Best Bass for Blues?

[lowdownwalt]

I already own a Fender 62 reissue Jazz which does the job for blues and I'm thinking of upgrading pups to the Stan Hinesley "Hot J's".

Also thinking about a Sadowsky MS5... MV5 or Lakland 55-02
Which are the better for Blues?

Choices....

 

[no1likesme]

a blue one

 

[3toes]

I like the sound of a good P-bass for hard blues like SRV or Hendrix and the like. That or a nice hollowbody.

 

[Stumbo]

What's your rig setup?
What type of strings?

 

[RickenBoogie]

A P bass would be the classic choice, be different, try a Ric.

 

[dean82]

IMO the 62 RI is all the bass you need for the blues. IME it boils down to your hands and stage rig for the most part. I have a friend that plays blues in a 3 piece with a Modulus Q5/Aggie tube amp. It sounds as blues as you can get to my ears, so basically I wouldn't change from your Fender unless you just want a different bass for the sake of playing something new (which I can certainly understand..G.A.S!)

 

[lowdownwalt]

IMO the 62 RI is all the bass you need for the blues. IME it boils down to your hands and stage rig for the most part. I have a friend that plays blues in a 3 piece with a Modulus Q5/Aggie tube amp. It sounds as blues as you can get to my ears, so basically I wouldn't change from your Fender unless you just want a different bass for the sake of playing something new (which I can certainly understand..G.A.S!)

Yup!

I agree on the G.A.S. thing.... mmmmm....

My little Jazz bass does the the job along with My Shuttle 6.0 112T and especially when I add my GB NEOX 112... 2 twelves can do some pretty serious thumping.

 

[Baird6869]

I like the sound of a good P-bass for hard blues like SRV or Hendrix and the like.

+1.

But my Sadowsky MS5 is getting gigged these days and does SRV, ZZ Top and the like as good if not better than my 1974 or '97 62RI basses.

To the OP... I sold a 55-02 to partially fund my MS5. Very glad I did!

 

[lowdownwalt]

+1.

But my Sadowsky MS5 is getting gigged these days and does SRV, ZZ Top and the like as good if not better than my 1974 or '97 62RI basses.

To the OP... I sold a 55-02 to partially fund my MS5. Very glad I did!

No doubt!!

When does the G.A.S. end?

 

[Sparkdog]

Which is what I used for a very long time, but that was before I got my Lakland 55-01. Not your traditional blues instrument to be sure, but has definitely become my favorite.

The reason is that I get all the down and dirty bottom of the P, but can dial in even more. And when I play something like "Texas Flood" by SRV, I can walk that line down the B string and it just rattles your soul.

Isn't that what the blues is all about?

I got the raised eyebrow the first time I used it (blues guitarists are a pretty conservative bunch) but once they heard it, no more explanations needed

 

[mdiddium]

I like the sound of a good P-bass for hard blues like SRV or Hendrix and the like. That or a nice hollowbody.

My Lakland Hollowbody does blues VERY well. It just depends if you want the classic P-bass tone or something a little more unique such as the hollowbody tone.

 

[Stumbo]

Put some Noiseless JBass pickups in your bass so you can dial in the neck pickup vibe, like the PBAss.

 

[Mushroo]

I like my EB-0 for blues.

 

[lowdownwalt]

Put some Noiseless JBass pickups in your bass so you can dial in the neck pickup vibe, like the PBAss.

I agree... I'm thinking Stan Hinesley split J noiseless.

 

[Pako]

I've been getting down and dirty with my Sadowsky Metro Jazz. 60/40 to the bridge pickup with the vintage tone control at 85% attenuation running through my IP series Berg rig and it's "the tone" I've been looking for. Finger style for what it's worth.

 

[Mastermold]

I've found there's no better blues bass than the Fender Precision. Lots of other basses can come close, but the P-Bass tone really owns the blues.

 

[lonote]

I play nothing but blues. I have 2 P-Basses, 2 J-style basses (1 active and 1 passive) and an Ibanez AGB-140 (long scale, semi-hollow). They all get used and they all work well. If somebody put a gun to my head and made me choose just 1, I would say my P-Bass with the bridge cover stuffed with foam rubber...big thump, rapid decay, very upright-like. As I said, though, they all work very well and they all get plenty of stage time.

 

[ClassicJazz]

What you currently use is by far the best. Even better, take the frets off of your '62. I use a '62 RI fretless in my blues band and it is perfect. I have a Sadowsky and owned a Lakland. Both great basses but too modern sounding. If I am going to do funk, for sure the Sadowsky!

Here is me playing my Fender '62 RI fretless at a show recently with Florida blues legend Mr. Joey Gilmore on guitar.

 

[lonote]

I played a MIJ fretless Jazz for years and it was a fine bass for blues.

 

[Pilgrim]

Which are the better for Blues?

I would say: the well-played bass is best for blues. IMO when played well, brand is not material.

Since you already own a Jazz, I'd say you're set. That's one of the best all-purpose basses ever made.