Lollar’s new DC J-Bass pickups are designed to help reduce noise and add “clarity, presence, and punch” to your low-end tone
(Image credit: Lollar Pickups)
Single-coil pickups are hard to beat for their punchy midrange and crystal-clear highs. The downside is that they are susceptible to picking up 60-cycle hum from stage lights and amp transformers, which can cause a loud buzz to emanate from your speakers. If you’ve ever played a Jazz Bass under a canopy of stage lights with only the bridge pickup on, you’ll know what that sounds like.
With its new DC J-Bass pickups, Lollar Pickups has tried to preserve the punchy purity of single-coils while stripping out any unwanted noise. Most importantly, though, they’ve been designed to retain much of that warm, early-‘60s sound.
“The Lollar DC J-Bass is our take on a hum-cancelling Jazz Bass pickup design,” says Lollar’s Austin Patterson.
“It keeps the best of the clarity, presence, and punch that J-Bass pickups are known for, while minimizing the hum. The bridge pickup is also wound slightly hotter, making it a great fit for players looking for a fuller sound that’s still vintage-faithful, or PJ Bass combinations.”
This could be a great solution to noise or interference issues, while also well-suited to bass players looking for a slightly fuller-bodied Jazz Bass voice – mainly due to the increased number of wire turns on the bridge pickup (as you wind more turns of wire onto a pickup the output increases, but the upper-end response decreases).
Having tweaked the design to fatten up the overall tone, these pickups would be a great choice for those in need of a J-Bass sound that’s beyond the threshold of traditional single-coil pickups without having to ‘upgrade’ to active electronics.
According to General Manager Rick Vanselow, “Though we continue to build our vintage-inspired single-coil version of J-Bass pickups, we also recognize the differing needs of our customers and are pleased to respond to that demand for quieter operation with this new hum-cancelling design.”
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(Image credit: Lollar Pickups)
The DC J-Bass retails for $155 and ships with black covers.
Nick Wells was the Editor of Bass Guitar magazine from 2009 to 2011, before making strides into the world of Artist Relations with Sheldon Dingwall and Dingwall Guitars. He's also the producer of bass-centric documentaries, Walking the Changes and Beneath the Bassline, as well as Production Manager and Artist Liaison for ScottsBassLessons. In his free time, you'll find him jumping around his bedroom to Kool & The Gang while hammering the life out of his P-Bass.
