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Fender Jazz Bass?

V

Venturella

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Feb 10, 2016
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#1
Im on a verge of getting a fender 2012 am std jazz bass. I play mostly play rock and metal. (rhcp, opeth, tool to even dream theater and cannibal corpse etc) Are they good for metal? Im putting a lot of thought into this and i cant decide if i should get one. Also, how are those bass like in general? How would you rate them?
 
#2
The American Standard is a well built bass and has been successfully used many times over in all the genres you are considering. There are a lot of choices out there, but this bass is one of several that are considered staples in the industry.

How you like it will be a personal matter. Everyone has different basses that speak to them Make sure you are getting a fair price on used one and you will be able to sell it for the same price if you find out down the road that it doesn't work for you.
 
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#3
DigitalMan said:
The American Standard is a well built bass and has been successfully used many times over in all the genres you are considering. There are a lot of choices out there, but this bass is one of several that are considered staples in the industry.

How you like it will be a personal matter. Everyone has different basses that speak to them Make sure you are getting a fair price on used one and you will be able to sell it for the same price if you find out down the road that it doesn't work for you.
Click to expand...

DigitalMan stated it well. I personally like playing Am. Std. series basses.
 
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#8
Venturella said:
Im on a verge of getting a fender 2012 am std jazz bass. I play mostly play rock and metal. (rhcp, opeth, tool to even dream theater and cannibal corpse etc) Are they good for metal? Im putting a lot of thought into this and i cant decide if i should get one. Also, how are those bass like in general? How would you rate them?
Click to expand...
Jazz basses are great and will suit your needs just fine. Check out the effects forum if you want to dirty up your signal and make it sound real nice and grindy.

Given that you're into rock and metal, a nice roundwound string should do you well. In a former prog rock group, I used DR PURE BLUES. Great string, I can't get enough of 'em. Now, if only I could get a sponsorship... Nah, that'll never happen. :(

Anyway, make sure you also get a tough amp to go with that bass. Never spend all your cash on a bass and cheap out on the amp. After all, where does the sound come from? Make sure you have a strong speaker backing you up.

PortlandBass77 said:
Make sure to play it before you buy it: the quality control of the American Standards I have played has been very inconsistent. Some are amazing and others are absolute garbage.

A jazzzz bass should do just fine in any of the genres you listed.
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*whisper whisper* .......G&L........ *whisper whisper*
 
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#9
Play it. If you bond with it, bring 'er home. To twinjet's points, I'd agree with roundwounds as a starting point, and there are plenty of ways to shape a Jazz's tone for whatever genre you're playing, from onboard and outboard preamps to effects to amp setting to voodoo. To DigitalMan's point, if for some reason it doesn't work, you should be able to exit your experiment without a wallet loss.
 
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#10
Don't know if it helps, but the rule of thumb that's worked for me is Precision bass for high-endy, white noisey, Strat type guitars and Jazz bass for bottom endy, brown sounding Les Paul/SG type guitars. That way we aren't sitting in the same sonic sandbox. I'm almost always playing in 3 piece power trios though and it just works for me. Sorry to be all science-y.
 
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#12
It's tough to go wrong with a J bass, especially a USA model. They have great versatility as well as resale value, should you find something you like better. As for playing metal, and any other genre, think about your amp too. Your "instrument" is the combination of the 2.
 
#13
Venturella said:
Im on a verge of getting a fender 2012 am std jazz bass. I play mostly play rock and metal. (rhcp, opeth, tool to even dream theater and cannibal corpse etc) Are they good for metal? Im putting a lot of thought into this and i cant decide if i should get one. Also, how are those bass like in general? How would you rate them?
Click to expand...


Venture Capital... I own a 60th Anniversary Jazz bass, and absolutely love it. It has great range, especially on the lower end. I play mostly RUSH, and pretty much anything from the 80's. Not sure what you're waiting for... In the immortal words of Otis Day, and the Nights... "Hit it!".
 
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#15
DigitalMan said:
The American Standard is a well built bass and has been successfully used many times over in all the genres you are considering. There are a lot of choices out there, but this bass is one of several that are considered staples in the industry.

How you like it will be a personal matter. Everyone has different basses that speak to them Make sure you are getting a fair price on used one and you will be able to sell it for the same price if you find out down the road that it doesn't work for you.
Click to expand...
That covers it. End thread
 
#17
Standards are nice BUT for my money and yours of course, I would get a MIJ Geddy and save the funds for any slight upgrades you may want. ex: Hard Case (or may not need)
 
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#19
Yes it is good for metal and you will love it very much!
Here's my '08 american standard jazz bass:
amstdjazzbass.jpg


amstdjazzbass1.jpg


PS. I don't play heavy metal, I play jazz so the headstock logo suits me just fine.
 
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#20
For Dream Theater-like tone, a Jazz isn't the best for that, I think. John Myung uses HH or HS pickup configurations. The last time he used double single coil basses was when he was first starting out as a kid...using a Fender Jazz.

But if you're looking for modern DT tone....a Jazz won't work. I think.
 

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