ONE NOVEL APPROACH to bass guitar pickups lurks in the shape of a little black box with small attachments.

Those attachments are actually four Precision-type bridge saddles each with a black, grooved insert where the string passes over the barrel. These are ceramic elements which produce a tiny current in direct relation to the physical strain placed across them — in this case, the vibration of a big bass string.

A sensibly-gauged, shielded cable runs from each barrel to a junction box roughly the size of a dice, finished in chrome, which nestles beside the bridge baseplate.

This part of the assembly — junction box and pickups — is neatly unobtrusive, user-installable with a minimum of fuss and, because of the cunning nature of the design (ie pickups as direct replacement string barrels), your bass guitar remains entirely intact.

Next comes the "floating" black box. Measuring approximately 2½in x 1½in x 1in, this is essentially a signal booster/equaliser, necessary to present a decent output to match your amplifier. The simpler of the two models available, the Shadow 992, has a strap/belt clip on the back and dual-concentric volume/tone controls. Tonal boost and cut (unspecified) operates at 600-700Hz (midrange).

Completing the arrangement are a standard jack socket (output to the amp) and a miniature jack socket (which in turn is connected to its partner on the dice-like junction box).

The alternative black box is the 991 — basically the same except that it employs a standard jack plug instead of a strap clip and is intended to be plugged directly into your bass. Thus, with its additional three-position miniature toggle switch, this box allows you to mix the ceramic pickup with those already present and is, I would imagine, the model most bassists would go for. After all, you can then integrate sounds to your heart's content, or revert to just bass pickups, or to just ceramic.

I would mention here that the output from the ceramic pickup is quite substantial enough to be used on its own. Also, the circuitry of the black box does not "encompass" that of the guitar, so all the controls available to the player remain independent — as prior to installation. The Shadow unit only adds its sound, which is the way it should be.

Right then, OK — what does it sound like? Well, in the end I was reminded of Music Man Stingrays. Maybe not exactly in focus, but similar, for sure. The response has the same kind of stinging high treble and largeness of lows, while the middle region stays comparatively shy and retiring. The Shadow, though, with its middle-oriented tone control, is able to compensate quite well, bringing more of a piping sound into play and injecting some poke into the picture. The Shadow would be quite acceptable in most studios.

It's hard to say how much the guitar itself contributes to the sound of the Shadow. Sustaining properties aside, not much, I should think. Readers will therefore understand that the sound obtained ought to be pretty consistent, providing that your bass has a Precision-type bridge. Jazz Basses, Squiers, copies, hybrids, and a considerable number of sundry bass guitars (especially in the lower to middle price ranges) have Precision fittings.

The unit supplied had been installed on an Aria RSB bass — a likeable guitar almost in the budget class — which is Precision-like, loosely speaking, with one split pickup and passive circuitry. While the Aria was by no means dull to begin with, the mixing in of the German-made Shadow gave it a good kick down below and brightened up the harmonic content which became more clarified and juicy.

An advantage of the Shadow's workings is its non-dependence on magnetic fields, making it impervious to external electrical interference (lighting systems, radio, power sources and so on). Also, there are no polepieces to adjust, of course, and the design blends almost invisibly with the bridge of the guitar.

The black box, in its fixed position on the guitar's jack socket, is not the obstruction I feared it might be and would be unlikely to hinder most players. Each control worked well enough, but I do think that the finish and construction could have been a little better. The white insignia and legending are easy to rub off; the controls look a bit cheap and I'm not keen on the structure of the plastic box itself, the slightly ill-fitting halves of which (both models) are held together by four tiny Phillips screws.

That means battery replacement isn't the most straightforward accomplishment. So the Shadow seems rather "Empire Made", and warrants improvement. Microphony (pickup sensitivity to external knocks) and hiss from the signal booster are existent, but in practice negligible.

In view of the Shadow's subsequent performance in terms of sound, I can but recommend an audition at your local dealer. The potential is plain to see.

SHADOW maxibass pickup: £80

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