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Do I really need a P bass?
- Thread starter SteveLo42
- Start date
With the ESP PJ you don't, need a P-bass. I did, though, as neither my Spector nor my Ray 34 does a good P sound. Found this pristine '98 Special Deluxe (passive) last week, and find the solo P sound more than convincing enough, and the tonal range with the J pickup is awesome. Been too long without one!
Why am I a Pbass fanboy?
Its not just a matter of how it sounds. The P and J are completely different designs, top to bottom. The necks are different, They hang on the strap different, The ergonomics are different. And of course, they sound different .
Just adding a J pickup to a P only changes the sound. Its still a P in my book.
So..yes. You should buy one
Its not just a matter of how it sounds. The P and J are completely different designs, top to bottom. The necks are different, They hang on the strap different, The ergonomics are different. And of course, they sound different .
Just adding a J pickup to a P only changes the sound. Its still a P in my book.
So..yes. You should buy one
A clean diet free of many of the toxic chemical in many commercial foods will help you to think more clearly and free you from this psychosis. If not, I may know someone who can apply shock therapy until you come to your senses.
Yes , you need a PB......they are not all the same , but if you find a great one , BUY IT ! 
I don't own a single Precision Bass. But somehow I now own 3 basses that have a P pickup.
I'm right there with you with the P bass neck.
I little backstory. My first bass was a '76 Fender P that I played for years but never truly bonded with. Then, I went to a 5 string Alembic and kind of gave up on P basses. Owned many a different bass after. Then, when the American Vintage II '54P came out, I gave it a try. The selling point for me was the neck. So chunky and different then any of my other basses. I love it. Recently I picked up a Custom Shop P that has an equally wonderful neck.
I still like many different basses, but these P's hold there own very well.
Bones
I was anti-P for my first decade of playing. But i wasn't entirely happy with my playing. Too many notes, not enough low end. I couldn't get to that sound i heard in my head. Looked up all my favourite players and my favourite tones, and it always came up Pbass.
I played a Fender Roger Waters P (with the 1.75" nut) and it all clicked.
I knew i wasn't gonna keep the Quarter Pounder pup that it came with, but even with it, the tone was so much closer to the sound in my head.
Swapped it for a Nordstrand NP4V, and it's been heaven since then.
I would love to see your 2 basses but I'm going to imagine neither one of them has the neck profile of a Precision Bass. For me that's also a big part of the different experience of the P is the feel and the sound. If you have a music store nearby try out a Fender Player or Player II just as a point of reference, these are moderately expensive but I think a good "baseline" to measure P's against. If that works check out some of the other options, but if it does nothing for you, just keep playing what you have!
Yep, you do as many bass players could really benefit.
Thats not to say they will use it to its potential but i see guys turn up with all sorts of basses and I feel they are missing a lot of something that a P bass can fill.
Then you should move on to the nuance that a good P can provide but thats a step too far too
When working up tracks, I consider if I need a P sound and how I can approach it.
I generally get as far as P sound with thumb muting.
However, a P and a pick might be missing the point a bit too far.
Thats not to say they will use it to its potential but i see guys turn up with all sorts of basses and I feel they are missing a lot of something that a P bass can fill.
Then you should move on to the nuance that a good P can provide but thats a step too far too
When working up tracks, I consider if I need a P sound and how I can approach it.
I generally get as far as P sound with thumb muting.
However, a P and a pick might be missing the point a bit too far.
I have three basses.
-A luxurious, handmade German six string.
-A somewhat less luxurious, handmade German six string.
-A Fender P.
Those Germans are intricate tools to craft fine bass lines with precision and elegance. Finely tuned and crafted.
The P bass is an anvil. You can pound away on it all day. You don't need to worry about it, it'll get the job done.
Sure, there are basses with active preamp and PJ pickups and you can select the P and turn off the preamp and then you'll get as close to the P sound as to make no difference, especially in a mix, but you know, in the workshop there are other flat surfaces with enough structural integrity to withstand hammer blows, but they are not an anvil.
For me, it's all about those limitations. The P bass can do one thing and that is to sound like a P bass. I run flats on mine that were installed in 2021, so they are well settled by now - which means I don't really need the tone knob either. I just turn up the volume and hammer away. Four strings, not enough frets (20? 21?), not much to do in terms of settings. It's all in your fingers.
On the six string, there's usually another position close by where you can fret that same note and you need to make a choice on which string you want to do that, sometimes giving you a tonal benefit and sometimes an ergonomic one. On the P bass there is just the one note. Fret it and go on to the next.
-A luxurious, handmade German six string.
-A somewhat less luxurious, handmade German six string.
-A Fender P.
Those Germans are intricate tools to craft fine bass lines with precision and elegance. Finely tuned and crafted.
The P bass is an anvil. You can pound away on it all day. You don't need to worry about it, it'll get the job done.
Sure, there are basses with active preamp and PJ pickups and you can select the P and turn off the preamp and then you'll get as close to the P sound as to make no difference, especially in a mix, but you know, in the workshop there are other flat surfaces with enough structural integrity to withstand hammer blows, but they are not an anvil.
For me, it's all about those limitations. The P bass can do one thing and that is to sound like a P bass. I run flats on mine that were installed in 2021, so they are well settled by now - which means I don't really need the tone knob either. I just turn up the volume and hammer away. Four strings, not enough frets (20? 21?), not much to do in terms of settings. It's all in your fingers.
On the six string, there's usually another position close by where you can fret that same note and you need to make a choice on which string you want to do that, sometimes giving you a tonal benefit and sometimes an ergonomic one. On the P bass there is just the one note. Fret it and go on to the next.
A P bass with flats is such a classic sound. If you record, its also a sound that slips into a mix effortlessly
