Seymour Duncan MM pickup for Gecko 5-string Wide?

[fourstringsofdoom]

hello,

does anyone know off-hand if the SD Music Man 5-string bass pickup will line-up properly if installed on a Warmoth Gecko 5-string Wide neck and body?

thanks

 

[whyachi]

No. I can't check right now as Warmoth doesn't work on my phone's internet, but they specifically menton either the small or medium Gecko is the one that fits the MM pups. Go for soapbars on the wide.

 

[tubby.twins]

Warmoth will route the MM 5-string cavity on any of the three Gecko 5-string body sizes, at your request.  However, the Small body and neck (with 17.5mm string spacing) is the only size for which the strings will line up properly over the polepieces of the Seymour Duncan SMB-5a and SMB-5d pickups.

Seymour Duncan's diagrams show the polepieces aligned for a string spacing of about 16.7mm, which just won't line up on the Gecko 5 Medium and Wide bodies (with 19mm string spacing) unless you put the pickup near the 22nd fret.  

However, there are other pickup manufacturers (e.g. Bartolini, Delano) who make MusicMan 5-string pickups which can accommodate wider string spacings.  Their standard offerings include "blade" style pickups (i.e. no exposed polepieces) which can work with just about any string spacing, and Delano also can make custom pickups with polepieces in the correct locations.

If you're serious about getting a MusicMan 5-string pickup in a Gecko 5-string Wide bass, you should consider Delano.  Brian at BestBassGear.com has helped me place several custom orders for Delano pickups, and the results have been wonderful.