Looking at new "Jazz" basses - I am not impressed...

[bmc]

Have you tried Levinson Blade? They're A Swiss based company that make great Jazz basses and they have good distribution in Europe.

[backup]

you know i got to agree with some of the comments. recently ive been to a shop to try out amps and i used the same jazz bass model (squier vm) that i own and i was suprised by the difference.
i would also say that my bass guitar has a lot of life to it, a certain natural and wooden tone. the guitar in the shop sounded sterile to me.

now some folks say tone improves by age but i dont know. what i can say for sure is that your prefered strings and set up make more of a difference then we would like to admit

[lowphatbass]

Have you considered getting another MIJ Jazz bass? There are a few sellers on ebay out of Japan that regularly have older MIJ Fenders who ship worldwide. The descriptions are very honest and accurate, great photos, etc. Based on what you're describing a nice, lightweight, resonant and seasoned MIJ from the late 80's to mid 90's may be just the ticket.

[Green1]

I would save your money and check out Nordstrand, Sadowsky, Alleva Coppolo, Mike Lull, Valenti. There are a lot of makers out there that make great jazz basses, happy hunting!

[Tajue17]

Originally Posted by meatwad

I wish more people understood this, rather than hating on an entire brand, or line, because of a few poorly setup off-the-rack examples.

Yes,,, all day long... fender strings just plain ole suk,, then the pickup heights are always at the lowest,, I have mine brought to correct height and they come alive....

what baffles me is he tried many different brands and came to the same conclusion they all sound dead,,,, seriously he might want try something with a nice active pre-amp and once sweet spotted I bet he'll find the golden goose..

[seang15]

Originally Posted by AlexanderB

Thanks for all the comments! It seems that some (discriminating) people here know exactly what I mean!

I even brought a couple of the basses home with me and spent more time with then (including a full setup); the Geddy Lee and the RBX4 A2.
The Geddy Lee (MIJ) developed a dead spot in the common position + a truss rod rattle once I set the relief to Fender's spec. (It was way off from the box.) The neck also had a mild case of ski-jump so the strings could not be lowered to spec (where is where I prefer them) without rattling when playing the upper frets. Neck was very unstable and flexed a lot. My JV neck is only slightly thicker but much stiffer in comparison.

RBX4 A2 is a very intresting instrument. Open strings sound very good and sustain well, fretted notes up to fifth, sixth fret still sound good but then the tone gets gradually duller and worse. It is also suffers from dead-ish spots/range in the same style many Fender Jazzes do. Not just at the G-string but the corresponding notes on D and A. In general the bass sounded more and more bland the higher notes one played. Bottom end and low mids were also much less authoritative than any Fender I have heard.

Both the GL and Yamaha had a different voicing of the PU than I prefer. To "throaty" and dark, especially compared to the 2012 Jazzes. Those CS PU are good - I really agree with you on that.

By the way, I did also try the MIM 60s Classic and felt it equally lacking.

I guess I will try to find a second hand G&L or Lakland then. Or to look for a vintage Squier or Fender.

Nobody has asked the obvious questions yet: for one, what guitar shop is letting you take these basses home? And maybe more alarming: who is letting you adjust truss rods, string height, etc. on their basses??

[mellowinman]

Originally Posted by seang15

Nobody has asked the obvious questions yet: for one, what guitar shop is letting you take these basses home? And maybe more alarming: who is letting you adjust truss rods, string height, etc. on their basses??

You did, and you made a great call!

[Toptube]

Originally Posted by AlexanderB

I am looking for a new Jazz bass but I can not find any good instruments. What I want is a traditional four string, two passive single coils, no preamp, narrow and thin neck.
It does not have to be a Fender but I started by playing as many of their models as possible.

Then I widened my search and looked at Sandberg, Ibanez, Yamaha etc.

There was not ONE bass I wanted. Not one. And the problem is the same for all of them. They all sound "dead" - no resonanse, no "life" to the tone, many with pronounced dead spot issues to boot.

I spent at least a couple of hours and tried the lot; American Standard Jazz, Geddy Lee, Aerodyne, Roadworn, Mexican Standard, -75VRI (ash) + the Yamaha RB..., BB and RBX4 A2 etc etc. I played through the same amp/speaker setup I use at home. (LMII + Ampeg SVT-410HLF.) I adjusted string height to my preferences on the basses I hade some interest in, BTW.

The Fender basses I already own (Squier JV -82 Precision, Fender Jazz bass Plus V -94) are so much better it is not even funny, especially the Squier. It really sings in every position on the fretboard, has lots of sustain and almost no dead spot. Those of you that have played good vintage basses know exactly what it is like!
I had brought my JV to the shop for reference and the sales guy tried it and could only agree - he had nothing to match its quality and tone. And no, he could not buy it...


Where should I go next? Suggestions?
Price wise I do not really want to go higher than the Swedish price of the American Standard, about €1500.
Should I forget about new instruments and look for a vintage one? Or will a current, dead-ish Jazz develop into a more resonant instrument by use and time?

Track down a made in Japan/crafted in Japan Fender Jaguar from 2006 - 2010 (I think that's when they discontinued them). Then, never turn on the pre-amp.

[uOpt]

What you want to try is the reissues, MIM, MIJ or MIA. They are IMHO much better than the respective "standards". Obviously details largely depend on the year made and individual instrument. But given what you have it isn't surprising that a standard or AM standard couldn't rock your boat.

[Dredmahawkus]

I am surprised the 75 reissue you tried sucked....they are really nice and sing! maybe Fender is sending all the duds to Sweden! That is the bass I think I am getting next. check out some youtube videos and listen to the ones people have.

[cfsporn]

The best jazz I have ever played is a Lakland Skyline 44-60. It looks good too!

[Munjibunga]

Sounds like the OP doesn't like jazz basses. I'd suggest buying something else.

[Catbuster]

Originally Posted by Munjibunga

Sounds like the OP doesn't like jazz basses. I'd suggest buying something else.

It really does, doesn't it?

[Bassbubble11]

Have you tried the Squier Classic Vibe 60's Jazz?

[James L]

Check out MBasses. I have an Mj5 and this thing sings in all registers,it's light, and very comfortable. Jon is a great guy to work with and his prices are fair. mbasses.com

[jlepre]

What's the average price for a 5 string?

[seang15]

Originally Posted by Munjibunga

Sounds like the OP doesn't like jazz basses. I'd suggest buying something else.

This.

[seang15]

Originally Posted by cfsporn

The best jazz I have ever played is a Lakland Skyline 44-60. It looks good too!

Wow this is pretty!

[James L]

Originally Posted by jlepre

What's the average price for a 5 string?

If you're wondering about Mbasses, mine was $2700.00 that was with a pre-amp bartolini pick ups and a badass bridge that was a pain in the ass to get (Leo quan stopped production). A passive bass might be around the $2500 dollar range. Don't hold me to that, call Jon and ask him.

[DiabolicLow B]

Hard to come by but check out the Dingwall Super J, they come in 4 and 5 string and active or passive. The active models are active\passive with tone control in passive mode, pretty hard to beat as far as jazz bass go and a little pricey but worth every $$!