Squier Bronco bass modifications Ep.1: Musiclily Dual Rail Hot Humbucker pickup
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 26 ก.ค. 2024
- In this unsponsored series of videos, we will make one modification at a time to this Squier Sonic series Bronco short scale bass. How good can we get this Bronco bass to sound? Will it be better than the original?
Link to my original Bronco bass review:
• Squier Sonic Bronco Sh...
In Ep.1, we will install a Musiclily Dual Hot Rail Humbucker pickup, replacing the stock/original single coil pickup. Will it be quiet and hum-free? Will it sound better than the original? Let's find out.
$23 pickup purchased from Amazon
A-B sonic comparison: I have recorded the bass along to the same track, both pre and post modification. Bass was recorded direct through a Line6 Pod Go with the identical GK800RB model settings. Level matched, but no EQ or compression was added in post.
00:00 Intro
00:23 New mod series using the Bronco bass
01:50 Musiclily Rail style Humbucker pickup
02:50 Installation
04:50 Track A-B sonic comparison
07:24 Assessment
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Thank you so much buying this hot rail pickup from us and doing this video. Really appreciate it. - Nina
Thanks for watching!
A good mod would be to replace the tone pot with a push/pull to create a series/parallel coil switch. Parallel mode would drop the output and provide you with some of the high end that's lost with the pickup coils in series
That's a cool idea! Would make it similar to some of the stingrays (eg the shorty sterling) where it has a 3 way switch to get the Humbucker 3 different sounds: series-single-parallel.
Thank for watching!
Even more useful, do the S/P on the volume pot, and do a Tone push/pull with a different tone cap to add another choice of roll off!
That’s cool! I’m bound to screw that up on a gig!
Episode #2 featuring a comparison of series vs parallel wiring is now up. Here's a link: th-cam.com/video/wSVHwep_MJI/w-d-xo.html
It' s much better looking with this two curved blades, than the quite cheap look of the original PU cover, and sounding quite good, great mod for low money!
Right on! Thanks for watching!
I agree, the humbucker has more low and mid dynamic range which to me was especially noticeable with the tone at 100%
I’m glad the differences are translating across TH-cam audio! Thanks so much for watching and commenting!
Great video. There is a difference (while listening on studio monitors) between stock and rails. I lean fully towards the rails, from looks to function and they definitely have more guts on the lower spectrum. Though the stock pups are a bit airier, I'll take the Musiclily. I actually ordered one from Amazon, now I have to get me the bass! Thank you for posting this.
Thanks so much for watching and sharing your thoughts! I hope you like it when it arrives!
Did this mod to my old Bronco Bass years ago.Also put a (Badass) style bridge and Hipshot tuners.Sold to for 350 bucks to somebody who had to have it. Now play a early Gretch JR Jet with the TV Jones single humbucker. My favorite Bass!
It's a great inexpensive mod! Cool Gretsch! Thanks for watching and sharing!
So, for the last couple of days I have been checking out my Bronco bass and while it doesn't sound bad, the original Pickups are lower output. What got my attention is that the resistance measures 13K ohms! The Musiclily dual rails come in at 9k and once I installed them, the difference (to my ears) was remarkable, higher output, more dynamic and clearer. For a budget pickup, it was a big improvement, I did however have to file down that very pronounced radius to be more even (distance) with all the strings. Another downfall with my Bronco is the truss rod adjustment, very hard to get to, it is not centered. I can see someone not too experienced messing this up, I had to maneuver and get the right length into the cavity in order to give it a twist. I'm liking the bass but not sure yet if this will be a keeper. Keep the videos coming!
Thanks for watching! I’m not a pickup guru, but as was explained to me, the DC resistance is less useful when comparing pickups of different designs - in this case, a single coil vs a rail humbucker. It’s a more useful measure comparing similar single coils that use similar wire, as an example.
Totally agree re the truss rod. I made that comment in my initial review video. On mine, it’s pretty buried in the neck and somewhat difficult to access. The style used on the Ernie ball musicmans where you can stick a straight rod into the wheel, is such a better design.
Good observation on the pickups and it makes sense, I guess I was not comparing apples to apples. Thank you.
Hope you enjoy the musiclily p/u!
Totally right about the truss rod. Me and my buddy bought a bronco each and it was very hard to access mine and d almost impossible on his bass.
Nice mod demo, I like it. I got two custom Bronco pickups from Creamery; one alnico five with poles and one alnico two with a blade . . . will install over the winter and let you know how they sound.
I’ve looked at the creamery p/us. Expensive to get them shipped to Canada though…
Thanks for watching!
The Creamery rewound the pickup for my 50s Gibson lap steel. Nice pick ups!
I should do this 100%. I took over my friends bronco bass after he died, but it's been in the bag most of the time because it just doesn't have enough Umph! to play punk. It plays really nice and weighs next to nothing. Plus i think Tajo would have done the same, but he's drinking and jamming in Valhalla with Freddie, Jimi and all the other legends, Rock'n'Roll
Thanks for watching! Keep Tajo's bass going! I'll be testing a variety of different pickups into the bronco in this series. Stay tuned! Hopefully I can help you find a pickup that works for your tonal needs!
I had a bronco a few years ago (sold,to upgrade, but now miss it, and keep hoping to see it on Craigslist,LOL!) Anyway, t the recommendation of the guys in Talkbass, I installed a Musiclilly 2 rail humbucker, and immediately noticed an improvement in clarity, and volume. Definitely worth the money and effort, in my experience.
Yes! The musiclily rail was an improvement over the stock p/u and it was quiet! Check out the Duncan rail in the next episode.
Thanks for watching and sharing your experience!
The hum can be very annoying. Good job.
Thanks for watching!
Thanks for these videos! I'd love to hear the Bronco with a Lace sensor pickup.
Thanks for watching! I put in a Seymour Duncan hot rail in ep.2. Sounded pretty good. Which lace sensor model did you have in mind? From talking with guitar players, more seem to prefer Duncans in general. Not sure why though. Lace sensors are pretty hard to find locally.
@@jonathanwong458music That's a good question because they range from standard-to-hot output. I guess I'd go with whichever one (Gold, Silver, Light Blue) matches the stock pickup's output. It would be a single-coil-to-single-coil comparison, so I'm curious how they compare both in sound and quietness to the stock pickup.
I'll see what I come across in my travels!
Got a cheap Glarry, that is a Bronco copy.
But the output is really low, so I'll give this pickup a try, thx for the video!
I hope it works for you! Thanks for watching!
Another very interessting video, nice. 👍
Something I noticed after some time with my mikro. Using a plectrum, on neck-PU short-scale basses goes a long way, all that low end can get in the way of a defined tone IMHO. That being said, I realy liked that one with the maple fretboard, maybe something to gift myself to christmas 🤔 looking forward to what comes next!
Thanks for watching! I think there’s potential to make this white maple board bronco into a great sounding bass, hence the series. Maybe I have a good example (and I’m sure there’s variability given the price point) but it’s the right weight, feel and is pretty resonant. Some instruments sound like duds acoustically and in those, expensive pickups and hardware won’t save them. This one has a nice ring acoustically. Check one out if you can!
@@jonathanwong458music I think you made a good choice with that one! And I'm quite surprised what that considerably cheap Pickup did, looking forward to the rest of the series. Will try to get my hands on one, when I can. 👍
Yeah, man! Haha, I initially bought the $23 pickup thinking it would suck in tone and be noisy! Nope!
Great video. Both the stock pu and the rail have their own unique tones and applications. Other than the single coil hum I do like the grit of the stock 6 pole. But the hot rail is also sweet.
However. That didn’t stop me from installing a G&L MFD pu into my own bronco. I paid more for the pickup than he bass haha. Best sounding bass I have now.
Blessings my dude.
Re G&L, that’s awesome! Did you need to route the cavity bigger?
I also miss the grind on the single coil, but I couldn’t stand the hum. Seymour Duncan hot rail is up next!
Thanks for watching Ep1!
@@jonathanwong458music I extensively modified my bronco. So routing the pickup cavity was only a small aspect of the project.
Honestly, getting the pick guard cut out was the hardest part due to the brittle nature of the plastic.
I did change out the pots and added the 3 way selector for parallel, single, and mfd mode (with added capacitor) to copy the g&l fallout bass electronics.
After stripping the finish, reshaping the body, refinishing and painting. Then aluminum taping the pickup cavity, as well as sanding down and refinishing the neck. It’s a fantastic bass 😆
Only thing I might do is upgrade to a 4 saddle bridge so my intonation problem will be resolved.
wow! You really have put more time and effort than the original value of the bronco! But if it sounds awesome, and you had fun, then it's worth it!
This sonic series bronco comes stock with a better 4 individual saddled bridge, so it's a huge step up from the earlier 2 saddle version. Tuners are much better too. I don't see any benefit to changing out the tuners on this sonic series. I plan on swapping in a high mass bridge just for fun, although I hypothesize it probably won't do that much sonically on this bass. But will put that to the test!
@@jonathanwong458music I’m glad they finally figured out those two saddle bridges just aren’t great. Gives me an easy fix to my own bridge problem as well!
And yes the entire mod process was a blast. I love tinkering and don’t ever plan to sell this bass. She’s a keeper.
Looking forward to the rest of your series.
Right on!
Just got the Musiclily rail for my Bronco. The price is down to $15 from $23. I hope the quality hasn't gone down. I didn't mind the sound of the stock pickup, but the noise was unbearable unless you turned the tone pot ALL the way down!
That’s a great price! It will definitely be quieter than the stock single coil but you’ll lose some of the grind. I hope you like it!! Thanks for watching and commenting!
Got an Artec hotrails Alnico V, 500k pots and a 47 capacitor fitted , has made a massive difference. The single coil was terrible, I had to put the tone down low to make it useable, Squier made a bad choice. Best upgrade to do without spending too much
It's tough to describe, but I seem to prefer the new pickup better. It sounds a little more "up front" or present than the single coil.
Yes! I hear more low mids in the 200-300hz area and that is probably making the musiclily humbucker sound punchier.
Thanks for watching and commenting!
The hot rail is great.
Surprisingly good for $23 cdn! And dead quiet! Thanks for watching and commenting!
I thought this was going to finally be the key I needed- alas. I have a Bronco Affinity series, not the Sonic, that my daughter used to use (she's onto a MIJ Jaguar now) I thought this was going to be the answer to my problem which is dropping the exact same Musiclily blade pickup into it. But when I look at your photos on the installation section, the wiring (colours used, paths) is not the same on both. I've been wracking my head trying to sort out how to put a 4 wire pickup into a spot where a 2 wire pickup was removed without having to re-solder it. I've had this on my "let's finish this finally" list for about 18 months, I thought today was the day, but it appears it will go back on the list. Excellent walk through video though!
It should still work. The musiclily is a humbucker wired in series by default but at the volume pot end, it is still the hot to the pot terminal and ground to the casing. The p/u comes with a wiring diagram. Note: companies do not use a standard colour scheme, so following the included diagram is very important!
Thx for watching!
(I'd definitely encourage you to give the mod a try!)
@@jonathanwong458music oh yeah, I know they will work, but I just do not understand wiring schematics, I keep hoping for a "paint by numbers" photo I can riff off of to make it as easy as possible. :)
I wonder if a SD - Antiquity would drop in (lol). I think it Sounds better with the new pickup. Thanks for the video Jonathan.
I’ll need to measure the cavity. I think some routing would be required. And a new pickguard.
….but….Seymour Duncan Hot Rails dropping in for next week! Stay tuned!
Thanks for watching and commenting!
Hello
I find that the stock pickups already sound very good, especially for the price of this bass.
I'm going to buy the same one soon and I won't change the pickups. With good strings and a well-tuned amp, you can already get a very good sound
Thanks for watching and commenting! Yes! I mentioned in my original review of this bass that the stick pickup does indeed have a unique grindy tone that is lost/missing in the rail pickups. Output is a bit shy, but otherwise, it can sound good with the right eq! The noise is the only thing that really bothers me, for what I do with a bass.
@@jonathanwong458music I think the noise can be adjusted by a luthier with shielding in the cavity.
Noise is often a question of electrical voltage. You should not plug the amplifier into a multi socket but directly into the wall socket. try
Episode 3 is on this topic. A single coil is going to hum. You can minimize it to a point. Here's a link:
th-cam.com/video/hO1Q2UPjRO0/w-d-xo.html
Wow, that's a pretty big improvement! I'm reading reviews about these Musiclilly pickups that say they're microphonic - has that been your experience?
Thanks for watching! This particular example was pretty quiet both from a noise cancellation and microphonic perspective. Striking the body and pickup shell did not result in any booms or tapping noises. However, the Fleor I tested in episode 17 was microphonic, unfortunately.
With these inexpensive pickups I think the QC may not always be perfectly consistent - so some may be noisy while others fine. Guess it depends who dipped it in the wax and on which day!
I love watching your short scale bass videos. I've played jazz basses for most of my life and recently tried a mustang player (first time playing a short scale bass) and I fell in love instantly. I like the design of the bronco body/pickup more but I can't stand a maple fretboard. Do you know if a mustang neck would fit a bronco body?
Hi! Thanks for watching! I too, spent 25ish years playing nothing but full scale 5 strings with a high C....killed my joints! Then went to P basses almost full time.....and now spend 80% on my short scales.
The more economical solution for you would be to get a Sonic bronco in black as those come with laurel fingerboards instead of maple. Here's a link:
www.fender.com/en-US/squier-electric-basses/other/squier-sonic-bronco-bass/0373800506.html
Appears the pink and white versions come with maple boards.
I just put my Player PJ right on top of the bronco and they look pretty darn close if not the same.
Thanks for watching and commenting!
@@jonathanwong458music Damn, I love the pink and white versions though; a shame they don't come with the laurel/rosewood fretboard.
Also, I've never tried a laurel fretboard, are they similar (feel wise) to rosewood? I don't care a lot about the tone, only the feeling.
PS: 25 years playing? Have you been a musician since kindergarten? Hah you look quite young!
@@hemi9833 hi!
I haven’t been a huge fan of laurel. Feels rough and spongey. I like either true rosewood, or harder woods like ebony. But I do like darker boards so I get where you’re coming from.
Haha, I’m almost 43 and haven’t aged very well, health-wise. Started piano lessons at 6, and rebelled out with bass in my early teenage years. So yeah! Legitimately 25+ years on these noisemakers:) does my camera make me look that young?!
Upgrade sounded a lot better. Rail pick ups make more sense, tbh for everything! :) A bronco would be a fun bass to mod-get some Gotoh RES-O-LITEs etc. Cool bass!
Thanks for watching! More pickups coming soon! The new sonic series tuners are actually alright. They're a considerable improvement from the last generation of bronco basses. Also planning on trying different bridges on this bronco. Lots of future fun to be had!
@@jonathanwong458music Yeah, a bridge would be logical I bet. I have a Squier Jag SS that I got in the UK about 15 years ago-everything is really poor quality but it still plays really nice. It’s my next mod project. All guitars are made of wood-it’s the bits that make the difference, lol
Sum of its parts! Interestingly, some parts work well on some instruments but sound terrible on others. I’ve had high mass bridges sound worse than simple bent steel on some, …cheap pickups sounding better than expensive ones….Have to find the sweet spot combo.
@@jonathanwong458musicI put a hipshot "vintage style" bridge on mine, it has the musicmaster style tab on the far end to hide the ball ends of the strings...also put hipshot ultralites with cloverleaf heads on it for vintage looks and high quality construction...the stock hardware isn't bad though, I've seen alot worse on instruments in this price range
@@jasondorsey7110 yeah, the stock hardware seems to be working alright at the moment. In the mod series, I’ll be trying some different bridge types. Maybe it’ll make a difference, maybe it won’t….let’s find out!
You have wired the two coils of the humbucker pickup in series. If you change the wiring to parallel you will get more high end definition versus a bit less output. Usually parallel wiring means red+black to ground and white+green to volume pot. Maybe a thing to try out?
Good idea! I tried comparing series to parallel in episode 2 with the Seymour Duncan hot rail and didn’t really like the tone, unfortunately. But tone is so subjective. Thanks for watching!
Hello sir how to eleminate humming noise from single coil pickups of bronco bass.
@@mukund161 Search TH-cam: 'bass guitar shielding'.
It is beefier with more output but it also lost something in airiness and traditional scpb tone.
Totally agree. Lost the airy frequencies. Sounds more closed. But quiet! Thanks for watching!
Personally, I enjoy the stock pickup more, minus the hum. I’ve always thought the dual rail hot design makes the bass sound a bit too compressed, though it still sound great. I would like to see you replace the stock pickup with an Emg S2/S3 pickup, as they are solderless noiseless pickups. The S2 delivers a traditional strat sound while the S3 is hotter but (apparently) still pretty balanced. It is worth noting though that both use the traditional 6 pole design.
Thanks for watching! The original does have a unique grind to it! But noisy. I’ll look into the EMGs. Thanks!
Interesting. I'd really love to see someone put a Precision pickup into a bronco
I’ll need to measure, but I think some routing would be required. Would be a great experiment though! Thanks for watching and commenting!
@jonathanwong458music You can put a precision pickup that 50th small one.
Saw a video of a guy putting one on his Bronco.
Anyway that humbucker sounds good more balanced and more mids.
I understand now. The ‘51 P pickup is historically a single coil pickup. Some aftermarket ones are humcancelling. I think they are a smidge larger than a strat p/u so it might not fit the existing pickguard but there’s tons of room in the cavity for one! I’ll see what I can find.
From what I hear I like this Humbucker better, because I like a beefier sound on a bass.
This humbucker is definitely beefier! Thanks for watching!
A lot of people change the stock pickups on broncos for dual rail humbuckers, Fender should start making them that way!
Totally agree!! Thanks for watching!
I thought the humbucker sounded more like what I would like to hear playing with the band I'm in. Either works though.
The musiclily sounds pretty good! No new holes or cutting required, and it’s pretty affordable. All good things! Thanks for watching!
I primarily focus on the low end sounds of a bass and for me the humbucker was much better.
Right on! The musiclily definitely has more lows than the original/stock pickup! Thanks for watching and commenting!
Would you go with the Mini P or the Bronco with this pickup?
Good question. I like the bronco’s neck and I’m used to and am more comfortable with the 30” scale. But I’m also a P bass guy and prefer the wider sound from P pickups. The rails can sound a bit narrow. Torn! I will be filming a new series soon about modding a mini P. Stay tuned!
Well done I prefer the beefier dual rail ; a shematic wiring would be fine (on the pictures its not very clear)
I don't have a way to upload a schematic here, unfortunately. The Musiclily came Red (hot), White (-) pre-connected to Green (+), black and bare wire connected to ground.
Thanks for watching!
Thanks ! @@jonathanwong458music
Right on! More pickups on the way! Stay tuned
Great just waiting ... ; maybe a video shielding the cavity with stock pickup and for each pickup you try a comparison wtih roudwound vs flatwound strings ? @@jonathanwong458music
@@michellaudinat7107 Thanks for the suggestions! In my experience, even with a shielded cavity, a true unopposed single coil (x1) will always hum, but let's put it to the test!!. I'll see what I can do!
Considering the cost, I wonder why Fender didn't make the change just to eliminate the noise
That's a great question. Fender makes a noiseless single coil sized Strat pickup too! Bean counters would be my best guess...
Having said that, I'm not confident a $23 pickup would withstand the abuse of the road/regular gigging... Or maybe it would without issue!
Thanks for watching!
And $23 is our price. Fender could get it for next to nothing, and maybe a sturdier one. I don't think this is a bass for any kind of road/gig use
I’m hoping with the right part upgrades, I can get a unique/better sounding instrument I can use as a backup or outdoor axe. Will see!
I wish you would have let us hear the hum difference...I didn't notice any hum in your A B examples. I'll go back and listen i guess.
It might depend what you are listening through. The single coil hum is noticeable through headphones. It's more audible in Ep.6 as I have intentionally left out the drums. The musically p/u is quiet, no noise.. Ep.3 is all about shielding so there's lots of noise in that one!
Thanks for watching!
You can hear the hum right at the beginning of the play demo for a split second. Or, I did anyway (listening with headphones)
I'm shocked to see that Squier would actually put a 6-pole guitar pickup on a bass
As the legend goes….Leo Fender hated wasting parts…so he put left over Stratocaster guitar pickups in the first Musicmaster bass and marketed it as a budget ‘beginner’s’ bass. Decades later, there’s still a guitar pickup in the bronco!! Now I don’t quite understand why they never made a dedicated pu for the bronco….budget or not. Still a 6 string guitar pickup.
Thanks for watching!
Musiclilly pu vs Geezer pu !!
Very different sounding pickups! Thanks for watching!
you have to swap to 5k pots
Are you referring to 500k pots for a brighter tone? Yeah, totally could. I have been a more traditional P bass 250k pots with a .47 cap guy for a while and to 'my' ears, the 500k pots have been a tad harsh and bright, for me. But it could totally work for somebody else.
Thanks for watching!