Designed by Kevin Beller, bass player and Seymour Duncan head of R&D, the Apollo Jazz Bass Linear Humbucker utilizes two coils that sit next to each other under a standard single coil-sized cover.
We start with the tone of a traditional single coil Jazz Bass pickup, the full-sounding warmth of the neck pickup and the balanced smoothness of the bridge pickup. Then we add a little extra punch and detail in the bridge position.
Beller writes:
"I've been playing bass since the mid-Seventies and I've spent most of my career as a bass player playing Fender-style basses. I really fell in love with them. I'm very much attached to the traditional Fender sound, and found the Apollo Jazz Bass Linear Humbuckers were a way where I could modernize my instrument but still maintain the traditional tone and get rid of the problems of hum, noise and environmental sounds that are all to common today.
"We've also addressed the issue of string to string balance. On Jazz Basses the balance will be off, especially on the higher strings. As you play across the neck from the E and A strings and then cross to D and G the output typically drops, sometimes even on the A string. We did a little bit of fattening on the bridge pickup, staying really close to the traditional tonality but addressing some performance issues."
The Apollo Jazz Bass is available in bridge and neck models for four- and five-string, with two size options for the 5-string (67/70mm or 70/74mm). They can be purchased in matched sets or individually. All models offer better string-to-string balance than traditional Jazz Bass single coils, and are completely noiseless. They are extremely versatile and can be used for just about any musical style.
Hand built in Santa Barbara, California, Apollo Jazz Bass pickups use hand ground Alnico 5 rod magnets and Forbon flatwork, and are vacuum wax potted for squeal-free performance.
TECH SPECS
4-STRING NECK | MAGNETS: ALNICO 5 ROD | DC RESISTANCE: 8.79K
4-STRING BRIDGE | MAGNETS: ALNICO 5 ROD | DC RESISTANCE: 9.25K
5-STRING NECK | MAGNETS: ALNICO 5 ROD | DC RESISTANCE: 9.58K
5-STRING BRIDGE | MAGNETS: ALNICO 5 ROD | DC RESISTANCE: 11.1K
For more information, visit seymourduncan.com.
