[tyler_bass]

does anybody know if i can replace my passive pickups with active ones??

i dont like the sound of the one i have and would like to change all my electrics! lol

[allthumbs]

There are lots of choices in tones to be found without having to go with active pickups. You can go active but, you need to have a space in your axe for the 9 volt battery to power the pickups.

[Dewy]

Certainly not a job for a novice. Do you know much about Active electronics in guitars?

Be sure its the pickups you don't like... odds are the sound your looking for is coming from outboard gear.

[tyler_bass]

im not really a novice
ive been playing for 6 years and have nearly finished making a bass


...well would it be easier to just replace the pickups?
(to be honest their a bit knackered as it is)

[Dewy]

If your not a novice then sure... anything is possible. But most folks who know their way around instrument repairs would replace the passive pickups with better quality passives long before considering modifying the electronics of a bass or guitar. It would involve completely rewiring the guitar.

After that the question to ask is again... why do you think Passives are the problem? Low Gain, poor eq function on the passive tone knob?

Most of the folks I run around with despise active electronics... always going dead or developing a hum at the worst possible moment.

I've played some nice basses with and without active electronics, I would always choose the ones without.

KISS... Keep it simple silly...

[tyler_bass]

ok cool
ill have a think about it
cheers for the advice

[Dewy]

Tell us more about the guitar/bass your considering the pickup replacement for.

[allthumbs]

Hit the stores and play all kinds of basses so you get a better idea of what you want. You might even want to consider a bass modeler.

[tina_]

Erm.... whats a passive pickup?

[Dewy]

Passive pickups are the standard type developed years ago, with copper wire wrapped around a magnet. Depending on the strength and position of the magnet, as well as the number of copper windings (and in the case of "humbuckers" paired with another, just polarity of the magnets reversed) the vibration of the string is turned into an electromagnetic signal that "Amplifiers" turn into sound.

Whew that was a mouthful...

Active "pickups" are similar but designed to work with onboard electronics to boost and modify the signal before it leaves the guitar. In theory or the studio this results in a excellent strong clear signal, superior to that of passive electronics.

Most often its just a headache (my honest opinion... worth its weight in air I might add) with batteries dying, or electronics not providing enough difference for a Mid to beginning level musician to be worth the hassle.

Good indepth F.A.Q here at Warmoth:
http://www.warmoth.com/gecko/gecko.c...passive_active

[testekleez]

In stead of starting a new thread I figured I'd ask here. I have active pups and was wondering how long the battery lasts for typical player, and if it's okay to use rechargable 9 volts as opposed to buying a new battery every time one dies (I use rechargeables for everything except remotes).

According to Schecter, the lifespan on one pickup is 1420 hours divide that in half when you use both it says (I guess they mean together).

That seems like a long time to me lol. I usually play about an hour a day but since I got the axe, more like 8 hours a day.

[wjp01908]

Rechargables should be OK - try it out.

Active electronics do tend to be quite easy on the juice and batteries last a long time (at least they do in my electro acoustic - 600 hours according to the manual but I`ve never tested it out) Just don`t leave the guitar plugged in as this usually switches the on board circuitry on and make sure you have some spare batteries before a gig.

Will

[testekleez]

Thanks! I've heard some people say rechargables aren't good for everything (whether or not that has any merit, I have no idea) so I just wanted to see if it would do any harm.

I have a wireless optical mouse and if I had to buy a new battery every week, that would suck! The rechargables are sweet just pop in a new set and charge the old one back up and in a week, when the mouse dies, there awaits a freshly charged AA ready to roll!

[P-90]

It depends on the rechargable battery. When they run out of power, they tend to do it suddenly, rather than fading out more gradually, which will only be a problem if you start a gig with a low battery.

But another factor is more design-dependent. Rechargables typically run 1.2 volts, while others are rated at 1.5. The "9 volt" ones also run a bit low, I'm thinking around 7.8 volts. In the highly unlikely event that some total bonehead designed a preamp or equalization circuit for the pickup which expected to have more voltage available than the battery supplied, it would be possible to run out of headroom and end up with your wave being squared somewhat. But I doubt that you'll ever find a pickup like that in practice, so don't worry about it unless your guitar sounds like you're playing through a really awful fuzz every time you play especially loudly.

+1 on active pickups (or any other guitar electronics which require a battery) being a PITA which is better avoided if a high-quality passive will do the job.