Which Fender will give me the best classic P-bass sound?

[BillyIVbass]

I'm trying to decide between a:

Fender MIM Standard

Fender US Highway One P-bass

Fender US Special

Fender US Standard

What I want:

The bass that will give me the more cliche P-bass sound. I am by far a fan of the Jazz Bass sound for live playing both for it's sound and slim neck, but I want to pickup a P-bass to have for when I need something different.

[ksandvik]

Highway One has a BadassII bridge and somewhat hot pickups for a more modern rock sound, so that eliminates this model.

[anomalybass]

fender sells vintage 76? RI MIA basses..full on w nitrocellulose finish and period spec parts and finish/color options..ive never played one, but if you are looking for a faithfull vintage P tone id guess thatd be the way to go..just my 2cents...im a J player myself and i was really close to buying the vintage series j bass but found a good deal on an orig 65 jazz and bought it instead..gcenter prob has the basses im talking about..i dont know your budget but ive found alot of original 70s P basses going for pretty cheap online...-joep

[DJ Bebop]

Fender Classic 60's series P bass or, Road Worn.

[john nam]

'51 P bass reissue with single coil p pickups, but hum might be an issue.

[PJRL]

I would look for a USED 62 or 57 US vintage P bass, you can get one of those for about the same as a new USA standard P. The road worn is MIM electronics, They look OK but I think a lok of folks replace the P-ups and such on them. I'd go for something better for the money.
Used Fender US Vintage gets my vote, I found a 57 P for a great deal and it needs nothing.

[thmsjordan]

Originally Posted by BillyIVbass

I'm trying to decide between a:

Fender MIM Standard

Fender US Highway One P-bass

Fender US Special

Fender US Standard

What I want:

The bass that will give me the more cliche P-bass sound. I am by far a fan of the Jazz Bass sound for live playing both for it's sound and slim neck, but I want to pickup a P-bass to have for when I need something different.

By classic - do you mean James Jamerson? Pink Floyd?

Classic Motown style is a matter mostly of the flatwound strings, and a foam mute, along with the classic Ampeg B15. Other Cliche' P bass sounds are achieved in other ways. Not sure which 'cliche' you are askin for here.

[ljazz]

The AmStd P ('08+) is a great bass, but achieving a more "classic" P tone is benefitted greatly by installing the "Original P" (the '62 RI one) pup. I did in mine, and the difference was perfect. The tone was re-focused on the low mids, and much less wide sounding (like the std pup).

[mongo2]

Any P basss with a bent plate bridge, flats, and swap in a Duncan Antiquity pickup.

[cobbster]

Make sure you use flats and mute at the bridge with foam. You will be amazed.

[DJ Bebop]

Originally Posted by PJRL

I would look for a USED 62 or 57 US vintage P bass, you can get one of those for about the same as a new USA standard P. The road worn is MIM electronics, They look OK but I think a lok of folks replace the P-ups and such on them. I'd go for something better for the money.
Used Fender US Vintage gets my vote, I found a 57 P for a great deal and it needs nothing.

I like the FEEL of the Road Worn, that is very good but, yeah you would have to spend about 60 to 70 bucks and some solder time
to put in a 62 RI pickup to get it up to specks but, to me that's a very nice option to get an almost Custom shop feel for little money

But that's just me

....and yes, don't forget the foam rubber mute on any P for the old school thump.

[DJ Bebop]

Originally Posted by mongo2

Any P basss with a bent plate bridge, flats, and swap in a Duncan Antiquity pickup.

....but yes, it really comes down to this ^^^^ or, with whatever pickup you think has "the sound" IMHO too!

[electracoyote]

The Standards.

[hdracer]

Try a Lakland 44-51 Skyline.
I have played a couple of them a few times.
They out Fender a Fender.

[DJ Bebop]

Originally Posted by ljazz

The AmStd P ('08+) is a great bass, but achieving a more "classic" P tone is benefitted greatly by installing the "Original P" (the '62 RI one) pup. I did in mine, and the difference was perfect. The tone was re-focused on the low mids, and much less wide sounding (like the std pup).

I did the same thing with an SX P bass!

[chuck norriss]

51 or Sting model will get you to the other end of the Fender bass spectrum. The old fashioned bridge makes a difference but I think any P will get you there as long as it doesn't have modern amenities--i.e. you have to be selective about pickups & bridge. And flatwounds certainly help.

[sigmafloyd]

Can someone chime in on how the newer hmv bridge takes away from the classic sound?

[DJ Bebop]

Originally Posted by sigmafloyd

Can someone chime in on how the newer hmv bridge takes away from the classic sound?

IMHO for a classic sound the newer high mass bridge adds too much sustain No really, they sound good, almost too good for a so call classic tone. Some people say there's no differences, others say it make all the difference in the world. YMMV

[gigslut]

Another vote here for the '62 RI pickup. I have a MIM with it and CTS pots. I get plenty of compliments on the tone. It sounds great live and tracks even better. One engineer called me after a session to pick my brains. He wanted to have a bass in house that would give him that sound. He was quite surprised to find out my bass didn't cost a fortune.

[Jeff K]

Don't discount the Classic '50s or Roadworn P's.