Halo Custom Basses and Nordstrand Pickups

Nordstrand pickups are premium quality and are used by many of the world's most discerning guitarists, bassists, and instrument builders.

Nordstrand Logo

The Halo Custom Shop really needs to offer custom options that people actually want... so I went to www.talkbass.com, created a new thread in their discussion forums, and asked people what they actually want. The thread is here: http://www.talkbass.com/threads/design-your-own-custom-bass.1054697/

Here are some of the results as of today (2/26/2015):

Poll of Desired Pickups from Talkbass.com Users

With the data in hand, it was a no-brainer for me to offer Nordstrand's entire bass pickup line in our Bass Customization Tool (Configurator) that launched last year (2014).

I'm thrilled to be able to work in the custom guitar and bass business in this particular day and age. But, there are still some instances where we are limited to what we can build due to limited pickup options. But, with Nordstrand, we can offer high-end tone even in more esoteric designs, like fanned frets, for example. Carey and his team are ready and able to build custom pickups in different sizes and spacing's, which results in truly one-of-a-kind basses for our customers.

Halo Fanned Fret Bass Guitars

My first experience with Nordstrand pickups was very good. I sent a production model Halo 4-string Clarus bass to the guys over at Nordstrand, and they installed their NP4 and NJ4SV pickups into it.

Mo (Nordstrand Pickups) installing NP4 & NJ4SV pickups into a Halo Clarus Bass Guitar

Carey Nordstrand with Halo Clarus Bass

I actually really like the sound and response from the stock Halo pickups, and they've definitely proven themselves road worthy as they were used on the majority of Upon a Burning Body's 2014 tour dates. But... when I got the Nordstrand-equipped Halo Clarus bass back from Nordstrand and plugged her in for the first time... WOW! The room was just filled and the sound just blossomed. It was a beautiful first experience.

Anyway, here's Carey Nordstrand, the Nordstrand-equipped Halo Clarus bass, and myself at the 2014 Summer NAMM Show in Nashville, TN:

Carey Nordstrand and Jeff Lee at the Halo Booth (Summer NAMM 2014)

Since we started offering Nordstrand pickups, we've already been commissioned to build custom basses with their stuff. I'm looking forward to using more Nordstrand pickups and their new preamps in future production models and custom shop builds!

Have you had any experience with Nordstrand pickups? Let us know what you think in the comments below ---