Anyone tried EMG JHz (passive) pickups?

Jeremiah

Ok, so here's the story….

I tried replacing the stock pickups on my Washburn 5-string with the DiMarzio Area J5 set because I thought I wanted a more "vintage" sound. (The stock pickups look similar to EMGs with sealed covers and no visible pole pieces)

Turns out I don't like the DiMarzios very much, mostly because string balance is terrible. I suspect that this may be because my bass has much narrower string spacing than is normal for a 5-string, so the strings don't line up with the magnets very well. Because of this, I'm only interested in pickups with a 'blade' type pole piece in future so that string spacing doesn't matter.

I've now reinstalled the stock pickups, and while there's nothing wrong with them, they are a bit bland (plus I like messing around with my guitars trying to get them to sound better.)

So, my dilemma is;

1. Does it matter? I'm not a real bass player, and maybe the difference between different bass pickups isn't worth worrying about when they're in a mix and are largely swamped by the other instruments.

2. If I do decide to have another go at replacing them, would the EMG Hz set be an upgrade over the stock pickups? EMG passive pickups don't generally have a great reputation (and some don't like the actives either.)

3. To what extent would it be worth trying some more upmarket replacements, e.g. Bartolini, Delano, or active EMGs, which would cost a lot more?

Short version for anyone who can't be bothered to read the above: Have you tried the EMG JHz pickups and do you think they would be an upgrade over stock pickups in a relatively cheap bass?