Bartolini 1CB-BB/1CB-BT

Pickup features: active humbucking soapbars
Impedence or other specs:

Model of guitar or bass: Steinberger XM-2 bass / Steinberger XQ-2 bass
Position: middle
Pickup being replaced: both neck and bridge pickups
Other pickups on guitar:
Artists using this pickup:
You musical style(s): Mostly rock & alternative
Reason for pickup change: Wanted warmer tone than the stock EMG's give me

Perceived output level: sound the same
Tone: well-balanced with wide range of tones
Sonic evaluation: I'm a Steinberger afficianado, having played them for over 10 years. I'm one of those few people who actually enjoys the bright sound of the Steinbergers, but always went to my Fender if I needed other, more low-end sounds. I was always a little frustrated with the fact that there seemed to be a little bit of high end in every tone setting. These Bartolini's have totally changed that.
I recently bought a later Gibson made Steinberger XQ bass with factory installed Bartolini humbuckers and my world was changed! These things can go from bright funky slap to really low warm sounds that you almost feel more than you hear. I was totally sold on these right after I plugged in for the first time, and had to get a pair for one of my other Steinbergers (an XM strat style). I have not been disappointed. If anyone complains about the sound of the Steinberger, most equate it to the graphite neck. I now think it has more to do with the voicings of the stock EMG's than the neck itself. The pickups work really well with the factory active electronics. If you have some of the same tone concerns I had, definitely get yourself a pair of these.

For which styles and positions is this pickup (un)suitable:

Comments: Again I have 5 Steinbergers, some of them are the all graphite models, some have wooden bodies. Almost all have the same tone, since they have the same factory EMG pickups. I also have a couple of Fender basses and a Kubicki X-factor. I prefer the Steinbergers - the weight and balalnce are great and the string spacing fits me really well.
I've always enjoyed the tones I'd hearnd coming out of other basses: Warwicks and Alembics come to mind. After this experiment, I'm convinced at more than half of the tone these basses exhibit come from the pickups and elelctronics than the fancy woods and such.
If you buy these pickups, definitley buy them as a pair. They are designed with slightly different voicings for the two pickup locations. It took me a long time to track down the Bartolini distributor to actually get info on these and find out how to order them. You'll definitely have to special order them from your local music store, but they'll be no help in letting you know which pickups they are. The model designations are 1CB-BB and 1CB-BT -- one is for the neck, the other the bridge (I forgot which). They are not in a kit, so you'll have to order the pair yourself. They come without any electronics.
My basses both have the newer factory active electronics from HAZ with the dual tone controls, so I can get a little more tone variations than with the older single tone knob. If anyone needs more info or contacts, I'd be happy to share that with you - just email me at andy@dynastaff.com