If you want to hear an Audere preamp listen to the sound clips I posted for my Korina G5 fretless:
http://www.unofficialwarmoth.com/index.php?topic=2678.0
I love Audere preamps, not only because they are a solid preamp, but because they are also very easy to install. They give excellent instructions and all kinds of goodies in the box to make sure you can do a great job. I also like the fact that you have tons of configuration options and they are super-fast getting them shipped. But even the complicated stuff is easy to put together. Compared to the other preamps I've installed, they give way more information and help. And if you get stuck they are pretty good with support as well.
I am finishing up my Jazz bass that I cut from a Warmoth body blank. It has an Audere preamp with a Bartolini MM pickup. The pickup is flipped upside down, but it makes no difference that I can tell. I'll try to get some sound clips up soon. This is the second bass I've owned with a Bartolini MM pickup and the 4th bass I've owned with a MM pickup in it. I had an MTD Kingston with a single MM pickup (unknown brand) and an Aguilar OBP-1 preamp in it that I played for a while. In the shop and at home it sounded great, but in a live situation it didn't cut through the mix at all. I was totally buried except for the low frequencies. This doesn't necessarily say anything about that configuration, because there are lots of factors that can contribute to it, such as the way other instruments are EQed and how I was EQing my amps, the type of amplification I was using, etc. I would suggest coupling the MM pickup with something else if possible, just for more variety.
I also had a Bart MM in a Mike Kinal 5 string that was a fantastic sounding rig. Cut through like a knife, no problems. I don't recall the preamp, but it was a 3 band, probably Bartolini. The only reason I quit playing that bass was due to the weight, which was considerable. That bass also had a double-coil Jazz pickup in the neck position, so I wasn't using the MM alone.
Anyway on the Jazz I'm working on, I am very pleased with the Bartolini MM pickup. It sounds great alone, but I prefer it combined with the neck Jazz pickup. So YMMV. I'm not sure I can detect any significant difference between pickup manufacturers that makes them worth so much more than another brand. I usually end up with Barts, but I like SDs and EMGs and Nordys, too.
+1 for the bestbassgear suggestion. I've been dealing with Brian for a few years and he's always been good. I once got a set of Jazz pickups that had a wire break off right at the pickup epoxy and he sent a replacement that same day. All I had to do was send him the dead pickup in the box he shipped the replacement in. He makes Ristola basses, too, so he *really* knows his stuff.
JBD
http://www.unofficialwarmoth.com/index.php?topic=2678.0
I love Audere preamps, not only because they are a solid preamp, but because they are also very easy to install. They give excellent instructions and all kinds of goodies in the box to make sure you can do a great job. I also like the fact that you have tons of configuration options and they are super-fast getting them shipped. But even the complicated stuff is easy to put together. Compared to the other preamps I've installed, they give way more information and help. And if you get stuck they are pretty good with support as well.
I am finishing up my Jazz bass that I cut from a Warmoth body blank. It has an Audere preamp with a Bartolini MM pickup. The pickup is flipped upside down, but it makes no difference that I can tell. I'll try to get some sound clips up soon. This is the second bass I've owned with a Bartolini MM pickup and the 4th bass I've owned with a MM pickup in it. I had an MTD Kingston with a single MM pickup (unknown brand) and an Aguilar OBP-1 preamp in it that I played for a while. In the shop and at home it sounded great, but in a live situation it didn't cut through the mix at all. I was totally buried except for the low frequencies. This doesn't necessarily say anything about that configuration, because there are lots of factors that can contribute to it, such as the way other instruments are EQed and how I was EQing my amps, the type of amplification I was using, etc. I would suggest coupling the MM pickup with something else if possible, just for more variety.
I also had a Bart MM in a Mike Kinal 5 string that was a fantastic sounding rig. Cut through like a knife, no problems. I don't recall the preamp, but it was a 3 band, probably Bartolini. The only reason I quit playing that bass was due to the weight, which was considerable. That bass also had a double-coil Jazz pickup in the neck position, so I wasn't using the MM alone.
Anyway on the Jazz I'm working on, I am very pleased with the Bartolini MM pickup. It sounds great alone, but I prefer it combined with the neck Jazz pickup. So YMMV. I'm not sure I can detect any significant difference between pickup manufacturers that makes them worth so much more than another brand. I usually end up with Barts, but I like SDs and EMGs and Nordys, too.
+1 for the bestbassgear suggestion. I've been dealing with Brian for a few years and he's always been good. I once got a set of Jazz pickups that had a wire break off right at the pickup epoxy and he sent a replacement that same day. All I had to do was send him the dead pickup in the box he shipped the replacement in. He makes Ristola basses, too, so he *really* knows his stuff.
JBD
