest and tought me a lot, much apreciated 👍

@jonathanwong458music 4 ай бұрын

Thanks so much for watching! I believe the pickup manufacturers take into account the fact that most players are using volume and tone pots of some value. So the pickup design and winding is brighter (than the intended tone) to compensate. Wiring straight to the jack was likely never their design intention. If you wanted to get closer to the 'straight to the jack' sound but still want a volume pot, you could experiment with using a 1megOhm volume pot (1000k). Thanks for the encouragement!

@sync1216 4 ай бұрын

@@jonathanwong458music true, if I remember correctly there was a company that had an acoustic bass with a direct wired piezo pickup, but I thik that was a custom made instrument, don't remember the name... as for the 1megOhm volume pot, interesting idea, but I'm probably going for the blue sensor with 500k pot. Just talked to a friend who is hunting his next pedal, we will probably visit a big store over the next 2 weeks, than I will compare maple and laurel fretboard broncos to find my match. 😁

@jonathanwong458music 4 ай бұрын

Piezos are a whole other story. Most of those transducer pickups are much higher in impedance compared to a mag pickup. As such, most will benefit from a preamp (generally active) for impedance matching. Otherwise, they can sound quacky and lack bottom end/bass. Common sight to see preamps in acoustic basses, guitars and outboard preamps for upright basses with bridge piezos. Safe travels to the music store! So fun.

@Jonathan_Doe_ 4 ай бұрын

Direct to jack wiring makes your tone more dependant on the first pedal, or amp you plug into. It’s input impedance will affect your pick ups resonant peak more through loading (that normally takes place at the passive volume pot/pots).

@jonathanwong458music 4 ай бұрын

Thanks for your input! And for watching!

@MrSparks54 4 ай бұрын

I have been reading and watching vids about 250k vs 500k pots. As you point out, it all depends on your preferences. I prefer 250k pots for the music I play. Thanks Jonathan

@jonathanwong458music 4 ай бұрын

It really comes down to what you want to hear. I tend to keep my tone knob around 50% or slightly lower for most of what I do....so having a 500k pot (in the P position) doesn't yield a lot of difference - so I've just kept with the Fender formula. But it could be useful to brighten up a naturally dark bass. Alternatively, a 250k could soften/tame a naturally bright one. All comes down to taste! Thanks so much for watching!

@jakelondon 4 ай бұрын

Cool. Useful. Still wish you could try out the 500k pots with a blade humbucker (even a cheap one from China), as the biggest downside of the blade seemed to be a bit of mushiness in the high end. Would be interesting to see if the 500k pots helped to offset that at all. If it did, the cheap blade and pot swap might end up being the best bang for the buck upgrade, especially if noise is a concern.

@jonathanwong458music 4 ай бұрын

Thanks for watching! OK, you've convinced me. I'll order one in! And I think you're right - an inexpensive amazon rail p/u with a quality pot probably is the most economical way to spruce up a bronco to be gig-able.

@jakelondon 4 ай бұрын

@@jonathanwong458music Awesome! I guess we'll see 🙂

@jonathanwong458music 4 ай бұрын

Thx for the suggestion!

@classicalthrasher 3 ай бұрын

I haven't yet have my bass done this upgrade/sidegrade/downgrade, but my Fast Track 1 with two 500k pots and new jack are still waiting new in box to be installed. My goal is exactly that, to counteract the blades tendency to be less open sounding with 500k pots, though I believe Dimarzio recommends 250k for guitar. I doubt it will be too bright for me at 500k, and I have switched the strings recently from DR Hi Beams to Group 1 Ernie Ball stainless steel flats (which would be too thick for Mr. Wong, but they feel nice in my hands because of making up for some tightness lost going from long to short scale-these strings are great, IMHO, and are not the cobalts.) I have a p bass style bass with a vintage Delano P bass pickup wired without tone, and it is indeed bright! Love the sound, but the body itself needs some work, and I haven't used it in a while. I understand why many would not remove tone altogether, but it doesn't bother me much-that said, I am happy with 250 pots on most of the other basses, as the tonal option remains, even if I myself rarely use it. Fun to see the differences side by side, especially the no-tone option.

@jonathanwong458music 3 ай бұрын

@@classicalthrasher thanks for sharing!

@gipsyredneck 2 ай бұрын

I didn't know why my Jazz Bass had that hissy sound when trying to play high notes. 500k pots with distortion is just awful. I'll change those pots ASAP.

@jonathanwong458music Ай бұрын

Hope the swap works to your liking! Thanks for watching!

@jasondorsey7110 4 ай бұрын

So now I got 2 broncos, a purple one manufactured by samick and a blue one manufactured by cort...the purple was fantastic right out the box; the blue had a few rough spots on the neck that I had to sand out and the nut slots were cut too low

@jonathanwong458music 4 ай бұрын

dang....sorry to hear of the QC issues. Cort usually makes pretty quality stuff for companies....cranking out by the millions. How do you determine which factory these broncos come out of?

@jasondorsey7110 4 ай бұрын

@@jonathanwong458music It's in the serial number...there is a fender serial number tracker website that will translate it for you...another weird difference, I was able to tint the neck of my purple one yellow like a proper fender with tan shoe polish, but the blue one wouldn't absorb the color, so they must use a different wood sealer...but in fairness the purple one looked almost bleached it was so pale at first and the blue one doesn't look that pale to begin with so I can live with it

@jonathanwong458music 4 ай бұрын

Strange that it would be made in different factories. Seems inefficient! My Sonic bronco was pretty good out of the box. Nut was surprisingly perfect. Mine had a minor neck pocket blem though. And the neck is not perfectly aligned but you’d only notice if you really looked. Guess it’s always a bit of a dice roll. But it’s $289 CDN, so my expectations can only be so high.

@jasondorsey7110 4 ай бұрын

@@jonathanwong458music At $209 US, I try to keep that perspective that "you get what you pay for"...that being said, I feel like the purple one really was a good value since all it needed was a better pickup, all the other upgrades were honestly just to appease my vanity...it came direct from fender though, while the blue was from guitar center and fender probably didn't mind leaving some qc hiccups for guitar center to sort out since no doubt they gave them a bulk discount

@jonathanwong458music 4 ай бұрын

Re GC volume discount and QC. That’s an interesting perspective. Never considered that batches for certain locations would be influenced. But that’s why I’m so not a businessman!

@pascalgrenier4171 4 ай бұрын

I replaced the 250k pots for 500k ones in my Epiphone Embassy bass last week and it sounds much better now. Muddiness is gone.

@jonathanwong458music 4 ай бұрын

Thanks for watching and sharing! I can totally see how 500k pots would brighten up those humbuckers!

@leonardschungel2689 4 ай бұрын

There is absolutely no difference to me between any of the tree options. They all sound the same or atleast within margin or error for a human player. From my understanding of electronics i dont see why they should sound different at all. Maybe there is a smart electrical reason to choose on over the others but from a tone perspective i wouldn't have any preference

@jonathanwong458music 4 ай бұрын

Thanks for watching and commenting! I’m far from an electrical expert, but here’s a link to Seymour Duncan’s explanation on the topic. Maybe you’ll find it helpful: www.seymourduncan.com/blog/tips-and-tricks/250k-pots-versus-500k-pots-going-deeper-into-the-subject

@classicalthrasher 2 ай бұрын

The difference is there-use headphones. Even on my tinny mobile phone speaker the added extra high end on the last sample is evident. Could be a great option for a darker humbucker if you want it as bright as possible. Cons and pros to it. No offense intended, to be sure. 👍

@jonathanwong458music 2 ай бұрын

@@classicalthrasher Thanks for watching and sharing your thoughts! It really depends on what one's tonal goals are. The right answer is the one that makes your ears smile.