Why does my bass sound this way?

[lumgimfong]

Very interesting!

So then, do the 4004 basses have this problem, too?

[espidog]

Every stringed instrument with more than one pickup exhibits phase cancellation effects to some degree when both/all pickups are being mixed, depending on the spacing of the pickups. A good deal of the art of electric instrument design is pickup placement (or it should be!): first deciding where best to place any given pickup in relation to the harmonic nodes of the strings - taking into account that those nodes will shift around as you alter the length of the strings with your fretting hand - then finding out where best to place the secondary pickup. This will always have to be a compromise (or a choice) between finding the position that gives the best, most tonally balanced result when used on its own, and the one that gives the most pleasing "character" when both pups are combined. It's always a compromise: you can't win at both! There are some famous "sweet spot" positions that have become legendary. Leo Fender, for example, did a LOT of experimentation with pup positioning before he hit on the classic P bass split-pup location that produces that now ubiquitous and sought-after industry-standard tone, beloved of session musicians and producers: sweet and punchy, with lots of fundamental. And I'm sure that Roger Rossmeisl worked equally hard sussing out the best position for the horseshoe pup on the original 4000 bass.

ADDED LATER: Oh - I see what your question is now! (D'oh! ) It's about whether 4004 basses have the problem of not being able to back off one of the pups a bit. I imagine they do. On a 4003, a certain amount of backing-off can be achieved by lowering the height of one pickup, but I don't think the ones on the 4004 are height-adjustable, are they?

[aceonbass]

Very interesting! So then, do the 4004 basses have this problem, too?

Yep, and it's a real tone killer too. That's why I rewire them with either Balance/Volume/Tone, or Volume/Volume/Tone. Either way, I also use a pair of push-pull pots to short either of the HB1 coils for a good single coil tone as an option.

[Isaac]

Very interesting!

So then, do the 4004 basses have this problem, too?

I don't see it as a problem. It's more of a "it is what it is" situation. That's the way these basses sound when both pickups are full on. Or, more accurately, when both are on and their levels are matched. I happen to like that sound. I imagine that lots of us use both pickups full on. I also use each pickup by itself and occasionally I'll back one off slightly but, to my ear, that sounds very much like the other by itself.

[jps]

Very interesting!

So then, do the 4004 basses have this problem, too?

I don't see it as a problem. It's more of a "it is what it is" situation. That's the way these basses sound when both pickups are full on. Or, more accurately, when both are on and their levels are matched.

And, this goes for virtually all two-pickup basses (guitars, also). The comb filtering varies with the spacing between the two pickups.

Even my fretless Elfin 5, with its closely spaced pickups, exhibits this "phenomenon".

[lumgimfong]

I think one of the reasons it might be so pronounced is because I run my bass at maximum brightness.
If I did a more flat EQ then maybe the differences would not sound so extreme.
I listened to a more flat sounding EQ 4004 demo and I could hear it happening in the middle position a little but not as much as mine.

Thanks for the info and your thoughts, everyone!
I will have to think about the options and decide which to do next if I want to change it.
But for now the bridge and neck pups sound fantastic alone!

[jps]

The simplest (and, to me) the best to deal with this is two volume controls, one for each pickup. Yeah, you can use a balance control instead of the individual volume controls to similarly get close, but two volume controls work the best and offer the finest control between the two pickups, IME, as you then have totally independent control over the volume of each pickup which offers more ways to blend or isolate them as desired.

[ram]

From a purist standpoint I agree with Jeff however from a speed/simplicity standpoint I went with a Blend/Volume/Tone set up on my 4004C. The original switch seemed to be a bit too limiting. The double volume would give the best control but would require fiddling with both controls. The simple Blend gives a very similar effect with only one knob to fool with. This is the notion I went with for live play. And yes the pickups are core tapped independently with the Volume and Tone knobs.

[jps]

With the two volume controls, to make tonal changes It's either slightly rolling one or the other volume down to get what I'm looking for. It doesn't take much to make a significant difference in sound. Two of my basses are VPT; interestingly, with those, I usually roll the pan/balance control fully one way of the other, rarely, somewhere in between. Weird, eh?

[henry5]

With the two volume controls, to make tonal changes It's either slightly rolling one or the other volume down to get what I'm looking for. It doesn't take much to make a significant difference in sound.

This, absolutely. Usually you’re only touching one control or the other.

I’ve had several basses with blend knobs and have never liked them much. I much prefer 2 volumes.

[lumgimfong]

Tough choice: vvt or bvt

I use the volume knob most so maybe v-b-t

Hmmmmm…gotta visualize how each would work in real life and see which would be easier in real life.
I know there are fans of both setups.

[jps]

Just do what works for you.

[Korladis]

I mean, I almost never use both pickups at the same time. So this has never been an issue for me.