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Fender American Standard Jazz V vs. Precision V

rmars

rmars

Jan 2, 2004
1,581
855
Bettendorf, Ia
#1
Hey ya' all, I am interested in the newer (post 2008) American Standard Jazz and Precision 5 strings. I have seen Ed Friedland's review of the P-Bass version and even played one and was very impressed.

However; I have always been of the belief that a bridge pickup (or in the case of the Stingray the sweet spot) really made the sound of a B string not to mention I'm a J bass guy.

Also would like to know about weight, I keep seeing some pretty light weights posted on the P's but not much about the weights of the J version.

Besides the obvious differences between P and J basses would love to hear from some of you guys that have spent some time with both version of these Fender 5 strings what opinons you formed about them.
 
#2
You're overthinking this. If you're a J bass guy, buy the J. I've spent time with both and love both. The reason I went for the P is because on a recent album I got a pretty good J sound by twiddling with my Lakland 55-02, but I never got a really good P sound out of it, so that's what I needed to fill the void.

Even the necks are the same, so you don't even have to worry about that.

One day, I'd like to get teh J to match my P.
 
#3
don't discount the earlier "american series" jazz V.

that was the one model in the whole line where the S1 switch was really useful; series-wiring the jazz pickups brought back the missing beef on the low B, fixing its otherwise slightly anemic sound.
 
#5
I have Both. Love Both.

The J vs P or J + P arguments still apply.

The P5 is the BEST P I've ever owned. The B is great. Same for the J5 (but I did put NORDY Pickups in the J)...I use either based on what the needs are for the song, or what I feel like playing.

No Flop on the B whatsoever, and ED knows his sh!t. It's all true!
 
#6
Bassmunnky said:
I have Both. Love Both.

The J vs P or J + P arguments still apply.

The P5 is the BEST P I've ever owned. The B is great. Same for the J5 (but I did put NORDY Pickups in the J)...I use either based on what the needs are for the song, or what I feel like playing.

No Flop on the B whatsoever, and ED knows his sh!t. It's all true!
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Yeah the P I played was great. Been wanting a P and a 5 string so I was kinda thinking it would kill two birds with one stone so to speak. But I also imagined that the B on the J may be a bit more punchy and growly.

How does the weight compare of the two you have? My shoulders been killing after every long night and the P was I played was pretty light.
 
#7
roadkill2309 said:
You're overthinking this. If you're a J bass guy, buy the J.
Click to expand...
LOL! Yeah I know but I'm broke and don't buy a new bass very often so I admit I'm over analyzing the heck out of it . To add fuel to the fire I've always wanted a good P bass and the P V I played was one of the best sounding P basses I've ever laid my hands on. I played it back to back with one of the 60th Anniversary's the P V was a beast!
 
#10
rmars said:
Hey ya' all, I am interested in the newer (post 2008) American Standard Jazz and Precision 5 strings. I have seen Ed Friedland's review of the P-Bass version and even played one and was very impressed.

However; I have always been of the belief that a bridge pickup (or in the case of the Stingray the sweet spot) really made the sound of a B string not to mention I'm a J bass guy.

Also would like to know about weight, I keep seeing some pretty light weights posted on the P's but not much about the weights of the J version.

Besides the obvious differences between P and J basses would love to hear from some of you guys that have spent some time with both version of these Fender 5 strings what opinons you formed about them.
Click to expand...

I've played one of each. I own a Jazz V and played a P V.

The jazz is heavy. It's NOT fun on a 4 hour gig. Part of that, though, I think has to do with the straplocks. I'm taking all straplocks off my basses, I think they're kind of uncomfortable. The neck is a little on the thick side for my taste in 5 string necks. B string is about as good as a Fender production model can get.

The P had a fantastic sound. Loved it. B string was plenty powerful. The P I played was quite light.


If you're a jazz guy, you'll like the jazz for sure. If you want the P, you won't be disappointed either. They're very different instruments of course, and it's all up to taste.
 
#11
rmars said:
LOL! Yeah I know but I'm broke and don't buy a new bass very often so I admit I'm over analyzing the heck out of it . To add fuel to the fire I've always wanted a good P bass and the P V I played was one of the best sounding P basses I've ever laid my hands on. I played it back to back with one of the 60th Anniversary's the P V was a beast!
Click to expand...

I overthink purchases like this all the time.

If you've always wanted a P, then I think that changes things. You really can't go wrong with either, but in light of a P being a long-time want, I'd say to get one. A P will fit in with almost any kind of music, whether you put rounds or flats on it. The same is true of a J, of course, but I'm assuming that you've already got some sort of a Jazz.

I'd check out the classifieds here for a 2008+ P 5. I saw a nice one a few days ago. If you're broke (Like me :( ), then the classifieds are a great way to buy a bass you couldn't normally afford.
 
#12
i bought a P 5 in april of 09, black with maple fret board. Its a ridiculous beast. It was my first bass purchase ever, everybody told me to start with a four string. i just saw the p five and couldn't pass it up, I've never regretted buying it. A big plus of the post 2008 fender's is the Graphite reinforced truss rod. As far as p vs J its all about the sound you like. I got the P because it does its job like no other, and i'm a huge fan of that sound, but the same could be said about a J bass, It does what it does better than any other.
 
#14
maximumfiff said:
i bought a P 5 in april of 09, black with maple fret board. Its a ridiculous beast. It was my first bass purchase ever, everybody told me to start with a four string. i just saw the p five and couldn't pass it up, I've never regretted buying it. A big plus of the post 2008 fender's is the Graphite reinforced truss rod. As far as p vs J its all about the sound you like. I got the P because it does its job like no other, and i'm a huge fan of that sound, but the same could be said about a J bass, It does what it does better than any other.
Click to expand...
I ended up getting a Jazz V, kept it a week and sent it back. Nice bass but it was heavy compared to the P V's and I absolutely disliked the 9.5 radius on a 5 string Jazz. P basses are different animals to me and I think I could forgive the 9.5 on one of those but not on a Jazz. I may end up revisiting these later but in the meantime my needs have changed .
 
#16
rmars said:
I ended up getting a Jazz V, kept it a week and sent it back. Nice bass but it was heavy compared to the P V's and I absolutely disliked the 9.5 radius on a 5 string Jazz. P basses are different animals to me and I think I could forgive the 9.5 on one of those but not on a Jazz. I may end up revisiting these later but in the meantime my needs have changed .
Click to expand...

Just curious: what radius are you looking for on these?
 
#17
I like 12" to 14" on wider neck 5 string basses. The wider the neck the more I notice the tighter radius. I'm not a big fan of 7.25" but I'm cool with 9.5" on a 4 string. The Stingray Classic 5's are 7.25 and that seems totally ridiculous to me.

Please understand that this is a personal preference I've developed over the years and I tend to be picky. I'm sure most guys could care less and that's cool. I am probably most frustrated by this because in all other ways I think Fender is making some killer basses these days. Had that bass been a 4 string I don't think I could have parted with it!:bassist:
 
#18
rmars said:
I like 12" to 14" on wider neck 5 string basses. The wider the neck the more I notice the tighter radius. I'm not a big fan of 7.25" but I'm cool with 9.5" on a 4 string. The Stingray Classic 5's are 7.25 and that seems totally ridiculous to me.
Click to expand...

I'm with you on this, but I still like the 9.5" radius on my 2008 Jazz V. I'd prefer 12" -- which I have on my G&L fours -- but the 9.5" feels natural.

Too bad your Jazz V didn't work out. I ordered mine on line, and got lucky with a light one that resonates like crazy. I think it's lighter than my 2003 Am. Series four. So the light ones are out there; you just might have to look for awhile.

I've been on the fence about the P5 for a long time. Fender could get me off the fence with a five string version of the new American Deluxe P, which would be so awesome that it seems like a no-brainer to at least give it a shot in the marketplace.
 
#19
Bassmunnky said:
I have Both. Love Both.

The J vs P or J + P arguments still apply.

The P5 is the BEST P I've ever owned. The B is great. Same for the J5 (but I did put NORDY Pickups in the J)...I use either based on what the needs are for the song, or what I feel like playing.

No Flop on the B whatsoever, and ED knows his sh!t. It's all true!
Click to expand...
:cool:
I agree 100%.
Just got a mint 2008 P5. This bass is amazing. Great B-string.
One sweet sounding P-Bass.
It is so much more musical than I expected. First 5-string that lets me be me.
 
#20
Last week I got my Jazz v from Bass Central. I feel good with the 9.5 lbs. Very happy overall. I did have to raise my B string quite a bit to keep the fret buzzing under control. I had a very well respected Luthier adjust everything He checked the frets and said that they were spot on, and the neck was beautiful.
 

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