Pickups Archives

EMG has expanded its lineup of signature bass pickups with the Robert Trujillo Signature “Rip Tide” Set. The Metallica bassist’s new pickups are described as a first with “stainless steel, black chrome caps to the world of the jazz bass.”

Northern Lutherie has introduced a new upright bass pickup called Da Crusher. Named in honor of the wrestler “who made Milwaukee famous,” the pickup is a stacked 20mm piezo system that is fitted into the bridge.

Aguilar introduced a new pickup design at the Summer NAMM Show with the DCB-M4 and M5. The pickups, which are four and five-string versions of the same model, are humbuckers in a familiar shape.

EMG has introduced three new signature sets of pickups with three of the biggest metal bass stars: Slayer’s Tom Araya, Anthrax’s Frank Bello, and Megadeth’s David Ellefson. Introduced at the 2019 Winter NAMM Show, each of the sets was dialed in with the artists.

Fishman has expanded their Fluence line of pickups with a new set of Soapbar multi-voice bass pickups. The active pickups, come in four and five-string versions, offer three distinct voices to cover different playing styles.

Nordstrand Audio’s pickup line has gotten a little bigger with the Zen Blade, a classic sidewinder-style pickup with a ceramic bar magnet and slotted steel blade. The design allows for even tone across the fretboard and steady impedance, Nordstrand says. “One of its finest qualities is that the difference between its parallel and series personalities is subtle, creating a dimension...

Nordstrand Audio has expanded their pickup line with a drop-in replacement to fit a Rickenbacker 4003 neck pickup. The Nordenbocker is Nordstrand’s Big Single pickup design housed in the unique pickup size. “It even uses your stock pickup screws,” the company writes. “Louder and more aggressive tones can now be found in your neck pickup to keep up with the...

Nordstrand Audio has expanded their pickup line once again with a new creation called the Big SplitMan. It takes two of their Big Splits and puts them into the MM-style BigMan cover. “In essence, this pickup is a quad-coil BigMan with a cutthroat vendetta against hum and a raw energy slightly superseding the BigMan’s iconic aggression,” Nordstrand writes. “Its composition...

Cannibal Corpse bassist Alex Webster has teamed up with the Seymour Duncan Custom Shop to introduce a new signature set of bass pickups. The Alex Webster Hammer Smashed Bass pickups are based on the company’s active Blackout soapbars but have been voiced to match Webster’s “aggressive attack and expressive tone”. “As a founding member of Cannibal Corpse, Alex Webster’s monstrous...

Recently we featured Justin Chancellor’s new Warwick as a Bass of the Week. The Tool bassist’s newest axe is fitted with a brand new pickup from Nordstrand Audio, and now that pickup is available to the public. The Big BladeMan features two of the company’s Big J-Blades in an MM-style cover and as such works as a drop-in replacement for...

Nordstrand Audio has expanded their P-style pickups with the Power Blade. The pickup is built with a thick steel blade, optimized wind, and ceramic magnets that the company says provide an authoritative low-end punch. “With half of its tonal DNA being derived from the classic P design, its character is inherently reminiscent of that hard-hitting P bass vigor we all...

Q-Tuner has expanded their bass offerings with new transparent, red-coiled pickups. Available now in 4, 5, and 6-string versions, the pickups are described as producing a “tight, clean and life-like bass sound loaded with harmonics.” They are created with neodymium magnets in a unique alignment for dynamic range. “There are many steps in making these pickups and we are actually...