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Anyone convert their P to a PJ and regretted it?
- Thread starter FishDub
- Start date
I did it to a parts bass. Never used the J pickup. It became a thumb rest. For me the sound blended was not better than a P alone, and the J alone was not a sound I enjoyed.
In the end, put in some Novak H22 pickups in and am much happier with the result.
Just my 2 cents. YMMV
In the end, put in some Novak H22 pickups in and am much happier with the result.
Just my 2 cents. YMMV
I've had PJ basses and never liked any of them. I'd rather have the Precision pickups alone.
BUT if I had things my way I would convert my Precision to Jazz pickups, and that's that. Turns out that I unfortunately LOVE the jazz pups tone but can't live with the offset body of the Jazz Bass.
As a matter of fact I have a nice set of jazz pickups here waiting for me to build up nerve to go do the mod...
BUT if I had things my way I would convert my Precision to Jazz pickups, and that's that. Turns out that I unfortunately LOVE the jazz pups tone but can't live with the offset body of the Jazz Bass.
As a matter of fact I have a nice set of jazz pickups here waiting for me to build up nerve to go do the mod...
In a world overflowing with cheap P/J basses it does
This hondo body was originally a P bass..added an old set of Barts and a SD bridge pup to it back in the 80's, and for that extra bite, it definitely helped and i played this for yrs before i bought a J in 05'... Maybe it all depends on our tonal wants and needs of the time. things change over the years.
I love all three configurations and enjoy them for their merits but would never modify one. I don't even replace pups or bridges anymore. I did only for my Sons mini P to give it a less toyish sound and feel. I'm with whoever mentioned the Yamaha BBs, but currently having a honeymoon with a Fender Jaguar bass which is a great PJ option. If money is an issue then I highly recommend a Yamaha TRB174 I love mine! I would say to the OP that if the bass in question doesn't sound great as a P by itself then maybe a well done mod to add a J might be in order, but if it sounds good by itself I wouldn't do it.
It sounds like it REALLY suits you as is, so leave really-well-enough alone !
BTW, I've owned several 'reversed P' basses, and some hear a difference and some don't. Personally I heard nothing that would make me 'reversed or nothing' as far as having to have it on another bass one day.
The catch with PJ's is guys often just pick a J pickup and decide to throw it in back there, then yap about how they don't like PJ's afterward.
THIS JUST IN: You want PJ's in a matched set. Otherwise you're asking a usually lower output single coil (relative to the humbucking P pickup) put further back towards the bridge (which can lower output as the string is moving in smaller patterns and making less energy vs. out where the P sits).
The smarter aftermarket pickup makers like Seymour, Fralin, EMG, and others sell matched or calibrated PJ sets, one that springs to mind is the well-recieved Geezer set from EMG, about which you hear few complaints.
Or, you can buy it 'turn key', in any of the Yamaha BB's (although there are other good ones). Yamaha figured out the blend back in the 80's and you hear few complaints about PJ tone in BB's. The ESP/LTD reissue Surveyors and AP basses offer well considered pickup sets as well, and there's more out there.
A P is a P. A J is a J. And a third option is the mix of the 2 is the PJ. All useful, but all different.
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Years ago I mulled adding a J pickup to my '75 Precision. After owning a few PJs over the years--my favorite is my American Jaguar bass--I am so glad I did not go down that road. There's something hollow and nasal running the P and the J together and I struggle to get the appeal. The only upside would be the ability to run the J solo, although as a player who always uses some dirt single coils are tough for me. It's hard to understate how good a single P style pickup is.
I've done this mod many times, and it was pretty standard practice back in the day when I worked in guitar shops. Nothing wrong with a single P pickup, but adding a J bridge pickup adds a lot of tonal options, and opens the door to a lot more if you add series-parallel options, inline caps, phasing, etc. If you wire the bass using shunt style volume controls instead of the standard voltage dividers, you can isolate the p pickup so it sounds identical to a single p when the bridge pickup is turned off. Using a 3-way switch or increasing the volume pots to 500K in parallel will also give you single p tone. I think adding more variety is a good thing, but downsides would be adding complexity, cosmetics or reducing the value of a vintage instrument.
You may like the G&L tribute jazz bass..It has a P body with two j pickups.I've had PJ basses and never liked any of them. I'd rather have the Precision pickups alone.
BUT if I had things my way I would convert my Precision to Jazz pickups, and that's that. Turns out that I unfortunately LOVE the jazz pups tone but can't live with the offset body of the Jazz Bass.
As a matter of fact I have a nice set of jazz pickups here waiting for me to build up nerve to go do the mod...
I didn't convert but I switched and yes, mostly regret it. I really never use the J pickup because I like the P pickup full on and you have to reduce the P pickup to about 70% output for the J pickup to register even a little. FYI using Aguilar PJ set.
However…If you're looking for a slightly punchier jaco sound, with the P pickup at 50% and the J at 100% it will give you that. Unfortunately that's not for me.
I think PJ's are better for jazz bass bridge pickup players looking for a little more umph rather than P players looking to add some midrange or top end.
However…If you're looking for a slightly punchier jaco sound, with the P pickup at 50% and the J at 100% it will give you that. Unfortunately that's not for me.
I think PJ's are better for jazz bass bridge pickup players looking for a little more umph rather than P players looking to add some midrange or top end.
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Around 1993, I acquired a 75-ish P-Bass for $190. It was a perfectly great P Bass aside from the 1mm thick clear coat Fender was using on their natural finish in those days. I stripped the plexiglas finish, routed for a J pickup, refin'd with French Polish, and gigged that bass for about 5 more years. After I sold it, it turned up here on TB; at which point I had to own up to my "sins."
That was the last legit bass on which I ever did non-reversible mods.
That bass actually played pretty well, aside from the unbalanced single coil. And, I always felt that the magnetic pull on the strings from the J pickup degraded the sound I got from the P pickup. It was just a very different bass after the mod. I believe the TB'er who picked up the bass returned it to its correct condition.
And, they all lived happily ever after.
That was the last legit bass on which I ever did non-reversible mods.
That bass actually played pretty well, aside from the unbalanced single coil. And, I always felt that the magnetic pull on the strings from the J pickup degraded the sound I got from the P pickup. It was just a very different bass after the mod. I believe the TB'er who picked up the bass returned it to its correct condition.
And, they all lived happily ever after.
I haven't. but I've owned a few PJs and I've modded enough basses to agree with Chris b's sentiment; I'd rather find a bass that sounds right off the rack than roll the dice on a modding bass I like as it already is.
The PJ's I've owned I always like well enough, but don't seem to hang around long. I think the tone is useful for thick mixes- heavy rock, or big funk bands- and I just don't play enough of those styles to need that tone in a regular basis.
The PJ's I've owned I always like well enough, but don't seem to hang around long. I think the tone is useful for thick mixes- heavy rock, or big funk bands- and I just don't play enough of those styles to need that tone in a regular basis.
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I've had a J and a P bass, although good neither was versatile enough in their individual right.
Then Macca's Yahama and Bernard Edwards "Good Times" made me notice the reverse P. Lee Sklar confirmed it.
Reduce the bottom end for E & A, replace it on the preamp, and D & A have a better bottom than before. Logic. Leo F agreed.
Between seasons of prerecording TV talent shows, Í converted my EMG hotrod to reverse P, and the difference was proved to me. The new mixes were better than earlier.
But I still wanted the growl and roar of the J as well. My last hotrod was a reverse P (70s Fender) and a SD hot stack J.
I wired it stereo out to mix then individually. I got a P sound unaltered, and the choice of adding J attributes separately mixed or together. That gave me 3 or 4 useful sounds.
Coil tap the PUs for more. Wrap shield the P and coaxial shield the wiring for still better. Still my no 1 bass.
There's no need to convert a good P or J; plenty of coys make them already. The good ones are usually active. Stuart Sender and Nick Fyffe (Jamiroquai live) show them off well.
The problem is you can't just add a Fender J to a Fender P and expect humbucking - the J must be self-humbucking ie a double coil eg a stack. Other smaller issues as well.
Whatever you choose, the PJ sound is not (yet) classic, it is a blend of the best of P and J, and different from expectations. We've all heard it on You Get What You Give - New Radicals. Listen to the fat bottom end of the P and the drive of the J.
To me it's the next development stage of the Fender bass. And don't listen with your eyes - it's ugly.
Then Macca's Yahama and Bernard Edwards "Good Times" made me notice the reverse P. Lee Sklar confirmed it.
Reduce the bottom end for E & A, replace it on the preamp, and D & A have a better bottom than before. Logic. Leo F agreed.
Between seasons of prerecording TV talent shows, Í converted my EMG hotrod to reverse P, and the difference was proved to me. The new mixes were better than earlier.
But I still wanted the growl and roar of the J as well. My last hotrod was a reverse P (70s Fender) and a SD hot stack J.
I wired it stereo out to mix then individually. I got a P sound unaltered, and the choice of adding J attributes separately mixed or together. That gave me 3 or 4 useful sounds.
Coil tap the PUs for more. Wrap shield the P and coaxial shield the wiring for still better. Still my no 1 bass.
There's no need to convert a good P or J; plenty of coys make them already. The good ones are usually active. Stuart Sender and Nick Fyffe (Jamiroquai live) show them off well.
The problem is you can't just add a Fender J to a Fender P and expect humbucking - the J must be self-humbucking ie a double coil eg a stack. Other smaller issues as well.
Whatever you choose, the PJ sound is not (yet) classic, it is a blend of the best of P and J, and different from expectations. We've all heard it on You Get What You Give - New Radicals. Listen to the fat bottom end of the P and the drive of the J.
To me it's the next development stage of the Fender bass. And don't listen with your eyes - it's ugly.
