difficult to play with bridge/pickup covers?

[anonymous073020131]

Can't you swap the plate for one of the more traditional bent plate ones? Those kinds of bridges are pretty cheap... I'm surprised the guys at the shop didn't just sell you one.

Actually, he did offer to sell me a new bridge that a bridge cover would fit over. But apparently, the bridge on my CV Jazz is slightly bigger than the standard fender bridge (it was an allparts fender replacement bridge that he used to compare). He claimed that installing this new bridge would affect my string spacing- can anyone confirm or deny that? Thanks a ton.

 

[Ten Four One]

That does sound a little odd, but a lot of things about squire basses is a little odd. There are traditional style bridge out there with variable string spacing, but you're probably better off leaving the original on there if the spacing will change too much.

 

[Gearhead43]

I always take off any covers, like I just did with my new SX Jazz. They just get in my way, and I like to be able to pluck the strings in different areas to get different tones.

 

[T-MOST]

My Jazz still has the Pup cover. I rest my thumb on it sometimes. I tend to play behind the neck pup anyway so it's not a problem. They are great to rest your wrist on while slapping. They have never been a problem for me.

 

[J. Crawford]

I have bridge covers on all of my Ps, and only a pickup on the one I barely use.

I love neck covers for when Im slapping, but I dont do that too much anymore with my band, and the setup I have.

I love em though. They make a P bass look like a P bass, as well as a J bass looking like a J.

But always a bridge cover. Helps for picking, and holding my foam to mute notes.

 

[lolaviola]

A clear case of listening with your eyes.
A cover, as I have always understood it, was a solution to "shielding" issues in the fifties. I think they are obsolete since the introduction of 3-prong grounds for amps. This is what I've always thought, don't know if it's correct, but they are not really helpful to any technique other than the "stuff-it-with-foam" / anchor for picking approach on a P-bass, IMO, IME etc.

 

[PunkRocker5693]

ehhh just to throw this out there...all you guys w/ a jazz bass...and pick..where do you pick at?

 

[Lichtaffen]

They do affect sound. I just bought a sweet 79 Fender Jazz that looked incredible with the covers. Unfortunately, my fingernails kept hitting the neck pickup cover and I could hear a bell-like sound in my amp. Tink, tink, tink. Imagine that sound when you're turned up loud at a gig going through a PA system?

For the record, I absolutely love the way they look and it's one of the reasons I bought the bass, but I removed the bridge cover immediately because I couldn't pluck between the two covers with any type of accuracy. I'm still wrestling with the neck pickup cover.

 

[anonymous073020131]

ehhh just to throw this out there...all you guys w/ a jazz bass...and pick..where do you pick at?

it all depends on what kind of sound you're going for, but usually i'll pick in the sweet spot between the neck and bridge pickups or just above the neck pickup

 

[Mad_Bassist777]

I have been contemplating buying pickup and bridge covers for my jazz bass for the longest time- I just called my local shop and found out they have some in stock. I play probably 70% pickstyle and 30% fingerstyle, and I'm not much of a slapper.

My question is, will the addition of these covers make playing bass pickstyle overly difficult? I'm assuming I could rest my hand on the bridge cover and pick the strings from there. Can anyone who plays a bass with bridge covers on help me out here? Thanks

I personally have no problems and I play fingerstyle with three fingers so go for it

but in the occasion that I use a pick (2% of the time) I play close to the neck so it doesnt bother me