DESCRIPTION

Isolating each string’s transducer profoundly alters the resonance of each pickup, resulting in a far flatter, more “transparent” frequency response in comparison to conventional pickups designs. The focus, integrity, and texture of every note transcends even the best conventional pickups designs. Play 6 string? You’ve never heard your B-string this clearly. Envy the gorgeous overtones of a master-built double bass? You now have a way to find comparable sonic elegance. Sick of your muddy, cluttered-sounding chordal tone? Help is on the way. In short, you’ve never heard this level of lush detail—in any register—on an electric bass before.

In a premium production-process that takes 4 times longer than Nordstrand's conventional pickups, PolyVox pickups include asymmetrical angled coils with a proprietary Alnico magnet load and supporting ceramic bars that achieve real-world output in a totally passive design. At long last, discriminating bass players can enjoy the multitudinous benefits of a fully passive multi-coil pickup system that’s ready to drop into any 6 string bass that fits the standard P4 soapbar shape.

Nordstrand's new PolyVox multi-coil pickups are the ultimate expression of Carey’s lifelong search for the most inspiring and musically evocative bass tone. PolyVox pickups embody the invaluable experience that comes from over two decades of bass-gear design and, even more important, the deep symbiosis between Carey and the elite crew of top-level musicians that use his gear to create extraordinary music.

The PolyVox concept emerged after a hang with Tool’s Justin Chancellor, a bass icon as renowned for his unmistakable Wal-powered tone as for the singular intensity of his band. Observing the clarity and rich timbre of Chancellor’s basses, the seed of inspiration took root: Does the secret to true full-spectrum sound lie in enabling each bass string to have its own discrete coil? After years of painstaking experimentation, the answer is an unequivocal, YES. In short, the onboard electronics of an electric bass constitute an LCR circuit that contribute distinctive resonant peaks to each pickup’s output—it’s these resonances that give basses their distinctive sonic signature.