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Deep Thoughts on Jazz Basses

#81
The Bass Clef said:
I don't agree that it's "better", but what works for you is all that matters. I actually prefer to record with Ps most of the time, but usually prefer playing Jazzes live.
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Recording P sounds better and for live there are lots of other bass manufacturers that have interesting sounds and better necks than a J and of course - IMO.
 
#84
chris_b said:
If you run a Jazz with both pickups on full they do a weird cancellation thing. You get less volume, so I run the neck pickup full and the bridge pickup just dialled back from full. After that the EQ options on my Jazz gives it an unlimited variety of tones.

I'm sure the P bass is a 1 trick pony if that's all you can get out of it. Other tricks are available but it's down to the player to find them.
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This is what I found with my jazz 'style' bass, I'd turn em both up full blast, then back the bridge pickup off a hair.

If I wanted it darker on a particular song I'd turn the bridge pickup off.
 
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#85
The Bass Clef said:
I pretty much always run both pickups on full and I use the tone knob to get the right amount of clarity, or definition, or whatever you call it for the line I’m playing... usually tone is about 1/2 way up for fingers or pick, and about 3/4 to full for slappy stuff. If I want the Jaco finger punch, I’ll pluck over the bridge p/u and it gets me in that world. I don’t solo the bridge p/u like Jaco though, the full blast “zipper” just isn’t my thing. If it’s yours, please by all means, zip away. I’d say 95% of my playing is over the neck p/u (and both p/us volumes on full). That’s just THE sound of a Jazz bass for me, and what I feel is the best sound I pull out of a Jazz for the majority of normal everyday playing.

I look at a P Bass as a simple, one trick pony because it is, and it does that one trick wonderfully. And I look at a Jazz as more of a 3 trick pony... neck p/u solo’ed is the ”P Bass impersonation”. It’s cool. I’d rather have a P Bass, but it’ll do. Both p/us is THE jazz bass tone. Period. (insert obligatory “your mileage may vary” here, as not to offend someone who feels differently about their Jazz Bass tone). And then there’s the solo bridge p/u “Jaco zipper”. All the different volume knob combos in-between are basically irrelevant in the mix of the band, to me anyway. It’s those 3 that pop out as the clear “tricks” that a Jazz Bass does... And for me, the middle “trick” is the only one that I really care to use. I love that trick.
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I usually run my RW 60s J with both pups full on. If I am playing live I may even back the bridge pickup off slightly, which gives a volume boost. But with earphones in the bedroom its both full on with tone control off. I try and emulate Tim Schmit's tone since that's my favorite. The TI flats help too:-)
 
#86
I've gone round and round with basses over the years and ultimately have come down to one conclusion: For me bass tone is at its best when it's an active Jazz or Jazz-style bass wearing fresh light gauge GHS Balanced Nickels. Nothing else sounds even close to my ears anymore. Every now and then I'll buy a bass that does something different only to play it for a while, then leave it on a wall hanger for a few months and then ultimately sell it. Obviously YMMV.
 
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#87
There are a ton of sounds on both basses. A lot of it is technical hand adjustments. On my jazz I run what the song needs but my main positions are equal blend, slight favoring of neck pickup or mostly bridge pickup. On both basses, it’s tone control and plucking anywhere from 12 th fret to the bridge.
 
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#88
The Bass Clef said:
Jazzes and Ps both have pickups that are made out of magnets stuck into bobbins with wire wrapped around them. It’s a simple design for both basses with nothing fundamentally different about them except for the shapes of the pickups. I’d really like to know how you came to the conclusion that a P offers more touch sensitivity than a Jazz? Of course a P has a different tone (which I equally like) than a Jazz, but if I play either bass lightly or harder, the resulting sound responds to my touch. Exactly how is a P different to you in that regard?
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For me, I tend to pick basses based on their tone and when I'm in a "Fender mood" I tend to gravitate towards the P-bass more than Jazz basses because that low-mid thing is pretty distinct, maybe more "distinct" than a Jazz bass? Everyone is going to have their preference of course. Most of the time I'm not playing either Fender, I'm usually playing one of my Kay basses.
 
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#89
A lot depends on whether the PU's are single coil or humbuckers. I for one hate the 60 cycle hum, even in the presence of a noise suppression pedal. When playing a single-coiled J-Bass I will always equalize the volume across both PU's. When playing with vertically stacked humbucker PU's I blend in any volume combinations my heart desires.

I've gone further, I've had my guitar tech install humbucker PU's on my MIA J-Bass and changed the electronics/ pots from VVT to VBT (Volume-Blend-Tone). Works like a charm for me.
 
#91
The Bass Clef said:
I pretty much always run both pickups on full and I use the tone knob to get the right amount of clarity, or definition, or whatever you call it for the line I’m playing... usually tone is about 1/2 way up for fingers or pick, and about 3/4 to full for slappy stuff. If I want the Jaco finger punch, I’ll pluck over the bridge p/u and it gets me in that world. I don’t solo the bridge p/u like Jaco though, the full blast “zipper” just isn’t my thing. If it’s yours, please by all means, zip away. I’d say 95% of my playing is over the neck p/u (and both p/us volumes on full). That’s just THE sound of a Jazz bass for me, and what I feel is the best sound I pull out of a Jazz for the majority of normal everyday playing.

I look at a P Bass as a simple, one trick pony because it is, and it does that one trick wonderfully. And I look at a Jazz as more of a 3 trick pony... neck p/u solo’ed is the ”P Bass impersonation”. It’s cool. I’d rather have a P Bass, but it’ll do. Both p/us is THE jazz bass tone. Period. (insert obligatory “your mileage may vary” here, as not to offend someone who feels differently about their Jazz Bass tone). And then there’s the solo bridge p/u “Jaco zipper”. All the different volume knob combos in-between are basically irrelevant in the mix of the band, to me anyway. It’s those 3 that pop out as the clear “tricks” that a Jazz Bass does... And for me, the middle “trick” is the only one that I really care to use. I love that trick.
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I’m not so sure I agree with a PB being a one trick pony. For instance, There is not much commonality between James Jamerson work at Motown, John Entwhitsle’s work on live at Leads, or Duck Dunn, or Ray Schulman for that matter.

Personally, I found PBs to be very easy to work with in the studio and quite adaptable depending on musical styles, the string types, not to mention how and where you pluck the strings.

As for the Jazz, it’s also a great bass, but don’t expect it to provide what a PB does. I’ll agree it is a completely different animal, especially notable in the studio, but just might be preferable for live performances over a PB as it will provide just a bit more punch and it tend to have a little more of a mid range hump to it that helps it sit in the mix inn an ensemble setting.
 
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#93
Fun thread! I love the sound of a Jazz with both pickups full-on, and I often used to play that way at home. But that "cancelled" thing never worked for me in any live situation involving an electric guitar. After a while I got sick of constantly fiddling with the volume knobs to find the balance I liked. These days I really can't gig without an active bass with a master volume, so I'm jazz-less for the foreseeable future.
 
#94
micguy said:
That "flaw" has nothing to do with the pickups. It's the backwards dual volume controls in the VVT circuit that do that. Thy're wired as shunts, not potentiometers, because you can't really do it the right way and have two volume controls. As such, they're both tone and volume controls - unless they're full up, you get a tone cut at high frequencies.
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thank you!
 
#96
For the past 10 years, I have taken this approach: use a bass with a great “middle of the road” tone, perhaps somewhat neutral, and adjust the technique to suit the music. Both of my basses are passive, single pickup instruments that sound completely different and are well-suited for this approach.

I am now acquiring a third bass, an active J-type, that will be my widget, chameleon, J of all genres bass. The filtering, phase cancellation characteristic is something that will remain as part of the flavor, but I will be installing a John East Uni-pre to do the buffered blend approach to eliminate the effects of loading and provide more useable blend ratios.

Otherwise, my approach to the J is very similar to the OP’s
 
#99
All three knobs dimed and then...
IMG_2330.JPG

This....
 

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