Can I be happy with a Jazz?

[Hounddog409]

Sounds to me like you should get the Jazz and experiment with strings. One may give you everything you want but I couldn't tell you which.

Outside of rounds vs flatz, this is a waste of money.

Turn nobs on bass and amp. Its free and makes a real differemce in sound/tone.

 

[Evanforbass]

No and no, thanks for asking. What I am trying to do is see if a Jazz might work in my specific circumstances, which I tried to describe. I want the majority of what my P is giving me, but also interested in a small change in "flavor" that I think a Jazz might give me. Asking this here to avoid buying a Jazz only to find out it ain't and never was do-able.

I'm mainly a P player but wanted a J that would give me a broader tonal spectrum (J's typically have more lows and highs and less mids than P), but retain a little of the P midrange if possible. I got a great deal on a MIM Player and put in Dimarzio Model Js, which are essentially J pickups for a P player. It def feels like a J bass and sits great in the band mix.

 

[JRA]

I want the majority of what my P is giving me, but also interested in a small change in "flavor" that I think a Jazz might give me. Asking this here to avoid buying a Jazz only to find out it ain't and never was do-able.

well, i wish you luck --- i come from the school of "try it and see for yourself" so i might put some stock in some folks' opinions, but i wouldn't know for sure without 'hands-on' experience. just sayin'. YMMV

I’ve played Jazz basses for 20 years and I’ve never had a problem “sitting in a mix”.

i'll see that and raise you one: i've never had a problem "sitting in the mix" with any ax!

"sitting in the mix" is a TB thing. in the real world, we do it all the time with whatever ax we've lugged to the gig.

 

[got_the_bug]

i'll see that and raise you one: i've never had a problem "sitting in the mix" with any ax!

"sitting in the mix" is a TB thing. in the real world, we do it all the time with whatever ax we've lugged to the gig.

I'll make the point again, similar to the one I think JRA is implying...

There are certain basses, with flat EQ settings, that are naturally present in a live band situation. There are others (say a Jazz with both pickups dimed) that might have an inherent midrange scoop, that can benefit from an EQ tweak for frequencies that might not be as forward. Once the EQ is adjusted appropriately, there's no problem "sitting in the mix", and it's generally not a very fiddly or difficult task.

 

[babsobass]

I've been playing a Jazz Bass since 1966. Originally had a 1965 Jazz that I bought in '66 and was stolen along with all my touring gear in 1976. Was able to find a Jazz with the same '60's slim C-shape neck with 7.5" radius in 1985 and been playing that ever since.

My '82 Jazz has a maple neck and 70's era pickup spacing. It's a little brighter sounding than my '65 was and has better sustain. I credit the sustain to the all maple neck and the brightness to the 4" center to center spacing that puts the bridge pickup closer to the bridge than the 60's and also current pickup spacing, which is 3.6" center to center.

I run my Jazz with all three knobs (Volume, Volume, Tone) maxed. It's a passive Jazz and all of those came with what they call the Grease-pot tone and volume controls. Basically there is no such thing as boosting anything. turning down those controls cuts the sound that would otherwise come through. So I keep those controls dimed and adjust my EQ at the amp. Running those all dimed will give you really nice sound, but you will want to boost the low-mids in your amp a little bit. I run both DNA and Eden amps and I boost the low-mids to about 1:30 on both of those. If you turn them up too high, your sound will honk at you, which sounds bad. If you hear that, just turn your low-mids down slowly until it disappears.

My DNA-800 amp centers the low-mids at 500Hz and my Eden amps have semi-parametric controls that I like to set to ~250Hz. Anywhere in between those will work. I've also done some recording at a pro studio where I used a WTDI (Eden DI pedal with built-in WT preamp) for the 3-hour session. You can toggle that to either 500Hz or 2.2KHz. I set it on 500Hz and the raw recording came out amazingly good, to the point the owner and the sound engineer both came out to see exactly what I was using and how I had it set.

Don't expect to get your Jazz to sound like your P-bass. It can get close, but you need to use your P-bass to get that real P-bass sound. With the Jazz, leave the neck volume at full, lower the bridge volume to about half, and then slowly turn down the tone knob until you get close to your P-bass sound.

Those low mids are really important to being heard in a mix. Bass drum owns the lower frequencies and guitars and keys own the high-mids and highs. A little boost in the low mids gives definition and presence to the bass.

So, I'd suggest you go to your local Fender dealer and pull one off wall. Plug it into an amp; set the controls of the amp flat except for running a little boost in the low mids and see how she sounds. With my Eden amps, the bass EQ is a shelving control set at 30Hz. I always leave it flat. My DNA-800 amp has the bass EQ set at 35Hz and I boost the bass to about 1 o'clock to get the same sound out of my bass EQ that I get out of the Eden amps.

Great post, thanks! Lots of good information here.

 

[babsobass]

I'm mainly a P player but wanted a J that would give me a broader tonal spectrum (J's typically have more lows and highs and less mids than P), but retain a little of the P midrange if possible. I got a great deal on a MIM Player and put in Dimarzio Model Js, which are essentially J pickups for a P player. It def feels like a J bass and sits great in the band mix.

Do the Dimarzio pickups give a less scooped sounds from the Jazz?

 

[Evanforbass]

Do the Dimarzio pickups give a less scooped sounds from the Jazz?

yes. they have more lows and mids than a typical J set and less of the bright top end (500k pots are really good for these). They got beef and punch, little less 'clang' than typical J. I really enjoy them for rock music.

 

[Evanforbass]

Do the Dimarzio pickups give a less scooped sounds from the Jazz?

this is a good comparison. I can hear an increase in midrange in the Model J. They both sound awesome but my conclusion listening to both was that the Model J would likely sit better/ in a band mix having more mids. To my ear, you lose some of the zingy high eqs, but it still sounds very J to me and I dont know if I love the zigy topend of some Js anyway?

 

[Rip Van Dan]

Great post, thanks! Lots of good information here.

I forgot to mention that I almost never go back to the amp to change the EQ once I have it set where I like it with my plucking hand plucking the strings a bit in front of the neck pickup. If I need the sound to be darker I move my plucking position up towards or even over the heel of the neck. If I need a brighter sound, I'll move my plucking hand farther back towards the bridge pickups. If I want my Jazz to growl, I'll dig into the strings right over or even slightly behind the bridge pickup. You'll be surprised how much changing your string-plucking position will change the sound you get out your bass.

That's all because you have two different pickups producing different sounds because of their placement. This works a little with a single pickup such as your split pickups on you P-bass, but nothing like it does with a Jazz with both pickups turned all the way up.

 

[Avezzano]

I forgot to mention that I almost never go back to the amp to change the EQ once I have it set where I like it with my plucking hand plucking the strings a bit in front of the neck pickup. If I need the sound to be darker I move my plucking position up towards or even over the heel of the neck. If I need a brighter sound, I'll move my plucking hand farther back towards the bridge pickups. If I want my Jazz to growl, I'll dig into the strings right over or even slightly behind the bridge pickup. You'll be surprised how much changing your string-plucking position will change the sound you get out your bass.

That's all because you have two different pickups producing different sounds because of their placement. This works a little with a single pickup such as your split pickups on you P-bass, but nothing like it does with a Jazz with both pickups turned all the way up.

/\ This! So true.

To the OP: man, you better bring at home a Jazz bass soon, otherwise this thread is going to last longer than... a transoceanic cruise!

 

[Outbush]

I am sure you will like the Jazz if you already have a Precision.
Choosing the third bass will be more difficult.

There would be some around here who would assert it would be a Stingray; No?

 

[babsobass]

/\ This! So true.

To the OP: man, you better bring at home a Jazz bass soon, otherwise this thread is going to last longer than... a transoceanic cruise!

Affording a Jazz that I want is the challenge right now! I have my heart set on an MIA Jazz bass.

There would be some around here who would assert it would be a Stingray; No?

I have ALWAYS been curious about the MM sound and playability. I'd probably go with the Sterling if I was inclined to go that direction.